SSScout

Spouse is CSDC Director. Makes me "Assistant Everything Else". CSDC s are very site specific: physical area restraints, Council restraints, local politics, local economics, etc. I would not expect a more rural Kansas District, for example, to cost the same as a Big City District CSDC. We picked up a wavering program and have run the CSDC for the last 5 years to great acclaim (twist arm patting selves on back). BUT... When we found our ideal park location (woods, picnic pavilions, lake for fishing and boat ride, open field for sports and state police helicopter landing, easyroad access and good parking but somewhat isolated for control issues, etc.), the park authority was very cooperative and the park staff continues to be so. But the higher ups decided that Scouts needed to be treated the same as anyone else in fees and charges, not-for-profit status not withstanding. So if Lockheed Martin wants a day in the park for it's staff, we now get charged the same fee, (times five days) plus extra consideration for wear and tear, etc. Our use fee has MORE THAN TRIPLED compared to the first year fee. O/A park service hours and total cleanup notwithstanding. Scout professionals negotiating and Scout letter writting hasn't worked. Council now adds a $10 extra fee per Cub to cover our camp this year. Next year we are looking for a new site, mores the pity. To answer the questions, yes the CSDC Director has to make an accounting to Council for the expenses. So much per Cub in, so much per Cub for craft supplies, "specials", rent, etc. And yes, they know about the camp months in advance. Doesn't mean there are enough Volunteer Staff to make everthing happen as it should. But the Lord will provide. The CSDC depends more than any other Scout activity on local volunteer work. Nothing could be done except a volunteer does it. Our DE is good and we could not do it with out him, but the CSDC Director needs all the help he/she can get. "It's for the kids" and we put out because of that. One of our stalwart CSDC staffers just changed jobs and already he says he will be looking for a new job again. Why? because his new boss will not allow that CSDC week off. "Great job otherwise", he says. Be charitable in your judgement of the CSDC arrangements. I think you'll see that painted rock may well be a bargain, but consider: How would you have done things differently? and then... Why not offer to do so? I decided along time ago that the grass will grow whether I cut it every week or not, the rug will eventually get vacuumed, and the car gets dirty and then gets rained on again. But the boys will only be Scouts for a short time. Let's see if I can give them something to take with them thru the next year. KiS MiF YiS

SM Minute:: Pass around a honeydew melon from a chain store. Not as "ripe" as a "local" melon, but ready to eat. Let Scouts agree that it is firm. Hold the melon about shoulder high and say "this HEAD does not have a helmet. When you fall off your bike, or motorcycle, or hood of a car and hit the pavement, this IS what WILL happen." Let the melon roll off your hand. Close the meeting. (clean up the mess) Try it before you "perform". ((State Police Presentation at school))

Ye-ah... My mothah came frum Brookline and it toook fo'evah for hehr to loose hehr accent when she mooved down heah to Murlin. Course that was waay befoah Ah came along, but the accent was still theah, for me to mahvel at as Ah grewup. Then too, my Granmah had a good doze of the back bay for me to learn from...

Thank You.

Whoa, That's why we're here. From Belief in God to Belief in Popcorn. So, again, if one sees their "Duty to God" is to NOT believe in him/her/it, then where's the problem? The Scout Promise and Law are the Scout's basis of behavior, as we have seen noted before here. I agree that the Adult Scouters need to note, encourage and model the following of those life guides. It is very sad when they do not, but the ideals are still there for the Scout to aspire to. Belief is personal, and (thank God) the rules under which our fore fathers agreed we should all live include a proviso to worship as we wish, be it an active worship, an inactive type or none. Why? If a Scout is "not sure about this God stuff" ( I like that phrase), I say that is his/her privilege. I encourage that seeking. Only problem is, some are afraid (unconsciously?) they might actually find that of which they seek... Me, I HAVE to believe. I found some time ago that there was a gap, a hole, a chasm even, that needed filling in my life. That was the religion cubbyhole in my psche, I guess. If I had decided to not find the proper "filler" for that cubby, I now know that my life would be much less... lively? successful? All I know is it works... "Come and see.." To get Christian about it ( I tend to do so), "behold, I stand out side the door and knock". but even Jesus' knuckles may get tired. This does not prevent the door owner from saying, "hey, what happened to that noise?" and going to open the door, to find out. Avery: Keep your eyes and ears and mind and heart open. You'll find what speaks to your condition. Be willing to accept it when it appears. Science can tell us HOW the world works, but ultimately not WHY. That's what you are seeking, the WHY. Good Scouting to you.

