clemlaw

Before anybody shells out $1799 for the "generator", I suspect that it can't provide anywhere near 1250 watts on an ongoing basis. It appears to be a very good inverter, a largish storage battery, and the panels. The _inverter_ can provide a maximum of 1200 watts. So if the battery is fully charged, it will indeed run something that draws 10 amps. There aren't any other specs given (not even the size), but based on the apparent size of the solar panels, they put out considerably less than 1200 watts. So if you only need to run your power tools for a few minutes after a long sunny day, then this thing will probably do the job. But for most outdoor applications (or even for most home applications), it doesn't seem very practical.

>>I just don't like them from a functional standpoint.

As my sainted ninth-grade English teacher taught, "loose goose lose whose". Just remember which one it rhymes with, and you can't go wrong.

I actually have very little experience with a Dutch oven, but my inexperience is actually a good thing, since I naively believed that it was a form of oven, and just like the oven at home, can be used to bake things, such as bread! My inexperience paid off, since the bread baked just fine. We have a bread machine at home, so I used it to mix some dough a few days before the trip, and refrigerated it. I let it rise for a while (in the DO, I believe) and then added some charcoal. I believe I let it bake for about the same amount of time specified by the recipe for a normal oven. I suspect this would also work well with frozen bread dough from the supermarket. I haven't used that stuff since we got the bread machine, but I believe it has simple directions on the package of how long to thaw and how long to rise. I suppose the purists would say that I cheated by making the dough at home and/or bought frozen dough at the store. But since I'm not a purist, I don't care what they think. :-)

I actually have very little experience with a Dutch oven, but my inexperience is actually a good thing, since I naively believed that it was a form of oven, and just like the oven at home, can be used to bake things, such as bread! My inexperience paid off, since the bread baked just fine. We have a bread machine at home, so I used it to mix some dough a few days before the trip, and refrigerated it. I let it rise for a while (in the DO, I believe) and then added some charcoal. I believe I let it bake for about the same amount of time specified by the recipe for a normal oven. I suspect this would also work well with frozen bread dough from the supermarket. I haven't used that stuff since we got the bread machine, but I believe it has simple directions on the package of how long to thaw and how long to rise. I suppose the purists would say that I cheated by making the dough at home and/or bought frozen dough at the store. But since I'm not a purist, I don't care what they think. :-)

>>>>Just a suggestion of additional important figures to add

I'll be on staff the second week of the Jamboree as Radio Merit Badge Counselor at K2BSA, the amateur radio station. It sounds like I won't be wearing the full uniform most days, but if I'm in uniform, you'll be able to spot me as the one wearing Cub Scout shoulder strips. My normal BSA position is Cubmaster of my son's pack.

I served as a Merit Badge Counselor this past weekend at a "Merit Badge College" type of event. The other counselor and I were only able to sign off one of the six scouts attending, mostly because the other scouts had done very little advance preparation. Now, in fairness to those scouts (none of whom grumbled about it), the e-mail that was sent out to them before the event wasn't totally clear on what they needed to do, and it was only sent out a couple of days before the event. The scouts have the contact information for the other counselor and me, and we're hopeful that some of them will follow up with the additional requirements. This does appear to be a merit badge that can be completed in one session, as long as the scout does the right preparation. So for future use, I made the following web page, which lays out exactly what the scout needs to do. I hope this information will make clear that the scout won't pass any requirements simply by sitting through a "class". I also included links to web sites that should be reliable sources of information, either instead of or in addition to the MB book. Here's the page: http://www.w0is.com/scouting/ScoutingHeritage.htm I would appreciate any suggestions for changes or additions. Also, if other scouters find it helpful, feel free to make use of it.

I consider it humorous, although others might be horrified. At my Wolf Cub Scout's school, they had a table full of free books. My son spotted one with a BSA emblem on it and brought it home. From the vague description, my guess was that it was a MB pamphlet. It turns out it was an OA Handbook, circa 2000. It was in pristine condition, and had the price tag from a local used book store. My guess is that Junior went off to college, and the parents unloaded some of his old books. For those who are horrified, don't worry--I took it out of circulation. :-)

>>>>>I was in the Scout Hut last week, and I saw her weekly list of BOY Scout stuff she drills them on, and I call No Fun.

Most magazines are in pretty desperate shape these days, and if you shop around, you can generally get a subscription to almost anything for pretty close to zero. It's usually not quite zero, since they need to tell their advertisers that you're a paid subscriber. Sometimes (but not always), the renewal will be at a higher price. I wouldn't be surprised if BL was in that category. If you run across another such deal, I would recommend buying a subscription for a local library. My son enjoys getting his (and I'm careful to keep it in pristine condition if I get my hands on it before him). I believe we pay $12 per year in addition to the normal BSA registration fee, which seems like a good price to me.

