I'm a been there, done that guy.  I have.....

• been interested in exploring, traveling, gravity railroads, steam engines, telephones, weather, music, radio, and electronics for most of my life.
• as a youth, flew an airplane, swam in the (cold) Bay of Fundy and experienced the deadly Pocono Mountains flooding of Hurricane Diane in 1955.
• as a youth, floated for more than a mile on a river ice flow, fell off into the icy water, ducked under an ice flow and then swam for the shore.
• sung in St. John's Church choir as boy soprano to Dad's great aunt, first lady Edith Bolling Wilson, and continue to sing today in a group called Mellifluence.
• attended a one room school and attended fourth and fifth grades in a combined class, and received excellent report cards in both classes.
• won the "Perfect Attendance Award" in high school for never missing a day, (actually 8th through 12 grades).
• a partial eidetic memory and can easily remember maps, distance and direction, numbers and dates, but have difficulty remembering names, faces, colors and clothing. 
• extremely high cognitive abilities, navigation skills and visual perception, but have some difficulty with linguistics and non verbal communication skills.
• won the "Outstanding Science Student award in High School", and was able to take college classes during high school.  SAT score of 1457 in 1965.
• received very high standardized test scores (off the chart) in high school and have been a member of MENSA and similar High IQ Societies. (147)
• always had an interest in cryptographic codes and ciphers and have the ability to create and decode messages similar to my distant uncle John Forbes Nash Jr.
• won the "Outstanding Student Driver Award" in H.S., then district finals, and placed third in the State of Pennsylvania, (over 40,000 entries).
• performed in Pirates of Penzance and The Crucible in high school, and many other performances while attending college.
• been president of three high school clubs and a member of the high school computer club in back in 1963 and 64.
• connected to the University of Pennsylvania Computer Network with an acoustically coupled, 35 baud modem in 1964.
• attended school with John P. Eckert III, and have parts of early analog and digital computers from his father.
• designed and constructed digital computers from small reed relays, capable of basic mathematic functions, in the early 1960's.
• helped design, construct and successfully test a phase modulated video laser beam for a distance of over one mile.
• built an AM radio broadcast station in 1959 at the age of 11, and received interference reports from a nearby commercial station.
• attended school and vacationed with science fiction writer, cousin William Gibson in the segregated southwestern Virginia city of Wytheville.
• a multiple family relation with Philo Farnsworth, inventor of the electronic television, and visited him in his home in Chestnut Hill in Philadelphia.
• a family relation with Thomas Edison, the Wright Brothers, Samuel Morse, Thomas A. Watson and many other American inventors.
• a direct family relation with American Revolutionary War Hero, Colonel Thomas Knowlton, of the Battles of Bunker Hill and Harlem Heights.
• visited Tokyo, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Athens, Rota, Izmire, Haifa, Venice, Rome, Naples, Pompeii and Aviano, a small town in the Italian Alps.
• visited 43 countries including: Philippines, Indonesia, China, Korea, Japan, Thailand, Israel, Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Iceland and Germany.
• walked on the fine sandy beaches of Cam Rahn Bay, saw fighting in Da Nang, and sailed on the muddy waters of the Mekong Delta, all in Vietnam.
• listened to and recorded enemy communications on Yankee Station, off of the coast of North Vietnam, on the South China Sea during a Typhoon.
• been to every continent except Antarctica, and sailed on every ocean except the Antarctic.
• crossed the equator, prime meridian and international date line at sea, with related ceremonies and awards.
• not been captured while performing communication surveillance off the coast of North Korea. (The USS Pueblo was captured, we got away).
• repaired a radio antenna out on the yardarm at the top of the main mast during a typhoon off the coast of North Korea.
• transmitted and received thousands of five letter group, high speed encrypted Morse code messages while in the armed forces.
• as a certified high speed code operator, talked with other radio operators while I typed coded messages, with absolutely no idea of what was typed.
• used the ARPANET, predecessor to the Internet, connecting with Fort Detrick, MD in 1970.
• worked with the following cryptology gear: KG-14 (Creon), KL-7 (Adonis), KW-7 (Orestes), KW-26 (Romulus) and KWR-37 (Jason).
• not been able to tell you everything I did while in the armed forces of the United States.
• a lifetime membership in the VFW, United States Veterans of Foreign Wars and received many awards.
• visited 43 states including Alaska and Hawaii, and viewed thousands of historical sites and natural wonders.
• driven cross country on I-70 in three and one half days, spending one night in each time zone.
• traveled from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean and back in less than four hours.  Can you figure out how?
• visited Puerto Rico, Guantanamo Bay, Guam, Panama Canal and other U. S. Territories in the Caribbean and Pacific.
• been inside the Parthenon and Erectheion, 2500 year old buildings in Athens, Greece.
