MikeS72

Yes. There was a period where the lighter weight pants had that built in belt with a backpack style locking clasp. We have a couple of pair like that in our uniform closet.

Not sure I have seen a current scout turn their collar under. My troop does not wear a neckerchief, although I do occasionally wear my Woodbadge one, and will on occasion wear an older 60's uniform and do wear a time period neckerchief with it. If I am wearing the collared 60's shirt I turn the collar under, if I am wearing a collarless shirt, it is a moot point. I do make sure that it is rolled tightly, and to a length of 6 inches when I wear any neckerchief, with the slide up to the last buttoned button.

I will agree with several items on that list. The ISP, skill awards, and that period where camping and cooking were no longer required MB's. I earned Eagle in 1971, prior to those changes taking effect. Swimming and Lifesaving were the last two merit badges I needed, and were last for a reason. I did not live anywhere where learning to swim was feasible, for years the closest pool was 100 miles away. If swimming had not been required for First Class, and the 2 MB's required for Eagle, I doubt I would have ever learned. As I have stated several times in response to the many on here wh

I like this one. Our pack is doing crossover this Thursday night, I may suggest that to them.

We were way ahead of the culinary trends when I was a young scout in the 60's. Many were the mornings that we enjoyed Cajun Blackened Pancakes.

Klingon

I am also a product of scouting in the sixties, and as such agree that while it is now possible to blitz through with the minimum time in rank, and reach Eagle while still 11; that was not the case back in the day. As you state, you had to be 11 to join a troop and become Tenderfoot. From that point on, assuming minimum time at each rank, it would have been possible to reach Eagle while 12.

Amazed at times how many scouters do not fully understand the concept of 2 deep leadership. We had a parent show up at 10pm last month during our chapter ordeal (one of 3 chapters at the camp that weekend) because the SM had told him that they only had one adult there from the troop and had to have 2 deep leadership. Between the 3 chapters, along with lodge advisors, there were easily 20 or more adults, not to mention the adults going through ordeal. Imagine how unwieldy things like ordeals and such would become if every scout had to have 2 adults from his troop present.

Not sure how it goes in Iowa, but here in FL it is not just the number of days we are in session, but the number of hours of instructional time. Thankfully, we did not miss any days this year (in my district at least) due to hurricanes. We have had several times in the past few years that we have missed a week at a time.

Not here in Florida. Hiking is a little easier here at this time of year, when it can still be relatively cool. Much of the Florida Trail tends to be fairly level, although trekking through water, mud and sugar sand can slow you down a bit.

Times do change. When I was a scout, there were no alternate MBs. We had to have camping, Citizenship in the Community & Nation, Conservation of Natural Resources, Cooking, First Aid, Lifesaving, Nature, Personal Fitness, Safety, and Swimming. The following year the requirements changed, 24 were required for Eagle rather than 21, but Camping, Cooking, and Nature were no longer required, and several alternates were introduced.

Don't forget the killer one - 20 miles in a single day. We just had a couple of scouts for whom the 20 was the last thing they had to do to be complete; we did that with them while we were out of school on Monday. At the end of the day, both remarked that they were pleased with earning the MB, but that they would not be doing another 20 again any time soon.

I put okra in gumbo, not sure I have ever used it in jambalaya.

SM may have asked (I assume from your description that he asked in front of the scouts) thinking that if it came from more than one scouter it would be accepted without being questioned as much as if he had just said no himself. That has happened to me several times with both pack and troop, where I know that the person asking knows the rule, whether it is YPT or something else, but knows that the scout (or other scouter) will be less likely to question the decision if they hear it from both of us.

This June will be my 50th year as an Arrowman. When I was elected there was a formula based on the number of active scouts in a troop. If you had 5 scouts you could potentially elect 1 person; 6 - 14 could elect 2; 15 - 24 would allow up to 3 to be elected; 25 - 34 meant up to 4, and so on. This meant that a troop with 40 active scouts and 10 of those scouts met the requirement for election could only elect a maximum of 5 scouts. Those who met the requirements, including SM approval, would be listed alphabetically, and each scout would number his ballot 1 - 5 and list up to 5 names in

That is how we approach it with AOL crossover Scouts. They should have already attended one or more meetings while completing the Scouting Adventure. They would have already completed the Cyberchip for their grade level as well. Very easy to complete everything needed for the Scout rank in one night, particularly for a female troop that is linked and has been working closely with that linked troop to hit the ground running.

It is indeed a "real" position.

Despite spending all but the first 8 months of my scouting tenure below the Mason Dixon Line, I have yet to find anything that will make grits edible. The name alone is enough to make my stomach roil.

Our Council Scout Shop had the new ScoutsBSA girl handbook at last weekend's University of Scouting. In addition to changing the cover (kind of glittery) and the pictures/pronouns used, there are a few things added in specific to female hygiene.

Our council camp forbids them in tents, and while I have not had a scout bring one on a troop outing, we would also forbid them in a tent. I have seen on more than one occasion how quickly a tent can become engulfed in flames; thankfully never with a scout inside the tent.

Tie between Caramel Delights and S'Mores

The red beret was always cool, it took just the right amount of swagger to pull it off!

As a Red Cross instructor, I completely agree. I made that same comment to a SM a couple of years ago when two of his scouts were 'teaching' First Aid at Webelos Woods and told the boys that the first course of action for bleeding was to apply a tourniquet, and that the first step in case of cardiac arrest was to elevate the feet and pack the person in ice. First Aid is not one of those things where close is good enough. When my nephew took FA at our troop's second summer camp last year, I sat off to the side observing, and was very pleased with how well the young man teaching the class

Camp must have been sponsored by Apple 🤣

My great-nephew was a first year scout last year, and did 2 summer camps. I made the same recommendation to him, that he look at things that can be tough to do at home versus camp. Of course, it was then his choice as to what he wanted to do, other than a couple things he wanted that had restrictions. Between the 2 camps he completed Fishing, Canoeing, Swimming, First Aid, Horsemanship, and Robotics. He had a partial in Rifle, which he will finish this year.