eghiglie

I agree we need to trim down. I could lose some weight. We've been making low cal deserts with our dutch oven for a few years. Many of the recipies that rely on fat and flour can be more healthy. There are ways to create low/no sugar cooked deserts.

The US has had illegal immigrants for quite some time, over 200 years or so. Solving it is very complex and there are no easy answers to this. But we have become complacent with the very cheap labor they provide. When my grandpa first came in 1911 he told me that there were tons of advertisements for skilled folks to help build the US infrastructure. Millions of these people came, lived in slums, were preyed on by criminal elements from brethren who also came from his home country. They sent their kids to school to become better. Many of these immigrants also left because the US was not an easy place. The ad about streets paved with gold lied. Yet there were illegals to deal with back then.

I had a great time at my Woodbadge experience and learned a lot about myself. We camped in the ourdoors all 6 days, the first weekend in camp tents, the last three in our own tents, but in a campsite that had camp tents in it. It was drinking water from a fire hose. We were kept up late each night, with only about 8 hours of break. We then went home, with instructions to come back 3 weeks later. Because of the length of my drive I took Monday off. The break was great, I recharged my batteries. Our patrol met once during the break face to face and used email a lot. On the sencond campout of three days we were refreshed but by Sunday night we were again exhausted. Again very long days. I took the Monday off again. Contrast this to my son taking NYLT a few weeks ago. Checkin was Sunday night, with a 5AM Monday wakeup. Everyday they were up at 5AM for a mandatory swim, everyday there were quite a few sessions, with little break time. Even meal times were used to deleiver a lesson. Very little down time. By Wednesday night he was exhausted, Thursday, Friday and Saturday sessions did not sink in because he was too tired. On the way back from the outpost the Troop Guide, who is a 17 year Eagle scout college student in Army ROTC, forced them to march in cadence and would insist that they stay in step for the 1 mile journey. He got little out of the course because of this. I learned a LOT from my Woodbadge.

I could be wrong (and my wife and son tell me that I usally am). I beleive that Kingsford Charcoal is the most reliable to use, at about 35 degrees a coal, with no no wind present or with a wind block. We had tried using wood found at a site, but temperature conditions would vary and lately finding wood at sites has become harder here as the fewer campgrounds are more heavily used.

What parents can and should do are two different things. The only time I allow (as SM) a parent to sign off their son's MB is if the boy is working on the MB as part of a group. I also let the parent know that it would "look better" if his/her boy gets signed off the same time as someone else, but its just a suggestion. But a parent doing all 21?

You are very lucky to have extra adults wanting to come on outings. Being a small troop of 5 boys, with 3 of them being raised with out dads, I'm grateful for any parent that comes. Usually the 7 or 8 of us eat together, but other than that the adults and kids do their own thing. In the past two years weve had to cancel 4 or 5 outings a year because only 1 adult (me) would sign up for a trip. If our Troop gets larger we will apply some of these suggestions!

In our Troop its Mister or Misses 'FirstName' We have some tough last names and this was a good fit for us. When I was growing up the SM was called Mr. 'LastName' When we found out he was stealing money and equipment from the BSA and the Troop his name he was called changed quite a bit!(This message has been edited by eghiglie)

Change is sometimes hard, especially a $150 change. My family likes the new socks, belt and supplex shirt. Need the temp patch buttonhole back! Right now we use pins to hold them. The matching color buttons are a nice change. However, the IPOD pocket is a pain, the seamstress we use removed the pocket to sew the POR patch, this increased the sewing costs. We never liked any of the old scout pants, the cotton ones had no give to them and the 1st generation switchbacks would pill and fade in the washer. We still don't like the new pants, going to continue to wear Columbia fishing pants that resemble the color but are a whole lot better in fit and finish. The BSA needs to come out with an official boonie hat for the uniform. The new centennial necker is great!

