OutdoorThinker

And I just had a thought. It wouldnt kill the boys if we taught them some girl scout favorites.

CF, as you know OGE likes 'One Tin Soldier' which should be in your Girl Scout song repitiore and the Minsi Alma Mater is another must to know...you'll catch on (or you'll sing the words to KiltedPhilospher's college's alma mater, like he does).

We do the Mermaid song, which is a personal favorite of mine..catchy chorus

Oh the ocean waves will roll

And the stormy winds will blow

But we poor sailors go skipping to the top

While the land lovers lie down below below below

While the land lovers lie down below

The Quartermaster Song is common and pretty easy, repeats a lot too.

Basically, I think that the next time we get to singing, have us teach you and the rest of the non summer camp goers to teach you the words.

Hmm..Bingo, yes, it was a highly entertaining time. Campfire Fairy, let me hook you up with the camp song book from when YSE and I worked up at camp, that may help.

On the recitations, WAHOO! to OGE and KiltedPhilospher. They totally rocked. I think KiltedPhilospher enjoyed the oppertunity to show off his reciting talents an an environment where he didnt feel like a major dork.

I had Michael Douglas's big speech at the end of the American President memorized for along time, but alas, no more...thinking about some TS Eliot, the To Be or Not to Be speech or maybe some of the Little Prince.

I am not going to try ot pretend I have the answers for this situation, because it's definately a tough issue. I for one couldnt imagine having a child as a sophomore in college, let alone a sophomore in high school. I would certainly hope, however, that I could still turn to the adults in my life that I trust for guidance if I were to make that mistake or any other mistake. Some of these adults would include adults in and around my troop and crew.

As a sister in scouting I'd like to welcome you, Campfire Fairy.

since the end of summer camp our crew has spent:

1 Two night weekend in platform tents at camp

2 Two night weekend tent camping

1 One night 'camping' in the church

1 Two night Backpacking trip

Plus two different day trips -- Camp to help with Powderhorn and Cabela's

Basically we've spent 7 out of the last 15 weekends with the crew. Geez, I see my crew family a WHOLE lot more than my biological family, no wonder we all call OGE Dad.

It is not advised (I am not sure if it is against policy, but in addition to looking dumb, it is NOT advised) to wear the green Venturing shirt with the rest of the regular boy scout uniform. You should seperate yourself from the actual troop.

If you are going to wear the offical green Venturing shirt and dont feel like buying the grey shorts/pants and other items of the Venturing Uniform, then your crew should vote on what you will wear your green shirt with. Our crew wears the green shirts with kakhi pants. Another crew in our council wear the green shirts with heavy duty black cargo pants. Each crew has the autonomy to make uniforming decisions.

I concure with OGE. This weekend in Gettysburg was really great (well, except for those birds!! AHH!!!). Much to OGE's liking we even sang and did recitations around the campfire. Much to our liking we suggested OGE and the other advisors wear crowns at Burger King during brunch this morning --- totally fun, OGE even drove home with his on, while we sang to the oldies station. He's quite the good sport.

Next on the crew's calendar: High (urban) Adventure -- NYC

So here's another:

There are snakes, snakes, snakes

Big as garden rakes,

At the store! At the store!

There are snakes, snakes, snakes,

Big as garden rakes, at the Quartermaster's store.

Chorus

My eyes are dim I can-not see.

I have not got my specs with me.

I have HEY! Not HO! got my specs with me.

There are mice, mice, mice

Running though the rice,

At the store! At the store!

There are mice, mice, mice,

Running through the rice, at the Quartermaster's store

At camp we make up additional verses for the staff...I'd be interested to see if you do that similiarly in your camp.

Some verses include

Scott, Scott, Scott sleeping on a Cot

Ryan, Ryan Ryan roaring like a lion

Keith, Keith, Keith flossing his teeth

Ross, Ross, Ross acting like the boss.

Here are two serious songs -- OGE all for you!!

