Sumer is a comyn in.....

Sing loud Cuckoo... although with the decline in said bird's numbers, that seems less and less likely all the time..... and although luckily Scouting is not in decline like so many of our native and visiting songbirds, we are still struggling.... and, although this may not be the trendy thing to say, I think we'll be struggling for quite some time.... and, dare I say it, I can see at least one of the reasons why.... now, I think that most of you (or at least some of you) would agree that two of our biggest stumbling blocks are lack of adult help, and concerns over health and safety.... now this latter is one of the things that prevents us recruiting and retaining.... some see us as dangerous, some see us as a bit too wussy.... the first alienates parents, and the second disinterests the kids.... and striking a balance is always going to be a bit of a tough act.... personally, i'm of the opinion, and it is only my opinion, that as long as everyone involved knows what they're getting into, and those in cahrge are properly trained, then we should get on with it.... lets be honest, in the seventies and eighties, and long before, Scouts aged 11 and up would set off into the country on bike, buses, train, handcarts, whatever, with no adults, and approach strange farmers ith request for fields, water and food.... and gues what.... it worked..... and for any who are now shaking heads and saying, well, it was a safer world back then, you could leave your front door unlocked, etc.... I have only one thing to say... and that's Myra Hindley..... the world is no les or no more safe than it ever was.... it is only our perceptions that have changed..... and our attitude to teaching our children how to be safe.... when I was young, oh so many years ago, we were taught to be safe, taught to look out for things, but without being scared out of going out... nowadays the trend seems to be towards convincing youngsters to not take any chances, either real or imgined, by scaring them into staying in.... which is a shame.... understanble in a way, but still a shame.... as an example, my son, who is a Pl at my group (no accusations of nepotism please...) has plans for this summer holiday... including hikes, trips, and so on... now, when he asked one of his patrol to come along, he was asked which leders ere coming along, and he replied none of them, that was the end of that... the lad in question is 14, by the way.... now, isn't that sad.... but I'm getting away from the main point.... which is this.... our biggest problem is that we can't get enough adults... now if we manage to convince all these time-strapped people who can't help out because they work full time and have kids( like Scout Leaders obviously do not...) ... and I've already stated elsewhere that I don't think that will happen.... parents mainly would rather watch eastenders in peace than use time otherwise..... but in order to recruit and retain the people who are interested ( in my experience, ex scouts, outdoorsy types, and single people in their 20s and 30s.....) the most basic, major thing we can do is this.... LIGHTEN UP,STOP TALKING IN JARGON, AND FOR ALL THE GODS' SAKES, GET RID OF THAT HIGHLY IG, OFFENSIVE AND OFFPUTTING CLIQUEY INSULAR ATTITUDE!!!!! and I mean that most sincerely..... the amount of Groups I have encountered where to be in the loop you have to be one of the lads, (or gals) is astounding.... the amount of offers of help I have seen turned down.. the amount of Groups with long waiting lists who would rather let kids go without scouting than convince them to join the nearly empty group down the road.... it's an invidious, insidious cancer, and it ust be stopped..... as Scouts we should be welcoming, accepting, helpful, kind, and above all we hould have written down a list of jobs that need doing.. then when we get the offer of help, however vague, we can get out the list and say, well, actually, our spoo needs fleeming... any chance you could do it for us.....please.... but our awful internal politics, backbiting and lack of acceptance of outsiders is often far too close to Royston Vasey to be believed.... and it is incredibly discouraging.... especialy to the people we are supposed to be attracting.... now, a bit of friendly innter-group or inter-district rivalry is undoubtedly a good thing... but sometimes our love of cliques looks in danger of us going th way of the cuckoo..... so, when you've finished shaking in outrage at this attack, take long look at your leaders, your group, your district, and ask... if I was a parent, how would i feel if i could listen in on one of our meetings..... and on that note, I'll just say, enjoy the summer, have a good camp, and rememebr hat we're here for.. and thats making sure that the young people in our care get the start in life that they need...... so, until next time, keep on scouting!!!

good lord.. look at the time...

