Insufficient recruiting

[dsteele]

I saw the following piece on the wall of a restaurant and it cracked me up. I think a lot of us (myself included) are guilty of trying to do too much Scouting work ourselves rather than teaching others to do it. I don't care if we're talking about a patrol leader, Den Leader, District Commissioner, Council Commissioner, or Scout Executive. It applies.

 

Please feel free to print the story below and share it with others. Also, please feel free to laugh out loud. It's pretty funny in a Three Stooges sort of way... Afterward, I'd like to read your thoughts about it.

 

Taken from somewhere on the web:

 

"This is a bricklayer's accident report that was printed in the newsletter of the English equivalent of the Workers' Compensation

Board.

 

Dear Sir:

 

I am writing in response to your request for additional information in Block #3 of the accident reporting form. I put "Poor Planning" as the cause of my accident. You asked for a fuller explanation and I trust the following details will be sufficient.

 

I am a bricklayer by trade. On the day of the accident, I was working alone on the roof of a new six story building. When I

completed my work, I found I had some bricks left over which when weighed later were found to weigh 240 lbs. Rather than carry the

bricks down by hand, I decided to lower them in a barrel by using a pulley which was attached to the side of the building at the sixth floor.

 

Securing the rope at ground level, I went up to the roof, swung the barrel out and loaded the bricks into it. Then I went down and

untied the rope, holding it tightly to insure a slow descent of the 240 lbs. of bricks. You will note on the accident reporting form that my weight is 135 lbs.

 

Due to my surprise at being jerked off the ground so suddenly, I lost my presence of mind and forgot to let go of the rope. Needless to say, I proceeded at a rapid rate up the side of the building.

 

In the vicinity of the third floor, I met the barrel which was now proceeding downward at an equally impressive speed. This explains the fractured skull, minor abrasions and the broken collarbone, as listed in Section 3, accident reporting form.

 

Slowed only slightly, I continued my rapid ascent, not stopping until the fingers of my right hand were two knuckles deep into the pulley which I mentioned in Paragraph 2 of this correspondence. Fortunately by this time I had regained my presence of mind and was able to hold tightly to the rope, in spite of the excruciating pain I was now

beginning to experience.

 

At approximately the same time, however, the barrel of bricks hit the ground-and the bottom fell out of the barrel. Now devoid of the weight of the bricks, the barrel weighed approximately 50 lbs. I refer you again to my weight. As you might imagine, I began a rapid descent down the side of the building.

 

In the vicinity of the third floor, I met the barrel coming up. This accounts for the two fractured ankles, broken tooth and severe

lacerations of my legs and lower body.

 

Here my luck began to change slightly. The encounter with the barrel seemed to slow me enough to lessen my injuries when I fell into the pile of bricks and fortunately only three vertebrae were cracked.

 

I am sorry to report, however, as I lay there on the pile of bricks, in pain, unable to move and watching the empty barrel six stories above me, I again lost my composure and presence of mind and let go of the rope."

 

Now go out and recruit some help for your position, please! I don't want you to get hurt.

 

Have a pleasant Saturday.

 

DS

 

(This message has been edited by dsteele)

[Laurie]

Thank you for sharing this! I can't remember laughing so hard. The point is well made.

[Eamonn]

Dave there are a few recordings of this, the best one is by the Dubliners.

I have used it a few times over the years.

At the risk of being a little bit "Off Color":

Last year a camp Mountain Run, (Bucktail Council.) I was staffing a Wood Badge course.

Bucktail have a first class camp with lots of new state of the art buildings.

One staffer thought it would be a good idea to post the cute training slogans on the mirror over the hand basin. You know the kind; "If it's not for the boys, it's for the birds, and that type of thing.

You could read the solgan of the day from the urinal. All went well till one day, when answering a call of nature, I read the slogan of the day. It read: "The future of Scouting is in your hands."

If you try and down load the song it is called the Brick Layers song or the sick note.

[purcelce]

I almost spit coffee on my monitor while reading this one!

 

Good one Dave!

 

YIS

Cary