The Captain Morgan Clock

I've had some material for this blog post sitting in an open window of my blog for for about three months. I thought about what approach I should take, to what extent I should write about it here, etc. Then, the motherboard on my laptop died. I pieced my computer back together, wrote my TSM column, all while thinking that I really need to write some stuff on here.

That said, I'm going to take the short approach this time.

I received a great e-mail from Brian Penney about the Captain Morgan clock that he received from the station. Probably most people in North America who read this blog either know about the CM clocks or have one, but I doubt that many of our European readers do.

In an era when licensed shortwave radio stations are disappearing and everyone is sending reports and eQSLs via e-mail, Captain Morgan occasionally sends out QSL clocks. I have to ask him the criteria for receiving a clock, but I'm sure he's sent out hundreds. That's an incredibly generous gift for someone experimenting on the shortwave bands and already providing listeners with some entertainment. It's kind of like being given a gift just for accepting a prior gift.

Here's what Brian said:

Whenever I mail out a reception report I do it for the benefit of the operator.

Never do I expect to get anything in return.

The last thing I ever expected to receive was a coveted Captain Morgan clock.

Well a package arrived in yesterday’s mail and it contained a customized clock from Captain Morgan!

Very special gift and I am truly honored to have received one.

I attached a pic of the clock for your perusal.

He also gave me permission to post his comments and the photo of his clock so long as I also posted a photo of my Captain Morgan clock. I'll post it, but not tonight. I'll put it up in my next post, hopefully within the next few days.