It looks like I'm a little bit late to this thread. (I've been away for a while, but the site seems to be working better now.) I'll be on the staff of the Jamboree, for one week. (Partly because getting away for two weeks would be difficult, and partly because I only have to pay half the fee, and I can handle $400.) I'll be on the staff of the amateur radio station, K2BSA, which will probably include serving as a counselor for Radio MB. My only prior Jamboree experience was in 1973 as a Scout, and it sounds like it will be much different. There were two Jamborees that year. I was at the one in Idaho, with my regular troop. This was the one occasion when regular troops could attend, as opposed to council contingent troops. Obviously, the upcoming one is much more focused on "high adventure". I'm looking forward to it, but I'm not convinced that's a good thing. Others have mentioned a "county fair" atmosphere. I'm not sure exactly what they mean, but for me, that was actually one of the high points of the one I attended. I don't recall any particular exciting activities (other than the science fair, in which I earned a second-place ribbon). Basically, it was just a few thousand scouts, with tents set up in a big field. There was very little infrastructure. There must have been water pipes set up (although I don't recall where we got our water). The toilets and showers were hastily constructed structures on concrete pads. I don't recall whether there was electricity outside of the central area, although there might have been some streetlights erected. No particular activities stand out in my mind. But it was one of the highlights of my scouting career, simply because I was in the midst of thousands of other scouts. Our troop normally did a lot of camping and high adventure (or at least medium adventure) activities. But we basically took one year off from "normal" scout summer camp so that we could go to the Jamboree. That seemed like a fine trade off. In fact, I remember thinking that this wasn't even really "camping" because instead of cooking over a wood fire, we had to cook over charcoal. And we were even encouraged to bring along an AM radio to listen to the official Jamboree station. I don't think there were any busses, and we did a lot of walking, but it didn't really differ from walking down the sidewalk at home, other than being a bit dustier. I also don't remember it as being particularly expensive, and it probably wasn't, since it consisted mostly of temporary latrines set up in a big field. Undoubtedly, scouts at the 2013 Jamboree will be able to do some activities that they won't be able to do at home. But I suspect that most of them will have to be squeezed into a day or a few hours, so it will mostly consist of just getting a taste of different activities. So it's not really "high adventure". They can get a better high adventure experience at one of the HA bases, or as my troop did, on Forest Service facilities. There's nothing really wrong with this kind of experience, and I'm looking forward to being part of it. And I suspect my son will love it in 2017 or 2021 when he is eligible to attend. I just hope that it's not over-promoted as being an ultimate high adventure experience, since I don't think it can live up to that. But that's OK, since I think many scouts would be content with a county fair set up in a big field. As others have apparently been doing, I'm trying to figure out what can go wrong. My prediction is that any unmitigated disaster is going to result from the fact that all equipment is provided. If an individual troop forgets to bring the spatula, they can probably scrounge one up. But if the equipment is assigned, it will be interesting the morning they have pancakes, when they realize that National forgot to order spatulas for everyone. Most scouts will be able to cope, but I suspect I'll come home with a few interesting stories like that. BTW, I'm told that I'll be sleeping in a four-person tent. I forgot to ask whether staff will be cooking their own food. I'm OK either way. I'll figure something out if the spatula is missing.

>>>>>Then he asked those who achieved Eagle to remain standing. All I can remember thinking at that time is how I have been to about 30 Roundtables, staffed 4 district camping events, attended 6 or 7 district or council camporees, and served two years as District Popcorn Chairman. Why have I never met any of you?

Thanks, Turtle. Wow, I'm amazed that (1) you saw the page previously and (2) you remember it. That internet thingie is pretty big!

Mr. Anderson was also a ham radio operator, and I also saw this at a number of radio sites: http://www.arrl.org/news/scoutmaster-arthur-anderson-w9wph-stabbed-to-death-on-hiking-trip

On my website, I have the following web page: http://www.w0is.com/outdoor/Coffee.html This is a someone tongue-in-cheek description of how to make coffee without electricity. I wrote this after encountering many people who insisted on camping only in electrical sites, because they assumed that it was impossible to make coffee without the use of electricity. On that page, it mentions the fact that you can light your gas stove with a match, even if the power is out. Over the last couple of days, I've gotten hundreds of hits. Most of the people got there from Google, and most of their searches were along the lines of "can I use my gas stove if the power is out." I moved that vital information to the top of the page, but I'm still amazed that people didn't figure it out on their own. I guess they weren't scouts.

>>>>>>No, not the perfect scenario, but it wasn't a "scouter died" story and he did use a skill he learned to keep safe and alive in 31 degree weather.

