Two Grumpy Vets and a Duuude

Bryan and Rich open by arguing over who got on the call first, then Rich rolls into a busy ham radio week: new 2m and handheld gear, a porch contact that led him to the Wednesday Whataburger meetup with the Jackson County club, and the night he put his laptop back on Windows just to send an email over the radio and watch it land on his own phone. That kicks off an argument over how many hops an email really makes, a turtle farm in Korea, and how much fiber is buried under the country. Bryan is about to welcome a new baby boy into the family, tells the story of tying western Nebraska grain co-ops together over rail-line fiber, and brings a locate story about a fiber hit where the marks were right and the proof was in hand. From there it's a full Monday of rabbit holes: colonoscopy stories where the patient wakes up mid-procedure, Rich's ham, rice, and cheese experiment and the electric smoker display he needs to replace, Ron's runza memories and a kolache argument, Bryan's boudin history, and an Am I the Asshole segment from Bryan about a kid, a suit, and a wedding. The guys get into people who think they're worth $100,000 out of high school, raising kids to be comfortable being uncomfortable, and whether anybody actually asked to be here. Ron brings the work stories: hauling 12,000 pounds overweight and proving it at the scale, a mechanic candidate who wanted $38 an hour and couldn't name a tire tread depth, the Social Security age 62 versus 67 math, and a CDL school reimbursement paper he found after eight years. Bryan's mystery pain beside his shoulder blade and a knee that quits mid-show round out the aches and pains, and Bryan gets his Wendy's order wrong on the drive. The guys argue over diesel prices, Bryan's Website of the Week is a virtual cat that blocks your screen when you scroll too long, and the tip of the day is a basic training cadence. Links Mentioned CatGatekeeper.org — Bryan's Website of the Week pick: a browser extension that sends a virtual cat to walk onto your screen and block what you're scrolling; Firefox, Windows, and Mac versions plus an open-source version on GitHub PodcastApps.com — where to grab a modern Podcasting 2.0 app and find the show's support link Winlink — the system behind Winlink Express, the email client Rich used to send an email over the radio to his phone VARA HF — the HF modem software used alongside Winlink Express Google — the traceroute example for counting internet hops Internet Archive — mentioned in the early-90s "download the whole internet" story Android Auto — the free bypass for running maps and YouTube at the same time Reddit's Am I the Asshole — the subreddit behind the new segment Jubilee — the YouTube show with the 50-versus-1 debate format GitHub — home of the open-source version of CatGatekeeper Zoom — the recording platform that warned the connection was unstable YouTube — music, memes, and the rabbit holes Facebook — memes and the comparison to Reddit Instagram — the account somebody still can't get into TikTok — family drama, duets, and the airing of family business X, Bluesky, and Mastodon — the places to share the show Support the Show We don't run ads — we never have and we're not about to start. If something in this episode made you laugh, think, or yell at your speakers, that's worth something. You can support the show with your Time (share an episode with a friend), Talent (send us episode art), or Treasure (value-for-value support through our show page). Get In Touch Bryan: [email protected] Rich: [email protected] If you are struggling with life please reach out to The Suicide Life Line - Dial 988 The world needs you here.

Bryan actually beats Rich to the call for the first time in show history — and Rich never lives it down. From there it's a full three hours: Rich jacks up a sagging furnace with a pair of house jacks and declares war on an ant invasion, Bryan's ELD takes a total brain fart and knocks him back to paper logs, and the guys work through diesel and grocery prices, government holidays, and a hard debate over a child murder case in the news. On the ham radio side, Rich walks through his new 2m/70cm dipole, a solo 65" TV mount and shack sound upgrade, and the choice between a Moxon and a hex beam for the upcoming contest season. There's RTTY, Morse code, and a tribute to the last of the Navajo code talkers. Bryan lays out his trip to Amarillo to go be a granddad, and the back half covers Rich's comms trailer dreams, a round of AI robocalls, and Bryan's find for Website of the Week. Links Mentioned FMHY.net — Bryan's Website of the Week pick, a massive community-run index of free tools, self-hosting guides, and media resources Simpson's Meats — the quarter-cow pricing Bryan referenced PodcastApps.com — the Podcasting 2.0 app comparison site Bryan was checking feature support on TrueFans — podcast app/directory mentioned in the podcast-apps discussion Podfriend — the older app Bryan remembered for its comic-book-style transcripts, now working on a v2 Support the Show We don't run ads — we never have and we're not about to start. If something in this episode made you laugh, think, or yell at your speakers, that's worth something. You can support the show with your Time (share an episode with a friend), Talent (send us episode art), or Treasure (value-for-value support through our show page). Get In Touch Bryan: [email protected] Rich: [email protected] If you are struggling with life please reach out to The Suicide Life Line - Dial 988 The world needs you here.

