OldGreyEagle

I always liked the Key on top of the wagonwheel for Quartermaster, that would be nice to go back to

So, this was mentioned twice on the sending a kid home thread. I want to be sure I understand. You have a scout sign up for 3 merit badges, gets to camp and decides he doesnt want to be do the three merit badges so you send him home? Is that the gist?

we have a scouter from New Jersey who has the plate BSA NUT

There is the license plate for the ever vigilant scoutmaster O I C U

The Council I serve has three Camp Crews, all registered in the District I serve as the COuncil Office is in the District I serve, except the Council Office really isnt but that's where they were registered so thats where they are. One thing I have to say, they are the campingest Crews the Council has, 8 weeks of long term Camping, no one else comes close. One Crew does advancements, one youth last year earned Eagle as a Crew member and a few have earned Gold. Mostly its a convention for the staf to be BSA registered. One thing that rankles my rear is the uniform. Venturing shirt with Boy Scout shorts. I have commented on this numerous times to no avail.

Howdy Back, my father lives in Clarksville and I have had some experience fishing around the Dardanelle dam, got some big catfish out that way. My father's favorite restaurant in the area is Brown's Catfish House in Russellville

So, back from camp. Actually, I am back from home as I feel my real home is Camp Minsi, its just that economic forces dictate I must spend 51 weeks of the year in exile. Great week of Camp, some mis-steps along the way but with a group of 33 youth, that will happen. Did see some growth in unexpected places and that was great. At the Sunday Introductory Campfire the staff presented a series of skits and songs and cheers. One poor guy came out and read "The Cremation of Sam MaGee" with as littke heart as could be imagined. Turned out for my "Scoutmaster merit badge" a program the Camp offers to get scoutmasters interacting with staff and the program areas, I had to earn a merit badge, so I got set up for public speaking. For my final speech, I did the "Cremation of Sam MaGee" as my alter ego Pierre Aloyoiuis DeMonde, the French Voyageur. And I did it from memory. The counselor for the badge was the staffer who had read it Sunday night, he gulped and said he hoped he would some day reach the level I did it at. The best part was Friday night, for my 6th year Scoutmaster merit badge, I had to participate in a skit at the Troop Campfire, so I did "Boat 99", the gist is the waterfront director comes on stage, demands boat 99 come back in and has a succession of people talk to him, only to find out there are only 72 boats in camp, the last line is "Boat 66, is there an issue?" This years Waterfront Director was a guy who has been on staff for 6 years, and this was his first as Waterfront Director. He is also the personality of the camp. Always running around, yelling at the top of his lungs and carrying on. So, for the final campfire I borrowed a staffers polo shirt and hat and went on stage imitating him. Basically it was me running back and forth on the campfire stage yelling "Woooooo" at the top of my lungs. A few staff members came up and we did lines until I got to the end, said "Boat 66 is there an issue" and ran off the stage. The place went up for grabs, after the campfire the Trading Posts rang with "WOOOOOO's" whenever the Waterfront Director walked in. I saw him afterwards and he was laughing and shook my hand. He loved it and the "WOOOOOOs" continued up to the final ceremonies. While at Camp I assisted the Range master, as a Camp School trained Shooting Sports Director (I did Camp School at the same place and time as the resident Rangemaster) we doubled the open Shotgun and Rifle Free Shoots, he did one and I did another rather than just having one a day. Many kids got the badges because they had a chance to shoot more. The senior youth planned a luau for Thursday which worked well. Great week, did I say that? And also exposed some weaknesses but if the troop was perfect, what would we have to do?

100 pages? Is that font 8, 12, or 24? I am a long standing member of the District's Advancement Committee and I am not sure I have the attention span to read a 100 page Eagle Project write-up much less 3-5 at the monthly meeting.

So while off at Camp the Council had a Combined Council Committee Meeting. At it quite a few staff changes were ammounced, we are losing the District I serve Executive. The replacement is a young lady who was a charter member of the Venturing Crew I helped form. I was the one who helped her get her first BSA job at summercamp and now she is the DE I will serve under. She has been a DE in the COuncil for about 2 years and for the past 9 months or so the Venturing Support person. She was the Venturing President of the Northeast Region a few years back. I was writing her an e-mail asking her to do something, when it struck me, as a youth she would ask when can we go to Gettysburg, When can we go Backpacking, etc. and I would tell her, hey kid, its your program, you plan it and get back to me and we will make it happen together. So, now, its a volunteer program, I have to plan it and then she will help me make it happen. This role reversal stuff exhibits a vacuum(This message has been edited by oldgreyeagle)

Back from Camp By the shores of old Stillwater, with its azure blue. Lies a camp of friendly Boy Scouts, cheerful, brave, and true. Sing her glories, live her ideals hold her memories dear. Give a cheer that all may hear it; Hail all hail Minsi. Far away from care and turmoil of the busy town. In a Brotherhood of Scouting; We will there be found. Sing her glories, live her ideals, hold her memories dear. Give a cheer that all may hear it; Hail all hail Minsi! Be back later to talk about it

Later guys

The Troop I serve has a Troop Phone Tree, the SPL calls the two ASPL's who each call 2-3 Patrol Leaders who then call the APL and then each boy is to call the next one on the list. Of course, many times the SPL is talking to a patrol member as no one has picked up yet, but the messages get sent, and left on aswering machines. This method is used to communicate when trip plans change with little notice. We run it for the EP merit badge, a message goes out, initiated by the Merit Badge Canidate , to meet at the Troop meeting place. He then goes to the meeting place and logs who showed up when and then traces down who didnt show up and why. Since the calls are unannounced, usually far fewer people show up then are called, but thats the process.