Friend of mine told me he liked a water bed (this was back in the 70's). But he gave it up when he found out how many canteens it took to fill it...

That's it! It's an mp3 pocket! Wheres the camelback slot in the shirt back for hydration?

In my stint as a Chaplain at the '05 Jamboree, one of my duties was as a "welcomer" at the Relations Tents. Here were exhibits by social orgs (Lions, Rotary, American Legion, etc) and various religious groups, LDS, Catholic, Methodists, Islam, etc. The Scouts could earn a "Duty to God" badge by (among other things) visiting the Relations Tent and speaking to the rep of their faith, if there was one, and they would sign off on that requirement. If there was no rep for their particular faith, and no Chaplain around of that particularity, then they could speak to the "Chaplain on Duty" a little about their faith and we would sign off on that part. I spoke to a number of Scouts who told me, quote, "I'm not sure about this God stuff". If I projected my experience onto the other Chaplains' time as the "Welcomer", I would estimate at least 300 plus Scouts out of the 43,000 attending the Jamboree held reservations about "that God stuff", so you are in good company. I've always thought that when it comes to religion, a family, whether consciously or not, always gives the children something to either accept or rebel against. You are no exception, only you have begun the choosing a bit earlier than some. No religion? Rejection of any faith? Acceptance of a formal religion? Creation of your own faith? Did you not say your folks were irreligious? is that the right term? So to will you accept that or reject it. And here you must discern the difference between "Faith" and "Religion". The idea is to ask questions (a challenged faith is all the stronger, so your questions should be welcomed), spend time reading the various Holy texts (Bible, Bagihvad Gita, Koran, etc.) and marvel at the variety and the simularity, and go off and wait. And I don't just mean asking people. Ask yourself and keep your mind and heart open to the answers. Waiting and listening to your ownself. Waiting and listening to the woods. Your unwillingness to just "go along" speaks volumes to me. I have met many quote Christians unquote that I have a hard time seeing the simularity between their behavior and speech and that of Jesus. They seem to just -- go along. I don't see you just going along. The same problem can be seen in the adherents of other religions, but that is another discussion. Look for the great teachers. St. Francis, Gandhi, Dalai Lama, Gautama Buddha, George Fox, John Wesley, Martin Luther, Martin Buber, Martin Luther King, Jr. and many others. You have your job cut out for you and I somewhat envy you for it. If you will excuse the expression, I would encourage you to Go Where The Spirit Leads You. Scouting done right is about exploration if nothing else. Didn't I say we need a "Chaplain" section here? YiS(This message has been edited by SSScout)

Goat skin Bottas... not filled with dihydroxile monoxide...

Sometimes a needy pack needs outside help. Local Scout Troop for Den Chiefs? Local service club? Big Brothers? Kiwanis? Lions? Check with your DE about enlisting some outside adult help. It is understandable when some of the parents want a Scout program for their son but outside forces( losing a job, divorce, etc.) interfer. First loyalty must be to your own, but if you can see your way clear to dig alittle more, you might be the means to turn the tide and help a bunch of Cubs for whom this is not their fault. I bet the rest of the Cubs understand what's going on. They just don't have the power to do anything about it. God be with you, friend. YiS