• been on the U.S.S. Sturgeon SSN-637, an early nuclear attack submarine, and accidentally set off the reactor alarm.
• been on the U.S.S. Enterprise, CVA-65, the world's first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, and rode one of the aircraft elevators.
• been on the U.S.S. Day, DE 225, while it was sinking after being bombed, and escaped just moments before it went under.
• flown on a C-5 Galaxy (it is larger than a 747) across the Atlantic Ocean, and balanced a half dollar on edge for 30 minutes.
• played basketball, soccer and touch football while on the C-5 flight in the empty cargo hold.
• flown on a C-130 Hercules in Italy while it was on fire, made an emergency landing, and was rescued by a C-2A Greyhound.
• co-piloted a single engine Piper Cherokee from Rota, Spain over southern Spain, Morocco in northern Africa and Gibraltar.
• authored many classified military articles on effective digital (MUX), shortwave communication and related topics.
• climbed many radio and television towers (some over 500 feet tall) to the very top.  (Look carefully at the picture at top of this section).
• been at sea during many hurricanes and typhoons, including two with winds in excess of 150 mph when the clinometer hit 57 degrees.
• been at sea in a Hurricane in the "Bermuda Triangle" and a Typhoon in the "Dragon's Triangle".
• experienced first hand the awesome power of St. Elmo's Fire while at sea just before a thunderstorm with a triple rainbow and a waterspout.
• never been seasick, even in the worst conditions with others using barf bags around me.
• participated in many at sea underway replenishments, "UNREPS" both nautical and aeronautical.
• sailed non-stop for 66 days across the Pacific Ocean from San Diego to Guam, in 1969, exactly the duration of the Mayflower in 1620.
• thirty one Mayflower ancestors, many more by marriage, and descend from more than fifty "first comers", including all of the "magnificent seven".
• an extremely unique family lineage with direct descent from sixteen "Pilgrims" who signed the "Mayflower Compact" and many Jamestown founders.
• taught electronics, Teletype repair (RTTY), International Morse Code, and radio operating procedures, while a student at Navy schools in San Diego.
• designed and constructed hundreds of electronics projects, and taught thousands of  kids the same skills.
• supervised, produced and directed hundreds of radio and television programs including many radio dramatic productions.
• designed or assisted with the design of many radio and television facilities through out the world.
• drunk with shipmates two times while on liberty in the Navy, have seldom drunk since.
• tried smoking as a teenager, thought it was stupid, never smoked since and never used any recreational drugs.
• bicycled more than 100,000 miles during the past 50 years (more than I have driven), and continue bicycling at the age of 61.
• never driven to work in 40 years, preferring bicycling or walking.  I average less than 1500 miles per year driving.
• enjoyed downhill skiing for more than 50 years and have skied in the northwest and northeast U.S. on many slopes.
• thoroughly enjoyed hiking and exploring, especially on old or abandoned railroads and interurban rights of way and tunnels.
• climbed many mountains, including: San Jacinto, San Gorgonio, Whiteface, Fuji, Saddle, Hood, Diamond Head, and Independence.
• explored many caves, both commercial and private, and have been wedged in a small tube in a private cave in Carlisle, PA
• been SCUBA diving in seven seas, six gulfs, five oceans, four lagoons, three bays, two pools, and one underground lake in a cave.
• met interesting friends on ham radio such as Senator Barry Goldwater, King Hussein of Jordan and thousands more.
• met Neil Armstrong, the first man on the moon and seven other United States Astronauts while serving in the armed forces.
• been a member of the Apollo 11 Lunar Team, serving in the Pacific emergency rescue operations unit 2, under CINCPACFLT.
• met 8 presidents, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Reagan, Bush Sr. and Jr., some with thanks to our friend and neighbor Rep. Todd Platts.
• family relationship with 43 presidents, Calvin Coolidge is a 7th cousin, Teddy and FDR are 8th and 9th cousins.  Senator John McCain is a 7th cousin.
• multiple ancestral relations with both George and Laura Bush, they are 9th cousins to each other and me.
• a family relation (9th cousin) to both HRH Prince Charles, and former Princess Diane of Wales, many other members of the Royal Family, and obviously their royal ancestors.
• met many royals including former HRH King Edward VIII, The Duke of Windsor and Her Grace, the Duchess of Windsor and her family in Baltimore, Md.
• a relatively close family relationship (first cousin, thrice removed) to Civil War General, Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson and his uncle, President Andrew Jackson.
• a relatively close family relationship (fourth cousin) with the Reeve family. Richard Henry Reeve, Grandfather of Christopher and William, was descended from Elias Boudinot.
• shared a birthday with Buddha, ancestors Peter I, King of Portugal and David Rittenhouse, the founding of Israel, and the International Day of the Roma.
• been a long time member (since 1974) and chapter officer of the International Polar Bear Club.