and poor old me has not been on this blog for far too long.. unfortunately personal circumstances and a bit of anti technological jiggery pokery all ganged up on me, but suffice to say, i'm sort of back.. with morre of the jolly japery you've all come to know and ignore.... so, first and foremost a fond farewell to our esteemed DC, Richard "Nev" Nevin, promoted through no fault of his own to the heights of the county, and we all wish him good fortune.... definitely one of the best DCs we have seen, and we will all miss him... I know who we would like to succeed him, here at Thringstone, but time will tell.. in the meantime, good luck to young Mrs Chris Beeby who will be filling in until a new DC arrives.... and welcome to our new Chief Scout, whom I believe is actually the first in living memory who was known to our young uns before he got the job.... so, Bear, lets have some adventure..... and welcome as well to the oftimes neglected and ignored Mr Bullpit, our Chief Commissioner....hopefully this new team will be able to solve the tricky problem of how to get adults involved..... now, getting the older ones involved is certainly a problem, and has been for a while.... and remembering that these are not the views of scouting as a whole, but merely my controversial two pennorth, look at the state of the Network.... originally, as i was led to believe, the basis of this section was that all members over the age of 18 and under 25 were to automatically be members... but is this the case.... young Joe Smith is making considerable headway in our district, but I refuse to believe that we have only 30 or so members in that age group.... and this could be a great way of increasing our adults..... one thing that was posited, that doesn't seem to happen, was that every 18 year old was to recieve a birthday card or some such extolling the virtue of membership.... which is good.. but i think a better solution would be to send every 17 yera old a Network Membership card.... complete with a list of events in the coming year.... tell every member of a student scout and guide thingy that they are automatically in the local network.... and make sure they are invited personally to events.... and to really get the ball rolling, why not act like most junk mail firms, get access to the electoral roll etc, and send cards to everyone who is going to be 18.... but communication is always a weak point.... and it is something we as an organisation really need to work on.... to be honest, the idea of targeting parents is not working.. most of them have no interest in Scouting other than that it gives them a few jhours off..... and fair play to them.. its not everyones cup of tea.... obviously, some of them are interested, and its usually fairly obvious which ones.... but to be perfectly honest, we don't Shout for Scouting as much as we should.... as an example, in the last big review, it was pointed out that most employers, while having heard of the Dof E awards, had no idea about the existence of the QSA, never mind what it entailed.. the main solution posited was, scrap the QSA, and lets concentrate on the D of E.. the answer should have been, lets bombard employers with stuff about the QSA.. invite the bosses to local and national events to showcase what scouting can do..... and when it comes to attracting adult help, lets appeal to selfishness, at least to some extent... tell people that through Scouting they can achieve nationally recognised qualifications, all sorts of contacts, great training, and all at a very low cost.... i mean, how many people out there know that Scout training can, in some cases, qualify you for membership of (iirc) the Institute of Managers and Leaders.... which in turn opens all sorts of doors.... lets really ram these things down peoples throats, and who knows what could happen... but lets all plug the Network, plug the benefits of Scouting for Adults, and lets see if we can't get what we want... which is good Scouting for every young person who wants it.... but its late, I'm forgetting to use apostrophes, and I can't even remember who I'm supposed to be... but for my alter ego's take on Bear Grylls, go to www.wisebeard.blogspot.com.... I'm now off to beddy byes.... but until we all Gryll Bears, keep on Scouting.....

Pancakes.....

Pancakes... pancakes... pancakes..... hundreds of pancakes.... and me with a milk intolerance..... cooking pancakes.. tossing pancakes..... cooking more pancakes..... pancakes..... and the beavers made better ones than the Scouts..... which has to be symbolic of something... pancakes.....

So here we all are....

for some its a new year, for some still the old one, and for someof us we're a few months in already.... but does it really matter..... i spent the evning of Dec 31 babysitting, which was possibly more rewarding than the usual (which for me involves a few dvds, a hoover and the Scout Hut.... don't ask...) but I spent some time on a sofa reflecting on activities that we just don't seem to do anymore.. now, I'm aware that we live in a less enlightened time than was true when i was a scout, but some of these things should not have fallen by the wayside..... I remember with affection the old Scout Mystery Tour that some experienced.. it involved being bundled into the back of a van, and taken somewhere two days walk away.. the victims were then given maps, told to locate themselves, and then plot a route back to the Scout Hut, stopping over at some pre arranged site.... lots of fun.. and I remember way back when Patrol Camps involved biking to Matlock or Great Yarmouth, or other such places, and approaching farmers etc for accomodation.. its amazing how often we weren't turned away..... now i can see why some would be worried about that today, but to be honest, a bunch of six outdoorsy type lads with a bit of savvy (and lets be honest, if they didn't have that, they wouldn't have bben allowed to go...) probably have little to fear.. with the mobile telephone revolution, possibly less so than we did..... and Patrols actully acting as "gangs," but in a nice way, at weekends.... but that's by the by.. the past is the past.... but the one that i was really thinking of was the New Year sleepover or Xmas camp (and if anyone objects to the abbreviation.. if its good enough for the Pope and the Easter Annals, its good enough for me...) .... now I remember once, back in the long ago, going camping on Christmas eve, having a bit of a party, going to bed, getting up, opening a present, then being taken home in time for Christmas dinner.... and what a fantastic christmas that was.... and as a leader long ago, i organised a sleepover on new years eve.... now, how many of you, if you're honest with yourselves, found NYE to be just like a saturday night but with more people, fewer taxis and less money at the ned of it.. cos I'm betting its quite a few.... well, next year, try this.... invite the Scouts, cubs, Explorers, whoever to your HQ if possible, or a hut on a campsite if not, and see the new year in with them... once you explain to the parents that of course little bruv or big sis can come too (think of it as PR and recruitment) and that its only going to cost maybe a fiver or a tenner at most, you'll find that it becomes your best attended sleepover yet... think of the saving they'll make on babysitters.. and think of thsoe poor people who otherwise would be stuck at home.... its a public service, and lets be honest, its got to be better than watching yet another nodding aquaintance throw up in a gutter.... and if thats not enough, you'll probably turn a bit of a profit.... New Year with the people who matter.... it might be the tonic you all need... so until next time, Keep Scouting!!

