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afscout

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Everything posted by afscout

  1. Yes, I was not truthful and it is me that I'm talking about. So bring on all the bad talk about what a rotten scouter I am and how I am no longer qualified to be part of scouting. I deserve it for lying. I thought about just coming about and saying it was for me at the start, but I knew I would get all the *&^( about how I had my chance and blew it. I was looking for advise but also knew that there are a lot of posters out there that love to flame others. Actually, I was fine with not making Eagle until my son started CS. For all this time, Eagle wasn't a big thing for me as I'
  2. In my pack, we have an adult leader that completed all of his requirements for Eagle, except for the application. He said that he barely finished his last required merit badge by his 18th birthday, but when he went to turn in his application, he was told that the application needed to also be turned in prior to his 18th birthday. This was back in the mid-80s and he said unlike today,there was not a stated requirement to turn in the application by the 18th birthday. Talking to his wife, she said that he has his merit badge on display and it has all of the required merit badges, she has seen
  3. We split our Tiger den of 14 into 2 Wolf dens. The Tiger DL decided that he was burnt out and didn't want to continue. Two new DLs stepped up and picked boys much like picking teams. They asked the parents if there were certain boys that wanted to stay together (my son and his best friend for example). It turned out well and both dens did well. The boys are pretty adaptable so splitting the den wasn't a big thing for them.
  4. Well, my trip to England got cut due to lack of travel funds. Instead I decided to order the bead sets via online ordering. That was a month ago and I have not received them yet or even a status of the order despite multiple emails and even calling the Scout Shop in England twice. I had to call my credit card company and file a charge dispute against the Info Center at Gilwell Park for not fulling my order. It has been a pretty disappointing experience since the bead sets were for a beading ceremony.
  5. We tried the donation closet at our pack, it didn't work. We acutally landed up donating a whole bunch of uniform stuff to another pack out of state that was in need. We live in a middle-class area where most of the parents can afford to buy new uniforms and such, but at the same time, they (including me) gripe about the cost and wish the price could come down. One of my biggest pet-peeves is the neckerchef slides. They don't stay in place and most of the boys lose theirs if they're running around (like boys do). At $5.00 a pop, it gets pricy really quick. When my son was a Tiger, he
  6. My son just crossed over to Bear and it once again brings up the point of why we have a hat, necker, and slide (and belt buckles for Tigers) for each level? It makes scouting more expensive to participate in. Remember when CS wore one hat/slide/necker for the whole time except for Webs (basically the wolf uniform except for a dark blue hat with yellow stripeing)? I would even go as far as saying having different color neckers is ok since it make it easy to see your den in a sea of CS at pack meeting or if people wanted another piece of "bling" to give to the boys at crossover (and even tho
  7. I'll be moving out of state this summer and sending my wolves to our brother den after crossover. As such, I wanted to give the boys in my den a small gift. Any ideas?
  8. Anyone know of a good gear box I can keep all my camping stuff in (tent, stove, lantern, cooking gear, etc.)? I want to be able to just load the gear box into the van and go (especially if we have bug out in an emergency such as flooding, earthquakes, etc.) I'm looking for something large, wheeled if possible, and tough. Doesn't need to be waterproof, but at least be able to handle some rain without having it leak inside. I've thought of making a gear box out of wood (ala Patrol Box), but would really prefer something made out of heavy duty plastic. What do you use?
  9. scoutfreakdad, For an adult it takes about 10 feet of paracord. I make them to give to my Denners as a gift for doing a good job. Since the kids (wolves) have smaller wrists, I only use 7-8 feet. The first one took me an hour to make. Once you get the hang of it, it'll only takes about 10 minutes for each one. Once I gave the first one, every boy wanted to be the next Denner.
  10. All, Thanks for all the info. I'm still waiting to see if my trip will go through or not. I thought about buying on line, but the shipping cost (21 pounds sterling) for a set of beads (6 pounds) is deterring me from going that route. I may try to give the scout shop on Buckingham Palace Road a call. Hopefully they have the beads also since I'm not sure if I'll have the time to go out to Gilwell Park and back.
  11. I may get to go to London for business. If I do I was hoping to get a set of WB beads at Gilwell Park. The question is that do they sell them there or do I have to go to a scout store in London. From what I could tell, for a google search, there aren't very many scout stores and they tend to do everything online. Has anyone been there?
  12. My favorite technique for monday morning quarterbacks is to ask them what they would do and then if it sounds reasonable ask them to step up and take over the project/activity/leadership role the next go around. Usually, I get the "what did I just do" look and a quick 180 to get out of there (none of them ever came back to me to gripe) or in a few cases, I get new volunteers.
