Stosh

I have the Webelos boys crossover whenever they want. Cub Scouts should not be deciding when the boys cross over into Boy Scouts, that's the boys' decision. Stosh

Well, then you go and ask the next parent to help out. Using one's son as political leverage doesn't really set well with me. I gave up trying to please the kid that takes his ball and goes home, a long time ago. Okay, no ball, how about tag... YOU'RE IT! Stosh

Okay, Basement, here's how it works. I buy the pants on Ebay, I have a debit card. Various sizes and maintain a personal inventory for first time buyers. They pick up a pair from me at what I paid on Ebay. Now they have a pair to trade up in the Troop's closet. This also helps with providing replacement pants for the boys that quit and keep their pants and or those worn out. It has nothing to do with credit cards, Ebay access or any other excuses. It's a service I provide for the young boys. Of course if some of the older boys age out or quit, they have the option of donating pants/shirts to the closet for the younger boys which they have had a tendency to do. And yes, I have had boys mow my lawn and shovel my walk to pay for their first pair of pants. They also have the option of using their credits from troop funds to purchase uniform parts. It's all part of the character development that goes along with the uniform method. And when all else fails and the boy just can't come up with the $15 the pants, the troop "pays" for them out of my personal funds. The boy submits a request to the troop committee and then goes to the committee to present it in person, they deliberate the merits of the situation and if they feel the boy has done his best in trying to raise funds but falls short, he is awarded uniform parts, which is basically taken from my personal inventory which I am glad to provide. I haven't had to do this very often, but it does provide an opportunity for every boy in the troop to have a full uniform. Heck, I spend more money on gasoline driving to Troop meetings and activities than what it costs me to maintain full uniforms for the boys. And I also probably spend more money on ice cream and candy bars than I do for the program, but that's another story. Like I said, money is an excuse, not a consideration. Stosh

Yes, some were registered as Boy Scouts in one council and Venturing in another. Stosh

I would be concerned about "spending time with my son". Are you there to spend time with your younger son or your older son? Are you there for the troop for some personal concern you have with your family. I guess I'm a bit old-fashioned in that when I go on an outing it is 100% for the boys. My son hasn't been in scouting for over 20 years now and I am most often the only adult in the group that doesn't have divided loyalties. On occasion my wife has attended the troop's whitewater events, only because she is a expert kayaker in her own right and provides an additional safety service to the group. She can also out hike any parlor scout in the troop, too. When it comes to plant identification, if it grows in the woods, she knows what it is and most often by it's scientific name as well. So, if one is volunteering to help the troop, why would the question of non-troop people tagging along that aren't involved in helping with the troop? Stosh

My troop is located in "the poorer" part of town. The boys are all full uniformed, but they don't buy off of Council shop shelves. They use Ebay and have a closet for the clothing they outgrow. Any boy can turn in a pair of pants and get a larger pair at no cost. Being full uniformed is not an issue of money, it's an issue of Thrifty. If the boys can't afford a $5 necker, I make them for about $1 each. Slides? Make them from parachute cord for pennies. When all is said and done, my boys may be the poorest, but they are the best uniformed troop in the council. Cost is not a consideration when it comes to full uniforms, but for some it's a pretty good excuse. Stosh

Our tax dollars at work..... Our camp just dug holes in the ground for free.... Stosh

Not a problem.... When I was a crew advisor for my crew, we had boys/girls from not only from different councils, but also different states. Stosh

I don't think the transitions are always something for the boys, but more for the adults and leaders. The crossover I did last night was fun. I have one boy in my new troop at the present time and has been a scout for only 6 months and he's responsible for the crossover. I had a book and necker for the new boy and gave them to him and asked if he thought he needed some help. He said yes. It was a pretty daunting expectation so the two of us went over to the Boy Scout end of the bridge and waited. The CM did a really nice job with an official ceremony. So when the boy got to the end of the bridge, my boy presented him with his book, shook his hand and welcomed him to the troop. I leaned over and said, what's the second rule of scouting for the troop? He said, "Look and act like a Scout." Then I looked back at the new boy and said, "Kinda close, but not quite, don't cha think?" "Yep", and then he took off the blue epaulets and stuffed them in the boy's pocket. Took off the Webelos pin ribbons stuffed them in another pocket, pulled the slide put that in his pants pocket and took the scarf and told him put it in his hip pocket. Then he put the BS necker on him and tied a nice looking slip knot and told him he's going to have to learn how to tie a Turk's Head knot so he has a new slide. Then he stepped back, looked at me and asked, if that looked better. For a totally unrehearsed first go at it, I think the boy just started the new troop's first "tradition". Both boys thought it was really fun, and really? that's all that counts. Stosh