My son was held back twice in both 1st and 2nd because of learning disabilities. He joined a Pack the second time in 2nd grade. Two other boys in the Den had also been left back a year. The other two had never been held back. He earned Wolf, Bear and Webelos with no major problem and camped 45 or so nights as a Cubbie. When he in the middle of 3rd grade I got him his own tent but more importantly we took an archery course sponsored by the City recreation system. Once he became proficient at archery, his grades in school went from C/D to A/B. Just as they finished 3rd grade the other two boys were getting old enough to join a Troop and wanted AoL sooner, based on age. We read the requirements for AoL and they offer a couple of options. He was going to turn 12 right at end of 4th Grade anyway, but he was bored stiff with Cubs and wanted to go to a troop. I bribed him to stay in Cubs and get his AoL by getting him a rifle. Part of what caused the boredom was that at the end of 3rd grade he got to attend a weeklong NRA camp and earned distinguished expert with air rifle. Going to shot BB gun's at Cub Camp was now boring, therefore Cubs was boring. So the three of them busted butt over the summer to finish up what he needed and in the middle of 4th grade they crossed over (three different troops though). The biggest problem we had leaving the Pack was the Cubmaster and Committee Chair. The CM and CC wouldn't give the boys the arrow plaques because they didn't think it was fair they got them in 4th grade. The CC made comments that my son overheard and this of course hurt him. Arrow plaques cost us about $25 bucks each. We did our own Crossover at a District Event. The local Council told us that at 12 years old my son would be dropped as a Cub anyway. He was a 5th grader when he went to his first summer camp in the South, he never complained once, compared to the others that were in the troop a long time. He decided to try and go to summer camp twice a year, he has taken the motorboat class 5 or 6 times just so he can drive a boat. It took him a year to make 1st class, but Star and Life quickly followed. He has been Life a while and has all the merit badges he needs. The last thing he needs is the project which he is kicking off next week. He is ready to join a crew as soon as he gets Eagle, he also wants to join the city swim team. My point is that if they are ready age wise cross them over. They will make new friends at the Troop. Maturity has to be considered of course. I sat down with him and explained that his luck in life was up to him. I can help so much but at some point he becomes responsible. He understands this very well.

My 2 cents (for the little its worth) is to let him go, explore and report back, boys are still trying to figure out what they want to be. I wouldn't even call it spying, sounds like the leader from the other troop found a willing listener and gave him some ear candy. The boy responded. If the boy is mature enough he will see the negatives for himself.

Picked up the new necker today and its great! The big size is great around my neck.

The sad part is we don't know what to do either. I did get some great ideas from what you all posted. I'm going to talk to the committee about a plan to cut dues down to just the National fees.

Slight update to my last post This morning I get an email from the boy and his parents apologizing for the attitude they gave me. They also told me that they were going to leave scouting as Joey finds it boring now. Although Joey needs scouting I can't make them stay.

Something to add here about how kids these days transfer blame as they learn to do it from the parents. The story related is true, but not the name. Joey has been in scouts for two years and this was his second summer camp, he is 2nd class. Not very active he misses a lot of meetings and has only camped 3 times other than summer camp. Joey went to summer camp with us this year, and left his Scout book in a ASM's vehicle. Joey's parents pick him up Friday night, instead of letting him stay another night and help clean and pack up. On Saturday the ASM gives me the book. Knowing I would not see Joey till September, as our Troop shuts down for the summer, I place it in a ziploc bag and put it in the trailer on a shelf. We return home and during the summer the church pastor needs the trailer to move furniture, its the church's trailer and this has happened before. The pastor empties the trailer out with help from others and puts everything in a shed. Somehow the scout book is not in the shed any more. When we meet last night Joey asks the SPL where his book is. No one knows. His parents then tell me that he forgot it at summer camp. I relate what I know about the book going to the trailer and then the shed. Looking in the shed we find its not there, we also find a few other things missing. The trailer is empty. The parents declare that the Troop is now financially liable for a new scout book and that the sentimental value could never be replaced. Not only do they want a new book, they want all the people to sign off in the same place. My statement was simply, "So he allowed the book to be misplaced?" I then went silent, waiting for an answer. The boy then started saying that everyone hates him and we pick on him too much. His parents reinforce the statement. They leave with out another word.

In a way this has already occured. When I go to RT every month about 75% of the folks have their 2 beads from woodbadge. I loved woodbadge and learned a lot so this is great idea.