Listen, children, to a story

That was written long ago,

'Bout a kingdom on a mountain

And the valley-folk below.

On the mountain was a treasure

Buried deep beneath the stone,

And the valley-people swore

They'd have it for their very own.

Go ahead and hate your neighbor,

Go ahead and cheat a friend.

Do it in the name of Heaven,

You can justify it in the end.

There won't be any trumpets blowing

Come the judgement day,

On the bloody morning after....

One tin soldier rides away.

So the people of the valley

Sent a message up the hill,

Asking for the buried treasure,

Tons of gold for which they'd kill.

Came an answer from the kingdom,

"With our brothers we will share

All the secrets of our mountain,

All the riches buried there."

Go ahead and hate your neighbor,

Go ahead and cheat a friend.

Do it in the name of Heaven,

You can justify it in the end.

There won't be any trumpets blowing

Come the judgement day,

On the bloody morning after....

One tin soldier rides away.

Now the valley cried with anger,

"Mount your horses! Draw your sword!"

And they killed the mountain-people,

So they won their just reward.

Now they stood beside the treasure,

On the mountain, dark and red.

Turned the stone and looked beneath it...

"Peace on Earth" was all it said.

Go ahead and hate your neighbor,

Go ahead and cheat a friend.

Do it in the name of Heaven,

You can justify it in the end.

There won't be any trumpets blowing

Come the judgement day,

On the bloody morning after....

One tin soldier rides away.

Go ahead and hate your neighbor,

Go ahead and cheat a friend.

Do it in the name of Heaven,

You can justify it in the end.

There won't be any trumpets blowing

Come the judgement day,

On the bloody morning after....

One tin soldier rides away.

And...

On the shores of old still water

With it's azure blue

Lies a camp of friendly Boy Scouts

Cheerful, brave and true

Sing her glories

Live her ideals

Hold her memories dear

Give a Cheer to all who hear it

Hail, oh, Hail Minsi

Far away from cares and turmoil

Of the busy town

In a brotherhood of Boy Scouts

We will there be found

Sing her glories

Live her ideals

Hold her memories dear

Give a Cheer to all who hear it

Hail, oh, Hail Minsi

::sniffle::

I found that the female staff were really well recieved by the male staff at camp. They were well behaved and none of us girls were ever uncomfortable.

At camp school, I was the only girl in my section. I was comended at the end of the week by my trainers and the other Scoutcrafters as being "one of the guys." Perhaps because of my "one of the guys" status the guys were pretty crude, but I shrugged it off. By the end of the week they had complete respect for me as a Boy Scout camp Scoutreach director.

Andrewcanoe does make a point...all of us girls on staff had an admiring camper at one point during the summer.

Aw, OGE, well thank you for saying that Venturing is better with us --- it certainly is special/better (not that I'd know or want to know Venturing without you and YSE) with you in it! But I recomend we dont alter our crew by decreasing numbers.

But let's end our crew's abduction of this thread and on with the singing again.

STOP! It's damper time.

Oh you push the damper in

And you pull the damper out

And the smoke goes up the chimney just the same

Just the same

Just the same

And the smoke goes up the chimney just the same

(it's so much more fun with the motions!)

How about...

WAY UP IN THE SKY

THE BIG BIRDIES FLY

WHILE DOWN IN THE NEST

THE LITTLE BIRDIES NEST

SHHHHHHHHH!!!!

THEY'RE SLEEPING!

THE BRIGHT SUN COMES OUT

THE DEW GOES AWAY

GOOD MORNING

GOOD MORNING

THE LITTLE BIRDIES SAY

Starting a new thread, because I dont want to hijack someone else's thread.

This past summer at camp we had four college girl on staff --three directors and one asst. director. I definately feel that the summer was easier with other girls going through the same thing and other girls to talk to. I dont know if I would have survived camp school without my other half, my partner in crime, my friend, Turkeyslayer, the female shooting sports director. Turkeyslayer and I had the same night off and that was always good. We could vent and get a break from the boys.

