DreamWeavers World Teknologies

02/10/2024

Warning, Geek alert, scroll on past if your eyes glaze over.

As some of you know, one of my deep dark secrets is that I am a ham radio operator. Yeah sometimes that is a bunch of old guys blathering about the good old days but hey, it is the original world wide web and social network.
For me, Ham radio offers a wide variety of challenges that truly peak my interests. (here comes the geeky part)

When traveling, my goto rig is a DMR HT and a portable hotspot (if your still here and don't know what that is, think Voice over IP on a walkie talkie.) This is a little like cheating but I regularly make contacts al over the globe. One of my most memorable, and one of my first was from Ukraine. The operator on the other end was defying his occupiers and getting the uncensored truth out while I head the sounds of WAR in the background. Godspeed and 73 to you UT8UU

I also monitor and talk on the HF frequencies, this is true radio-to-radio global communications. From (wherever i may be) I have talked to numerous European countries, a couple south American contacts and many contacts thousands of miles hence right here in North America.

I can usually be found on (local) VHF/UHF repeaters and linked repeater systems. I participate in SKYWARN, ARES, and other emergence related "NETS"

One of the best parts of HAM radio is a lot of the equipment is DIY, all of my HF contacts have been made over a homebuilt antenna constructed out of junk I had laying around.

I am currently building a YAGI (highly directional) antenna that will follow the ISS across the sky and enable me to talk to the astronauts on board (they are all HAMS). How freaking cool is that?

Here are some picture that I took before I ran south. All of these of these are related to the project in some way but I took the liberty to include some things i learned along the way that ended up in other projects. I am looking forward to getting back to my shop (when I am sure it has warmed up) and completing this project. This is a very multi disciplinary project, it includes components that will challenge all of my superpowers (3D printing, welding, Micro electronics, RF engineering, and on and on. ) Fortunately, I have the love and support of Mary Lokay, my own personal MATH superhero. (sorry, super-heroin, just doesn't sound right)
I will definitely put up some more content as that project comes to fruition.

73 (hamspeak for have a fabulous day!)

Stay tuned...

01/11/2021

I will throw in the company for an extra $250k

Listing #21-247, Price: $300,000, Address: 8269 S Foxworth Drive Wasilla, Beds: 2, Baths: 2, Residential SqFt: 2352

02/17/2020

Letting google manage the photos, may work better.

46 new photos · Album by Kurt Steiner

02/16/2020

Yakutat. Another day another 1000 miles, or so. Thanks to one of our newest and most favored customers, I got to visit one of the few places in Alaska that I had never been. Yakutat "place where the canoes rest "

Yakutat is on located on/in one of the few sheltered bays in the Gulf of Alaska. (sounds like a good place to rest your canoes, and it was) It is a small fishing "village" (300 in winter 400 in summer) with a tourist problem. If you are looking for a truly authentic Alaskan fishing experience (from steelhead to coho) Yakutat is where you want to be. It is small enough to make you feel truly remote.

The "milk run" from Seattle to anchorage stops there twice a day, once going south in the AM, and once north in the PM weather permitting. The airport is a WWII holdover from the lend ease route to Russia and is now the alternate 8000 foot landing strips for most of the west coat.

Yakutat has the gulf of Alaska to it's south and west, and 7 of the continent's 10 highest peaks to the north and east. Most days you can see the white spray and the world class surf of the Gulf, some days you can see the mountains.

This place is as isolated as it gets. If you wanted to hike inland you would die, in the vast ice field. If you had to cross the gulf you would want to be in a very large ship. This is not the same as the inside passages of southeast Alaska. this is the gulf, one of the most forbidding parts of the earths oceans.

The topography is flattish coastal estuary with towering Sitka spruce with a canopy so this the snow doesnt find much of the ground.

All of southeast Alaska is a rain forest, and looks like one with endless canopies, moss covered branches, and loamy forest floors. None of which i got to see because the day before i arrived they had a 'squall" that dumped a couple feet of the white stuff.

As i always find in Alaska, the people were exceedingly friendly (your results may differ if you don't have the right attitude) EVERYBODY waved (even at the outsider in the towns only rental truck.) The hardware store was amazing as they always are in remote Alaska, and the hospitality for a fellow Alaskan was outstanding.

I stayed at the the Blue Heron B&B and got my coffee and a french dip from Fat Grammas.