its that time of year again...

and the cub/beaver christmas party has been and gone, amid slight strangeness (which included an offer of a slightly left field fitness training session for the local explorers) the leadership team christmas dinner (held at Wing Wah all you can eat buffet.... less formal, no need to get menus beforehand.... etc)eaten, and the scout fancy dress do still to come.... and no one will be allowed to come as "a Scout" or "a leader" unless of course they themselves do not fit in that particular category.... and again we have been questioned over our usual tradition of inviting YLs on our leaders do.. my answer of course being that they paid, they behaved, and they do a valuable job.... and in our opinion are very much members of the Leadership team... YLs of course, are one of my favourite topics.... I think that the danger we have with them is more along the lines of under using rather than over using them.... true, they should not necessarily be given the really difficult and dangerous jobs to do (unless of course they are the qualified climbing instructor and the leader is not...) but they should be given responsibility... and in my opinion that means involving them in the planning meetings, the socials, and everything else... having YLs involved in the planning meetings is always a good thing.. as they are nearer to the target age of our programmmes, their input is especially valuable.... and having a few extra people suggesting things to do can never be a bad thing.... and if that means taking some 14 year olds down the pub (or gods forbid holding the planning meetings somewhere else) then so be it.... they are part of the team, and they should be made to feel that they are such... then we'll get even more hard work out of them, and we leaders can slouch of to the chippy.... that is, get on with doing the more involved, specialist tasks..... and that brings me on to a related subject.. I think we should all attempt to have at least one youth member at every meeting... even up to district GSLs meetings, or meetings of the county team.... I'm sure that our DC, the esteemed Nev will vouch for the fact that a certain young PL from our group has.. how shall we say.. contributed constructively at a few of our District GSLs meetings.... but that's by the by... I'm very much afraid that sometimes, but only sometimes, we all forget who we're actually there for... but anyway, have a good christmas, hanukah, eid, yule, non demoninational festival or whatever you happen to be doing this time of year..... and next time, I may wax lyrical on my proposal for an experimental programme with explorers, which should hopefully alleviate some stress on leaders and all sorts of others... so until next time, keep on Scouting!!!!!!!!!!

yay!!!!!!!!

running around a darkened room shooting 12 year olds.... ain't Laser Quest brilliant!!!!!!!

Dyb.. not "dib!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

So... a bit of a furore on Msn this weekend over some supposed plan to make Scout have sex education... apart from the fact that some of the nations's incredibly honest and accurate press seem to have the wrong end of the stick, it seems to have fired the public imagination slightly less than the Brand/Ross fiasco (of which, more later...) but has led to the usual trotting out of the usual cliches and ill informed accusations, including several outdated and wrongly spelled dib dib dibs, without using the obvious pun on the reply.. which lack of obvious wordplay strangely disappointed me.... but I digress... (by the way.. it should be dyb... an abbreviation of "Do Your Best".. the reply "dob" of course being "done our best..") below I've pasted my response on the forum, for what its worth.. I'm sure there'll be some dissent from within and without, but there we are.. wouldn't it be awful if we were all the same... but whatever, as far as I'm aware, the aim was never going to be for us all to sit down and explain the birds and the bees... lets be honest, they know all about it anyway... but rather to advise on responsible and safe relationships.. which in my view is a high aim... and lets be honest, I remember our Venture Scouts (anyone remember them??) having, as well as a drug awareness night, and std night presided over by a nurse from our local GUM clinic... (if you really need the acronyms explaining, email me...) whichh was seen by all, Leaders, Ventures, Parents and the Nurse himself as a positive thing... but there we are.. anyway, here, reproduced below, is my response to the forum... as i say, make your own mind up.... and keep Scouting.... !!!





