Double Eagle

Let them have separate ceremonies. Being in college, they can make the decision but the scouts or parents should not be strong armed into a dual ceremony. I've seen a ceremony that included 7 getting eagle. It took away from the individual achievement. It looked more like "what the committee and leaders could do" than celebrating the personal achievement of a scout. The scout, parents, and committee need to be involved in the planning and running the ceremony.

Our adult patrol is named the "Grumps", mainly for grownups and for being grumpy in the mornings. We have a patrol flag and although not a lot of scouters all the time, all scouters belong to our patrol. Our patrol eats off the same budget as the other patrols. We try to show them that there is more to eating than poptarts and hotdogs. We camp, eat, clean up, and relax in our patrol area. One thing that I try to do is show them a model patrol campsite with gadgets and cleanliness, to include duty rosters. This keeps our scouters focused on our tasks and leave the scouts to theirs.

A new one for "Nestle", smoke chips. Right up there with potato chips dropped into saw dust: wood chips. Just stay away from buffalo chips, they are much too chewy and always seem to melt in you hands, mouth, and get all over. And for the tiger cubs: micro-chips.

1. Is she willing to pay back the funds, all or partial within a reasonable time? Interest? 2. You will need to notify the CO and COR about this. Also, get an audit on your pack's account. Get the checkbook and her off the account now. Stop reading this and call, then return. Welcome back, You may procede with criminal charges, embezzlement or larceny of private funds. The police will take the case. Let this "lady" know your committee's thoughts, wishes, and actions if it cannot be resolved. 3. Call an emergency meeting of the committee, get it all on the table and explore all avenues. At a minimum, get an audit and review the entire account. You may or may not be able to get all the money back depending on the records of deposits and withdrawls. 4. Every pack meeting have a treasures' report and offer the checkbook with receipts for review. There are no secrets here. (This message has been edited by Double Eagle)

In the Adirondacks those "bear" bells are sometimes referred as dinner bells for bears. A bell is an unnatural sound in the woods and often lures a curious bear to take a look. If they do look, they might get a full meal wrapped in a backpack. I still like whistles, they can scare the heck out of a bear and help with lost scouters, scouts don't get lost, we just don't know where THEY are. Bells in the woods might say "Taco Bell" to the hungry bear.

WOW, this sure did get blown out of proportion. The initial post from yaworski was directed as sarcasm towards OGE from another post. Everyone sure fell into that trap. What brought me out of the nest was when bob tried to turn Venturer2002 away from his own opinions. It takes guts to take on the yaworski, bob, and others in this forum. Bob, Venturer2002 may be only 18 but that doesn't mean inexperienced. How quick we are to assume that they don't have a real view of the situation. If anyone, being closer to the age of the scouts we talk about, has a scouters level eye, Venturer2002 does. I know a lot of older scouters that don't have a clue. Yoda quotes: "do or do not, there is no try". Not good advise from a 450yr old.(This message has been edited by Double Eagle)

What a bunch of hogwash. Marriages ending due to woodbadge. Did they finally exchange beads instead of rings. You should have never had to leave your patrol. I can't imagine a troop not having a leader because you can't be in the same campsite as males. Talk about time warp. In my course, the old week long one, on the overnighter, every participant carried, erected, and slept in a tent that they pitched. No special favors, treatment, or exclusion. You got some bad guidance.

Agree with Bob on the individual activity. I'm not sure why you would charge merit badge counselors, they are servicing your troop and council. I don't see a lot of counselors that will volunteer with a fee, fingerprints, and background check. I really don't see the practicality of the fingerprints. Is that for future reference or checking their past. I don't know of any law enforcement agency that is going to run finger prints for an unknown crime. Kinda like overkill to me.(This message has been edited by Double Eagle)

You are good for the coldest of weather. A tuque will act like any knit cap during moderately cold weather or when you are a bald eagle and mornings below 45 start to get cold on the head.

Survival kit: Waxed dental floss is great. Half a hacksaw blade will cut almost anything. Any sized aluminum foil. Rubber bands for everything. A arrowhead (broadhead), cutting and hunting. Vaseline covered cottonballs. 35mm Canisters for anything. When backpacking, trash compactor bags outlast normal trashbags.

Contact realtors and ask if you can put flyers in their offices. Many times, out of area families will search for a home with them and it helps to get the word out. Any school event can be turned into a recruiting event. A simple flyer or person with info and registration sheets will work. Churches,grocery stores, and radio is great. Also, get a local newspaper involved with what you have now and do an article. Marketing is the key to getting recruits even if you have a feeder pack. Any info with the local chamber of commerce will help too.(This message has been edited by Double Eagle)

Funny you mention corners. My ASM, a medic, severely cut his finger while "carving". After we saw him with a paper towel wrapped around his finger, we helped him rummage through his medic bag. Needless to say after he doctored himself. I asked him for his and not only took one corner but three, one for each finger sliced. The scouts thought it was funny, and he volunteered to teach totin chip to get a new card with the understanding that his old one would be retained until he left and it would be presented (on a going away plaque). Same day: Second one, my son (using his mom's side the brain) hit himself in the forehead with an axe handle by choking up too far on the handle. Being too embarrassed to say that outright, he told the medic that the axe caught on an overhanging branch. Well, both sat next to each other with banadages, odd shaped totin' chips and bummed faces. Real funny at the time after the blood stopped flowing.

These sure bring a new meaning to "be prepared". We need some serious medical help. One being the pharmacist to fill the needs and a doctor to suture the results of taken or missed medicine. And we thought the toadkiller & humper were out there. The machette one is a real side splitter (pun intended).

