Cub Scout Comics

Last year I wrote a few blog entries about Cub Scouting and Boy Scouting making appearances in various comics like Peanuts and Garfield. Did you know the BSA has also produced its own comic books? Oh, they are not usually the funny style comics that you would see in Boy's Life magazine (although a comic book collection of Peewee Harris could be interesting). These comics usually tell Scouts about important lessons.

Currently, through Scoutstuff.org, there are three short comic books for Cub Scout age boys featuring the three Cub Scout characters T.C., Akela, and Baloo. The comics deal with some serious issues, and are priced low enough (only 20 cents each) that you may consider getting a copy of each book for each boy in your Pack. Here is a quick explanation of each book taken from the scoutstuff.com site:

Power Pack Pals #1: Bullying Comic Book
These eight page comic books feature T.C., Akela, and Baloo talking to kids about bullying. Publication is collaboration between the BSA® and several leading youth protection advocacy groups to help address the problem of bullying among youth.
(available HERE)

Power Pack Pals #2: Internet Safety Comic Book
This comic book is the second in a series of youth protection comics for Cub Scout aged kids featuring Akela, Baloo, and T.C. addressing dangers kids could encounter on the Internet and how to avoid them.
(available HERE)

Power Pack Pals #3: 4 Rules for Safety Comic Book
This 8-page comic is the third in a series of youth protection comics for Cub Scout aged kids featuring Akela, Baloo, and T.C. It illustrates scenarios that advise kids about the dangers of strangers and inappropriate behavior by adults toward children, and what to do in scary situations.
(available HERE)
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MSPP #34: Sledding Fun 2008

What do you do as a Boy Scout troop in the dead of winter in Minnesota? You get out and have some fun in the snow! Add a nice big snow-filled hill and you the makings of a great evening activity while on a weekend outing.

The Scouts of Troop 68 spent a weekend at Camp Stearns in Central Minnesota during the last weekend of February. (See article HERE.) I had the video camera along so I thought it might be fun to record the guys having fun and catching some air as they went downhill sledding. Previous campers had made a few jumps on the hillside that the Scouts of Troop 68 liked to hit again and again, even if they got the wind knocked out of them.

After an hour, the Scouts had had enough and decided to head back to the building. They had a lot of fun on the hill, and a lot of exercise walking back to the top. Thanks to this video, they will have a way to look back on five minutes of the excitement, and you have a chance to see the fun yourself.

Anyone interested in joining us next year?

Don't forget to leave a comment about this podcast. You can leave one here, or at the PTC media forums. If you leave a comment at the iTunes Music Store you will help the Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast climb higher in the ratings.

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Scoutmaster Award Of Merit

Are you a committee member or a committee chairman of a Boy Scout Troop? Do you have a scoutmaster who has been doing an outstanding job? Is he trained? Are most of the boys in your troop First Class Rank or higher? If your scoutmaster has been performing well then you owe it to him to look into recognizing him with the Scoutmaster Award of Merit which is presented to deserving scoutmasters through the National Eagle Scout Association.

Here are the Requirements:
(The nominee need not be an Eagle Scout.)
• Be registered as Scoutmaster and have served in that position for at least 18 months.
• The unit must have achieved the Quality Unit Award at least once during the Scoutmaster’s tenure.
• Must have completed Boy Scout Leader Fast Start and Scoutmastership Fundamentals (or equivalent).
• Must have a record of proper use of the Boy Scout advancement program, resulting in a majority of his Boy Scouts attaining the First Class rank.
• Nominee must have a record of:
o Development of boy leadership through the patrol method
o Positive relations with the troop’s chartered organization
o Extensive outdoor program including strong summer camp attendance
o Positive image of Scouting in the community
o Troop operation that attracts and retains Boy Scouts.

Procedure:
The chairman of the troop committee has the responsibility of nominating the Scoutmaster on behalf of the patrol leader’s council and the troop committee. The nomination is certified by the unit commissioner and forwarded to the local council. Approval authority lies with the Scout executive.

For more information and an application you can check HERE on the NESA site.

Patrol Names

What is in a name? When it applies to a Boy Scout patrol it could mean a lot. It might offer a hint to the patrol members' interests. It may describe the patrol's attitude or personality. But then, it may mean nothing at all. It may just be a name most of the members agreed upon.