After a flurry of emails between parents, Web leaders, Cubmaster and myself, the Cubmaster pulled rank and made an "executive decision". The boy would get his AOL and crossover into scouts last night... end of discussion. She did a great job of pulling it off and the boy is now in Boy Scouts and happier than a pet clam. I thanked her at the end of the evening for her decision and she gave me a frown and said, "Well, it isn't over yet!". Then smiled, she added, you have boys here tonight who's parents weren't in on the discussion and would have wanted to crossover as well. She said I was to get my butt back to the pack in January because there's more boys wanting to join the new troop and the boys from the troop need to be there. I sure hope her boy gets through Cubbing quickly, she seems like the kind of person that would make an excellent ASM or better yet CC. Stosh

Strange that one should point this out. This is exactly what boys did 50 years ago when I was growing up. Stosh

How does one put their name on a rooster? Stosh

In BSA there is only one official uniform. There is only one official uniform inspection sheet. And estimated 95% of the troops out there do not adhere to the one complete official uniform anyway. So why even try? 1) Most troops make up their own uniform "rules" as they go along 2) Most troops have "class b, c, d, e, f, and g" uniforms to convince themselves they are in some sort of compliance, see #1 above. 3) Uniforms are not required. (unless you are going to Jamboree, then you need TWO COMPLETE UNIFORMS!!!) Anyone see he hypocrisy in that? 4) Uniform pants are too expensive and the boys are going to outgrow them anyway. (Same for the $175 pair of Nike's they are accustomed to wearing) My advice? Dump the whole process! You will sleep easier having chucked the whole thing rather than lying awake at night trying to justify non-compliance. I don't worry about it, but my troop adheres to the official uniform inspection sheet, per their decision. It's up to the PL's to assist the boys in their patrols in meeting those standards. Stosh

I have a boy 11 years old that has been AOL for a number of months now. He is being held back from going into Boy Scouts because his pack refuses to do a cross-over until the Blue-Gold banquet. This boy is in the sixth grade and won't "cross-over" until he is almost finished with the grade. I suspect this "tradition" is so that the boys will "stay together" when they go into a Boy Scout troop. It is unique this year because the Webelos II's are divided between a traditional troop they have been feeding and a new local one just starting up. The Webelos leader wants all the boys to go to the traditional troop and the boys and their parents want to go with the new local troop. But all this got me thinking... Since when is the cross-over a Cub Scout ceremony? I have never viewed cross-over as a Cub Scout exit ceremony, but led by Boy Scouts (i.e. OA teams) as the Boy Scout welcome ceremony. And how can packs hold such boys back from Boy Scouts just so their Webelos II boys keep their den together throughout the year, even when the boys qualify for Boy Scouts and want to go into the program? As a matter of fact, our council always holds a cross-over ceremony at the spring camporee for all boys that didn't get a ceremony, but still need to be welcomed by the Boy Scout program. I told the parents of this and offered the boy, at his discretion, a Boy Scout cross-over any time he wants it. Hopefully this will end the political ping-pong game going on, or at least direct the political rhetoric at me instead of the boys. Stosh

How's about this. 1) tie a clove hitch on a pencil. 2) slide the pencil out and slip the long standing rope in it's place. You now have a double half hitch. 3) But what if you have this knot tied on different piece of rope. Is it a clove hitch or a double half hitch? Stosh

I had one boy do a shadow box play. He started with a shoe box, cut a peek hole in one end and a slot in the bottom. Decorated the inside with scenery and then costumed up his fingers as the 4 characters of his play. It was really kinda neat. That way each boy gets to make up his own play. Stosh