A tuque is like a ski cap. Its woven and has tapered front and back. For a good view, watch "Strange Brew" with Bob and Doug Mackenzie (hosers). Those from the US/Canadian border may be familiar with them.

To all the fellow critters, thanks for some woodbadge fun and for those that are future critters, its all in fun and overall when the kudo horn is sounded we all put our ears, wings, tails, and smirks towards the SPL.

I'm kinda torn on this. I have to lead towards the anyone with one can teach it but under the eye of a responsible leader. If at camp, a staff member teaches it, I would not second guess it. But, if a guy who earned it way back when is just returning to using the woods tools, coaching and guiding may be needed. I certainly don't condone an untrained, untested, and just-earned scout teaching the class. It is also up to how you are working advancement requirements within the troop. Another scout may teach it but the testing may be only with approved leaders. Good judgement and observation on the scout and the instruction is needed before I'll sign.

WRONG!!! I don't think it is a bear, I hope its not any mother-in-law. Bears have nothing on a mother-in-law. Or worse, a mother-in-law that is a bear. It just keeps getting worse. I've known a bob to be pretty scary until the light finds it. Kinda like a snipe. A bear fly? hmmmmmm... I've seen a horsefly, deerfly, housefly, and even a dragonfly, but a bearfly? Isn't that when a fly doesn't have clothes on? Come to think about it, I have seen a bearfly. It ran, rather flew, away when confronted by a chipmunk.

This is a question for Teddy, Boo Boo, Yogi, Cindy, and Baloo. Who is the king of the forest when bears decide to sleep for months? Is it so hard moving around for a couple of months that you have to take months off? "Eagles are too chicken to fight a bear", well. Imagine how the other critters would make fun of the bear of it were to be beten down by the eagle. Eagles recognize this and are smart enough to know that the bear would have to hibernate for ever if it got embarrassed like that. Next thing you know a bob white would be mopping up the forest floor with one or making a bear a mass transit means for bobs. Eagles choose to soar, we will walk if we want to. Why be limited to walking or lumbering as a bear does.

Gotta agree about the intentional part. Those forms are not user friendly to someone that hasn't tried them before. As a SM, I don't sign the advancement sheet but I turn in the completed blue card to the advancement chairman. Help for new scouters. Your name cannot be on as a board of review member if your son went through. Getting a blue card for a merit from the SM is one of the first parts of earning a merit badge before completing any requirement.

as mentioned above, sometimes your critter chooses you. There's no insurance about staying the same. Sometimes as staff you are transformed into a mess. Okay, you were an old grey eagle scout and were seen as a bear. You are a Beagle. If you are a beaver and your spouse is an owl, you will have bowls (pronounced: bowels) as children. Buffalo and bob whites. White buffalos of course. How about a bear and a fox, either boxes or fears. Antelope and owls, Owlopes. You pick. Interesting ain't it. The bears and buffalos may need pictures drawn to understand what I'm talking about.

rlculver415, welcome to the circle of life where eagles rule. When you are finally exposed as the critter you deserve, probably an eagle, you will contemplate why you were selected as... To be honest you will be what you have inside you. Fox, maybe, are you good looking? Sly, cunning, or skittish and afraid of other predators? Bears, well we all have our ideas how a bear acts. One of the biggest but not known for its intelligence. How hard is it to figure out a bear bag rope. Buffalo, tastes like chicken but too big to leave no trace. Bob whites taste like chicken too. Owls, like them, they are the eagles of the night. Beavers, like them too, they flood areas so eagles can get fast food, McTrout. Antelope, they bounce instead of running across the prairie. They have horns, not antlers, so they can arrange their tumble weeds all year round. So the critters start to dress for battle and for some reason can't reach up to the level of an eagle. (whatcha got critters?) Seriously: The whole wood badge thing is great and the program is excellent. Good luck and work your ticket. The critter fight is just part of the fun. Oh, $20? that's it. well, its better than the canadian nickel with a beaver on it. Gotcha beavers.(This message has been edited by Double Eagle)

Have your COR give the scout and parents, in writing, a notice stating the troop will not support this tri-registration and will not be supported until resolved by the parent what troop this scout will be registered in. Advancement: This creates a nightmare if he is a patrol leader in a troop and tries to go to a board of review in another troop. How about a SM conference in one troop and the board in another. Lots of confusion there. I'm not sure how many of us could hold our same positions in another troop or district. This must some super scout.

from my earlier post: ...a bear arrives and thinks that it is the king of beasts. Well, you are cute, cuddly and even have pretty ribbons around your necks. Top of the food chain? You envy the beaver's tail. You are too big to hide, sneak, or even leave no trace. With an overhead view, I can only say that you wish you could soar. So the games begin.

Caution: If the treasurer and SM are in the same household, you may want to get someone other than the SM for signature. This way you don't have a conflict between committee and who authorized. This is also sensitive like having the committee chairman and SM in the same household. My CO requires a monthly budget report and a plan for the money. Whether it is fund raising or donations. A budget is needed. After the planning session of the PLC and the plan is approved by the committee, this should start your budget planning. That way you know how much you will need to cover their program.

Red Feather, A heads up on the MRE heaters. They have to be disposed of as hazardous material, like paint and some household cleaners. The military came out with this policy in the past year. Also caution the scouts about playing with the heat, although they feel hot, they produce a cold-injury type burn. Magic? I don't know why, just does. Not to give bad ideas, but many of "popper" or "MRE Bomb" has been made by emptying the gray heater stuff into a plastic bottle, adding water and screwing the top on tight. As the pressure increases... you get the picture. Hope this helps with the MRE stuff.(This message has been edited by Double Eagle)