• Worked (slaved) for "Circus Kirk", (electrical, clown, and tent setup/tear down with elephants), with Dr. Boas in the 1970's, and have a great admiration for circus workers.
• experienced first hand, the unique beauty and awesome power of "Ball Lightning", just before a severe Pocono Mountain thunderstorm.
• directed a program of  Communications and Technology at Camp Shohola with more than 30 activities over the past 45 years.
• the oldest operating broadcast console and oldest operating Strowger telephone switch in the world, in my communications museum.
• while in college, started WVYC, a radio broadcasting station that is now the largest student activity.
• served for more than 25 years on the York College Communications Advisory Board supervising WVYC.
• been a licensed Amateur Radio operator for more than 50 years, holding an Advanced Class License for over 40 years.  (WA3HWY)
• been a licensed, Commercial radio operator for more than 45 years.holding a First Class license for over 40 years.  (WVYC)
• operated shortwave transmitters and receivers for most of my life and I am one of a very few licensed professional shortwave operators. (NUPH) & (WINB)
• personally taught more than 500 students about amateur radio with more than 250 being licensed. (WB3DGR)
• personally taught more than 5000 students about commercial radio broadcasting with almost two thousand being licensed.  (WVYC & WCSR)
• a superb teaching record with student evaluations, professional evaluations and a retention rate, far above the college, state and national averages.
• worked for every radio station in York County,  including WSBA, WORK and WINB, a one million watt (ERP) shortwave station.
• been a radio engineer and radio announcer for more than 40 years with the moniker "Tommy G."
• invented, (but not patented) many innovative electronic circuit designs, with some are still in use today.
• been asked by friends to join them in entrepreneurial ventures, with many operating successfully today.
  
• been featured on local, national and worldwide radio and television broadcasts many times, (picture on right).
• been featured in local newspapers, national and international magazine articles many times.
• attended the Union League, Racquet Club and Pen & Pencil Club of Philadelphia, where my grandparents were members.
• spoken at the Connecticut General Assembly, in the State Capitol at Hartford.  (pictured above).
• spoken at the Rhode Island General Assembly in the State Capitol at Providence.
• spoken at the Masonic Grand Lodge Blue Room, "So Mote It Be".Many clues are in embedded .gif or .jpg files to avoid detection.
• collected coins for more than fifty years with some more than 250 years old including a 1741 Spanish silver doubloon.
• hidden some money in various places around the world, with clues encoded and concealed on these web pages.
• been invited to, and attended the Cosmos Club in Washington, D.C.41 25 01.82  75 01 05.99   Some clues are in audio files.       
• been "involved" with the CIA during a speech by Rosalynn Carter in Washington, D.C. (Ask me about it some time).
• been a professional speaker for more than 40 years with more than 2000 lectures and talks delivered, (including classroom lectures).
• served as murder trial Jury Foreman in the same jury room as the famous 1928 "York County Hex Murder Trails". (guilty) (life)
• a few ancestors accused of, or accusers of witchcraft, especially Rebecca Gibson, Elizabeth Hutchinson and Ann Hutchinson.
• a few martyred ancestors executed for heresy, especially Venerable William Gibson, Dr. Rowland Taylor, and Quaker, Mary Barrett.
• suffered silently for many years with a dizzying array of symptoms of Ménière's syndrome, usually incorrectly referred to as Ménière's Disease.
  
• worked at Camp Shohola for more than 45 years and attended over 50 years, and as an adult scout leader for more than 20 years.
• been counseled by Stan Samenow at Camp Shohola in the 1950's. I was a counselor for his son Jason in the 1980's and Jason was a counselor for my son Chris.
• lectured, submitted memorabilia, bowled and set pins listening to "Springtime In Shohola", at Rohman's Inn, in Shohola, PA.
• taught some high profile campers like Will Mondale, while his dad was VP and Terry Eagleton while his dad was running for President. 
• introduced and taught Paul Duggan about radio broadcasting while his dad was Chief Commissioner of the FCC and President of PBS.
• introduced and taught David Yadgaroff about radio broadcasting.  David is now the Vice President and General Manager of KYW  radio in Philadelphia.
• been driven in a vehicle with the New York license plate number 1, (ONE).  (Ask me about this one.)
• received hundreds of awards including: certificates, plaques, medals, trophies, badges or ribbons during recognition banquets or ceremonies.
• voted in 79 consecutive elections without a miss.  (obviously both primary and general elections).
• worked more than 38 years at York College without taking a sick, personal or vacation day off, and being on call 24/7 during the academic year.
• worked full days at York College, after 7 hours of jury duty for two week to maintain the record.
• found time to raise a family and participate in typical family affairs like scouts, athletics, church and school functions.
• Other than all that I've been taking it easy and having a great time.