QRP operators are not ones for instant gratification. Some say we are gluttons for punishment. One buddy of mine often says "Life's too short for QRP" followed by chuckles. The way I see it, we would rather have fewer, more meaningful, contacts than a plethora of less meaningful ones. The Stanford Marshmallow Experiment comes to mind when I think of QRP. Basically it was a behavioural experiment in the late 60s on delayed/deferred gratification. Children were given the choice of either having 1 marshmallow right away or waiting a specified period of time when they would be allowed to have 2 marshmallows. Some kids wanted marshmallows immediately and did not want to wait whereas others knew that if they could wait 30 minutes they would be rewarded with 2. QRP operators are 2-marshmallow people.
Today while operating I heard OK2ZV calling CQ. It's not a special call or rare contact or anything like that but with the SP DX contest on it was nice to hear someone calling just CQ. I started with 500mw and had no luck. I bumped up to 1W but still had no luck. I also had to move the dial a bit as he was moving around a bit. I then tried 2.5W still with no luck so I decided to try go slightly below his frequency...no luck. I then went slightly above and Bingo he heard me. I was so pleased. I was disappointed that my power was higher than I had hoped but my work in chasing him paid off in the end. I'll wait for 2 marshmallows any day of the week as I feel it is so much more rewarding.
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