SSScout

""Whooo Do You Love ((with apologies to Bo Didley)): I walk 47 miles of Philmont, I use a cobra snake for a woggle, got new Scout Hut on the roadside made outta Antelope hide, it's got a little bitty chimney right on top made outta a Buffalo skull. Come on Troop Guide, take a walk with me, tell me, whoooooo do you love oh honey, whoooooo do you love....... I got a Boy Scout staff and a Woodbadge Mind, I'm just 42 and I don't mind Hiking..... Whooooooo do you love….. Come on B-P make me understand, let the boys LEAD , win all you CAN, WHOOOOOOO do you love, oh Course Director, tell me, whoooooo do you love…......

AHA! There is the real trouble! The Restaurant Girls were out of uniform! Every CSDC I have ever staffed or attended, the working adults, and even the Den Walkers wore Camp Uniform! Special Tshirt and Cap! All the pictures I see of these offending young women show them in Hooters shirts, jackets and caps! If they were to be staffing the camp, the Hooters logo stuff should not have been in so plain view, if any.... I think the only exception to the Camp Uniform would be for "guest specials", such as when the FIremen come with their gear, or the year the Army Corps of Engineers came to teach building ... things like that. Were these young ladies frying potatoes or serving pizza? If these young "big sisters" were there to staff the camp, in whatever role, then the Restaurant should have not been their "cover". The CSDC should have been their "cover".

The Scout must make his own way. He will be an Eagle someday, maybe not next week, but it will happen. He will decide how to make it happen. Basketball? Scouts? Room for each , a little give and bend. Coach will understand if Scout is a little late to a game. Scout and SM will arrange for the SMC, at a PLC? At a Coffee shop? Mutually agreeable site. (YPpolicy governs) . And, as has been said, the EBoR is , in most Districts, not a Troop thing, but a District (or even Council thing). Find out from Eagle coordinator (should be listed in District hierarchy) how to schedule. Usually, SM or his designee escorts Eagle candidate to the site and introduces the candidate to the BoR, and then steps out. Troop CCMs may or may not be formally invited, but usually other Scout parents are invited to participate. But no one from the Scout's own family or Troop may participate in HIS EBoR. Yeah, it may seem like things are glacial, but it will happen. As us Quakers like to say, "way will open", when it should. Let your Scout know you support him, but let him deal with it. He is, after all, an Eagle to be.... By the way, what was his project?

I don't have any owls to show any random trucker.

""Apparently the troop has done multiple Scouts in one BOR for a long time, and everyone on the committee wants to keep it that way "to save time, otherwise we will be here all night." " Multiple Scouts? How is that showing the Scout he (singular) is important? How many times have you seen among siblings, at home, in a movie, "you love him better than me" because of the better attention shown to one brother over another, which leads to..... If the Scout is the object of review, why not all night? Each Scout , at some time, deserves the undivided attention of the parent, the Scoutmaster, the Board of Review. Why should it be otherwise? If nothing else, The Golden Rule requires it.

Pride. Yep. Proud to be a Scout. Envy. Yep. Wish my big sister looked like that. Wrath, See mom in news article. Gluttony, Better to go to Golden Corral for the All-You-Can-Eat.... Lust. Ah-hem. Eye of the beholder, the log in your own eye.... Sloth, Don't think so. Look at those girls work.... Greed. Ummmm, no. they worked at the CSDC for free, yes?

Hooters: "Who cooks, who cooks , who cooks for you awwwwl." I think the CSDC folks obviously had the "older sister" image in mind, and heck, the restaurant did a "good turn" thereby. One summer, at our CSDC, I had to send a male Scout youth Assistant staff back to the Admin area because he had purposely torn his tshirt in a "heroic/beach" style (his words), obviously to impress the several Girl Scout staffers we had. He was counseled, and reshirted and went back to serve the Cubs.

If my Scoutson has a schmart phone, and I have a schmart phone, how close to each other do we have to be for me to be "supervising" him? I will posit the news items about "free range children".. https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/free-range-parents-cleared-in-second-neglect-case-after-children-walked-alone/2015/06/22/82283c24-188c-11e5-bd7f-4611a60dd8e5_story.html and http://www.freerangekids.com/ "Make sure you're back in time for dinner". "Okay, mom."

""When asked to appear upon some important occasion and deliver a five-minute speech, ((President Lincoln)) said that he had no time to prepare five-minute speeches, but that he could go and speak an hour at any time."" A good ceremony needs the three "Ps" : Purpose, Planning and Practice . Without them, any supposed ceremony demonstrates and elicits the three "Bs": Boredom, Buffoonery and Questions (okay, two Bs) yawning, snickers and why are we here? If the participants believe in what they are doing, the audience can forgive alot, but the inspiration must come early and with clarity. I like the Patrol Leader ceremony mentioned above. It helps to make it clear what a PL is expected to do. No amount of SM talks can do what a public promise can do.