I second everything that has been posited above. From my reading, here are my assumptions: the two boys are brothers or close relatives (cousins? adopted? foster care?). The parent(s) is/are unskilled in parenting or over stressed in the rest of their life or are just following the model their own parents gave them. The boys are doing what they know best: stretching the envelope, looking for their boundaries, unknowingly looking for someone to say NO and make it stick. In a couple of personal experiences, we had to arrange for a meeting between the parents, the child(ren) involved, all the adults involved (in one occassion, 5 teachers, in another two grandparents, two neighbors and two step parents, in a third a SM, a ASM, two other parents) and a neutral "facilitator". We had to confront the parents with the truth of the behavioral situation. In each case, by dint of the weight of the testimony, the child(ren) was made to admit to his/her/their behavior, and the parent(s) were made to see the angelic little urchin(s) in a new light. And the involved adults gained stature in the parent(s) eyes. A plan was crafted, and was followed out. In each case, behavior, grades and attitude improved. Lots of trouble? oh yeah. But ultimately everyone agreed it was worth it. Takes careful planning and finding the right "facilitator". In the mean time, is there any chance of seperating the two into seperate Dens or activities? They probably enjoy feeding off each other . Or are we speaking of TWINS??

I would make sure that the coin slot for the Vibromassage feature accepts quarters and the new dollar coin. That way you will get fewer complaints. ;-)

Yep, sometimes we do it right. http://www.gazette.net/stories/051408/olnenew101118_32359.shtml

Just because two dozen guys and gals with pnuemohammers and 2x4s and bags of concrete and asphalt shingles and pvc and copper pipe and sheetrock and BX and ROMEX cable trying to follow white on blue paper plans that were drawn up by another half dozen guys and gals build my house doesn't mean I can't say I just built my house. Evolution is more about how it got dun not what or who dun it. Seperate issue. "The giraffe is a horse designed by a committee".

!!! Boy registers as a new Scout. On the application is a section for Shirt size, Pant size, Belt size, Hat size, sock size. Application comes with Pack/Troop/Crew number and Community and Council already imprinted. Boy and parents include $150. registration/dues. In 3 weeks, Boy receives Official Boy Scouts of America© uniform, delivered by an uniformed official of the US Government. Shirt is already "Embroidered" with the "Boy Scouts of America" strip over the pocket, the appropriate Troop Number, Community name, Council ID on the sleeve, and World Brotherhood patch INTO THE SHIRT. Zip off pants included, 2 pair green socks included, ready to go... Or, include the appropriate strips and such with Badge Magic included... What?

emb021: Thanks... I knew the strip history was more complicated, I just simplified it from my own fuzzy memory. As a boy, my Troop resisted the elimination of the "Community / Town" strips, the Troop ordered a special combo town/state/numeral patch for awhile. I thought they made eminently good sense at the time, and the Council patch fit over it easily. Many moon later, when I came back to the Troop as a Dad, the Troop was back in the main groove with CSP and Troop numeral. So we progress. And what, more than $100. to get outfitted with the new up-to-date stuff?

First there were Troop Numerals, White on Red. Then, Add "Town" and "State" strips above the numerals. Add a "Council" Strip above the "Town" Then the PTB eliminated the "Town" and "State" strips and made the "Council" strip real pretty and prominent. ("Council" and Troop numerals") Now the PTB make the "Council" strip less prominent and the Troop numerals less visible (subdued, I think, is the term?). Is the final object to be a "Scout" but not a Scout from East South Jersy Troop #100 ? Are Merit Badges being "subdued" too, or is some color being retained? Sleeve pocket can be razored off carefully, POR sewed over the space. I like the sleeve tabs for the long sleeve shirt. Bosom pockets do not look very "practical" to me. Size for notebook? Unsewed on badges? Pen slot? Velcro closing gets dirty easily with lint, hair, etc. and then doesn't hold tight. 'Course, I bet buttons are more expensive to sew on and think of the button holes. Oh! where do we put our Totin' Chip? OA flap? I bet the bosom pockets aren't proportioned for that... Is the ball cap a "headhugger" or does it have some "crown" for fit and ventilation? I find the HH type blows off real easy. ""One size fits some""