I very rarely use "traditional scouting skills" because I need to do so. Somewhat more often, I use "traditional scouting skills" for some purpose other than an outdoors or camping activity. I've never had to do repairs by using lashings in outer space, but I frequently tie things to the top of the car, where most other people would use a truck to move the object in question. It turns out that "rope" is quite effective to solve many common problems. In fact, I'm surprised that more people don't use it, because most of the times I use it, a granny knot would actually get the job done. But what I use almost every day is the knowledge that there is probably some simple method that can be used to accomplish a given task, even if the correct tool for the job is unavailable. And I think I mostly learned that in Scouting. Most of the time, these situations have nothing to do with knots, tents, fires, etc. I was shocked the first time that I heard someone say that they checked into a hotel because the power was out. A Scout would realize that this is a relatively minor inconvenience, and life could go on more or less the same as normal. Many non-scouts don't seem to think that way.

I would simply include a sentence or two, in Spanish, at the bottom to the effect of, "if you have any questions about Cub Scouts, please call _________", and give the Pack Secretary's name and phone number. Maybe include one or two sentences paraphrasing the rest of the flyer, "Boys in 1st through 5th grade will have fun in Cub Scouts--Pack 1234 meets on Tuesday nights," or whatever. That way, you're not implying anything, and she can explain how your Pack works when they call. Chances are, you already have someone else's name and phone number for contact information. She's the logical person to field those particular calls. Buena suerte! (Good luck!)

>>>>>Have the requirements become easier, or is that just a perception?

>>>>>>Generally speaking, I'd say it's easier to do than most people would think. Just nice, slow and steady.

I could be mistaken, but I seem to recall that I had "edible plants" for Second Class. This would have been about 1972, right before they switched over to the "improved" program. We actually ate a few, and ironically, from that exercise, I know the answer to number 12: 12. Explain why it usually is not wise to eat edible wild plants or wildlife in a wilderness survival situation. "Because you probably won't get enough energy from the few known safe things that you find to really be worth the trouble." But it's still fun. And I also know that after the collapse of society, I'm definitely not going to die of scurvy, since I'll get plenty of vitamin C from the dandelions in my yard. Still, the Scouts would have a lot more fun if they ate a few cattails. The main requirement I remember from Wilderness Survival was to cook without utinsels. I made hamburger and probably some vegetables from a little grill made out of green sticks. No, it probably wasn't a particularly practical exercise. If the utinsels got lost during the plane crash, then the hamburger probably got lost along with it. But it was still a useful exercise, because it showed that you could do things without the normal tools. The tool you actually need will be something you didn't anticipate, but you'll still know that you're able to improvise. I doubt if that lesson could be taught very well in a "class".

A "pack activity" doesn't necessarily entail a lot of planning. IMHO, you could just send out an announcement that "we're going to meet at the ______ museum at _______ PM." Just make sure a couple of leaders are going to be there. If you meet there, then parents need to take care of transportation, and many or most of them will stick around for the event. We're also in Minnesota, and our two activities have consisted of fishing at a county park and a train ride (this afternoon--come and join us!): http://www.trainride.org For the train ride, we didn't worry about advance reservations. Each family will just buy their own tickets.

I don't have any figures to go on, but I strongly suspect that the percentage is higher today. Perhaps part of the reason is the existence somewhere of the dreaded "Eagle Mills". But I think a much bigger reason for a higher percentage is not a higher numerator (number of Eagles), but a lower denominator (number of kids in Scouting in the first place). Back in my day, our troop contained mostly kids who had no particular interest in Scouting. They were there because (1) their parents thought it was a good idea, and (2) in general, they had fun at most of the activities, so they didn't bother rebelling too much against their parents. Most of those kids stuck around until about 7th or 8th grade. In the process, they had fun, they learned a few outdoors skills, and they probably had their "character" built. Then, they had other conflicting activities, such as sports, school, girls, etc., and they eventually drifted away from the troop. There was another group of kids (such as myself) who were more gung ho about Scouting. Many of them (such as myself) were nerdy kids who didn't have much interest in sports, were afraid to talk to girls, etc. We stuck around through high school, and most of us earned Eagle without much difficulty, mostly by just engaging in normal Scout activities. Most of the first group got to about First Class or so. Most of the second group got to Life or Eagle. As far as I can tell, that first group is now largely gone, or at least there aren't nearly as many of them. By the time they're old enough to join Scouts, they're probably already engaged in other activities. And there's no longer a universal belief that Scouting is a good thing. So fewer kids are pushed into joining by their parents. The second group is probably still there in about the same numbers, or maybe even larger. Since those kids are more likely to earn Eagle in the first place, that skews the numbers.

>>>>Lets see, who have we insulted so far: Young Eagles (like me). Scout leaders who are Eagles (like me). Dads who earned Eagle who encourage their kids to earn it (like me).