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Brian Martin

@brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social
1.3K followers 625 following 453 posts

Covered in layers of sand, solvents and oil while repairing machinery in the vicinity of molten metal. The rest of the time I try to contact strangers with whatever I can use as an antenna, photograph everything and disappear into books.

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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
I don't think anything else can keep me agitated all day for days and weeks on end than realtors. 3 must-haves. Location is flexible w/in a region, lot size fairly flexible, 3rd is a bit odd but not uncommon. Three things or don't call, but I still get the "I know it's not quite what..." calls.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
August's reading. Thoughts in the alt.
*Fires in the Night - Matthew Wolfe --The source of hours of conversations w/friends already and likely still more to come. "All social movements are, at bottom, composed of people, and rest upon an often delicate set of relationships."

*Migrations - Charlotte McConaghy --Left my first copy on the arm of a deck chair before an unexpected rain, but had read enough to decide to buy another to finish it. Worth the price of two copies. Is apocalyptically beautiful a thing?

*I Made You Up Inside My Head - Marta   Perez-Carbonell --I don't want to admit to how far in I got before I wasn't confused by the structure(?), but still engaging enough that I'll look for anything else of the author's that comes along (and gets translated in english).

*Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers - Jesse Q. Sutanto --Really needed this given the weight of everything else I read in August. I feel like I know the character Vera...and I've since heard many people feel the same. Already have a copy of the next in the series. 

*Dressing the Bear - Susan L. Leary --You're gonna want to get right with your ghosts, memories, however you want to describe it before experiencing this. Or maybe reading this will help you get there...maybe some of both? I could only manage it a bit at a time which ended up being April through mid-August. Extremely grateful to the author for sharing this collection.