"Hi there... I'm a Scout Leader, but I must first say that the following is a statement of personal opinion, and does not necessarily represent the views or policy of the Scout Association... From what i remember the brief was to educate about safe and responsible relationships... which is a different thing from the mechanics of sex.... and is already covered by our commitment to the spiritual development and well being of members of the Association.... and as long as it doesn't conflict with the Yellow Card (the Scout Association's policy on Child Protection, carried by every leader in the country) there shouldn't be a problem.. we have to accept that some young people won't be getting support in this area at home or at school...( at school all I learned was "man goes on top, woman goes underneath... I bought bunk beds...) and as a responsible adult ( in several ways in this context) it would be wrong of me to refuse advice to someone who needs it.... I would imagine that if there are to be "lessons" on safe sex etc, they will tend to be aimed at the Explorer (14-18) age group, or at the Network (18-25).. indeed, along with drug and substance abuse education, these things already exist, and have done for years... as for the point brought up previously about the suppluy of condoms on camps...well, I have seen this a couple of times on large jamborees, but only ever on the Junior staff and Explorer/Senior Section subcamps.... personally I'm in favour, as i see the choice between thinking " we've got a bunch of 14-18 year olds here, some of them will be having sex, so lets make sure they are able to be as responsible and safe as possible," or we can think "we've got a bunch of 14-18 year olds here, those under 16 are too young and won't have sex, the others are old enough, on their own heads be it..." ... one of those solutions seems responsible, the other naive and dangerous... make your own mind up, but if a scout comes to me with a problem, I will, subject to the aforementioned Yellow Card do my best to help that Scout...."

back home.. and so on..

so, after a sojourn, brief though it was, in Wales (plus day trip to Ireland..) the GSL from... well.. here...... is back, and raring to go... the Group somehow managed to survive without me ( a humbling thought...) but while on the ferry across to Ireland an interesting conversation with members of the entertainment staff led me to reflect once more on a subject broached a few times recently... the subject of thank yous... personally, I think that as people and a s a group, and even as an association, we don't say it enough... who hasn't received a donation from some well wishing business, only to cash the cheque and send a receipt... but no "thank you letter..." how often do we receive good service in a shop and just accept it... one of my old managers ( big up to Martin Evans) once said to me, "the customer will never remember the 99 times you got it right.. and will never forget the one time you got it wrong..." and yet another said... "if you get good service, you tell a friend.. if you get bad, you tell everyone..." and I think this sums it all up... we are very quick to complain.. we should be as quick to thank... for example, we recently received some money towards new lamps.. the businesses concerned will shortly be receiving certificates too hanfg on their walls... these have cost us a couple of sheets of paper, and some printer ink (which is more exensive than champagne.. but more of that later..) but the benefits to all are unimaginable... not only that, but how often do we thank our fellow leaders, scouts, cubs, beavers, explorers, YLs, Networkers, Fellowship, Commissioners, parents and committee members... we do have the Thanks Badge still.. but how many are actually presented.... I've even spoken to GSLs who weren't aware that such a thing existed.... but we don't thank enough.. so if you do nothing else this week, thank someone you wouldn't normaly thank.. it'll do you good.. until next time, take care, and keep Scouting...

Vesuvius....

so, on Thursday night the old hut was wrecked by massive floods of lava as vesuvius and Etna erupted, spilling red hot destruction over a large area... or possibly not... but its amazing what fun can be had with flour, water, newspaper, vinegar, bicarb and washing up liquid... and the beavers enjoyed themselves too..... to be honest, Beavers was never my favourite section to run, and i was never sure why.... but after running it now for a few weeks, I am seeing the appeal, and apparently seem to be doing alright.. well, we've had no one leave, and a few more join... so I must be doing something right! I often feel like Arnie in Kindergarten Cop, if any of you remember that film.. a few askance glances from parents, when they see the big hairy monster, but the Beavers themselves don't seem to worry... which is how it should be.... which, coupled with the lack of male primary school teachers made me wonder why we seem to be more comfortable with female leaders in the younger sections... in fact, I was once told that having a male Akela was a bad move.... but good old Blossom did admirably... our prersent holderr of the title is female, and does just as well.. and our Beaver leaders, in common with most of teh District, have always been female....yet it is seen as more appropriate for Scout leaders to be male..... is this something to do with the old 'infants need a mother, teens need a father" mythology, or is their another reason? I hera that some men are put off the idea of dealing with the younger age ranges through some fear of being seen as weird... and perhaps this is the case.. but long before the current atmosphere of fear, men had less to do with their younger offspring than women did... which i think was mainly duer to them being out at work.... so therefore, a societal thing rather than a genetic... but thats by the by.... personally I favour a mix of gender among the leadership team... but there we are... but due to family holidays etc I'm being forced to do something I've never done before... close a section for the half term holidays.. now, at Thringstone, we shut for very little.... Christmas day, New Years day.. Easter Monday... and thats only down to the fact that we know no one will come... but we still meet through the school holidays..... which so far seems to not be the norm.. unless you can tell me different..... in fact, we often find that our best scouting hapens when getting up for school is not a consideration... but unless all the beavers want to come to Wales on Thursday night..... which brings me to this.. are there any groups in the Caernarvon area meeting between Oct 18 and 23? If so, please feel free to invite me to one of your section meetings.... I'm always open to a free exchange of.. alright then, stealing ideas from others.... but I'll be at Dinas Dinlle for that week, complete with my PL son and a transit van..... who knows, you could be my first celebrity appearance! but as I'm waffling to no good purpose, I'll sign off... have a good week, and Keep on Scouting!!!!!!

strangely enough....