However, I was fortunate to have an incredible Program Director and Camp Director both who were receptive and totally accepting of female staffers.It could have been a completely different summer if they were not cool about the girls being in camp. The four of us didnt have any trouble with being girls at camp with staff or with campers. I had some trouble with my own troop, but they are a bunch of goofy guys as it is.

I've alluded to OGE's singing in a few posts, but truth be told, I am tone deaf, so let's just leave his singing to confidential information. He does enjoy his songs though...and once you get hims started -- there's very little stopping.

Campaholic, equally you know I love you and I did know that you were a sucker for camp songs...great big cyber hug!!

OGE, Campaholic has a point...what do you have left if you took the girls out of the crew? ::shudder:: Have fun with that crew.

I dont want to fight, cause this is a happy thread.

Just for the record, I have totally experienced the Boy Scout Summer Camp and Scoutreach Fall Camporee campfire with OGE and YSE and you were totally in the white water raft with OGE and Uncle Rocket when OGE started to sing Boy Scout Sunday School song.

Just for the record, while you're harassing, what's your favorite camp song, girl or boy scout? I think my favorite Girl Scout song is Yogi Bear or maybe Moon on the Meadow.

Adrian,

"This is your home. The rest of the year, you are in exile." SOOOO TRUE!!!

I wasn't supposed to do the whole Boy Scout camp thing. I was ironically supposed to have a job at Girl Scout camp. While waiting far to long to see if I got the job, I began looking for other options (what can I say, I am a college kid and I NEEDED a job). This was March (by the way). I was told I should call the Boy Scout council to see if they had any holes at the camps. I emailed OGE on a Sunday night to get the council's phone number.

Monday morning before my class, I checked my email and called council probably no earlier than 11:00 that morning. Well, I went to class, had lunch and I believe I went back to bed, because I was feeling under the weather --- the phone woke me up. It was the program director. He had called the SM of the troop that I have the greatest honor of being attached to who gave him the green light to hire me.

'What job do you want?' He asked me. "I have an archery range director position, asstiant cook, assitant first year program director, and Scoutcraft Director opened.'

Hmm. I thought. I am not very good at archery, dont want to be in a hot kitchen all summer and why wouldnt I want to be a director over Asst. Director. "Scoutcraft Director, I guess."

"All right. This weekend we have a training up at camp. You should come. You can meet the rest of the staff. By the way, you know YoungSpikedEagle, right? He'll be working at camp this summer too."

"Okay. cool."

By two o'clock OGE had an email in his in box that said I was just hired to be the..um..i think it was called Scoutcraft Director.

Email response: "You mean Handicraft Director, right?"

Nope, Scoutcraft Director.

Well, signing on as the job I would take over this summer and get a different job next summer was apparently a myth. I was totally bitten with the camp bug almost instantly.

The rest is what you call history. Here I am in November, campsick beyond belief...anxiously waiting seven months until camp starts again --- this year, the Commissioner.

Oh Campaholic, lighten up. You know how much OGE gets in his element when he does camp songs --- look on the bright side: we only have to READ the lyrics here..we dont have to HEAR him sing.

A big :-P for OGE...for everyone else, he was quoting from our camp's alma mater -- another favorite of mine. Let's just say he uncooly uses it to help his powers of persuasion. He was around when I was offered a job for the summer in the State Rep's office just recently a few days after I had officially been offered the commissioner position at camp -- a few bars of the alma mater I had quite an emotional reaction (as he knew I would) and I turned the state rep down.

Being fairly campsick recently, I was curious to see what your favorite camp song is.

I really like a song that we sing called the Mermaid Song...and then much to OGE's displeasure, I am a sucker for One Tin Soldier

14 years as a Girl Scout...12 years as a youth and upon my high school graduation, I got a lifetime membership to the organization.

4 years as a Boy Scout with nearly six months as an ASM.