There have been a lot of patrols during the twenty eight year Troop 68 history. A few patrols have nearly faded from troop history. A few have accomplished great things. And a few will be remembered for being unique, or troublesome.

Some patrols did not last long. Members quit or Scouts moved to other patrols. Patrols change their names. Other patrols last for five or six years. Once in a while one patrol will absorb a smaller patrol, thus increasing its membership and lasting awhile longer.

Usually, at least in our troop, when a new patrol chooses a name they will open the BSA catalog and pick one from the many patches already available. I call these the "traditional" patrol names. Troop 68 has had patrols named the Flaming Arrow, the Falcons, the Wolves, the Cobras, the Lightning, the Bats, the Scorpions, and the Flying Eagles.

Patrols have used the traditional patches but tweaked patrol names to make it more their own. The Soaring Hawks, the Ferocious Tigers, the Blazing Buffaloes, the Rad Reptiles, and the Hazardous Hawks fit into this category. We have even had the Wild Boars and the Pink Panthers.

Some patrol names fit the interest of the patrol members. For example, we once had a patrol who really liked to play the Dungeons and Dragons role playing game. They named their patrol The Warriors. We have even had a Dangerous Dragons Patrol.

Of course, there has also been a few unique names. The Hillbillies and the Black Talons come to mind. I thought the Charging Chipmunks was very original. (For some reason I kept seeing thousands of chipmunks running down the hillside toward our campsite.) The most unique name came about when a patrol decided to name themselves after their favorite shoes, and thus became known as the Chuck Taylor Patrol.

As a scoutmaster, I have found a patrol name to be a great way to remember a group of Scouts. Sometimes, the memories are not so squeaky clean. For example, when I was a Boy Scout in the mid-1970's we had a patrol called the Cougars. It seemed most of the troop's troublemakers were in the Cougar Patrol.

Fast forward twenty years later. Troop 68 has a patrol called the Courageous Cougars. In time this patrol would boast of three Eagle Scouts. This patrol also happened to be one of the laziest patrols who also liked to push the envelope any chance they got. They nearly succeeded in getting this scoutmaster to resign his position during one camping trip. (Fortunately, we all got past that and are now friends who still stay in touch.)

A patrol name can be important. It can be a name to rally around during a competition. It can be a victory cry! It can help a patrol build an identity that lasts for years. Former troop members still refer to themselves as a member of their Boy Scout patrol.

I was a Falcon when I was a Boy Scout. I was a Penguin during Scoutmaster training. I was a Jedi when we had enough assistant scoutmasters to form our own patrol for weekend outings. I became a Bobwhite when I participated in three weekends of Woodbadge. And I am proud to be a member of each and every one.

Bohemian Rhapsody - Scouting Style

A year ago there were not very many videos about Boy Scouting and Cub Scouting on Youtube. But if you look now there are thousands of video to watch. I like checking them out, and passing along my favorites to you.

This video obviously was not planned. It just happened, and got caught on camera. It is a group of Boy Scouts on a troop cycling trip. Someone was playing Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody and things started to happen. It is one of my favorite impromptu Scouting videos on Youtube. Watch it and see if you don't agree.

25,000 Visitors

Once again, more a note for myself then those of you reading this blog...

Today, during lunch, the site reached the benchmark of 25,000 visitors according to the counter from Blog Patrol.

I would like to thank all of you, the readers, for helping me to achieve this milestone. 

MSPP #33: The Bad Luck Song

After a few days of thought, I have decided to leave the G rated world of Buttons and Boy Scouts skits behind with this podcast post, and enter the PG world music. Oh, do not worry, there will not be any Guns & Roses music or rap nonsense here. What I offer in this podcast is an original song by the Boy Scouts of Troop 68.

This video is of three older Scouts of Troop 68 in 1992, taken from a television show made by the troop for our local community access station. The Scout playing the guitar (he earned the rank of Eagle, by the way) wrote the melody. I wrote the lyrics. The song contains three verses with dark undertones. The first verse is about a pathetic dog. The second is of a boyfriend trying to please his girlfriend. The third is about a stray animal following a person home. I would suggest you listen to it before allowing your Cub Scout aged son to listen to it. The song is dark, but somewhat comical. It also might stick in your mind for awhile.