The Scouts were camping at the weekend, minus me for once.... which is unusual.. but for once i was otherwise engaged.... but i believe a good time was had by al..and indeed by all.... I'm sure I would have heard otherwise.... but when i got home from wherever, there was Scouting Magazine waiting for me, complete with pics of two of my fellow blogsters.. and a quote from here about Poacher 2008.... which was nice to see... but that's by the by.... I only mention it from an inflated sense of my own importance... we also have a carpet in our gents loo... which possibly has more importance to Scouting in Thringstone.... and we are also in the process of buying our new lamps, which (shameless plug.. sorry...) we must thank Caterpillar and Bardon Aggregates for, seeing as they forked out for them... ain't local business great! but again, i'm losing the point i wasn't making..... which was that I'm glad I got back into Scouting all those years ago.... and in the great tradition of the Scout Law, I really do see us as one big family.... we get forced to live together, argue a lot, hog the remote control, but in times of trouble we all pull together.... I remember well on eof my Scouts many years ago coming up to me on camp, and drawing me to one side, then telling me that all the Scouts knew my marriage was over, and that they'd understand if i was a bit off, and that if there was anything they could do, etc... which was very touching.. where else would a bunch of 11 to 15 year olds have done that.... but as this one said, they'd all been discussing it, and they saw me as one of them.... which i think is one of Scouting's great features... it is a leveller of all.... a Scout is a Scout.... and as i seem to be getting a bit maudlin (which is strange, cos I actually feel really happy at the mo!!!) I shall sign off.... remember... we are family.... until next time.. keep Scouting!!!!

Camper and Camper....

the weekend saw many new things... not least a new (ish) leader executing his first camp... which is always a great and joyous, if stressful experience.... not least to the poor Nights Away Permit holder on whose permit the whole thing is carried... but these things usually go well, and this was no exception.. lessons were learned, fun was had, and Jim brought his spinny thing to shoot at (all in the safe environment of the range and under the strict guidance of qualified NSRA instructors...)... which was fun.. and yours truly slept in a transit van, due to two of our more experienced Scouts managing to find a new (if ineffective) method of pitching a Vango TBS Micro 250.... as far as i remember, its the first time I've encountered a tent wetter inside than out... but that's by the by.... wisdom notwithstanding, I decided to let our Baloo get on himself with the camp, giving him help with the planning stages, but allowing things to go wrong as long as they weren't too life threatening... luckily the site used was close to our hut.. I knew he'd forgotten the tent pegs, but decided to let him find out for himself.... mistakes make for good learning! and I think this is the essence of training... we could obviously point out things such as this as they happen..myself, being a cruel and unusual GSL prefer to let them happen, then ask how we can rectify the problem then help fix it.. and I find that most of the leaders seem to learn a lot more, and a lot quicker.... and it's better to let these things happen on a short camp close to home, than find them happening on a week in Queensland.... but all in all, the camp went well, though slightly damply for the first night.... all the Cubs involved had a great time, which is the main thing.. and our two Scout Helpers proved themselves invaluable... its only when you watch a 13 and 14 year old advising a 40 ish year old on the best way to lay out a site, that you realise (a) how much Scouting has taught the young ones and (b) how much it has taught the older one... in what other field would that happen?? where else would a 40 year old respect the experience and ability of a 13 year old enough to ask for advice? and where else would the 13 year old have gained such confidence that he or she would give such advice as an equal? This to me is one of Scouting's greatest achievements, this almost levelling, this respect for experience regardless of age.... at school, the 13 year old was taught map reading by a geography teacher who knew not his eastings from his northings, and when attempting to inform (politely and subtly, I hasten to add) of this error, our very experienced hiker and hill walker ( having navigated us over Foel Fras, up Snowdon, and all along the Norfolk Coast path, among others..) was told that he was wrong.... which makes me wonder how many young people are taught map reading badly.... and consequenntly think of it as difficult.. but I'm rambling (no pun intended) so I shall sign off for now.. until I have more nothingness to tell you of, keep Scouting...!!!!

Car washes and heritage.....