FOG: Thanks for the reminder. I think it's equally a unique oppertunity for the guys of the crew. They have the chance of partaking in high adventure (or whatever their specific theme is) with their peers...peers of both gender. Boy Scouting of America thinks it was worth trying and it's been successful. Whether you have an oppertunity to work with a coed crew or a single gendered crew, there are girls in American Boy Scouting now. Get used to it! Are we really that big of a threat? And if the guys are uncomfortable with it, they can a) stay with the troop or b) talk to their charter organization.

OGE: I'm gonna footnote your history lesson. (Sorry) Yes, the women and the men are segregated in God's Acre. Moravians lived their life communially, therefore everything was done segregated, well the married people lived together, but young women and young men grew up in different houses -- the concept was to build Bethlehem up as a missionary hub in the mid 1700s and shortly after the Rev War, the communal living style was forgone. HOWEVER the truly noteworthy point about God's Acre is that ALL of the tombstones are flat --- Moravians believe that ALL people regardless of gender, class, race are equal in the eyes of god, not only in life but also in death.

Ultimately it's up to your charter organization, but we've got a coed crew and although we've had some rocky moments we've really gotten the coed thing down. It's been a wild ride, but truly awesome.

As OGE and Campaholic have mentioned, we've had some trouble with female adult leadership, but we always have an adult female chaperone before going on a trip -- only a few trips in our early days were cancelled.

The girls in the crew, myself included are really enthusiastic about being part of the boy scouting and having the oppertunity to help shape the newer program.

The guys and girls in our crew have gotten to be a very tight knit family -- I consider YoungSpikedEagle to be like a second younger brother. Very little soap opera drama.

For FOG, upon waking up at a camping event we girls wake up with bedhead and nasty breath too. We usually remedy it with a baseball cap or bandana and some teeth brushing. Most of the time we're still not awake enough to even notice that the guys are in the same disheveled state that we are in.

I think the coed Venturing program is a unique oppertunity. It's really changed the last few years of my life for the better.

I am a full time Political Science student at a small liberal arts college with a job on campus working as a tour guide for the admissions department.

I had hoped to go into politics working on campaigns and maybe running for local office someday. However my new political passion has become Asian studies, so we'll see where that takes me.

When not scouting, writing papers, I spend a lot of time volunteering for campaigns -- I had two successes this last election day and I have spent over two years interning in my state representative's office

Does anyone have a council Venturing Executive? If so, what does he or she do? Our council's strategic plan calls for Venturing Executive in the next few years.

I'll be more specific, the things I learned from a summer on summer camp staff

-- Boy Scout campfires are more than just fire, they include songs and skits.

-- Scoutcraft is not Handicraft

-- How to tie the basic BS knots

-- A crazy repitoire of Boy Scout camp songs, that I enjoy singing when I am trying to fall asleep, which my roommate really does NOT enjoy.

-- How to lash

-- Flashlights are overrated

-- What a blue card is and how to fill one out

-- The pure joy that is the Youth Protection film

-- A bright green plastic mug, dubbed a SUPER MUG can be the unofficial theme of an entire camp season

-- How to splice

-- Being sick at summer camp is NO fun, especially when sick for three weeks with no voice...and doctors who have practices in the woods are probably crazy, they wont diagnose you with real illnesses they'll make something up..I had "de sinus" this summer.

-- Some things, like camp rivalries, cant be changed no matter how hard you try

-- There is nothing grosser in the world than a Scout getting sick on an outpost on saurkraut night

-- Nine weeks go by in the blink of an eye

-- Very little is as rewarding as making a homesick scout smile

-- No matter how much it rains, the show must go on (AND IT RAINED A LOT)

-- As long as you shower more than once a week, your cleaner than the scouts

-- I am going to get married at the chapel at my camp

-- Camp staff is like the mafia...once you're in you're in for life

-- The best birthday presents come in Darth Vader masks during terrible thunder storms