Several quick notes, a couple of which repeat information sent out recently by the SPL:

1. Don’t forget about the Cook-O-Ree this Saturday. Given past numbers, an amazingly small number of Scouts have signed up so far. Remember—the whole family is invited. We cook turkeys out in the woods and then enjoy a feast of epic proportions. Go to the Web site at www.troop160.com to get more information. Thursday night will be the last chance to sign up. Don’t miss it even if you can’t stay the night. By the way—the Scoutmaster cooks his very own fresh cranberry sauce from a centuries old recipe handed down from an ancestor who lived in this country before the Revolutionary War. Would a Scout lie about something like that?
2. PLC tomorrow evening starting at 6:15. All Scouts who hold leadership positions as PLs or ASPLs should be there. We have to plan the fun and games for the Cook-O-Ree at the very least.  If the PL cannot be there, then the APL should be there.
3. Unlike Cub Scouts, parents do not usually sign off on requirements for their own Scouts. Most advancement for Scout through First Class take place under the leadership of the Instructors and Guides. Parents may be called in to help with advancement, but rarely sign off on their own Scouts.
4. On non-PLC nights, I will attempt to have at least a couple of leaders at the meeting place by 6:30 PM to help younger Scouts with advancement. If you show up at 7:25 and tell me you want to work on something, we probably won’t be able to do much for you, but if you came at 6:30 we probably can. If you can, warn me by e-mail just to make sure that somebody will be there.
5. We are going to have a series of games over the next few weeks designed to test patrol and individual skills which go beyond simply tossing a ball at each other.
6. For those interested in alternatives to plastic water bottles, start at www.kleankanteen.com.  However, also check out the original Nalgenes and similar bottles which, it turns out, are cheaper and just as durable as the Lexan models.  They just aren’t as cool looking.

-Hank

I came to hard Nalgene water bottles late in life. I always preferred soft bottles, but then I was given a white, stiff, translucent Nalgene which worked out so when I was given three of those brightly colored, hard, water bottles as gifts, I didn’t see any difference and switched over. Now, after a couple of years, I am switching back because there is some support for the idea that I should have stuck with the white bottles. I like the colors and I don’t mind projecting a younger image, but I am beginning to wonder what I am really drinking.

This is one of those decisions that you will have to make for yourself. I will, however, point you at some of the stuff on the Net.

Continue reading →