Amateur Radio Humor

New Years Day 2026 on 20 meters a QSO Between two friends W4JE and N4MQU

W4JE was one of my Elmer’s back in early 80’s s when I first got licensed. He lives in Arlington, VA now and I was in Rockingham. N.C. we were on 14.199 20 meters. I got a big kick out of what he said. We didn’t think we could work each other on 20 meters. See comments for explanation.

To explain this "joke" or common point of confusion to a non-technical audience, you first have to understand that 20 meters and 14 MHz are actually two different names for the exact same thing. 
In the world of radio, we describe signals in two ways: by how long the physical wave is (wavelength) or by how fast it wiggles (frequency).
The Simple Breakdown
Imagine you are watching waves at the beach:
• Wavelength (20 Meters): This is the literal physical distance from the top of one wave to the top of the next. If you could "freeze" a radio signal in the air and pull out a tape measure, a "20-meter" wave would be about 66 feet long. 
• Frequency (14 MHz): This is how many waves pass by you every second. "14 MHz" means 14 million waves are hitting your antenna every single second.