The song does not contain any bad language. This is a Scouting podcast, after all. I just wanted to try something different this time. I hope you enjoy it.

I like to read your comments about this podcast. You can leave one here, or at the PTC media forums. If you leave a comment at the iTunes Music Store you will help the Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast climb higher in the ratings.

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Promote Your Fundraiser

Your pack or troop is planning to hold a fundraiser. Is it a one day event, such as a meal or a car wash? If it is, then you need to get the word out about it. You need to promote it.

How do you do that? And how can it be done for little or no cost to your unit? After all, if you have to pay for advertising, then you have to sell more product to cover those costs. Here are a few tips our troop has learned over the last twenty years. (Some of these may work better in a small town then they do in a large city.)

Newspapers - Placing an ad in a newspaper can be expensive, but some newspapers will give non-profit groups a little discount on the cost. Our local papers have a "local events" listing which lists group activities and fundraisers for free. Does yours?

Television - Commercials can make a newspaper ad look very inexpensive. However, some stations will air a "Community Happenings" spot during local programming free of charge. You will need to get the information about your event to the station three to four weeks before the event's date. Many community access television stations run a bulletin board of local events between their programming. Your fundraiser could be listed there free of charge.

Radio - Some radio stations will do public service announcements. Your fundraiser may qualify as such an announcement. Or bring some tickets of your event to the station and let them give them away to a lucky caller. Volunteer to be interviewed on the air by the deejay. Look at how much promotion the Girl Scouts receive by bringing cookies to radio stations during the sales period.

Marquees - Almost every bank and credit union has an outdoor electronic marquee these days. Our financial institutions will place information about our fundraiser on their marquees, free of charge, for two or three days before the event.

Posters - This has got to be one of the oldest ways to advertise. Posters can be easily designed on a home computer and then printed in large or small quantities. Many stores, restauraunts, offices, churches, and schools have cork boards for the placement of these posters. Some businesses will even place the posters in their front window. Just be sure to ask permission before placing a poster.

Church Bulletins - Contact your local churches. Most of them would be happy to include your event in their weekly parish bulletins.

Electronic messaging - Send out emails to friends and family. Text your friends on the phone. Just do not do it so much that people start looking at it as spamming. We even post a note about the event on our troop's website.

Speaking - Yeah, that is right. Talk about it. Tell your relatives. Tell your friends. Tell your coworkers. Talking has worked for centuries. Spread the word, man!

Well, there is my list. How does it compare to yours? Did I give you any ideas? Do you have ideas that I did not mention? If you do then leave a comment and share it with us all.

Spring Fundraiser

Each year on Palm Sunday, Boy Scout Troop 68 conducts a spring breakfast fundraiser. The troop has done this for most of the last twenty years. It has done well, usually bringing in over $1000.00 to the troop's general fund and the boy's credits for camp.

I am getting a little concerned about how much longer we will be able to do the breakfast with our dwindling membership. Ten years ago we had nearly thirty Boy Scouts to presell tickets and work the morning of the breakfast. Currently, we have only nine Scouts, which is barely enough to conduct this fundraiser.

The troop takes one meeting night three or four weeks before the breakfast to hold a ticket selling kick-off during which we try to cover as much of the town in one night as we can. When we had thirty Scouts we could cover a large area of the town (of 3100 people) in one night. The boys would usually sell $700-$800 worth of tickets in that two hour period which was enough to cover most of the expenses. Now, with our small troop, we cannot even cover one third of the town in that first night of selling.

And this year was worse. Four of the nine Scouts did not attend due to sickness or family matters. An extremely cold kick-off evening made our time for selling even shorter then usual. The boys did not want to be out in the cold, and I really could not blame them. When the last Scout returned from selling we had sold less then $300 in tickets. "This is not looking good," I thought to myself.

During the next three weeks the weather stayed cold with many days below zero degrees. Tickets sales were not going well because the boys were not getting out to sell them. During the fourth and final week the weather finally warmed up, allowing the Scouts to get out for one last push.

The Boy Scouts turned in their money and leftover tickets as they arrived at the church basement on the morning of the breakfast. I was surprised, and proud, to discover that they had sold over $900 of tickets after that first night. Things were beginning to look up. If the walk-in business was good, then we would do well.

