Tampa Turtle

Yes teaching them the sizes using their body. And they are closer to the ground...less work for you! A silent night hike with no lights on a well used trail was always a hit. The parents are usually the problem there.

The Video was very helpful regardless.

I once hammocked in a Tropical Storm with 35 to 45 mph gusts perpendicular to my hammock. I prayed real hard not to sway all the way into the trees. I actually fared better than the boys in tents. njdrt-rdr I recommend practcing rigging, knotting, and getting in the Hammock over a weekend at home. It is pretty hard to set up on a dark Friday night. Always embarrassing when a scout wanders over to help me out.

I used to practice setting up tents with the little ones (only ones I wasn't worried about getting damaged) just so they got acquainted with it. At that age they get excited about just getting in a tent even if you are talking to them. Walks and hikes are fun. Just realize they can get tired out quickly and get cranky. Figuring the pacing is tricky. But that age is fun. Also really basic repairs are interesting to them. We would practice things like using a screw driver and a pliers to take something apart and put it back together. But be aware that some boys hand strength and hand-eye coordination can lag behind the others--they may literally need 'hands on hands help' to avoid frustration. 10 years ago our Tiger Den's used to go on a yearly Den campout with the dads. I guess we were apostates.

Seems, at least in the greater Tampa Bay area more reported incidences of female teachers sleeping with teenage boys. Sometimes they are married with kids! While I am sure the ratio of female creepos is astronomically less than male creepos the fact is IF you are a female attracted to boys than BSA risk management should make this is two-way street. The policies should mirror each other...which it will AFTER something happens....then we will get an upbeat policy change announcement.

I think Back Pack sentiment shows any deviation from the rules for the first Girl Eagles --and our CSE has said there will be no change--is a land mine waiting to go off with many scouters. The first female Eagle Scout is out there somewhere and needs to earn it fair and square. Unfortunately for her I do not think Miss Ireland is that girl even though she seems like a terrific scout.

I was referring to Pack Den and Webelos Overnighters. That is how I interpreted it. Seems like they are making it harder for single genders. It has been a few years since cub scouts...is that the rule now? If the Webelos Den/Patrol did a overnighter now do all the adult leaders be all men?

I do Bible Study Fellowship and that has happened to me.

You know with Bryan lurking about we gotta beat with the step ladder every once in a while. I once fell over a shovel at an Eagle Project so maybe, just sometimes, he might have a point.

So will Friends of Scouting funding raising need to be increased to pay for these new Council positions or will it be a re-arranging the deck chair kind of thing? Or better yet perhaps now some generous corporation is funding the money? For years I used to work in public transit (now that is a tougher business than scouting) and before a referendum we might beef up service and promotions to increase ridership before the election only to have the whole unsustainable house of cards collapse eventually. Now I am not wishing that on BSA while I have mixed feelings about BS4G now that the decision is made I hope to be proven wrong. BUT I suspect that National is hoping to get some good PR, ride the feel good feeling up into World Jambo and then a year or two after a lot of these professionals are gonna start being laid off. Like I said --I hope I am wrong and I have been wrong before-- but my spider sense is telling me this is the financial balloon getting blown up before it starts to pop. An interesting thing is that GSUSA which as a national organization is on shaky ground (and I really like Girl Scouts) does start to falter about the same time BSA will get part of the blame regardless. In any case a different National 'Key 3' will get to pick up the pieces. Maybe there will be enough STEM Scouts to have a national High Adventure Cyber Camp somewhere.

The other videos are pretty interesting to me as a ground pounder. WOW so over professionalized...no wonder is National so messed up....we are all just products or producers.

An interesting video. Sounds like going from a current Boy Pack to a 'early adopter' Family (co-ed) Pack sounds like the nuclear launch code sequence. (Pins must be entered in a certain order). I think there will be pressure on existing All Boy Packs to switch to Family Packs as NOW Pack overnighters for Boy Packs must have ALL Male leaders. Most Packs I know have more Mom's than Dad's as leaders. Not sure if some of those Mom's who still want an All Boy unit gonna like that policy. Not sure why there is a truncated schedule...

I would think that our CE would protect our most valuable 'Brand' (oh how I hate that) which are the words "Eagle Scout".

You get breakfast?

My sons had to give up other activities they also wanted to do to make time to fit in the Eagle. I feel bad for the girl but she was taking a risk if that was the goal. When I was a teen I got 1290 on my SAT and missed a badly needed scholarship where the cut off was 1300. I missed an A in a class after bringing up my grade from a C even though I had a 89.6 average. I missed getting Springsteen tickets (back when you had to do it in person) by ten minutes because the bus ran late. (Hey I am seeing a trend here!). To give her, or any other girl, a pass on the requirements takes away from the 1st girl to do it right.

Hint, hint.

Exactly, we are all suckers for that sort of thing.

I cannot even pronounce the names.

I hope it is under 4'. From the G2SS: *Step stools, with one or two steps, are permissible for use by youth if the total height is 4 feet or less "Cubs, someday when you are a Star Scout or Life Scout you will be allowed to use one of these ladder-thingies"

Knit cap is good...stupid ones with Racoon ears or something seem popular. I hate getting another knife...I got at least 20....but a pocket clip to hang a knife is good if you can find it. Good quality biners are good. At summer camp someone gave me a little faux leather pocket memo pad holder and burned a scout seal on it. I use that at campouts. (that is if someone is a note taker) You can get a good Nalgene style bottle for around that money or get a cheap knock off and fill with candy/ Once someone got some Starbucks Via instant coffee packets for an adult. A necker if it has a survival thing or constellations or just something funny. I would have loved one signed by all the scouts of a patrol. That is nice and inexpensive. Or if you wear neckers a home made slide. Especially if it ties in with something personal (like a Turtle for me).

I think that could be a good thread: Scout uniforms from around the world: goofy or not goofy? Not really a thing for me. I liked some of the 1970's Pier Cardin styling (berets and belt loops) but also like it when some of the boys wear the retro all green uniforms that make them look like park rangers. I got mixed feelings about the current one as have been re-hashed over and over on this site over the years.

Its the ladder of advancement past the glass ceiling!

I think the pictures show that the uniforms look even goofier on little girls. I think when we go unisex new uniforms are going to have to roll out. We will probably end up looking more like our European cousins. But I think that will get pushed off until after World Jambo.

Mighty crisp looking scout pants in the photo; like they just came from the scout store. Well if you want girls to feel welcome maybe they can use some pictures from the Troops that were free range beta testers of the concept this whole time. Just as valid as models. But they might have used the same uniforms. As for two Camping merit badges, my boys ages out with 3 or 4 months of nights out of camping maybe they deserved an extra. Using a real scout may result in a fake spoof merit badge in a shot.

That said Wisconson I have seen what you have experienced in our OA Lodge where we had to do a merge and one Lodge was more adult run and the other (and in my opinion just more fun) was youth run. Any merge is tricky...someone has to give up some turf...but some of the grumpy old men drove the terrific youth leadership away. And those terrific young men have plenty of better things to spend their time on if not wanted and some of the old timers, who are retired, know they can wait them out.