You have a license, now what?

What use is an F-call? When I came out of the examination room where I'd just passed my Foundation License, after the obligatory congratulations and back slaps, I walked out into the sun and wondered: "Now what?" At the time I knew two Amateurs and had met the people in my classroom. Since then I've become an active participant in Amateur Radio. Recently I was having lunch with some other Amateurs and we were talking about how their journey evolved from graduation to their current level of involvement. The key was "Information". I've talked here about how I went about selecting a radio, an antenna and the like, but there was a step before that, one that each new Amateur needs to make and that is finding the community. Ironically, while you're listening to this, you've already found us, you already have a link to other Amateurs, but you might have graduated with other people who are not so fortunate, so firstly I'd like to encourage you to contact those people and link up with them. Of course listening to me talking is not really interaction and I'm not the fountain of knowledge. Instead I'd encourage you to seek out other sources of information. The obvious ones are clubs and the Internet, but less obvious ones exist in the form of Amateurs who've been around the block more than a few times. Having lunch with Amateurs who have had their license as long as you've been alive is an interesting pass-time, especially when the guy on the other side pipes up and confesses that he has had his license longer than your parents have been alive. This Amateur Radio caper is a hobby, it's fun, it's a diversion from your day-to-day life and an opportunity to learn new things from new people. Keep your eyes and ears open and soon you too will start finding other like minded individuals. In the mean time, listen to the Amateur Radio news, participate in online fora, visit local clubs and remember that this hobby touches all walks of life across the globe. Enjoy. I'm Onno - VK6FLAB Past editions of What use is an f-call can be found online at harg.org.au under F-troop.