GKlose

I just finished a WFA (Wilderness First Aid) class this last weekend. One thing I learned from it is how to use a SAM splint. Granted the instructors were not encouraging us to use it (with the rationale "how often are you going to have one of these around? it is better to learn how to improvise"). But when I got home and looked up the cost of them: a basic SAM splint is $12. They are amazingly versatile, and easy to use. I'm going to buy a couple of them.

Sounds interesting -- even though it is considered "interdisciplinary", the Robotics MB sounds like a good choice. I've though, since coming back to the program, that Computers MB is way too broad as a single MB. I know that changes aren't made lightly, and that sometimes adding one means subtracting one. It isn't a bad idea for refreshing things every now and then. Guy

Sorry for the "hat trick" here, but I just thought of something else -- Let's say you're dehydrating something yourself. If you weigh it before cooking, and then weight it after dehydrated, wouldn't the difference be in the water lost? Therefore, reconstitution could be based on the weight of boiling water? Give or take a little, maybe?(This message has been edited by GKlose)

BTW, Mike, I like the sounds of that turkey recipe. Thanks for sharing it. I'm kind of a foodie, and this sounds like a good one... Guy(This message has been edited by GKlose)

I haven't tried this myself, yet, but... At a recent council U. of Scouting event, I attended a session on backpacking food that was led by an SM with a whole lot of experience at this. He basically said "you can dehydrate anything" and then gave some examples. One was chicken parmesan. He said cook it regularly, cut into small bits, place on baking tray, put in 200F oven with door propped open, then let it sit for about six hours. He said to experiment with how much boiling water to use to reconstitute it. I think it would be fun to try this. He gave many other examples of the things they use, but it is probably what you would expect (instant oatmeal, cup o'soup, ramen noodles, etc). On a similar matter, I asked at the session, but the instructor didn't hear me correctly, about how does one nutritionally plan for adolescent through adult...he heard "individually" and answered that he double-checked meals for his younger scouts. He didn't have time left to answer my real question. Does anyone know? For example, do you shoot for some total calorie amount per day, with a certain amount of protein, etc.? Thanks, Guy

Sure, SSScout -- now you can carry an emergency battery pack used to charge a cell phone :-).

Our troop did an overnight with a few Webelos from our town, and the SM suggested we put together foil dinners. But he had some modifications that he liked to do. We got a bunch of different "mains": ground beef, boneless chicken, italian sausage, steak tips, big hot dogs, and cut them all into small chunks. Ground beef was shaped into 4oz patties. Cut up some potatoes, onions, peppers, carrots. We had "Montreal Steak seasoning", salt and pepper. Put everything in an assembly-line. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the resulting "stew". Some kids stayed away from the vegetable matter, but they probably would have done that no matter what the setup.

That was one theme that really resonated with me. Here all all these "technicians" (I forget their actual title) taking extreme care, with dignity and respect, preparing the body and the personal effects. The watch, for example, is cleaned and left undisturbed (it is still set to Baghdad time) and it is not viewed again (except by the escort, who carries them on his person until they are turned over) until they are handed over to the next of kin. How would it look if when a watch is handed over it is still dirty and bloody? My first exposure to this kind of thing happened at a funeral almost two years ago. The deceased, an old friend and father to my closest friends, had been a Marine in WWII, serving in the South Pacific. The local VFW had sent a color guard to the funeral, but there were also a couple of (I assume) active-duty Marines that came to the funeral, in full uniform. The flag wasn't draped (cremation), but it was handed over to my friends, who were seated. One of the Marines, making direct eye contact, said something very quietly to one of them as the flag was being handed over. I couldn't hear it, I could only see the intensity with which the remarks were being made. Later that evening, I was able to ask my friend what the Marine said to him. He said that he was thanked, and told that our country was what it was because there had been young men and women willing to volunteer when the country needed them, and they had been asked to make sacrifices and did so willingly, and that everyone forgets that the families left at home made sacrifices as well in order for their loved ones to serve. It was chilling to hear this, and to have witnessed it. My friend tried to describe the intensity with which it was delivered, but he simply said that he had no doubt that the Marine meant every bit of what he said. I was very impressed that the Marine Corps would go to that trouble to send someone to a small funeral in the middle of pretty much nowhere, for a veteran from 60-some years ago. I think the Marine Corps really knows how to do this right. Later on, I learned a little more about his service in WWII. He had started going to Marine Corps reunions, with his sons occasionally tagging along. They'd met some much younger Marines, who would ask where their dad fought. When they answered Pellelieu, the younger Marines could only respond "Whoa!". I looked it up, and now I understand. I'm also impressed that these younger Marines would have that sense of history. I think the movie is excellent. I didn't know anything about it before I watched it, and I'm glad I did. I'd also agree it isn't easy to watch. Guy

After watching it the night it premiered on HBO, I found the original article (LtCol Michael Strobl's "trip report") online: http://www.mca-marines.org/gazette/Strobl.pdf This article is just as moving, I think. There was only a little bit of artistic license in the movie. Guy

Just found a couple of links -- Google is a wonder, isn't it?