The Scouts and parents worked hard that morning. The parents did the cooking. The boys set the tables, cleaned them off, and did the dishes. By noon, everyone was exhausted. Eight Boy Scouts and their parents had accomplished what used to be done by two dozen Scouts and their parents.

Our troop treasurer was sick with the flu Sunday morning, so I took all the money home and began to get the preliminary figures together. I was smiling when I pushed the last button on the calculator. It appears that the troop will once again make a profit of over $1000.00. Nearly $300.00 of that will go toward the boy's funds for camp.

Not bad, huh? Everyone worked hard and we did well. We are now done with fund raising until October when we have another breakfast, followed by the council's popcorn sales.

Scouting on Flickr

I have been playing around with the online photo site known as Flickr, which is part of Yahoo. I know there are several sites available on which to upload and share photos with friends and family. I do not know which one is the best, or what the differences are between the various sites, but I chose Flickr to play with.

I have begun uploading photographs of trips to Philmont Scout Ranch that I took in the 1980's. In 1984, I attended the Philmont training center for Scoutmaster Fundamentals. In 1986 and 1989, I attended the ranch to go backpacking with the Boy Scouts from my troop. One nice thing about using a site like Flickr is that I can upload hundreds of photos and it does not take any room on the troop's website. What I do not like is that people need to leave the troop's website to view them.

You can view my Flickr photo sets at flickr.com/photos/8515713@N06/sets/

I would be interested to hear what you use for your own troop's photos. What works well for you, and why did you choose the site you use. Leave a comment or write me an email through this blog. Thanks.

The Way It Was

My assistant scoutmaster is eighty years old. His name is Eymard, which is a unique name in central Minnesota. He has been my assistant for nearly twenty years. Eymard is very active in the church and community. He is active in several organizations and wears many hats. He has held many titles over the years.

This week he adds one more title to the list. Eymard is now an author. He has finished writing a book about his life experiences and thoughts. It is a project he has been working on for over two years.

The first draft was written by hand in a spiral notebook. After many revisions and corrections, Eymard had a family member type the book into a computer. Once again, corrections were made after the first copy was printed on a home printer.

I entered the process when Eymard asked me to help him get it published as a softcover book. He was not looking to get it placed in any bookstores, but he wanted to have two hundred copies of the book made for family, relatives, and friends. He had checked with a few local printing companies and discovered the cost would be higher then he would like to spend. Someone suggested to him to have it printed through an online publisher. He knew I spent a lot of time on the internet so he asked for my assistance.

The first online publisher we checked out was not what I would call "user friendly". Then I remembered hearing about a site called Lulu.com. We found it much easier to use, and it had very reasonable prices.

I quickly discovered that I needed to have the book formated as a Word document. I am not fan of Word, being the Mac guy that I am, but I did have it on my computer so I used it. We had to set up the novel exactly the way we wanted it to appear in the book. All chapter headings, margins, and the overall design of the book had to be done before I uploaded it to the website. I also needed to design a front and back cover. It took a few evenings to get things the way Eymard wanted it, but we finally got it ready for its first printing, which would be one book, just to see what it would look like.

When the book arrived, Eymard reread it and discovered that a few more corrections would be needed. He also wanted to add several more photographs. I made the corrections, scanned and added the photographs, and ordered a revised version of the book.

I received another phone call from Eymard last week after he received the revised version. He had found one more correction that needed to be made. One of the chapter titles needed to be renamed. After making the change, we placed the order for two hundred copies of the 183 page publication.

Eymard, his wife Lucille, and their family are very excited about this project. And I have to admit, so am I. Though it was a bit of a challenge, I am honored to have had the chance to assist my assistant scoutmaster in becoming a published author. I know there is one chapter about his Scouting experiences, and I look forward to reading it and the rest of the book when it arrives.

Have A Little Time? Check Out These Sites

Sometimes I spend too much time looking around the internet and reading Scout forums, blogs, and websites. But sometimes I find some really interesting stuff. Today, I would like to pass on three sites your may find interesting.