>>Pinewood derby set up at: *PTA Back to School picnic *Public Library *ask District and Council for County Fair set up. They might already have such. Make sure you bring extra cars for visitors to use. Have lots of Cub Scout Propaganda (excuse me.. Literature). >>Make sure your boys are well uniformed. Yep, Cubs in uniform at School will pick up some interest. *Look for Parades to participate in. Have a banner with name and sponsor, folks walk along and pass out literature to hands along the route. Be ready to answer questions from folks some distance away and refer them to District folks. >>Posters in the Post Office, local stores, Library, School Lobbies, etc. Your District folks can help you create an eyecatching poster. Our Council prints'em for free. >> MiS KiF YiS

We'll put this here in Cub Scouts, 'cause that's where it starts. Had a good Webelos Weekend. Our Troop did a Whittlin'Chip instruction station. Lotsa Webs learned about safe knife handling and care. Then we loaned them a pocket knife and gave them a bar of soap and told'em to make something. They sat down on a big blue tarp and went to work. We saw cars, airplanes, a tent, and even some recognizable animals. My question is: What can you do with the remains of about 75 bars of Ivory soap? Anybody out there know how to successfully make bars out of scraps? So far, all we can do is put the scraps in old knee high nylon stockings. Works okay, washes hands etc. okay, but still alittle messy. Microwave doesn't work to melt it (nice puffy result). Double boiler does'nt work. Direct heat threatens to ruin the pan. Ummmmm?

Many good comments. Listen to blake47. The cost of KEEPING a bus must be balanced against the USE of the bus. Suburbans are cheaper in all categories. Renting vans or busses can be cheaper if the useage is rare. Our church owns a set of summer camp properties and a traveling camp ("Teen Adventure") and so owns a small fleet of busses. The youngest is 1996. Bought because they are used, and in the off season, rented out to other affiliated schools and meetings. This entails training counselors to obtain their CDL/Passenger endorsement. They specifically got busses without airbrakes (another endorsement). Insurance. Training. Licensing. Regular, periodic maintenance. Who's in charge of maintenance? No towing, too complex. Roof racks or rear seats removed for cargo. Consider not how often the bus might be used, but how long it will sit? Put the OUT back in SCOUT>

I think that ,well, a uniform is a uniform... You join something and one of the reasons you join can be the neat uniform. It sets one apart, marks one as different, special. I recently found a book at a used book sale. "Matching Mountains with the Boy Scout Uniform" by Edward F. Reimer. pub. E.P.Dutton 1929. It is a history of uniforms, why wear them, the US Scout uniform, who makes it (Eisner), why it is liked (tough, good looking, Scouts like to decorate it with "colorful patches" and therefore will work harder to earn awards, and a general approbrium of Scouting and how people respect Scouts more due to the uniform they wear. In 1929. Some points from 1929 to ponder: "The accepted and approved method of securing the Official Boy Scout Uniform is for the boy to earn it himself". p.153 " The uniformed Scout helps build respect for the established order" p.142 There is a 6 page chapter about the neckerchief and its proper display, care and use. Colored, Bi-colored, Square, Triangular. The Scout staff (hiking cane? Signal pole? Litter handle?) was considered a part of the Uniform (4 pages) "Shorts appeal strongly to Scouts" p.182 Oh, yes, and the broad brim hat (narrow brim for a boy, wider for the adult) I won't go into the knee breeches ( buckled below the knee) and matching leggings or puttees. "It has sometimes been said that the Scout Uniform is a military uniform of war... As a matter of history, the Scout Uniformis modeled after... the South African Constabulary and its army of peace." p.150. Lots of neat pictures. All in khaki. So fashion and style continue... Did anyone here participate in a "Interest Group"? Eamon, do you remember any feedback from your questionaire? Rather small group, if only folks that went to that site first. YiS

Don't forget a period of "Silent Worship". Just sit and listen to the woods around you. Since I wouldn't want to subject anyone to my singing (except perhaps at a campfire), I counsel leaving singing off the menu. Then too, "All Gods Critters have a Place in the Choir" is one of my favorite hymns.

