Upcoming Events
- World Jamboree 2007 (probably not)
Update on my Search
With my recent move out to Denver, Colorado, I have been on a search for a new scout troop to join. In this process so far, I have visited one scout troop and one Sea Scout Ship. Sea Scouting is a part of the Venturing program that focuses mainly on Sailing. After this meeting I decided that this is probably not what I want to do. So I am not going to join that Ship. However I am looking into other Venturing Crews as opposed to scout troops for a few reasons. Mainly, this is because venturing is from ages 14-20, it's coed, it's run more by the youth than the adults, and there are more high adventure trips because the people are older. So I am done with Boy Scouts, but am moving on to Venturing. Hopefully this will allow for an easy way for me to meet people quickly out here who have similar interests. And I need to go camping soon, especially out here with the mountains surrounding me and all! So hopefull I'll find a good one soon.
My Recent Scouting Adventures
Pamlico Sea Base High Adventure Trip
This campout for me was my last with Troop 6. But, it was definately a very fun trip. It was not as high adventure as Boundary Waters nor nearly as good, but still fun. I has the priveledge of being the crew leader, which was really not all that important of a position, looking back. I only had to make a few actually important decisions. And it wasn't really all that "high adventurous" either. We only kayaked Sunday at base camp, and Monday and Tuesday out on the water. We were in the Outer Banks, but were in between the mainland and the outer banks the whole time kayaking, so we were'nt actually out at sea. But Tuesday was a pretty cool day because we kayaked about 25 or 26 miles. It was easier than it sounds; our entire crew voted unanimously to paddle the last five miles rather than stop for the day. So that night we ate an actual real dinner at a restaurant. And we also watched the fireworks that night because it was the fourth of July. The entire crew loved that. The next day we spent the morning in Ocracoke checking out shops and the town and then took a ferry to our next camp site. The next day we went deep sea fishing... Most of our crew members got sick because it was a three hour boat ride out there and three hour ride back for about four hours of fishing. The next day we went to see Fort Mason and then went back to base camp for our pictures and dinner. That night we stayed in a hotel and then drove home the next day. The road trips up and back really were half the fun.
Boxwell 2006
Well, with this being my sixth year (and sixth consecutive year) I'm not sure what all has changed. But, no matter how many times I go, I just don't seem to get tired of Boxwell. I earned three merit badges, which allowed me recently to complete my first of three Eagle Palms. Music was a pretty cool merit badge to take, but photography was also very cool too. We had the Gizmo three out of the five times. I got it for the first time in my six years and was entered in an exciting but predictable pudding eating contest (see my photobucket Boxwell album for pictures) where I challeged a staff member to eat all this pudding first. I won a broken and old 8-track player for my successful contest. And of course there was the annual pranking going on. I swear I wasn't involved in any of it.. But it was enjoyable. I brought a hammock for the first time ever andslept outside in it one night. The hammock was quite the popular hangout spot, which was both good and bad. It got broken many times, but was worth fixing because of its comfortableness during free periods and for nap times and such. I guess Boxwell this year wasn't all that much different from previous years in that there was the usual gizmo stuff, pranking, and a handful of other small interesting stories that will be told for years.
My Eagle Scout Court of Honor 5/13
My Eagle Court of Honor was a successful one. It was fun to prepare and set up and it really meant a lot to me in many ways. I found a script online, to which I made edits and revisions to my liking. Then I asked selected people to play the roles of each rank, because that was necessary for my ceremony. Everyone, except one person who will remain nameless, showed up one time. It really meant a lot to me to see people like that who really look up to me feel proud and honored to participate in my ceremony. The wind was a bit of a problem with lighting the candles, but in the end, all wicks were lit at one point or another, so it was a success. Most of the people I invited showed up, and the food afterwards was good too. A big thanks to everyone who helped me on this trail to Eagle.