The first is a blog called "scoutingmaniac". The blog is written by a junior assistant scoutmaster from the Great Alaska Council. His latest two posts were about astronauts, and how many of them have been involved with Scouting as a youth. I was astonished to see how many there were. I knew most of the original astronauts from the 1960's were Boy Scouts, but I did not realize that a lot of later astronauts were also involved with Boy and Girl Scouting. Check out his two blog entires HERE and HERE.

The second site is a blog post found at "Nick’s Ramblings". Nick is a Scouter from Staffordshire, in the UK. I like checking out his blog and discovering what Scouts across the ocean have been doing. A recent post of his really did not have anything to do with Scouting, but touched my funny bone, and unfortunately demonstrates the sad direction this world is heading. It compares 1978 (The year I graduated from high school) with the year 2008. I think you find find it quite interesting, and truthful. Check it out HERE.

The third site I recommend you to check out is written by Hans Zeiger, a writer who is also an Eagle Scout, and proud of it. He has posted an article about Texas Gov. Rick Perry's new book, On My Honor: Why the American Values of the Boy Scouts are Worth Fighting For. I have read a few reviews about this book and it sounds like one I need to add to my library. Check out this article HERE.

I hope you enjoy reading these articles as much as I did. After all, don't you need a bit of a change from what I write about once in awhile?

The ScoutTube

You have heard of Youtube. You may have heard about Godtube. But have you ever heard about ScoutTube? It is one of the newest video sites on the internet to promote Scouting. In fact, ScoutTube is a video site which only contains (so far, at least) twelve films, each one covering one point of the Scout Law. Each video features real Scouts talking with real people who exemplify one point of the Law.

The films are professional done, and look very sharp. They were produced by Arrowhead films with funding provided by the Brock Family Trust and the Capital Area Council. The site is sharp looking without a lot of useless bells and whistles. The only thing I do not like about the site is that the browser window immediately expands to fill the whole monitor. I hate it when a site does that.

Check out ScoutTube and see if you do not agree that this is a site that could be very useful to Cub Packs, new Boy Scouts, and even to help promote Scouting. (I would like to get a dvd of these videos.)

Toys and Games

I bought the "Boy Scout" version of the Monopoly board game a few years ago. I enjoy playing Monopoly. It is one of my favorite board games. Granted, the Boy Scout version was a bit pricey, but I thought it would be fun to play with the Scouts. It would be similar to the "Lord of the Rings" Risk board game that they like to play.

The first time we played the Monopoly game we discovered that a few of the boys had earned one of the awards listed on the board. One boy landed on a piece of yellow property called "World Conservation Award". He asked what a Scout needed to do to earn the award. I knew it involved earning three merit badges, but I was not sure which ones were needed, so I pulled out a requirement book. We discovered the Scout had completed the merit badges needed for this award. I discovered that two other troop members had also earned the World Conservation Award.

It was a little ironic that it took a board game to discover that bit of information, I thought.

In the late 1980's, I bought a game called Scout Trivia. It included a book that contained one hundred questions in each of six different "Scout Knowledge" areas. We would use the book for patrol competitions during troop meetings. We also used it a couple times during courts of honor in which a team of Scouts challenged a team of parents.

Somewhere, somehow, over the years I lost the trivia book. Although I wish I still had it, I am not worrying about it much. Many of the questions found in the book would be outdated in today's Scouting program. For example, we do not use skill awards as part of the advancement program any longer.

Recently, in one of the Scouting forums found online, there was a discussion about what should be included in a video game with a Scouting theme. Several of us had fun adding suggestions to the list. A few were very "tounge in cheek".

It got me thinking though. There are virtually no Scouting related toys or games widely available on the market today. A quick search on the internet did show that in the early days of the BSA there were several toys available. You can check out some of them by clicking HERE.

I hate to say it, but I think the reason we do not see Scouting related toys today is that there would be little interest in them. It is just not the same today as it was ninety years ago. A well designed video game could be a success, but it would have to be designed to interest boys outside of Scouting, which may not be a bad thing. It could introduce them to the fun Scouting offers.

Maybe they were onto something with a Scouting version of Monopoly. Maybe more established games could have a Scouting version. How about a Scouting version of Scrabble? Or maybe a World of Scoutcraft multi-player online game?

And The Dragons Cried

I read a news article on Yahoo News that saddened me, and I am sure that many Troop 68 Boy Scouts and alumni will also take note of the news. Gary Gygax has died.