We really do need a "Chaplaincy" section. Faith must be a personal thing, it starts with our parents, our upbringing. Whatever we are taught thru example or overt teaching is the basis of what we accept or rebel against or seek and learn about.It also is dependant on the choices and opportunities with which life presents us (Quakers speak of "way opening"). The Spirit does throw things in our way for us to walk around or pick up and examine. I had a friend at work who was Jehovah's Witness. She and I would have some searching discussions early in the morning as the work day started. She was very eager for me to come and visit her place of worship but absolutely would not come to mine. She passed me many tracts about her faith but, again, would not accept any about mine. When I offered her some 'history', well, that was all right, but not anything about the belief. I could tell her about my faith and its basis, but her religion would not allow her to accept anything written about it. Bible? We could refer to her Bible, but not to my old KJV. Weren't they from the same translations? She had to depend only on what her faith leaders required of her. I felt rather sad for her. At the same time, she was a wonderful person and hard not to like and respect. If her faith helped to make her what she was, then I really had no reason to feel sad for her. But still I had a hard time believing the value of such limitations on a believers actions. How to test a faith if not to question it and compare it to others? The choice of a "Scout's Own" or "Silent Reflection Time" or "Faith Discussion" or "(insert faith here) Worship Service" is dependant on the good judgement of the Scout leaders and their Scouts. Duty to God is the requirement, the fulfillment is as varied as the Scouts in our Units. usw YiS&C

Slide show of VCrew Rafting trip on Yough... "Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald"

Narraticong: I like that. A fifth choice. John-in-KC: I respect what you have said. In fact, I find agreement in your Christian attitude, however...The idea that I am seeking to "mix and match".... I'm not sure that is what a "Scout's Own" seeks to do. Very often, the idea that someone else may have ANOTHER, different faith than my own, equally important, equally rewarding, taught and accepted equally as fervently as my own, can lead to both consternation and seeking. The Christ that I accept may not be acceptable to another. I may not judge them except by their actions ("fruit"). So the Hindi Scout in Mombai and the Muslim Scout in Djakarta is still my brother Scout. If we happen to come together in a camp, I say it is still possible to pray seperately together, to see the beauty in their vision of God as in mine. The Iroquois prayer may not mention Jesus, but the truth expressed is still acceptable to me and (surprise!) to my Muslim brother Scout. So they have told me. And the truth expressed by the prayer written by Rumi, a Sufi poet, agrees with a verse from Paul. This is not bad. Are there differences? Of course. I would not seek to insult my brother Scout by pointing them out. He and I know of the differences. God knows, too. But by their fruit shall ye know them. The Troop of my youth once went to a Jewish Synagogue to hear a famous Army General speak. Little did we know,(mostly Methodists) we would also sit thru a Jewish religious service. I doubt if it swayed any of us religiously, but it was educational. 'So that's what they do...' I tell you true, the lack of ritual and overt ceremony in my Quaker faith is every bit as important to me as the beauty of the ritual and ceremony is important to my Catholic Scout brother, or the religious habits of my Mormon Scout brother , as the spiritual habits of my Muslim Scout brother are to him. And yet they all find worth in sitting and at least THINKING and SPEAKING religiously, together. How is that? If, after sitting thru our discussion, they choose to go from our circle and NOT attempt a "Scout's Own", inclusive worship, well, nothing wrong with that. At the least, I have reminded them of the diversity of our organization. And the truth of the idea that "no, one need not be Christian to be a Scout". God speed you all.