It's a start

 Confucius opined that every journey begins with a single step. I took my first step tonight. In between running the South Plainfield ARES/RACES Net and participating in the NNJ ARES/RACES COMMEX Net, I soldered in the 28 pin IC socket, a 14 pin 74ACT00N quad NAND gate, and six LM 4562 op-amps on my QCX 40 printed circuit board.

No big deal, but at least I'm going in the right direction. 

I can't wait for that magnifying lamp that I ordered from Banggood to get here. A bit of extra light and some magnification will be just what the doctor ordered.  I received an email that it was shipped today.  If I'm lucky,  maybe it will be here by the weekend.

I also bought one of these from eBay today:

I have a very simple one, like you see for sale at Hamfests all the time (in fact, that's where I got it). However, it just doesn't do the trick for me. This version has different diopters and has two LEDs, and this one is designed to be used with glasses (which I already have). It should be here Monday.

On another note,  blogging via a phone is a pain in the posterior. 

72 de Larry W2LJ

QRP - When you care to send the very least!