What? You say you do not know who Gary Gygax is? Why, he is the co-creator of a little game called Dungeons and Dragons.

I began playing D&D when I was in college in 1979. When I became the scoutmaster in the early 1980's I introduced the Scouts to the game, and it became an instant hit with them. I have been the troop's unofficial game master for over twenty five years. The boys enjoy playing the game as much today as they did twenty years ago. In fact, it is the number one activity that the Scouts ask for outside of regular troop activities. Many former troop members still come over a couple times a year to get in a game.

I have thought about writing a few articles for this blog about how the game of Dungeons and Dragons has affected the Scouts of Troop 68 for quite awhile now, but just never got around to it. I may have to give that subject some serious thought.

The guys are already leaving messages on the troop's forum that we need to play a game in honor of Gary Gygax's passing, so I guess I better start thinking about some game scenarios.

The Cute Bear At Philmont

My jaw is still painful as the crew arises at 6:00. Surprising, I slept quite well. The skies are clear. It is 51 degrees. A beautiful morning. During breakfast Paul traded his slim jims for my oatmeal. I think we each thought we got the better end of the deal.

Today we will go to Clarks Fork Camp. There are several ways to get there from Harlan. We could go back around Deer Lake Mesa and then take the trail by Cathedral Rock and the Cimarroncito Reservoir. This would long hike and would be difficult. The crew decided not to go this way because too much of it would be backtracking what we did yesterday.

The trail chosen was a four wheel drive ‘road’ that would take us off Deer Lake Mesa, into the Nash Gulch area, and past Webster Lake. I am glad we left camp early, 8:00 a.m., because it was open plains once we got off the mesa. The sun was brightly shining as we headed toward Webster Lake. I would be willing to bet that it would have been a hot hike if we would have taken this route during the afternoon. As we passed the lake the scouts noticed a deer next to a fallen tree getting a drink.

I was relieved when we arrived at the Cimarroncito Turnaround by 9:30 a.m. I am not sure but I think Philmont staff frown upon crews using the roads to get from one camp to another if a trail is available. We could have gotten in trouble if we would have met a vehicle along the way.

It was about 10:15 when we arrived at Clarks Fork Camp. Tracy welcomes us to camp and explains the program that is available to us. One of the things we are really looking forward to is the shower. Corey has gotten so filthy that Tim has started calling him Pig Pen, after the Peanuts comic strip character.

We are given the campsite next to the one we used three years ago. It is near a stream and the Red Roof Inn (latrine). The bear cable is not far away. Even though the ground is a bit inclined it looks as if it will be a nice campsite.

Due to the fact that tomorrow’s camp will be a dry camp we ate a supper for lunch. The crew is pretty quiet as the meal is prepared. In fact, they act as if they are near death. They must be really tired. The turkey noodle supper is good. A peach pie is our desert. Corey, Nathan, and I play a bit of Frisbee afterwards.

The shower house opened for business at one o’clock. At 12:40 I grabbed my towel and clothes and headed out, hoping to beat the rush I was sure would occur. I was not more then a hundred feet from our campsite when I saw it ... a short distance to my left in the woods... A bear!

The creature just stood there and looked right at me, and me at it. It was only about thirty feet to the right of the trail that I was on. It stood about three feet tall at the shoulders. The color of its fur was brown. It had a light brown necktie mark down the front of its neck. It looked like a young bear, but was a lot bigger then a cub. We stared at each for about twenty seconds. He (?) never moved but I backed off a few steps. When I got about fifty feet away from it I called back to the crew to grab a camera and bring it to me. “We got a bear,” I yelled.

"I probably should not have said that" I thought to myself as I saw most of the crew headed toward me. Tom and Nathan both had their cameras along. I waved them back as they approached. I did not want them too close in close the bear decided to try something. Slowly they came forward, awed at what they were seeing before them. Tom handed me his camera, the telephoto already set. As I brought the camera up to my eye the bear decided that that was enough. He turned and walked off into the woods.

Some of the scouts wanted to follow it, especially Nathan. That surprised me. Nathan was the one who was so worried at the start of the trek that something was going to happen, that we might get attacked by something. Now he wanted to go chasing after the very creature that caused him so much anxiety only a week ago. I told them not to follow it. That would be a bit too dangerous.

