CalicoPenn

Have the lads completed their POR's? If so, how do you propose to measure their readiness for leading an Eagle Project if they are no longer required to hold a leadership position in which you can evaluate that? Technically, once a lad has completed the 6 month POR requirement for Eagle, he never has to serve another day in a POR if he chooses not to. We all hope that a Scout will be willing to continue to serve, and for the most part this happens, but if he chooses not to, he can't be penalized for it once he's completed the initial POR requirement. I think you have the best interests

The legal status of 4-H is that it is a program of the US Department of Agriculture under the Cooperative Extension Service. It came about with the passage of the Smith-Lever act which created the Cooperative Extension Service and included youth agricultural groups in its mandate. That became the basis of what is now known as 4-H. 4-H and it's symbols are trademarked to and under the protection of the US Secretary of Agriculture. The National 4-H Council is a private, non-profit organization whose mission is to support 4-H. It doesn't supplant it, it doesn't make 4-H policy - it suppo

I really hadn't meant to hijack the thread like this - honestly, I didn't. I'm not disputing the Digestion = Energy = Body Heat formula - I'm pointing out a part that's not often thought about - Time Started. I guess I'm not explaining it well - perhaps a different analogy - this time, cooking. We've all probably run into cooking directions that say something like "Bring 3 quarts of water to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer". We know that bringing water to a boil takes a lot of initial energy. Once its at a boil, we can keep the water simmering for a long time with much le

First aid for Hypothermia doesn't include solid food. Warm liquids - warm water, broth, herb teas, hot cocoa, black teas, coffee are fine, but not solid foods. When hypothermia threatens/starts, your body reacts by doing everything it can to protect the core of the body - the thorax and abdominal cavities. It starts to restrict blood flow to the extremities to keep as much heat in the core as possible - it even considers the brain to be secondary to protecting the core (which is why people who are hypothermic have trouble speaking, and have significantly reduced judgement - less blood flow

The whole wait an hour before swimming stuff is one of those old wives tales - where it came from, I couldn't say, but it was particularly popular in the 1960's. My mother told us to wait half an hour, not an hour. Of course, that lasted until we started swimming competively in the park district swim teams where we often ate between races to keep our energy levels up. Depending on who you talk to, some claimed it was because you would get stomach cramps, some claimed that it could lead to leg and arm cramps, others, like my mother, just said we would get sick (its not unusual to feel a

A quick suggestion about cracker barrel feeding times at night in the winter. It's one thing to enjoy a cup of hot cocoa or tea just before bed during winter camping - it's quite another to be eating food - hot or cold - of any kind just before bed. If you are going to be serving food to the lads during a winter campout, do so at least one hour - two is better - before bed. Reason? You want your bodies main job at bedtime to be keeping you warm. Eating anything right before bed means your body is going to kick in the digestive processes - and it will put all of its energy (except for

Ok - I give up - I'm starting to feel like a character on Monty Python - My Brain Hurts! Since we are being told that a name is at core an interpretation, and since a number and/or date is merely a name we use to interpret figures and days, there can be no such thing as a fact, since we would use words to express a fact, and words are pretty much names of concepts and therefore just interpretation. So I get it now - there is no such thing as a fact. A Gull may be a bird, but its not a fact that its a bird because Bird is just a name that we use to identify similar species like Gulls but

Good question. This is one of those awards that could be awarded by the Den Leader or could be awarded by the Parent. I think in practice, most Den's work on the Whittling Chip together and the Den Leader awards the card, but if a Parent says their child has earned the Whittling Chip, then it should be awarded on the Parent's say. Why should the Parent be allowed to award the Whittling Chip? Because earning the Whittling Chip is part of Bear Achievement #9, and we all know that the Parent (aka Akela) signs off on Bear Achievements. Why should a Den Leader award the Whittling Chip? Be

How about trying a Potluck Crackerbarrel. In the winter, everyone brings their favorite holiday cookies to share with the group, or some other such thing. Provide the drinks and the serving stuff, let everyone else join in providing the goodies. Calico

It's a visual depiction of the solar system, with each planet placed the corresponding distance from the sun. How is this not an astronomy display? I've got to say, It's rare that anyones argue that history isn't a set of facts. Now those sets of facts may be interpreted through different viewpoints, but the basis of those viewpoints is fact. Same with science. Theories and hypothesis are interpretations of facts, but the facts remain steady. But I'm willing to keep an open mind. Convince me that the fact that a gull is a bird is just an interpretation, or that Pearl Harbor was at

Beavah asks: What do you feel about a society that funds and establishes informational displays on public lands, but excludes one sort of information entirely? Interesting question. My answer is "I'm fine with it". Informational displays on public lands are based on fact, science and history. Sometimes, they may be just plain wrong - a good example would be an historical marker out east claiming that a church built in the late 1600's in Virginia was the first Christian church in the United States, when Spanish Missions were being built out in the western part of the US back in th

I join the Lorax! I'll speak for the trees! Those fabulous, marvelous Truffula Trees! They breath our waste gases and give us fresh air! They keep public places from looking too bare! Harrumph to you Once-ler! We see through your disguise. You claim you're a Beavah, but that's just a lie. Cause everyone, everyone, everyone knows - that Beavahs need trees, even trees with bees knees! And Beavahs we know aren't Once-lers at all. Calico