So, braving the rain, our Scouts have done themselves proud this weekend.... four of our older lads, always eager to sleep in strange tents, spent Friday night in one purchased by our local community centre.. the tent was there for the forthcoming Heritage Day, and the Scouts to ensure that it was still there the next day..... once this duty was performed, the Scouts were on car park marshalling duty, along with anything else that the organisers could think up... and according to the organisers, they did a very good job... ready and willing, with none of the disconsolate grudgingness usually associated with young people.. in fact everyone was impressed with them.... at the same time, despite the rain and wind, another team of Scouts washed enough cars to raise £125 for the Co-op's chosen charity, British Heart Foundation.... and again, they were complimented profusely... which is good not just for Scouting, but for the individuals.. we often complain these days... but compliments are rare... in fact, one of my (numerous!!) ex bosses once said, "If you get it right, the customer tells his brother.. if you get it wrong, he tells everyone..." allied to that, another ex boss had on his wall the following... "The customer will never remember the 99 times you got it right.. and will never forget the one time you got it wrong..." which although true, is also sad.... perhaps if we all made the effort to try to forget about the mistakes, and broadcast the good bits, the world could be a happier place.. unfortunately, that's possibly too much to ask..... but I digress.... the main thing is, congratulations not just to my Scouts, but to all those who've ever done a good job in dificult or not so difficult conditions.. give yourselves a round of whatever.... and keep Scouting!!!

1st aid, emergency aid, lemonade.....

Well, the learning ability of younger people has once again been proved to the almost satisfaction of the GSL's mind.. by the teaching of emergency aid procedures to the youngest section, towards the stage 1 emergency aid badge.. luckily for us we have (as well as the obvious 1st response holders!) one well qualified DIY store first aider, and a nurse among our leaders, plus myself, an expired St Andrews certificate holder.. if anyone remembers them... indeed, are they still going? If so, I'd love to know... there was a very good reason why they taught me first aid akl those years ago instead of the more obvious St Johns, but that reason (as usual) escapes me.. but then I am a GSL... reason is a stranger to most of my breed..... but that's by the by... the fact is that we never fail to be surprised by the beavers' apparent lack of attention span, compared to their phenomenal retention, as compared to the exact iopposite amongst Scouts... and before we all go blaming the water, or the junk food, or even the evils of the electronic babysitter, may I just say that i vaguely remember it being the same in my long ago youth... i well remember my frustration with other members of my patrol, when it seemed that they simply hadn't learned something.....of course, there were always anomalies like myself; i admit i often learn for the sake of learning (or for being insufferably big headed, depending upon to whom you speak...) but i alweays remember most of us being told, being shown, then being made to practice, then not being able to do it at all the next week.. although, to be fair, eventually it did all seem to click in place.. usually... but that just seems to be a normal learning pattern, despite the obvious frustrations for leaders.. which brings me to some sort of point.. I'm sure we've all been guilty of this at some point, but some more (some a lot more!) than others... i've seen it happen plenty of times that leadeers pass on a skill as an end in itself..... which is not necessarily a bad thing as far as it goes... but not totally good... the upshot is usually a feeing of boredom, the same sort of frustration that formal maths education engenders... the feeling of "why learn it.. we'll never use it..." Now in my group, as in many others, we teach skills in order taht the Scouts, cubs, beavers, et al, can accomplish some task.. for instance, what is the point of a scout learning to read a map if he is never put in a position where it is a necessary skill? Now, when I was a scout( yawn...) our leaders gave us a fantastic test of our map reading abilities.. and knowing that it would happen to us made us learn incrediby well.... not a sit down test, oh no.. the very opposite.. they always referred to it as "The Mystery Tour..." and it involved the whole patrol being blindfolded, put in the back of a van (those were the days! nowadays of course the van would not happen.. and the blindfolds would possibly be frowned on....) and we would be driven two days walk away.. usually between 30 and 40 miles.... we would then put up a tent for the leaders, make tea, and be thrown some maps... it was then our job to decide which map we were on, and whereabouts on that map.... once we thought we knew, we showed our leaders... and we were usually wrong....so we'd go back and do it all again.. and when we had finally workee out where we were, our leaders would give us the next task... they would have made arrangements for us to camp at a certain point.. they gave us the map reference, and we then had to plot a course to that place... only using roads where absolutely necessary.. points were awarded for making the route interesting... then we plotted a route from that place to our hq..... the leaders would check it, ask questions, be unsatisfied, and make us do it again.... and again, until they were happy with it... then it would be sleep, and next morning, we bade goodbye to all the adults, and went along our route, knowing that when we arrived, our tents and evening meal would be there, for us to cook and pitch, depending... unknown to us, we were always shadowed by a couple of leaders.... but the point is, if we couldn't do the map work well enough, we would be stuck in a field and look like idiots... the point i'm trying to make is that the best way to make skills seem relevant is to make sure we use them... and not just in pointless tests... and any group that sees the skill as the end result, rather than as a tool to do the real job, is going to miss out on a lot.... on the wall opposite my GSLs desk is a sign that says "Follow Through" which is good advice.. in most circumstances... but I'm beginning to ramble... i must update you all on the tent-living teacher trainee Andy... well, the adventure is getting underway. thanks to eBay and the generosity of tent selling Pam McCormack, and despite some Morris related malarkey.. Alec Issigonis, your best (or second best, depending) design... still working after all these years.. more on that soon... so until next time, make it relevant, and keep Scouting....