""“When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years.â€"" = Mark Twain = Scouter957: Well, if you want a little advice, you certainly have come to the right place. We have as little as anyone for you. If , as you say, the group of (Eagle?) Scouters in your Troop want the Boy Led, Patrol Method Scouting espoused by the "official" BSA, and the COR/CCh is resisting such (desirous of the Adult Led, Troop Method Scouting espoused by control needy folks), then , as has been suggested, your choices are: 1) Find another unit. Too easy, but sometimes the best idea. 2) Go to the Charter Org, the Institution Head and point out what they signed up for on the charter document. Go as a group, see below. This needs to be done as a group, not just by singular you. It always looks better to have a Concerned Committee of like minded folks . Less like a "rebellion", more like a "let's improve things". Try hard to let the IH take credit for the ideas. Let the problem person have a graceful way to "do the right thing", rather than leave in a huff or need to be dismissed in disgrace. Are ALL the ASMs and SM on board with this? 3) Make sure the folks involved can take and DO take the relevant BSA training. Point out to the COR/CCh that no one can do the best job if they don't have the right "schoolin' ". 4) Remember, "it's for the kids" , not for you or him or those men and women over there..... The purpose of life is not to add to one's own resume, but "to plant trees under whose shade one does not expect to sit". Our job as adult , old goat patrol Scouters is to set up the framework in which Scouts may succeed, not to require their success on our terms. 5) As has been suggested, as last resort, your Scout Leader cadre can "jump ship", find another CO (church. club, temple, VFD,...) and start a new Troop/Pack. Not unusual, not too hard. Depending on the response to choices #2,3,4 above, this might be the best and most fun choice! Heck, you've got experienced Scouters, boys eager, and that's the best start for a new unit! See you on the trail!

As you Scouts grow up, you will probably get summer jobs, maybe even "permanent" jobs. I recommend finding some work, sometime in your young life, in the building trades. Plumbing, carpentry, masonry, surveying, you can even earn Merit Badges in them. "Helpers" can earn serious money, and you learn how things work, how they go together, and how to take pride in your work, no matter how small a contribution you might think it is. One summer I was carpenter's helper. I worked in a crew "bossed" by, oh, I'll call him Mr. Smith. Now, Mr. Smith was by then in his late sixty's and had learned his trade back before power tools were so common. He told me his partner and he could frame a roof with him on the ground and his partner up in the rafters, calling down measurements that Mr. Smith would cut and then send up, by his HELPER (!), and the parts would fit perfectly. He often said that was the secret to reliable construction: trust in the measure and trust in the craftman's skill. One day our crew had just finished some wall frames and had tied them together for the first floor of a house. Mr. Smith came up and looked around. Then he asked me, ME!, to hold the zero end of his tape measure "right there", while he measured. Then another place. Then a third place. And a fourth. He then turned to the foreman of our group and said "tear it out and do it again". "Why? What's wrong?" "It's an inch out of square in two corners" "What? When the rockwall is up and the corners plastered and painted, who's gonna know ?" Mr. Smith straightened up and looked the crew carp in the eye. "I will, and you will. Tear it out and do it again." We tore the frames out and re-measured and renailed that floor. How about you? What will you know after the job is done?

Bingo: Welcome to the wonderful world of angst. And the forums...... G2A is fairly clear. The Scout Handbook is fairly clear. The Eagle Project Workbook is VERY clear. The folks on this Scouterdotcom have a good grasp of the Scout ideal and reality. My final advice: Talk to the boy. Talk to the Scout. Do not talk to the parent(s) unless they ask specific questions, and then speak to the parents AND the Scout. NEVER leave him out of the conversation, even when the parents barge into the conversation. It is his award to pursue. They are his parents to live with and learn from, whatever example they give. And it sounds like the Scout is doing a good job of following the parent(s)' example. Checklist all the requirements, check the time frame, make sure the Scout understands everything and then step back and help when asked. Buen camino!

I guess if Mel Brookes can find humor in the Inquisition and Nazis, we can find fun in Captain Kidd ,Anne Bonny and Blackbeard.,.. Eye patches? Lobster on the shoulder? Robert Louis Stevenson adaptation.... Cutlass Totin, Chip.... (inflation) "AWWK! Pieces of nine, pieces of nine! AWWWK! " Offishul Internashunal Tawwwwwlk like a Pirate Day http://www.talklikeapirate.com/piratehome.html What is a pirate's favorite type of music? Arrrrrrrrchestral..

So we should bring the LI-ION battery powered saws and power hammers? The idea of Scouts is to make kids independent, safe, self assured , or so I've interpreted the "purposes". No axes? No saws? We have already eliminated Morse Code and finding the north star/astronomy from First Class. The FCScout was intended to be "prepared". I suppose that having your cell ready is one form of that. You can buy a backpack that , thru the up and down motion, will charge your cell and tablet. You can bring along a roll-up solar panel. For a price, you can avail yourself of the ingenuity of many others. That is the benefit of civilization. Yep, many of the young Scouts I meet have rarely seen, much less used a compass. Magnetic, that is. Follow directions? If it isn't in that 25mm screen, , is it real? We , as Scouts, are often called on to deal with the situation in times extremis. No electrical power? Camp stove comes out, set fire in fireplace. No heat? Sleeping bags come out. No water? Haul and boil. Will the OA Ordeal become doing without the Ipad? That is an ordeal for some kids, I guess. I would like to think the Scout of today is aware of, and able to utilize, all the "ancient" technology that today's stuff has been built on.

