A Scoutmaster's Blog

Tonight is Cub Scout Pack 68’s Blue and Gold Banquet. It will be the first one I have attended in five years. Not because I did not want to attend any, but because there have not been any Webelos Scouts to crossover. That, and I was not invited to the last few of them.

I will be attending this year’s event. There still are not any Webelos Scouts to crossover, but the Boy Scouts and I have some things to do. The Boy Scouts will be assisting with the opening and closing ceremonies since the Cub Scouts have not had any time to practice.

I have three reasons to attend the banquet. First, of course, is to present a troop presence along with the Boy Scouts. The second is to present a slideshow I made featuring the pictures I took during the den meetings and Pinewood Derby. I think the boys and parents will get a chuckle out of it. The third reason is to talk about Friends of Scouting. I volunteered to give this presentation to save our district executive a trip to town. He will be coming next week to talk at the troop’s court of honor.

I hope things go well during the Blue and Gold banquet. I also hope the pack holds together and continues to grow. It would be nice to see some Webelos Scouts crossover in a few years.

100 Days of Scouting: Day 43.

This week’s YouTube Tuesday video comes from the Circle Ten Council of the B.S.A. It features Boy Scout Denzel Long. He talks about how the Boy Scouts have helped him raise his life to a whole new level. I liked the video, and I think you will also.

The Reading Merit Badge was introduced to the Boy Scouts of America advancement program in 1925. Boys already had plenty of reading material at that time, including books about fictional Boy Scouts named Tom Slade, Roy Bakely, and Pee-Wee Harris.

I own five of the original Pee-Wee Harris novels, and they are the feature of this week’s Memorabilia Monday. A few were found in used book stores. The rest were picked up through online sites like eBay.

I am happy to be able to include these books as part of my Scouting memorabilia collection. Even though they are books about fictional characters, they give us a glimpse into what life was like in the early 1900’s, nearly one hundred years ago. It was a world without video games, cell phones, the internet, and television. Boys made their own adventures instead of buying a pre-made one in a store.

The Pee-Wee Harris books are now in the public domain. Many of them are available as free electronic versions through sites like Amazon, Google Books, and Project Gutenburg. Download them for your iPad, Kindle, or Nook. I have already downloaded them even though I still need a device on which to read them. Until then, I will read them the “old school” way, through the printed hardback versions.

100 Days of Scouting: Day 42.

Every once in awhile it becomes a busy week of Scout stuff in this scoutmaster’s schedule. This happens to be one of those weeks. Take a look…

Monday, the 14th – The troop meeting. Most of the members of the Mel-TV board of directors stopped by for a photo with the Boy Scouts. They donated a thousand dollars to the troop. Time to replace some equipment this spring.

Tuesday, the 15th – the troop committee meeting. In addition to the usual stuff, we had a board of review for a Tenderfoot Scout. The chairman of the Cub Scout Pack committee attended so we could plan for a Scout recruitment night in April.

Wednesday, the 16th – preparation. Prepared and printed posters for next month’s Belgian waffle supper fundraiser. Printed, cut, and bundled the presales tickets for the supper. Met with one of the Boy Scouts to discuss and plan the food list for this weekend’s outing.

Thursday, the 17th – packing. Time to prepare the troop gear and pack the personal gear for this weekend’s outing.

Friday, the 18th through Sunday, the 20th – the troop’s winter outing. This one may not be much of a winter outing. Temperatures have been in the 40’s this week. The sledding hill may be brown instead of white.

Monday, the 21st – the troop meeting. We will be using the meeting to have the boys go around town for the presales kick-off for next month’s fundraiser. Hopefully, sales will go well.

Tuesday, the 22nd – The Blue and Gold Banquet. The Boy Scouts will be assisting with the opening and closing ceremonies. They will also be doing a short skit. I will be showing a slideshow I prepared featuring the Cub Scouts during their meetings and Pinewood Derby. I will also give the Friends of Scouting talk during the meeting.

Wednesday, the 23 – rest and relaxation. Unless Chris decides we should do a Leaders Campfire episode.

How is your week of Scouting this week?

It is the sixth week of 100 Days of Scouting. Time for another Scout Trivia quiz. Today’s theme is outdoor skills. These ten questions come from the Scout Mania trivia book, and are based on the 1984 Boy Scout Handbook. Are you ready to begin? I thought you would be.

1) How can you prepare questionable water for drinking?

2) There are two basic primitive fire making methods. What are they?

3) For quick pot washing, what should be done before cooking?

4) A good map tells five things. Name three.

5) Name four knots used to tie a rope to an object.

6) Name three types of poisonous snakes in the United States.

7) When you mask your ax, what are you doing?

8 ) What is “bird seed” used on a hike?

9) When hiking, how often and how long should you rest?

10) How did the sheet bend get its name?

And a bonus question: 11) What does green on a topographical map represent?

Yeah, that is right.

Eleven questions this week.

I know you can handle it.

At least I thought you could.

Are you ready for the answers?

Okay then, let’s begin.

1) Boil it or use purification tablets.
2) Fire by friction, fire by flint and steel.
3) Smear soap powder or softened soap on the outside of the pot.
4) Description, details, directions, distance, designations.
5) Half hitch, slippery half hitch, two half hitches, clove hitch, timber hitch, tautline, lark’s head.
6) Copperhead, rattlesnake, coral, cottonmouth.
7) Sheathing it.
8 ) It is a hiking snack.
9) Every half hour, and no longer than three to five minutes.
10) From “bending” (tying) a “sheet” (rope on a sail).
11) Woodland areas, swamps and marshes, orchards and scrub lands.

How did you do this week?

I enjoy a good campfire program. You can easily tell when a camp staff has rehearsed the skits and songs, and when they themselves are having a good time. That good time spreads to the campers and makes for a great evening. When you get the campers laughing you know you have done your job well.

Today’s video for YouTube Tuesday features a camp staff that must have spent a lot of time practicing because the skit they performed was done flawlessly. The timing was perfect. The audience had a fantastic time watching them. You really do not want me to explain this video. You just need to sit back, watch and enjoy it. Then grab a few people and start practicing it yourselves for this summer camp programs. (1349)

100 Days Of Scouting: Day 36.

It’s Monday! The start of another workweek. The day of blogging about Scouting Memorabilia. This time I go back to the 1940’s and the Boy Scout of America handbook. I have been lucky enough to add two of these to my book collection. Both were used by boys when they were a Scout so they do show some wear. To tell the truth, these books are in better shape than some of the current handbooks that boys in my troop use.

Most of this handbook is black and white, but the first dozen pages were done in color. There are several pages of advertising in the back of the book, along with the front and back cover. There are large sections devoted to trees, birds, and weather. There is even a list of United States of America presidents, up to F. D. Roosevelt. The books contains quite a few black and white drawings. It also seems to contain a lot more information than today’s handbook. (Maybe boys read more back then?)

Have you been lucky enough to find a 1940’s Handbook for your collection?

100 Days of Scouting: Day 35.

I was a Boy Scout for about three and one half years. While I had fun as a Scout, and even learned a few things, I did not get very far in the advancement program. Advancement was not pushed much in my troop. If we earned any we pretty much did it on our own, or at camp. Thus, I can say for the rest of my life that I am a Second Class Scout.

How did you do when you were a Boy Scout? Did you barely finish Tenderfoot, or did you go all the way to Eagle Scout. Take this little survey and let’s see how the readers of this blog measure up.