TLC... among others....

TLC.. so many meanings.. most of them good... from the American R+B trio to Thringstone Live for Charity, a rock concert in aid of Cancer research, among other things... and our Scouts (with others) were in attendance, car parking, bouncy castle attending, and dooing sundry other duties, including being unpaid roadies for the Screaming Eagles, a band numbering amongst its musicians our ASL Joe... a good time was had by all, the scouts were seen once again in a positive light, and 3 grand was raised... so positives all round! Now, in my mind, this is the sort of event that we should be publicising.. Scouts roadie at rock concert looks so much better than bored looking scouts walk through village on St Georges day.... but that of course doesn't solve the main problem, which can be summed up thus.. (based only on my limited personal experience..) Newspapers make Scouts look boring.... sorry, but it had to be said.... they do.. and its not really there fault.. your average local journo wants to fill a couple of column inches.... and he can only use what he's got.. and who sends in the (honestly.. sorry...) boring Scouting stories?? We do.... and I'm as guilty as the rest of you... I'm willing to be that over two thirds of Scouting related articles in the local press are pictures of three or four scouts, a couple of leaders, a commissioner of some kind, a badge, a handshake and a wall..... and any self unrespecting teenager who happens to see it will have a furtive little snicker, and carry on thinking that scouting equals boring.. which is a real shame.... now, I realise as much as you do that getting the preess to come along ito anything out of the ordinary is difficult.. these are busy people.. but none of the local chip wrappers round here have ever been known to turn down a good (sometimes not so good!) digital photo and a well worded press release... and to be honest sometimes I think it would be better to give them nothing at all rather than another picture of some scouts against a wall... we do fall into the trap of bigging up investitures (which to be honest should be a commonplace, not a newsworthy event..) and badge awardings, when really the focus on the article would be better placed on what the scout has done to deserve it.. for example, which of these will attract potential members... "Jim gets Queen's Scout Award from Chief Scout" or "Local Scout leads wild expedition.." and I know we all feel its important to get coverage for St Georges day.. after all, we work hard enough for it.. but a quick (and admittedly small and possibly unrepresentative ) vox pop on the subject reveals that most readers have a quick look at the photos and pass on... general consensus being that its just a bunch of kids walking... and that is our fault... so how do we make things like that seem more appealing.. or do we just admit that coverage of St George's day may in fact be counter productive.... and start phasing out the media aspect... personally, I'm with the former.. maybe if we held more of a display of skills or similar, made the day a celebration of the previous twelve months of Scouting, and concentrated press attention on that aspect, we may be onto a winner... who knows.. certainly not me... but anyway, i'm rambling.... and its past bedtime.. so, please don't be afraid to tell me what you think.. and keep Scouting..

stirring....

So.. after stirring up a mini hornets nest over badges, I'm stirring some more.. showing the scouts how to cook a simple two course japanese meal.... in a vague and possibly vain attempt to show that cooking is fun, and that fresh stuff is cheaper, quicker, and nicer than ready meals.... so who knows.. more on that later.. keep Scouting!!

Trades Descriptions Act.....

I'm thinking of suing under the above... Beaver Sleepovers... that has to be a misleading title...

Home again...