*No One's Coming - Kevin Hazzard --A fine example of how a person's job title doesn't mean they can be counted on when things go sideways as well as several examples of the kinds of people that tend to shine in the same environment.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 15/08/2026
At the fervent recommendation of a friend, this moved up a few spots from my TBR pile & I started it yesterday. Ch 2, even as a broad overview, really captures an element of the 90s PNW that gets washed away in so many retrospectives lately.
A book titled 'Fires in the Night: The Earth Liberation Front, The FBI, and a Secret History of Eco-Sabatoge' by Matthew Wolf
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
Had a few visitors during lunch
A blacktail doe with fawns to each side, standing in a shaded mix of grasses and blackberry brambles
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
Outstanding suggestion Suse @bookish33.bsky.social, thank you! It arrived Saturday, started it Sunday night and I didn't get nearly enough sleep Monday night on account of staying up to finish it I've already ordered 'Saving Emma' and pre-ordered 'The Loyal Daughter'.
A book titled 'The Quiet Librarian' by Allen Eskens
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
Open to amateurs - "awesome" Run-what-ya-brung style - "perfect, no excuses, I love it" 1st task opening the event is making contact w/control station at CFB Kingston during a designated brief window - "Okay, where's that?" *looking at map* "Ahh FFS Canada!"
canada.ca
EX NOBLE SKYWAVE 2026: Registration open for High Frequency Communications Competition - Canada.ca
Every year, communications specialists from the Canadian Armed Forces, allied and partner nations, and the amateur radio community come together for Exercise NOBLE SKYWAVE—a unique global competition ...
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 19/07/2026
The ZachTek 40to6 WSPR transmitter arrived yesterday. Ran it over night on the 30 meter band into a QRPGuys Tri-band vertical. The transmitter & software setup...outstanding. Vermont is clearly a fictitious place created by the Hallmark Channel seeing as how no signal reports came from there.
A map mostly showing portions of North & South America, Australia and Africa where a 10Mhz radio signal was heard over several hours. The red dot represents the grid square of the origin location with paths tracing to white dots representing locations of stations that heard the signal.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
New neighbors. Chatty in the morning and evening, too busy grabbing food to chat much throughout the day.
A chickadee peaking out of the entrance of a birdhouse. The birdhouse is meant to look like it was made from a tree stump and branches.A (young?) chickadee with some food in its beak perched on a galvanized pipe.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
Am I mistaken or did it used to be possible to add alt text to images 'after' they are posted?
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
Figured a bit of a backyard hike in Marckworth Forest today would be a nice way to try out a new antenna...then noticed my Discover Pass is expired so phone pics from the cab of the truck was all I could do
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
Seeing the antenna arrays for Kraken SDR's on two other vehicles today tells me I'm not the only that uses VHF contest weekends as transmitter hunt practice.
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Reposted by Brian Martin
Linda @ggvotesblue.bsky.social · 13/06/2026
They took down Chappie James' portrait. That's what people like hegseth do when they can't measure up to a better man.
theatlantic.com
Being Black in Pete Hegseth’s Military
The secretary of defense is sending the message that Black service members are not welcome.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 27/03/2026
Following up on the theme of why is the world the way it is, how is it that cougars and black bears seem to move near silently even through the gnarliest brambles but critters so much smaller may as well be a Cat D9 in comparison given how noisy they can be in the brush?
A rabbit with white and red flecked brown fur eating some spring shoots coming up through some dead brush.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 27/03/2026
Why is it that I have to spend weeks every year correcting my info with data brokers instead of the brokers having to pay me when I find wrong info ABOUT ME?!
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 25/03/2026
Odds of finding new old-stock of this control board - slim. Lead time on a properly spec'd PLC replacement - 52weeks to never. Lead time on an Arduino Uno running OpenPLC - couple hours.
A circuit board placed next to a comparatively much smaller microcontroller
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 24/03/2026
Kind of a major client on site today and the inspection x-ray machine is down. Fortunately I've got a thorough manual for it, two actually. Unfortunately, I can only find the German language copy. Google translate has been doing some heavy lifting for me all morning!
A warning(?) page in German from a manual for an x-ray machine.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
king5.com
Seattle spent years misleading the public about Skagit River salmon. Now it will pay $1 billion for fish passage
For years, Seattle City Light insisted its hydroelectric dams on the Skagit River were not harming salmon.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 16/02/2026
I can't be convinced that this crow isn't practicing dressage movements.
A crow facing the sun on a weathered shake roof. One leg raised and poised in a manner reminiscent of dressage. The background is out of focus moss covered branches.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 29/01/2026
"Covered in layers of sand" is in part due to days like this. No, sand is not supposed to be pouring from there.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 28/01/2026
Mealtime! A crow and the same squirrel from last weekend.
A crow with its wings spread in flight carrying something in its beak. An out of focus hillside is in the background.A squirrel on a tree branch with its front feet holding the red fruit its eating.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 25/01/2026
And this evening
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 25/01/2026
A bit more
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 25/01/2026
Needed some distraction this morning
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
Needed a break from my typical genres for lunch break reads. Just started it today, but...its working 😉
An e-reader placed on a center console showing the cover page of a book titled 'Birding With Benefits'.
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Reposted by Brian Martin
Ham Radio World @hamradioworld.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
Winter Field Day www.hamradioworld.org/post/winter-...
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 12/01/2026
I've spent way too much time today deciding which book to start the week with tomorrow.
Four books arranged on a table. 'The Bewitching' and 'Silver Nitrate' by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. 'Culpability' by Bruce Holsinger and 'Sawdust Empire' by J.D. Howard.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 17/12/2025
A collab between The Rolling Stones and Fatboy Slim was not on my 2025 bingo card southernfriedrecords.bandcamp.com/album/satisf...
southernfriedrecords.bandcamp.com
Satisfaction Skank, by Fatboy Slim, The Rolling Stones
1 track album
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
The temporary lakes in Cherry Valley and Tualco Valley had receeded significantly vs this morning...but now the rain has returned.
A flooded field in Cherry Valley viewed through a vehicle's windshield from Hwy 203.A flooded field in Tualco Valley to the north of the other pic also viewed from Hwy 203.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 14/12/2025
Pupnapped a pup for the week.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 12/12/2025
I was far too dismissive of the flood warnings. Haven't seen it like this since maybe the early '90s, but I won't be surprised if it ends up topping that record.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
Still seems like typical seasonal flood levels in Duvall instead of the megafloodofthecenturyohno!
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 21/11/2025
30 minutes in to learning the guitar and I know the D and A chords, so if my math is right I should be able to stand-in for Jimmy Page or Slash in about a month right?
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 13/11/2025
I'm not saying I would kill for a good project manager, but let's not rule anything out just yet.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 04/11/2025
There wasn't a line at the ballot drop-off box this morning, which is a bit different. I hope that means people mailed them in early instead.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 12/10/2025
I thought my eyes were beginning to betray me (and they are) due to night driving becoming more difficult. Turns out the night driving issues were solved by finally replacing the headlights. The recent onset of nearsightedness and astigmatism were solved with a prescription.
Headlight assemblies. New on top, old below. Relative distance from the camera and angle are making them look different sizes.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 06/10/2025
I thought I would get about a week of lunch breaks out of this. No such luck, couldn't set it down Friday night and finished it Saturday morning.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 30/09/2025
Skidding to a stop in front of a crosswalk is certainly one way to learn the ABS isn't working properly.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 27/09/2025
Trying to get some pics of the pink salmon spawn on the Snoqualmie river this morning. I have no idea if any are any good yet.
River with rocky beach in the foreground, trees and a partly cloudy sky. Camera on a tripod with a bag steadying it also in the foreground pointed toward the river.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 22/09/2025
3 years ago the author called it "Washington's Most Spectacular Hike" which I would have disagreed with then and even more-so today. The problems highlighted today pre-date the staff getting DOGE'd. | Seattle Met share.google/Lv2vLNpFV2KW...
share.google
It's Time to Stop Hiking the Enchantments
Yeah, I said it.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 21/09/2025
Just having fun with silhouettes
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 21/09/2025
Airplane over the setting sun
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 20/09/2025
youtube.com/shorts/d1WjP...
youtube.com
Why Construction Takes So Long:
YouTube video by You Betcha
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 20/09/2025
Didn't seem to mind the scare-crows nearby at all
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 20/09/2025
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 20/09/2025
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 20/09/2025
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 19/09/2025
Normally I have a good chance of seeing turkey vultures in this spot at least through September, but haven't seen any for a bit over a month. Kind of a bummer for my breaks at work.
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Brian Martin @brian-kj7cnz.bsky.social · 18/09/2025
Got vaxxed before RFK Jr's brain worm could prevent it. A bit surprised the pharmacy wasn't crowded though. Even prior to covid it seemed like there was always a line each fall.
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