Please forgive my ignorance, but where can one find instructions on how to tie a woggle? Thanks, Guy

I'm not sure exactly when the change happened, but years ago the Webelos program was optimized for finishing AoL by February, the traditional time for Blue and Gold Banquets (the Birthday of Scouting). It's been a more modern change where Cub Scout packs, at least in our town, operate on a school-year cycle and then treat the B&G as an end of year awards ceremony. My youngest, because of his age, was able to finish both the Webelos Badge and the Arrow of Light just since this last September. It's not that unusual to "compress" the advancement schedule in this way. He's motivated kid, and is anxious to move on. Mentally, I think he's outgrown being with Cubs. Guy

Or, you could always ask for a Den Chief :-)

Part of the "Band of Brothers" problem is that the "Toccoa Men" had built such an Esprit d'Corps that they resented The Replacements. It was just as much healing from losing brothers from D-Day and Carentan. If you'll recall in the series (or the book), they even resented Webster, one of the Toccoa Men, because he spent a leisurely time getting back from being hospitalized after D-Day, while others snuck out of the hospital in order to rejoin the unit. There is no doubt, Scout troop or otherwise, that bonding happens with certain shared experiences. One of the catalysts with me were our high adventure trips. In my opinion, there's nothing better for not only teaching a young scout how to deal with his limitations in his head and at the same time teach him loads about group dynamics. Sure, patrols do the same thing, but a patrol doing something that isn't easy, or seems impossible at the start, is even better. I've been on an Ambrose reading kick in the last couple of years, and I think the message about the BoB Replacements is this: the Toccoa Men didn't want to get too close to anyone, because guys came and went all the time (they also freely admit that one reason they had so much Esprit d'Corps was because of Capt Sobel). However, they wouldn't have been able to do the extraordinary things they did had they not had those willing to step forward, including The Replacements, when others had fallen. Rather than focus on resentment against The Replacements, wouldn't it be better to facilitate the shared experiences that will help new scouts bond with the others? Maybe ask the scout that can tell some of the new kids won't make it what he can do to maybe change that situation? Guy

Kudu, Stosh, shortridge, Knot Head et al, thanks -- I really appreciate the advice. I hope to put your coaching to good use. Guy

"And I think most here would be amazed at how few troops have a plan for the parents of visiting Webelos." I noticed that last year when I took my older son to visit all troops in town (I visited one on my own, too, which was in a different town). Most had a CC walking around to answer questions, but more often than not, the "troop meeting" was a slide show of stuff the troop did in the prior year. Parents watched the same thing. So, fast forward to this year. As a troop membership chair (also, strangely enough, the district membership chair!) I helped organize a Webelos open house night. The Webelos Den from our "feeder pack" (a loose relationship) didn't show -- we pretty much were repeating the same program we did for the entire pack a couple of months earlier. Dens from one other pack -- the pack my younger son is in -- showed up. Another pack's den didn't show up at all, and then sent email a week later asking when they could come visit the troop :-). Anyway, we meet in a large room. While the Webelos went off with Scouts, I pulled parents aside, hoping to talk to them for about 5 minutes. I showed them a folder I put together that I wanted to hand to their sons (first mistake -- I should have just handed them the folder -- later on, when I did hand it to their sons, each one of them just immediately turned over the folder to their parent), and talked briefly about how Cub Scouts is different than Boy Scouts. What I didn't expect is that their questions pretty much took up the rest of an hour. The SM dropped over to say hello, but we were positioned in the room so they could all see their sons off in the distance having fun. The CC was absent that night, but everything went really well. I sent followup email with some details I told them I would look up, and several answered back thanking us for hosting them. I guess it didn't take much, and it seemed to go over well. Lisabob -- you got it right -- two kinds of burnout. I've seen both, multiple times. I've also seen it multiple times with CC/CM dual-role adult leaders, or "one-man shows" (just so happens that I've seen men in these cases). Guy

While not Gold Star related -- I watched an HBO movie premiere Sunday evening: "Taking Chance", which starred Kevin Bacon as Marine Lt Col Michael Strobl as an escort to the body of a young Marine killed in action. Very powerful movie, based on a true story, and the funeral scene towards the end of the movie features a long line of Boy Scouts holding American flags. The movie was based on an article Lt Col Strobl wrote. I found it online here: http://www.mca-marines.org/gazette/Strobl.pdf

Although we've never talked about it directly, I think I'm safe in saying it's not the program my wife is burned out with, or working with Cubs. It's the den parents and other pack adults. An example might be working on getting consensus on putting together a den activity for some kind of achievement. Then someone doesn't show up, without warning. Then the expectations of accommodations to be made because the Cub missed the activity, all the while "Akela" doesn't read the manual to figure out what the Cub should be working on. It's like they want a drop off activity that they don't want to have to deal with, but then still have expectations of advancement despite the limited participation. Another way she's been burned. We moved to a new pack, older son fit right in with the existing Webelos den (first year). Younger son couldn't be placed in the existing Wolf den because the DL thought that 8 was already too many. Fine, so he participated (as a Wolf) with a Bear Den. For the next year, my wife went to great trouble to recruit enough to fill out a den. That's fine, she actually recruited quite a few boys from my son's school for the entire pack. That's fine too, until this last fall when the DE placed flyers for two other packs in the same school, but not for our pack. One of those packs got the bulk of recruits for this year; DE asks me why recruiting is down on our pack (uh, maybe because you did an end-run around one of the primary recruiters for our pack?). At some point she started to wonder if it is worth the trouble. I don't blame her for feeling burned out. Guy

