been studying for months and got my license 2 weeks ago but kept chickening out on actually transmitting. last night around 9pm i finally worked up the nerve and answered a CQ on 40m. turns out it was a guy about 50 miles away and we had a nice 20 minute chat about antennas and stuff. hands were literally shaking when i keyed up lol but he was super patient with my newbie mistakes

feels good to finally be on the air instead of just listening

congrats on the first one! that shaky feeling goes away pretty quick once you get a few under your belt. 40 meters is great for beginners too - usually friendly folks on there especially in the evenings

i remember my first QSO too, was so nervous i forgot my own call sign for a second haha. now im up to about 30 contacts and getting more comfortable. the hardest part really is just keying up that first time