So finally two transit vans and several cars have returned to Leicestershire from Lincolnshire Showground.. wet tents are hung up drying, most of the kit is packed away till next time, and a mainly good time was had by mainly all..... which is good.... old friends were reunited, new friends made, and a lot of Norwegian smoked ham and flatbread, not to mention girl scout cookies, were eaten....and plans were made for next time.. and unusually the time after that... in transpires that in 2010 we may be heading off to Austria to celebrate another centenary with some of our Friends from Guiding, BP's daughter.... and it looks like being a doozy... now, at our Group we have a fairly close relationship with a Guide Group just down the road from us.. we camp together sometimes, invite each other to socials, and so on.. and very rewarding it is for all concerned.. some of our Scouts have earned Guide badges, and wear them proudly on their uniforms... which I personally have no problem with... but it would seem that not all think the same.. at Poacher one of our guys was questioned by a leader from elsewhere about his Traditions of Guiding badge.. and told in no uncertain terms that he should not have it on his uniform.... now, possibly, this is strictly true.. I've not yet contacted Gilwell on the subject... but whether or not it is, I won't be the one telling him to unpick it... after all, we can wear our DofE badges, NSRA badges, etc... so why not ones from Guiding?? But more than this, I will continue to let our Scouts wear such badges for wat I believe is the best reason in the world.. that they have earned them, and should be proud of thir achievement....of course, if one of them attempted to place an I heart Status Quo badge on his or her shirt, that would be a different matter... it wasn't all that long agao that we had to remove our Queens Scout badges at 25, a situation now thankfully in the past... which led to a bit of a barroom discussion.. why should leaders not be allowed to wear the highest award they achieved in Scouting? for example, should our Spoon be able to proudly display his Chief Scout's Award? Would it be so terrible if i wore my Advanced Scout Standard? and what about staged activity badges? if we had our 200 Nights Away badges on our arms, or a 100 hikes away there for all to see, might it not be a good thing? Now i know that Scouting isn't for the leaders to show off.... but maybe seeing that a leader has camped a lot, or is an experienced hiker, or even just that he was a Scout in the dim long ago could inspire the young people in our care? My son has always been interested in my old badges... few as they were... and is greatly joyful in the fact that although i never aspired to holding any office he is now an assistant patrol leader.... not only that, but an unfamiliar badge can provoke interest.. I have my Advanced Standard on what I like to call my casual uniform.. and many Scouts, not just my own, ask me what it is, and how i got it... which has to be a good thing...and on the subject of uniform.... one of our YLs came up with an idea the other week... based on a bit of confusion at a camp she attended.... apparently, scouts were approaching Network members about problems etc, and that network were doing there best to cope... but not blowing her own trumpet, our YL reckons that she could have dealt with them better.. why, I hear you ask? Because these nNetworkers (helpful and efficient as they were) had obviously had no Leadership training, where our YL had... but the Scouts were treating the Network guys as leaders.. why? becaus ethe uniform is the same... and when our YL stepped in to help, her Explorer uniform did nothing to reinforce the point that she was possibly more suited to handling the situation..so.. she came up with this idea.. why don't Network get a shirt the same colour as Explorers, with a Network insignia on i, and YLs, instead of the Explorer shirt, wear one the same colour as a Leader with a prominently displayed YL badge?? This would give our YLs a bit of authority, and help the young people recognise those with leadership training... for not all Networkers are leaders... just a thought, she said, and I think I'm in favour.. what do you lot think??
Bit of a long rambling post this time.. and also rambling is one of my best friends in Scouting... young Andy from Hinckley is leaving us for teacher training and the bright lights of London, and has found the ideal solution to his penury... the Capital's high rents will affaect him little, for he will be living in a tent on a scout campsite for the duration.... no matter what the weather... a great example of Scouting ingenuity and fellowship.... where else but in Scouting would something like this happen??? not only the tent living, but the attitude of the organisation.. no arguing, no hmming.. just the thought that here is one of ours doing his best.. so we shall support him.... Scouting at its best... and I shall be keeping you updated on his progress as soon as he updates me! But until then, enjoy what your doing, and keep Scouting!

Poacher.. I'm here, and so is it......

So, here I am at Lincolnshires own International camp, melting, leaking, trying to stay hydrated and looking like a windchime.. of which more later.. I'm in the odd position now of actually sitting in a room with people tapping at a keyboard, something which is usually a very private moment... but I digress.. So far, I've been made very welcome by all here, who obviously are aware of my worldwide fame as the official unofficial voice of Scouting.. or possibly it could just be that camps such as this are very welcoming places anyway.. food has so far been good, companyt fantastic (well, mostly...) and our Joe, a young ASL who has attempted to plan this whole week for us, has so far done a very good job.. but then he is bigger than me... Several of our scouts have ignored warnings about sunscreen, and have suffered the consequences (let this be a warning to all....) and but there we go.... but all are enjoying themselves, which is the main thing.... welcome is a word much used in Scouting and Guiding, and I hope that we are all aware that it is more than just a word.. Scouts are after all memebers of a worldwide family, and families in my experience support and welcome even long lost relatives who only show up when they think there's money being handed out.. but I digress.... families are strange entities.. we cannot choose them (except in certain circumstances, and even then we can't guarantee we get what we want...) but we attempt to love them.. we may not always get on with them, but even so, they are family... in the current heat tempers will fray, and we must try even harder to do our best to remember that we are family.. no matter where in the world we come from... so.. with more international malarkey on the cards, I must sign off... hope your summer camps go as well as ours, and keep Scouting!!!!!!!!!!!!

Poacher approaches...

so.. the big day draws neaer and nearer.. and our gateway, complete with monkeys is nearing completion.. which is nice.... and we're all looking forward to it.. i remember last Poacher as being one of te best cmps so far.. mainly due to a lackof hills, and me and Bill nearly sinking a boat on the old gravel pits.. and hello to Simone from Germany, if she's reading this.. this years Poacher promises to be a good one, although the activities list has thrown up some interesting questions.. such as why are 13 year olds allowed to glide and sub aqua, but not go on the ghost walk... makes me slightly worried about the last.. but I digress.. hopefully the internet cafe willbe available this year.. if so, I will update you all on camp!1 until then, keep scouting.. Kirk

Preparing for Poacher.... apparently...

hardboard... paint.. monkeys.... all will become clear.... keep Scouting...