Be off to camp Sunday (July 13, 2008), The Troop is going to Camp Minsi at Pocono Summit, PA. By the shores of old Stillwater, with its azure blue. Lies a camp of friendly Boy Scouts, cheerful, brave, and true. Sing her glories, live her ideals hold her memories dear. Give a cheer that all may hear it; Hail all hail Minsi. Far away from care and turmoil of the busy town. In a Brotherhood of Scouting; We will there be found. Sing her glories, live her ideals, hold her memories dear. Give a cheer that all may hear it; Hail all hail Minsi!

way back at the turn of the century (I love saying that) I started representing the Troop I serve at Pack cross over ceremonies. We usually draw from 3-4 packs and their Blue and Golds always see to be at the same time so I helped out. I saw in the paper that the 2000 census said that children statyed home with their parents until the age of 21 (cant wait to see this number in 2010!) Anyway, at the Cross Over ceremony, I would mention that, that children live with their parents until the average age of 21 and since the boys are 11, half of the time the parents have with their children is gone. I got more than a few misty eyes from the parents.

Kurt Vonnegut

If man is inherently evil, how did the Greeks invent democracy? Initiate the development of the arts, recognize the dignity of man? These are the building blocks of western civilization. Did these themes evolve from the Greeks religious beliefs or did the religious belief form from the culture? Ancient Greece was a very civilized time, what was the reason? Was it devotion to their faith or the nobility of man allowed to flourish?

See Trev, I disagree, in the phrase you wrote "Packsaddle, sometimes you are a real #####." (edited by Moderator OGE) the contest would indicate that you werent saying: Packsaddle , sometimes you are a real genius or Packsaddle , sometimes you are a real smart person I just offer that sometimes the best thing to do is to take the line out and thats it

See, at this point I could ask who the GSA is, as I dont know those initials although from the context, perhaps the GSUSA should have been referenced, the Girl Scouts of the United States of America. One could ask how a conversatin on canvas tents became a discussion on the pros and cons of having electricity in camp, but as I have referenced on other threads, Forrest Gump's feather, like a thread seemingly has a mind of its own and will drift where it will. Personally I have a wedge tent from these guys: http://www.redhawk-trading.com/wedge-tent.htm Thing weighs a ton, as does the three poles needed to set it up, but its fun. I hope by buying the Sunforger (Flame resistant) Canvas I didnt expose myself as being to soft. My alter ego Pierre Aloyouis DeMonde uses it a lot I am trying to understand how someone can say that if you aren't here for the "real deal", what ever that is, then you should join the GSA, which I will take as the Girl Scouts. So, if you dont camp the way someone deems proper, then the best argument is to call the other person a "girly man" or associate them with being females? And when your target responds, appropriately I beleive, you claim not to be "arrogant"? So, if only able bodied persons who can camp acording to the "right way", are to be scouts, then what do I do with the two kids in the troop I serve who have MS and use walkers and at times electric carts? Do we need to shelter them in a cabin somwhere because when B-P started Boy scouts he obviously only wanted normal kids to camp. The handicapped need not apply. I will add that to the definition of "real deal" scouting.

I think the Greeks, particularly of Athens, were a very civilized society. They had great regard for the Arts, Songs, Poetry and Philosophy. They also had a huge respect for the military, something inspired by the Spartans, their neighbors. The Athenians came up with Democracy, allowing the majority of citizens to make decisions concerning the community, quite a novel concept and one that wouldnt be seen again for quite awhile. I beleiev studying Greek culture is what inspired Thomas Jefferson during our nations founding days. Was the polytheistic religion of the Greeks resonsible for the development of their Culture, or did the development of their Culture produce their polytheistic religion? Did the Greeks recognize the dignity of man outside of religious instruction or did their religion instill their thoughts of the nature of man? Without the Greeks myths brought to us today by Hamilton or Bullfinch, would the Greeks have been as powerful a cultural influence over the past?.

In the parent thread there was talk seemingly about the nature of man, is he good or bad inherently. So, is man good or bad inherently?

But if there isnt going to be a difference between how CO's run things now and how the BSA would run them, why change?

I was so wrapped up in the Camps of eastern PA, I forgot to mention Camp Rodney on the Chesapeake

Lisabob, one thing that may be interesting to note and the ex-professional scouters may have a thought here, but most of the recent "new" DE's I have seen do not have any experience in the BSA Program. Fom what I am told, since they oversee the administrative elements of the programs, they don't have to know how the programs work. Much as the current Ford Chairman may not know how to bolt on a bumper on every vehicle Ford makes, he still runs the company. Once the BSA starts to "own" BSA programs, now we need professionals who know the program, working with the volunteers to deliver the program not to a District, Council or Region, but specifically to the Flaming Arrow patrol. And that is huge

OK, from the parent thread its obvious that the BSA and they chartering organizations could stand some help to get on the same page. So, how do we do that?

One of the things this thread does point out is the lack of understanding of the CO's role in scouting, that may be another topic, aside from whether or not we need CO's.