Stosh, my take on what's been written so far is that since parents are burned out, they are discouraging their sons from continuing. I've seen it happen in our town. I'm also saddened -- these adolescents are missing out on the best part of the scouting program, as far as I'm concerned. Guy

My experience could pretty much echo everything that Lisabob just offered. The saving grace for us, after bouncing to a 3rd pack, was that they were meeting on a night I couldn't make due to a regular conflict. I had a long discussion with my wife that if she wanted to switch to that pack, the burden would mostly be on her (although I would be available for other evenings and weekends, for Webelos outings). She stuck with it, became a DL and a stand-in CM for pack meetings. After two years of leading, I'd say she's burned out and ready for our younger son to move on to Scouts. If anything, the common refrain I see with Cub parents is "what do I need to do to get [my son] his badge?" It's not about building a successful youth program (although it should be), it's about wedging in the bare minimum while shuttling between all other activities. This is one incongruity that I sense -- the Cub program was sort of designed as a "be all, end all" after-school activity, with only minor modifications ever since. Modern parents aren't wired into the same thing -- they are more into exposure to a lot of different activities. I think everyone here would agree that a well-run Cub program would be a perfect "one stop shop" for youth activity; it has a little bit of everything, and plenty of options. Lots of variety, and plenty of reward from patches to belt loops to pins and other shiny things. I moved with my older son to a troop (and I also started volunteering at the district level). My wife is in no mood to register as an adult with the troop, but I recognize that while it does take time, it doesn't take the same kind of effort, especially with respect to keeping kids entertained. Guy

Our troop hosted a Webelos open house a few weeks back. I took the group of parents aside to address them separately about our troop, and Boy Scouts in general. This burnout thing is fairly common, but I stressed with this group of parents that the Boy Scout program is completely different. It's no longer about parent-son, it's about individual growth. One dad, whom I know and my my wife knows very well, asked a question: "how soon can [my son] earn Eagle?". His thinking is along the lines of let's get this over and done with. As gently as I could, I tried to tell him that's not what the program is all about. He's missing the "individual growth" part I was talking about and still thinking about marching his son from activity to activity in order to get him his badge. Guy

OGE, I didn't interpret your response as gruff at all. I understood exactly where you are coming from. I think I know why "boy-led" is failing in this case, but it isn't because of an overall need for the troop adults to be in control. I think it is more due to impatience and perhaps not really understanding the dynamic. I'm perfectly content at sitting back and watching patrols figure it out -- but this is a troop culture where boys have become passive. Guy

Thanks guys, I really appreciate the input. OGE -- my "well-intentioned" remark was an awkward one to write. I think the adults involved don't necessarily have much prior experience with scouting, and don't know how a boy-led troop operates. As a result, I think they are perhaps a little too quick at stepping in, and at the same time not realizing how it subverts the process. It is awkward for a newer adult leader, like me, to come in and immediately start offering suggestions. I've stayed away from doing that, because I certainly don't want to step on toes. The same thing goes for pointing out situations where the boy-led process is being undermined. I do like working with these guys, and I don't want to offend them. This forum has been a tremendous resource -- there's been some interesting practical advice on how to transition. The next step seems to be to figure out how to convince the SM and the CC on making lasting changes. Thanks, Guy

Thanks guys, I really appreciate the followup. But, Kudu, I think you hit the key phrase: "if the adults can stand it"...what if the adults don't know any better, or in fact are rather unwitting in interfering in the process. So, with this opportunity you have -- is this as an new adult leader in that troop, or is it as a UC or something like that? How will you, or do you, help steer the ingrained culture in the right direction? Stosh -- I got your points, and I think they are invaluable advice. But, if at step 1 (let them form patrols, etc), what if there is adult interference (albeit, well-intentioned in the sense that I don't think they are intending to undermine the process, but it just happens)? (I'm kind of purposefully staying away from actual specifics, although I know it makes this discussion a little more difficult). Thanks, Guy

I'm sure many of you have faced this problem, so why not bring it up...certainly there's no shortage of "troop method" troops. Say an adult comes into the troop and sees an ingrained culture of "troop method". Virtually none of the scouts have ever experienced anything like the patrol method, and are quite content at being passive and having everything planned for them. If a new adult leader were to try and push for wholesale change, that wouldn't go over very well. But the adult might be able to help facilitate small, subtle steps moving the troop in the right direction. What kinds of things have you done that helped facilitate change in a troop? I could give all kinds of examples from my own situation that haven't worked out, so I'm interested in hearing about successes. Thanks, Guy