You don't hear about the local firefighter or police officer that performed some heroic act being an Eagle either. I'm sure there are plenty of those to go around. This is why I don't hold much respect for the media, never have, never will. Remember, they SELL STUFF, that's their business. Hyped up headlines sell more than boring obits. I find very little difference between my local rag and the National Inquirer. Of course some of those alien babies that these women have have ended up in my troops over the years. Stosh

Mental note to self: watching re-runs of the Adam's Family is better time spent than watching the Bear Gryllis show. Stosh

Heck, I don't mind people telling lies about me, it's when they tell the truth that I get into trouble. Stosh

That's what I did as ASM and it was indeed a high point in my Scouting career. Those two years were a blast! Stosh

For the Tigers, exploring the program for me should be the emphasis. Hanging out and going to really neat places is #1. Wolf/Bear should be the arts/craft kinds of things. Learning to make things, working together, team building, being successful are #1 Webelos 1 & 2 are the transition years. Some craft things, but more along the line of woodworking, kinds of things, a bit of camping, getting out and finding out what sleeping in a tent is like, campfire hanging out, enjoying nature, exploring something other than what's inside some building. Webelos can start the introduction of male role models or gals that really like the outdoors. Kinda a pre-adventure exploration time for the boys. Boy Scouts? - let the adventure begin, full-time! Sure, the boys still make the wood duck houses, but they go out and put them up and maintain them. The do the Readyman thing, but do it to a fuller extent all the way to back-country first aid. They go to sleeping in the local state park to BWCA. And seriously, how many 16-17 year-olds want to be hanging out at the wilderness campfire with Mom? Both my mom and dad were avid outdoor campers their entire life, but I still didn't want either of them hanging out with me and my buddies. That goes beyond the male/female issue! Stosh

Before everyone tags me as a bigot, keep it in mind I'm only reflecting generalities that have long standing traits backing them up. When a young boy climbs his first tree, the mom will stand at the bottom and constantly call out, "Be careful!", while at the same time dad is standing there calling out, "How high can you go!". Traditionally the female has been identified as the caring nurturing of the two genders that work well with the Cub Program. For years the Den Mother was the norm. Young boys, tended to by a caring, concerned, nurturing adult. Yet when the boys get older, the shift moved over to the SM as male, the adventurous, exploratory, challenging gender for leadership. While boys need both qualities to develop properly, the shift from the caring female influence to the adventurous male influence seemed to fit well with the development of young men. Granted over the past 40 years those roles have become blurred and in the process offer up quite a bit of confusion for the developing youth. While I am not a fan to letting loose and just having fun, I do see the need for both dynamics within the scope of character development. While a single mom can do all she can in the early years of their son's development, there still seems to be a deep desire for them to have their boys exposed to male role models especially in their adolescent years. What do they see/want that we don't/can't always provide? Could my wife hold her own as a SM? Sure, she's comfortable in boots, flannel shirt, bluejeans and hardhat. Her experience comes from working in the National Forestry Service as supervisor for crews that would survey vast expanses of Alaskan wilderness. Dropped off by helicopter and picked up a week later at a designated site miles away. She's an experienced canoeist/kayaker, that would prefer camping the weekends over anything else on her plate. But I know for a fact that when she has gone out as my second on whitewater/camping trips, she always cautions the boys "Be careful, if anyone wants to portage around you can." In this day and age that might be the proper thing to do, but where's the adventure in that? On the other hand, I stand at the top of the rapids and tell the boys, "Lots of water, it's fast, a ton of rocks, let's see who can make it the furthest without jamming up on the rocks or rolling over!" I do however, tell the Mrs. that if I don't make it, don't send any of the boys down! It's a guy thing, but I don't see it as a Cub thing. Definitely Boy Scouts, however. So, the question remains, am I a chauvinist or a realist? Stosh

Let's see who can launch Santa and his tiny little reindeer the furthest! Or maybe have a rooftop target downrange and those that can put the sleigh on the roof. Extra special prize for getting Santa down the chimney, too. Oh, man, could I have fun with this one! Dwarf tossing and elf bowling is so passe! Stosh

All these catapult contraptions always sound interesting, but will any of them stick Jello to the ceiling? or is that a college level catapult project? Stosh

8 patrols? Your SPL has a "patrol" of PL's. Definitely a working POR! I hope your ASPL is active "PL" working with the "patrol" of other troop officers as well! Stosh