Park Forest Illinois had roughly 50 licensed hams in the town limits in those days . One night in October 1973 an A1 OP and ace CW man "Slim" W9JMG answered my CQ at about 35 WPM below his accustomed speed and an Elmer/Young Squirt relationship was launched that lasted until Slim's becoming a silent key in 2000. Bless his heart. He taught me the fine art of J38 sending..The Amateurs Code (I don't hear much emphasis on that now..) handling traffic.
One day Slim suggested I turn down the drive on the Globe Scout until I saw no meter indication ..and pump out a CQ or two. I was dubious but my Elmer never steered me wrong . One day before school I called CQ with very little RF going out and got an immediate answer from WN2SHL in NY. I was hooked on QRP before it became fashionable.
In 1974 I became a conditional tech. Joined the USN as a radio striker in 1975..upgraded to General at the San Diego FCC office in 1979. Today I burn up the either with an IC703 QRP rig and a succession of homebrew antennas. Many changes in the ham radio racket..not all good ones..but I loved hamming at 14..and love it still
73 Greg WB9MII