I would define it as any extraordinary awards ceremony, or any special occasion where youth members are present as more than just an honor guard (except perhaps for memorial day/veterans day ceremonies), ie: Blue & Gold Dinners, Eagle Court of Honor, Troop Court of Honor (held instead of a Troop Meeting), Scout Sunday, Unit anniversary celebration (I would hope a unit would have a big celebration when they hit a 25, 50, 75 or 100 year milestone). I would not wear it at an adult awards ceremony (woodbadge beading, silver beaver, district award of merit) because youth would not normally

In the "Things You Didn't Learn in School (because no one dared to teach it to you)" category: After the Revolutionary War, Christmas was not celebrated much in the United States because it was considered a British Holiday. It really didn't come back in favor again until the 1820's. Harriet Beecher Stowe included a character in her 1850 book "The First Christmas in New England" that complains that the true meaning of Christmas was lost in a shopping spree. Happy Holidays everyone. CalicoPenn

There is one requirement for continuing membership in the Order of the Arrow, said membership only available through the Lodge of one's council: "All members of the Lodge must be registered members of the Boy Scouts of America". Cub Scout Leaders, Venture Crew Members and Leaders, Boy Scouts and Boy Scout Leaders, District & Council Volunteers, even Merit Badge Counselors, are all registered members of the Boy Scouts of America (or should be). If you were a member of an OA Lodge at one time and find yourself registered in a the BSA again, you can pay your dues to the Council's Lodge

Merlyn, My remarks aren't racist - they're sexist, lookist and priviledgedist (anti-ugly desperate male). If anything, my assumption was that the ads were targeting males of every race, but especially those that are caucasion. I also intended my remarks to be a back-handed criticism of GW's remarks but, alas, it apparently went over like a lead balloon since sarcasm can be difficult to discern in the written word (not impossible, just difficult). I apologize to anyone I may have inadvertantly offended (especially if you're an ugly, desperate, toothless, fat, bald guy of any race) (

That's only fair, GW since the men that answer those ads have faces like rhinos, bellies bigger than their heads, less hair than a newborn and zealously guard their one remaining tooth. CP

Only 8 planets!? Why, by gum, the next thing you know those pesky scientists will tell us that Trans-fats are bad for us, or that the moon isn't made of cheese! I walked a "planet trail" at a state park in Wisconsin (Pike Lake State Park)similar to the one described for this project. At points along the trail were interpretive signs that talked about each individual planet. The signs were spaced to give an earth based scale of the distances between the planets - and it even included the asteroid belt as a stop. I wish the article gave more detail about the trail the scout put togeth

Ozemu - Yule is the old Scandinavian winter festival, held in late December to Early January in honor of Thor. As far Northern Europe (aka Scandinavia) was the last place in Europe to be "Christianized" (Roman soldiers were no match for Scandinavian Warriors (aka Vikings)so the Holy Roman Empire wasn't able to convert using force, as they had elsewhere in Europe), certain traditions of the Yule were absorbed into and tolerated in the Church's Christmas Traditions, such as the Yule Log. Yuletide refers to the time of the Yule - the old Anglo-Saxon calendar had two 60-day periods known as "tid

Seems to me his position on the matter is the same position as Mainstream USA. Most people support the BSA, most people support the BSA's right to choose who can be members and most people would prefer it if the BSA would stop being so pig-headed and open their membership to gays and athiests, in not to girls too. CalicoPenn

Oh yeah....Olde Times Woodsman - I remember that stuff - you could tell a person wearing it was approaching you from 500 yards. On the other hand, it was great for crews coming in from the backcountry after a week with no showers (and even better for the Staff who could then approach the crew, screw up their faces and say "what in the Sam Hill is that awful stuff you're wearing - go take a shower before dinner" without offending the wearer). Calico(This message has been edited by CalicoPenn)

Let me see if I've got this right: 6 Committee Members - check 2 Committee Members that are almost always at Troop Meetings - check 1 Committee Member that is committed elsewhere during soccer season - check A member stating that BOR's shouldn't be done at Troop outing's - check. That leaves 3 other Committee Members that can serve on the BOR and can potentially be available during soccer season. It also suggests that you have at least 3 Committee Members attending most every Troop Outing, and at the same time suggests that there is a Committee Member who can't attend outi

Back in the 80's, the most successful Avon sales person in Maine was in Shin Pond (you will drive through it from Patten to Matagamon). The only product sold was Avon Skin-So-Soft - and it was sold right from the shelves of the little camp store at Shin Pond. I don't know if the store is still selling it (Avon wasn't happy with the "retail sales" aspect of this venture but couldn't argue with the success - and couldn't argue with the affects of Skin-So-Soft, which is why their insect repellent line is named Skin-So-Soft), but if they still do, you'll have a handy source for it if you aren't

"(Scoutmaster), you got a lot of (excised) gall to ask me if I've rehabilitated myself! I mean . . . I mean . . . I mean that you send . . . I'm sittin' here on the bench . . . I mean I'm sittin' here on the Group W bench, 'cause you want to know if I'm moral enough to join the army, burn women, kids, houses and villages after bein' a litterbug" Denying or delaying rank advancement as a form of punishment is just bad form, in my opinion. And make no mistake, that is what is being talked about here - delaying advancement as a form of punishment. Had he already been through the BOR and ap

Back when I was at Matagamon Base, in addition to my full time job, I was also the bases Health Officer since I was the only EMT on staff (EMT-P). Part of my job was to review the health forms coming in, and to take every adults vitals (blood pressure, respiration, pulse) to compare them with the Doctor's readings on the forms they turned in - if the difference in readings was too great, there was a potential for the adult to be required to be left behind (fortunately, that never happened). During set-up week, I met with the local emergency room folks (local being about 1 1/2 hours away)