My "customer" and his wife, and dog, and kitten live in a hanger (the true Alaskan dream) they commercial fish when it is season, and run a sport fishing camp up the coast when that is in season. They are not people anybody could ever knock off their feet I got the pleasure of hearing the proprietor negotiating with the "feds" over some stupid rule on their concession, and was truly humbled by his logic, candor, and patience. Hats off to YOU my brother, I could not have kept my cool.

Enjoy the pictures, and feel free to post your questions. If I don't have a good answer I will have a lie you will believe.

OK, I am confused, I spent an hour uploading and captioning pictures and they are not showing up. Keep reading, maybe i can make facebook make sense.

11/19/2019

Let the adventure begin... (actually it started Saturday but I have been stuck in traffic since.)

10/29/2019

An evening on the beach in Seward Alaska. 48, and very pleasant.

10/28/2019

Last dance for the 2019 summer camping season. Maybe...
My favorite customer Stevie Nutter, has a quick job in Seward she needs done. So, she called us, cuz she knows we get IT done! Alaska Tammy And I packed up yesterday for what may be the last camping trip of the summer. We are on borrowed time already as the fall has been wet and windy, but not yet cold and snowy.
I just checked the weather for our route. Turnagain pass looks to be wet but not frozen, and Seward itself is under a flood advisory, but that is all kind of normal for this time of year.
Temps look to be fairly consistent at about 40F.
Stay tuned!

06/29/2019

New "Feature" MagicSprinter. Or at http://www.magicsprinter.com/bird_houses/

Alaska Tammy could not bring herself to throw away the scrap highly engineered wood product left over from the siding project. SO, she is making birdhouses out of the surplus!!!
I am truly humbled and inspired by her creativity.

I added QR code labels, linked to personal articles on each creation (http://www.magicsprinter.com/bird_houses/) to "globalise" the endeavor. (Cuz that is who I am.)

Enjoy the adventure. http://www.magicsprinter.com/bird_houses/

Tammy's Bird Houses Number 2 June 28, 2019 kurt steiner Leave a comment Serial Number 2 Copy of Serial Number 1 BUT has the “Enhanced cleanout mechanism” Drop location TBD. Suggestions?

06/09/2019

A Hero in my world.

CNC Machining is what we do. We are Experts and on this channel we are bringing our knowledge and experience to YOU. Want more? Learn CAD, CAM & CNC Machinin...

05/23/2019

Parts got bumped until at least Friday. We caught up with what we had to work with and decided to head home. Looks like I will have to fly back next week and finish it up:(I hate leaving jobs uncompleted for any reason.) This is Alaska, it is DIFFERENT than any other place. Please call me before you work up a big job up here, I will tell you how best to get things done in our market. Alaskan Logistics (is/are) part of the service you get by hiring DreamWeavers. 18 years in business because we care about getting the job done for our customers, and KNOW how to deliver results (I also hate having to do revisits, etc.)
Back on the ferry, and back on the road. 0500 tomorrow...

05/22/2019

WE have been blessed this couple of weeks. Last week we got to drive to Fairbanks Alaska for one of our favorite customers Spencer Technologies to do some work for one of our favorite "primes" AT&T. the next day (360 miles away) We did a quick turnaround at our home base (less than 24 hours) then we hopped on the road to Juneau. This is 750 miles of sub arctic, (one way) substandard road, 2 international border crossings and a 5 hour ferry, (or maybe fairy? LOL) ride through the Beautiful sub arctic spring!

Again, our "prime" is AT&T, but we are working for OSBT. Small warehouse (with 36 foot ceilings) LOTS of interfacing with the sparkys and the GC. We have caught up (almost) to the parts we have. NOTE to people who need something done in Alaska in the summertime (tourist season) ALWAYS ship PRIORITY (Gold Streak) if shipping something within Alaska, otherwise, your parts get bumped in favor of tourists, and their luggage) We are almost to day 3 of being bumped.

BUT, WE love Juneau! (I never thought I would EVER,EVER say that but it has grown on US. BIG beautiful HEALTHY trees, mountains that plunge into the ocean, all the majesty one can imagine. Yada, yadda yadda....

Tonight, we pray in gratitude for the customers that we get to work with/for, and the people we GET to meet meet and work with along the way. Thank you all for making our journey (times) interesting.

05/16/2019

Another awesome day in our awesome life! We got to work with some great people in our favorite interior Alaskan city Pretty sure it's the only interior Alaskan city, but it is our favorite! Shout out to Wayne, of G3 and Reggie from Utah. As always it was a pleasure working with you and your crew (even the cranky sparky)