I don't think its possible to explain policy to a teenager, recall that they are just getting used to society and question a lot of things. School makes it worse by spending lots of time explaining the Code of Conduct. We can all think of examples in which these questions were valid and led to change. History is full of change brought on by questions. However, the BSA is a provate organization with its own rules for membership. If the boy persists in the comments/actions get together with him and his folks and explain the rules for being a Scout. Beleiving in God is a major one! Don't kick him out, don't threaten him, just explain it to the family and let them decide. Right now is a tough time for all of us, many people ask how can God let people lose their jobs and homes. Let a preacher explain this. A boy in my Troop had both his parents lose jobs, the home was foreclosed on and they had to move in with the grandparents who are divorcing. His grades went from B to F. He blamed God for all these problems and told everyone in the Troop that God didn't exist. The boy was depressed and way beyond my skills to help, the youth minister at my church visited them and is helping them with weekly visits. He still comes to Troop meetings and is getting back on track. My apologies for rambling on.

They are available now for purchase at the store I shop at and no paperwork is required to get them (just 40 cents each). Our troop handed out the patch for free, and emailed each boy/leader the requirement sheet. Leaving it up to them to track. If a boy comes to me and says he earned a ribbon I won't argue with him, we'll order him the ribbon. I'm on a 100th year committee and each committee member got a complete patch with ribbons.

This was an enjoyable thread to read. mafaking had a great post.

The Henry Rifle is a fine collectible. When they were first announced I ordered one. Henry has been making rifles for years. This is not the first Henry I've bought either. I did not pay list price for it (contact me for details). Basically its a Henry Golden Boy with a custom engraving (yes the BSA is getting some money from each one sold). My wife gave me a similar rifle when I turned 40. When it arrived the action was worked once or twice, and it was put away. It has never been fired by me and never will be. Its in the gun safe in its original box with some other collectible rifles, some mine, some my dad's (deceased). The BSA is taking an oppurtunity to raise funds based on its anniversary, there is nothing wrong with that. Most of the stuff sold is just trinkets and won't appreciate in value. Buy what you like with in your means, buy a few of them and store them away. Then in 10 or 15 years show them to your kids/grandkids. As far as the books go I bought one of the new handbooks with coil binding for $15 and I use it to teach stuff to the Scouts.

Interesting question. We tried having people sign the cards at one time and the signatures were terrible. Our advancement chair fills in everyone's name instead for the time they earned it. If the SPL is earning a rank then his own name is filled in. This works for us.

Sort of a follow up One thing that has been noticed in our elections is that the tallest boy always wins.

We use 4 foot long pieces, two to a boy of different colors. The ropes are dyed with each being two colors. one rope is gold/black then other is blue/white Both the lengths and colors took some experminting 2 foot is too short for a complex knot, 3 foot is ok The reason the same piece of rope is two colors is to show them the actual knot and the way the strings go. This worked for me in two Dens I was a leader in and I carried it forward to my troop.

My dad's necker was square and then it was folded over, then rolled up. When I was a scout my troop had a mom who made them to match the old ones in size and shape.

Being a small troop we have a process that works for us We have a SPL and one ASPL. Every Sept we elect a new ASPL and the existing ASPL becomes the SPL. It works for us, we don't meet in the summer when school is out, usually we go to Summer Camp right after school is out. With only 6 boys we have no PL. The SPL then appoints a Quartermaster and Scribe. The old SPL becomes the Troop Guide. We tried having two elections a year, but getting the boys used to a job that often was hard. I need to point out that in the 7 or 8 scribes we've had only 1 did the job the right way. He was the boy who was the first scribe of the Troop.

Intresting thread and thought I would comment When attending a committee meeting or some other planning meeting I usually wear a scout polo or tshirt shirt I get from FoS. With at least one of these a week, usually on my way home from work its the simplest. The other folks going to the meeting, including the council employees dress the same. When doing middle school recruiting, camping out or going to a troop meeting I wear a uniform shirt that has very little on it. PoR, Council Strip, woodbadge patrol emblem and my beads. When going to a CoH or similar activity I wear the shirt that has everything on it. This shirt stays real clean because its only worn 4 times a year. My beleif on knots and awards is that you wear them all or none.