Very nice , indeed. I hope sufficient thought has been given to the preservation of that wood bench and it's security. New Joisy?

It is starting to sound lie our kids have developed a new trend/trail/system/gradient/ ?? First is mother's breast. Then the "blankie" Then the "teddy" or "BunBun". Then then "pillow" and/or "good night moon". And then... they grow up to..... the KINDLE! The SCHMART PHONE! The MINECRAFT! (or worse....) How to wean them off the new electronic "blankie"? How to say "no" to their umbilical cord to the internet? Tweeting : Here at camp dark bugs can't sleep ((haven't tried)).... Here's a bit of doggerel for you: A Scout on his iphone would tweet, "my vcmpfr s neet! I ck my #browns & @ cmpree sit down & hike on my virtual 2 feet!"

That and Barbecue. And home made coleslaw...

Unless you are at an LDS camp... Yes, I remember some camps that specifically ask adult leaders NOT sit with their units. The camp staff rotates around to the various tables, or a staffer sits with the table the whole week, with "guests" on occasion. Maybe another staffer or another adult from a different part of the country. Or from a different country! Now, this requires sufficient planning so there is enough sitting space at each table for , say, 8 Scouts and a staffer and a guest. Maybe 6 Scouts is enough. Depends on the geometry of the dining hall. I like that idea. Even if the unit camps and cooks "in camp" (Patrol cooking?) , it should be expected they might have a staff guest each night. They do this at the Jamboree, I know.

Anti Bullying Policy: "Do unto others that which you would have done unto you".

Once upon a time, I took some art classes with the Architecture department at school. They offered a "practical" week at a restoration project in Cape May NJ. It was the historic hotel Chalfonte (look it up, nice old place). I went up with about a dozen archy students. I never met so many unhandy kids up to that point in my life. Some needed instruction (!) in how to use a hammer. Clean the paint brush after it was used? We bought so many new brushes I couldn't believe it. There were some that did take the building trades seriously, but many , seriously, looked on the "practical" week as a free trip to the beach. Some one else will clean up, some one else will put the tools away, someone else will cover that hole..... Thinking about it, I wish I could remember those names so I could avoid their buildings (!). And the water was cold in the fall up there. But the Physick House was very nice, and the Chalfonte is still there....

SBMom: Here is a specific example. Look for the County Cable video toward the bottom of the Home Page: http://www.montgomeryplanning.org/environment/tree_canopy.shtm Get those shovels out!

Check with local Arbor Day Chapter about PLANTING the trees to prune! Many county agencies (parks, road maintenance, "Street Beautiful", etc.) would support a tree or bush or flower bulb planting. Get those hands dirty! https://www.arborday.org/programs/ County Extension agent: http://www.pickyourown.org/countyextensionagentoffices.htm USDA Soil conservation agency: http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/site/national/home/ Does recycling count? Check with the county Solid Waste Department. Good Scouting to you!

Yep, time investment is significant. Family has to "take up the slack". Time is taken from work. From family stuff. Family is important. But so is one's self satisfaction and respect. Woodbadge? Why not Lions? Or Kiwanis? Or Church Choir? Or Local Activity Of Your Choice? You can stay in the bosom of the family or convince the rest of the family (!) that you will come back a happier camper. Does wife have "outside interests"? Good wife has painting classes, and they take a significant amount of time. Do I complain? No, I do the laundry. Her "time away" helps her decompress from work and gives her much satisfaction, especially when I can say (honestly!) that she has developed her latent talent considerably. She painted me a Barn Owl! And then there is the time in our various Meeting (church to you) committees. Tonight I will be driving a bus for our camping program. I could say "no", I have to stay home and clean the kitchen, but that dirt and grease will be there when I get back, and hey, son may clean it up. It is his turn, come to think of it.... When I go off for IOLS or RoundTable, good wife understands. My talent and experience needs to be shared with others than my son and wife. I earned WB and then staffed WB (QM corps). It was fun, rewarding and I met many good folks. Some of whom I still work with in Scouting. I know they took away some of me, and I gained some of them. Cross fertilization? Now, one must realize that if you DON"T participate, you will have NO effect on those folks. If you DO participate, you will leave a wake (to be nautical in my metaphor) and more will benefit from your life experience. Therefore, if they go ahead with WB without you, "it ain't your fault". If you DO participate, you will have at least some say in making sure the WBers go away smiling, not thinking "what a waste!". "All feedback is a gift". See you on the trail!

Adaption is the epitome of intellect.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8ffkDf0ol4 While hiking along with the Boy Scouts, to being " PREPARED " we commit... Like BP said, "why, for any old thing", so we take along big bags of SHHHH.....

Wow, there is a lot of stuff about this online.... Google Roy Powers, Eagle Scout and have fun.