That bear sure was cute, however. And that cuteness made the bruin that much more dangerous. People are not as afraid of cute things. Cute things attract folks, especially kids. I am rather surprised that no one made a comment about trying to get close enough to pet the creature. I think I will need to talk to the crew when we are all back together. Precautions will have to be taken.

I stopped by the staff’s lodge on the way to the showers to report my siting. The staff was not pleased with the way I handled the situation. They explained that we should have made a lot of noise and chased the bear away. They asked me if I had seen a collar or an ear tag. No. Was it aggressive? No. Was it in camp? Yes. Did it get at our food? No. Etc., etc. Once the form was filled out I was free to go.

I was keyed that I had finally seen a bear. It took three trips to do it but I was happy. Now, I only hoped that it would not raid our camp during the middle of the night.

It was finally time to get to the showers and wash off six days of dirt and grime. Several other members of the troop had beaten me to it. It felt great to be clean again. On the way back a couple of us tried our skills at lassoing.

The afternoon became a lazy, laid back one. Several of us took out our sleeping pads, set them on the ground, and laid out under the trees. Pete and Nathan made a game of throwing the Frisbee over Paul, trying to see how close they could get to him without actually hitting him. Then they tried throwing it over me. Every time I was able to get a hold of it I took the thing and threw it as far away as I could. It did not take long before it was being thrown inches above our prone bodies again.

(This article is an except from my 1992 Philmont journal. You can read the whole journal of the trip HERE. And by the way, that is picture is not of the bear that we saw.)

MSPP #32: Buttons Plays Broomball

It has been a month since the last podcast was posted, but there is a reason for that. I wanted to make a film with Buttons, the radical Boy Scout, that showed him participating with Boy Scouts on an outing. I felt it was time for Buttons to leave the safety of the house, and play a game with the Scouts.

This video features the Boy Scouts of Troop 68 on their winter outing in February, 2008. Their schedule includes an afternoon game of broomball, so Buttons decides to go along with them and watch the game. When one of the boys gets tired, he asks Buttons to play for him. Unfortunately, Buttons is not very good at playing broomball and the Boy Scouts need to put their first aid skills to use.

This video presented several challenges. First, filming outdoors scenes in the sun while looking at a 2" LCD view screen is tough. It is very hard to make out what is being filmed, and what is not. We also had a little trouble with the camera and did not get all the scenes filmed that I wanted to get filmed. Unfortunately, time did not allow us to go back and record scenes that could have used another take or two.

Filming Buttons in the real world is quite a challenge in itself. There is not budget for these films, of course, so we have to develop ways to show him active with the Scouts without creating special sets that would have been made for bigger productions, like the Muppets. Trying to keep a puppeteer out of camera view is a real problem. In fact, in one scene the puppeteer was in the shot and it took some creative editing to get him out of it.

Editing this video was also a challenge. Soon after I started editing it I realized that I would need a little narration to help the story along. I also felt this one would need some music to help it move along, but I did not want to use popular music and violate any copyright laws. So, with the help of Mel-TV, I was about to use their music library and also present them with a film to play on the station.

I hope you enjoy this video. True, Buttons in not in it as much as he is in his previous films, but I really wanted to show the Scouts interacting with the puppet, and thus, the film features the Boy Scouts more then it does the puppet.

I really would like to read your comments about this film. You can leave one here, or at the PTC media forums. If you leave a comment at the iTunes Music Store you will help the Melrose Scouting Productions Podcast climb higher in the ratings. Let me know if I should continue to produce more videos like this one.

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Cub Scout Commercial: Locked Out

I have mentioned in previous posts that I wish the national office would do a more advertising to promote the Scouting program. Or maybe the councils should be doing it. I know I do enough of it on a local level. I have been collecting Scouting commercials for the past twenty years. Lately, I have been inserting them into Scouting films I produce for the local television channels. Hey, anything to promote Scouting, you know.

Here is one commercial that features Cub Scouting. I think it is a cute film, and one that contains a little humor. It is short, to the point, and best of all, shows a father and his Cub Scout son working on an advancement requirement together. Watch it yourself and leave a comment about what you think about it.