>I am a fan of things that are old, but just as much a fan of new. I like to see an axe that has been handed down through the ages, always sharp, always shiny, always having a great sheath to cover it. The smell of the leather, the shine of the axe head, the smoothness of the handle. Ahhh….

I also like some of the new things that the BSA has to offer…one in particular, the 100th Anniversary Stainless Steel Mug. I saw one at the scout shop and decided to part with my $10 and change, to get one. I was on my way to camp and I liked the fact that it has a carabiner for a handle…makes it handy to hang from your pack or belt loop.

I made my purchase and there it sat until the weekend before camp…I didn’t have the time to use it…work was really hectic, and it just slipped my mind. I brewed a pot of coffee, and poured some coffee into my new purchase…[note to readers, stainless steel conducts heat very well]. As I enjoyed my coffee, I got to thinking about scouting traditions. Look at all the things that have happened in the last 100 years. Two World Wars, a Great Depression, the brink of Nuclear Holocaust, the fall of Communism, and 9/11 are a few things that come to mind.

The Scouts have been there through it all, and in most cases, lending a helping hand…

That is one tradition that will never go away, and I am sure that will be here for another 100 years.

I hope that my shiny cup goes into storage for a while and gets shuffled around until 2110, when the BSA celebrates 200 years. I hope that someone pulls out that cup and makes a note of the logo and sees the same in it that I do…

But for now, my cup has a different purpose…

As my wife would say, “That has to be the most expensive cup that I have ever seen a 3 year old have…”

>Last Friday night, I drove to Cub Scout World to visit the pack and see what Mrs. Cleary and the middle boy were doing, and to enjoy the last-night-of-camp festivities. Each theme-building has a campfire where they do skits, songs and stories…a really good time.

I got to watch a Cub Scout pack have a lot of fun, listened to a lot of laughs, and had a really good time. I also got to see how our hard work has paid off.

Not to mince words, but the old CC and CM of the pack, well, didn’t do the pack any justice when it came to program…lack of planning, lack of activities, and a lack of excitement. A lot of leaders just made the program, doing the things that the “head leaders” didn’t deem necessary. Regardless, that part of the pack’s history is just that….history. The new leadership is well on their way to delivering the promise of scouting the way the BP intended…

So back onto that night’s programming, Pack 4363 excelled at their skits, songs and stories. They showed me things that I didn’t think was possible. They worked as a team, they got along and they were respectful. I could go on and on, but I think that you get the point.

Pack 4363 is a great program, in my eyes, a model program…one that ranks up in the top 5 of the district. I know that they can keep it up, and I look forward to getting the chance to make their Cubs, members of Troop 1363….

>Today, I have decided to take a look back at some of the things that make me do this scouting thing. Later on tonight, I am going to be enjoying some skits and songs at Cub Scout Camp, at the last session of the summer.

Speaking of that, it’s really hard to believe that summer is almost over. I haven’t had a lot of summer, seems that it has been taken up by work, and the only real time that I truly enjoyed my summer was when I was at Webelos Camp with Ethan. I came back recharged and ready to tackle the scouting world. And I am still at that point.

The energy level, has subsided a bit….mostly due to long work hours and lack of being available to do anything scouting. We had our first committee meeting for the pack [one of my last ones] and came to a budget…the first in our time in the pack.

I also am getting more confident in the starting of the new troop, although I know that there are going to be hard feelings in the area. If I haven’t stated it, there is another troop in the area, and they have been our feeder troop for years, and now, there is some “competition” for them. They are not a bad troop, but I think that there are going to be more opportunities for the scouts in the area.

That’s all I have for now, as I wait to go to camp tonight to visit some scouts, see some skits, and sing some songs….

Keep your compass pointing in the right direction!