This week, we kicked things off with one of those small-world moments that somehow turns into a full conversation, then rolled straight into a lively discussion about changing place names, history, public memory, and how politics, media, and marketing all shape the way people think. As always, we didn't all agree, but that's part of what makes these conversations matter: three friends working through big ideas in real time, with plenty of humor, frustration, and honesty along the way. We also talked about how everyday annoyances — like stores rearranging aisles and rising prices on basic goods — tap into bigger questions about trust, economics, and whether regular people are getting squeezed from every direction. From there, Rich took us deep into ham radio world with a full breakdown of the antennas he's building, why different designs matter, how signal gain works, and what he's planning for future contest season. We got into radio gear, coax, soldering, certifications, and the never-ending urge to build just one more setup. Along the way, we swapped stories about old electronics stores, credit scores, grocery costs, dogs getting into trouble, childhood games, and the strange combinations of food that somehow make perfect sense to the person eating them. In the end, it was one of those classic episodes: part serious debate, part technical rabbit trail, and part old friends just enjoying the conversation. Links Mentioned Let's Enhance — Rich's Website of the Week pick. Turns old, low-res, or scanned photos into high-definition images. Support the Show There are no sponsors on this show — it's all listener-supported through a value for value model. If you've got your time, your talent, or your treasure, all three help us keep going. Share the show with a friend, send us your thoughts (good or bad — we'll read them on air), send in artwork for an episode, or drop something in the tip jar through your podcasting 2.0 app at podcastapps.com. Every bit of it is appreciated. Get In Touch Bryan: [email protected] Rich: [email protected] If you are struggling with life please reach out to The Suicide Life Line - Dial 988 The world needs you here.

Rich, Bryan, and Ron settle in for another round of weather complaints, heat index bragging rights, and home-repair swapping — Ron's up early for a run to Abilene, Rich shares how sealing his AC ducts dropped his electric bill about $2 a day, and Bryan's still fighting a 130-degree attic and an old house that used to run a $500-a-month natural gas bill before the wood stove took over. From there it wanders everywhere it usually does: Rich's dilemma over joining a ham radio club (and the Thursday-night scheduling conflict that finally pushed the show to Mondays), hitting 10,000 downloads and sorting real listeners from bot traffic, a Hennessy Velociraptor sighting, celebrity deaths and the Dolly Parton/Freebird duet nobody knew existed, a long detour into AI, data centers, and the power grid, and the usual politics-and-government venting. Rich lays out his plan to shoot video for Cruising the Coast with his new phone and gimbal — which is also where the episode gets its name. Bryan talks about his wife wanting to see her uncle while she still can, growing older, and the Ocean Pacific corduroy shorts he's bringing back. Route 66 trivia and a website of the week round it out, and Ron closes with a trucking safety tip everyone needs to hear. Links Mentioned Mobile Amateur Radio Club (W4IAX) No Agenda Show Podcast Apps (find a modern podcast app with a funding tag) Make My Drive Fun — website of the week iHeartRadio Daily Mail Edison Research Amazon — for anyone else who needs Ocean Pacific corduroy shorts back in their life Support the Show We're a value-for-value show — no sponsors, no ads. If we got you to laugh, think, or yell at your speakers, that's worth something, and there are three ways to send it back: Time — Share the show or this episode with someone who'd enjoy it. Talent — Make us some album art (2000x2000 square) and we'll credit you and post it on the site. Treasure — Support us through any modern podcast app with a funding tag, found at podcastapps.com. Whatever you think it's worth, one-time or recurring, entirely up to you. Get In Touch Bryan: [email protected] Rich: [email protected] If you are struggling with life please reach out to The Suicide Life Line - Dial 988 The world needs you here.

This week we kick off griping about the brutal summer heat before Ron takes us deep into trucking life — special permit testing on hazmat cylinders, DOT stops over faded UV labels, and a surprise job site move from McAlester to Ada. From there we go all over the map: celebrity deaths and the state of the news, flock cameras and surveillance, liberty vs. safety, generational apathy, and why we'd rather argue like friends than agree like strangers. Bryan gives us an update on the podcast player he's building and tells the story of a 99-year-old grandma who reportedly beat up a home intruder. We get into driver-facing AI cameras, backward-facing cameras coming to new vehicles, the national debt and gas prices, and a detour into ham radio contests, HAARP, and shortwave radio. We close it out with the website of the week, a couple of car trouble stories, and our usual value-for-value pitch. Links Mentioned StartMyCar.com — https://www.startmycar.com DeFlock (flock camera tracking map) — https://deflock.me Sayre2Weatherford.com (Bryan's podcast player build) — https://www.sayre2weatherford.com PodcastingApps.com — https://podcastingapps.com Support the Show This show runs on value for value. If you got something out of it, that's worth something — your time, your talent, or your treasure. Share it with a friend, send us album art, or support us through a modern podcasting app via PodcastingApps.com. Get In Touch Bryan: [email protected] Rich: [email protected] If you are struggling with life please reach out to The Suicide Life Line - Dial 988 The world needs you here.