  13. If you have access to a military BX/PX, they sell them over there cheaper than on the outside.
  14. Some of the parents do believe "he who has the most toys win" and go all out to get every single belt loop/pin. At our pack, the policy is that the pack will only pay for belt loops/pins earned at pack activities, which mostly comes out to those earned at CS Day Camp. As a DL, I do a lot of activities which the boys earn belt loops, but I clearly let the parents know that the pack will not pay for the belt loops and it's the parent's responsibility to purchase the belt loops for their sons (I usually will work with the parents and buy all the belt loops and have them pay me back).
  15. Eagle, Nope. TC partners are not considered registered adult leaders unless they fill out an application and pay the fee (not sure why they would do it). The TC Den Leader is a registered adult leader.
  16. I'm a DL and also in the military. I was notified that I have to move this summer. I love being a DL and have put in a lot of time and effort into the den. I haven't received orders yet so I'm not sure exactly where we going yet and not sure if my new job will allow me the time to be a DL. If it does, I would love to continue being a DL at my son's new pack. Anyone have any tips on transfering into a new pack?
  17. Don't limit yourself to just internal frame packs. Internals are great if you're mountain climbing, etc. where keeping your pack close to you is key, but externals are making a comeback because they do a better job of load management. I also think they do a better job of disbursing heat build up from your back. Go to an outfitter and ask about both types compared to what activities you are planning to do.
  18. Congratulations. I too love being a DL. I'm in the NCAC also and can highly recommend the training they offer. I've been to BALOO, University of Scouting, and BALOO this year and got a lot out of it. I only wished they offered it earlier in the year so I could have started the school year with all the great ideas I learned at training.
  19. I've used a Coleman 4-man tent that I bought at BJ's last year ($35 with a coupon) a few time with great results. Here's a few key tips - As noted previously, seam seal your tent. The time and $3 investment is worth it during a rain storm - I bought a 4-person tent even though it's usually just me and my son. The extra space is great for gear and stretching out. Besides I like to be able to stand up in my tent. That's something you can't do in most 2-person tents. - If it looks like rain, pull everything into the middle so nothing touches the sides of the tent. Its that contact tha
  20. I'm with Pchadbo, My son was in the pack last year as a Tiger and I was just his adult partner (not a registered leader). He earned award and wears it. This year I became his den leader, but I don't wear it (even though they sell it at the Scout Store. My sister den leader wears it even though we started at the same time). My thoughts is that if I wasn't a registered leader during the period of performance, I would be stealing their effort by wearing the patch. For me, I've worked pretty hard this year as a den leader so I will proudly wear this year's patch because I know we earned it.
  21. Here's the full speech that Sec. Gates gave. Sent by Julie Arrighetti (Webelos Den leader, Pack 1943). It's a good read. ---------------------------- Circle Ten Council Friends of Scouting As Prepared for Delivery by Robert M. Gates, Dallas, Texas, Thursday, March 03, 2011 Good evening! Thank you President Bush, for that kind introduction. On a personal note, I would like to thank you again for granting me the opportunity to serve as Secretary of Defense. It is true that I have been known to grouse from time to time about coming back to Washington, D.C. Yet working everyday wi
  22. At one of our University of Scouting classes, one of the students shared that he as the CM presented all the pack and den leaders with the black BSA nametag. $5 per nametag, but he thought it was a good way to recognize them in front of the pack, thank them for their service, and have way for all the parents to know the leader's names. I thought that was pretty cool.
  23. I know exactly how you're feeling. I'm about to lose a wolf. Great kid coming from a single parent (mom) home. Could really use scouting to come out of his shell. Sister's in Girl Scouts and I think the mom is active in that troop, but not our den. He has only shown up for our pack's Halloween party, a trip to Mt. Vernon and a service project. He has never come to a den meeting and I get "sorry, I got home late, or I was really tired, etc." The den parents have offered to pick up the son and bring him to den meeting or other activites, but no. Being a first year DL, it's tough and I do
  24. Good to see some good comments about scouting coming from our Gov't leaders Dallas Morning News March 4, 2011 Defense Chief Gates Praises Boy Scouts As Valuable In A Chaotic World By Mark Norris, Staff writer Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said Boy Scouts of America was a force for good in today's chaotic world during a speech at the Friends of Scouting banquet Thursday night in Dallas. "There is no finer program preparing boys for leadership," Gates said. Gates was introduced by former President George W. Bush, his former boss. "I love Scouting," B
  25. Wow, we got two threads on name tags. I posted on that one, so I might as well post on this one. I just made a cloth nametag. I didn't have and couldn't find a spent uni shirt so I took mine to JoAnn's Fabric and found some material that matched the color. That was 85 cents. I then took the shirt and material to a place in the mall that does custom embroidery on hats to get my name done in red letters. That was $10 (Ouch) but I couldn't find a cheaper place. I folded and ironed the outside edges back to form a name tag sized rectangle and sewed it on the shirt. It looks sharp, but a bi
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