-Scott
2006 Spring Camporee, Backpacking Theme 4/29 - 4/30
Overall, I would say that this was a relatively good campout. I have criticisms, which I'll get to later. But it was a good camping trip. Unfortunately, it was my last camporee and my tenth consecutive one at the same time. Ending on a good note I guess. But anyways, we went up Saturday Morning, which was different than originally planned. We met at the church to depart at about 4:30 in the morning and there we distributed food and gear to our tent mates. Then we left and went through some small procedures befroe beginning the hike including weighing in our packs (which I sneaked past by removing enough of my gear) and a station on general backpacking. Then we began our first of about six stations whcih covered everything from orienteering and water purification to cooking and hanging bear bags. On this campout I successfully learned for the first time how to really tie a bear bag. Then after completing our stations and eating lunch, we broke up for afternoon activities. I went for a walk that afternoon where I wrote some stuff down (tried song lyrics and poems and neither worked) and took some decent pictures. Then I was found by the rest of my crew and we went from there to "the beach". It wasn't really much of a beach, but for bored boy scouts, it was enough. At this beach, we threw everything from rocks to trees into the lake. Then we went back a prepared dinner. After eating dinner, we went to the campfire and after the campfire we played mafia around the campfire, as we almost always do. Then I went back to camp and went to sleep to get ready for the hike out. The next morning we ate our small non-cooked breakfast and took down the bear bag and got ready to head out. I took one of my favorite pictures that morning, as you can see below linked to my photo page for this campout. Then we hikeed out relatively quickly, skipping the scout led religious service, and made it home early. And there, my final camporee met its end.
Troop Elections and Re-Organization
This happened about a month ago, but we re-organized the patrols and held elections for the new patrols. For elections, let's just say that most of the leadership positions didn't exactly go in the direction I voted. I'm not very happy with most of the leadership for a few reasons. First, I think that some of the leaders elected are inadequate for the position that they now hold. Whether that means age or experience, I think that some of the leadership positions are lacking in exactly that, leadership. Second and most important, I think that some of the roles won't be filled the way they need to be, especially with this new organization of the troop. We need a solid SPL and ASPL, and we need good patrol leaders for the new patrols. I dont' feel that this will be done with our new set of people in leadership. My other thoughts on the new patrols is that right now, they're going to be hard to work in. Some guys, like in my patrol, who have been together for a while, are now separated. I got some people in my patrol who I don't particularly like or trust, but nonetheless I'll have to work with them. I'm just lucky to have some of my previous patrol members in my new patrol. I also think that no matter how hard it is to work in these new patrols, in the end, this system will be much better for the troop. With people staying together and working together until they reach First Class and then being distributed to form new patrols is a really good idea and it should keep the troop more active than it is now.
Eagle Update 3/2/06
Done. Finished. Board of Review, Project, and all. Done. Eagle Scout. "Once an Eagle, always an Eagle."
Caving Trip - N/A
The caving trip didn't happen because there weren't enough adults and there were only about five or six boys who wanted to go. The only thing I would like to say about this is that our participation in the troop is poor. I hope that reorganizing the patrols will help this problem.
Fun Night at Strike and Spare 2/13
We were supposed to go to the Skatecenter in Brentwood, but since they weren't open to the public on Monday nights, we had to go to the Strike and Spare place instead. I got a lot of driving experience from this though, because I got to drive myself (yay!). I mainly played arcade games with Darien and Philip while I was there. Then I played Philip in pool and lost on a come from behind victory for him. It was still a lot of fun though. So when is our next fun night?
JLT (Junior Leader Training) 2/10 - 2/11
So we finally got around to holding a Junior Leader Training session to fill in the gap of people who aren't trained to be leaders in the troop. And unfortunately, there will still be a gap next year because there was not so great weather, depending on your approach, Friday night. It was predicted that Nashville would get four to six inches of snow that night and possibly some ice too. Ha. Ha. There was no snow that night. However there was snow the next morning. But do to the bad prediction of bad weather, there were many who decided not to come, including our acting SPL who was supposed to drive up that night. So that left five trained scouts to act as leaders and four untrained scouts to be trained. I was really planning on working with Dominic on this campout, but I had to fill in as the SPL with my entourage of Alex Whittle and Alan Meyer. They were a big help because we pretty much improved the whole weekend on what we were supposed to teach, go over, and such. All in all, I think we came out looking pretty good as leaders of the troop. And it was a succesful training session for those four who needed to be trained. I also took many cool pictures too. See the link at the top.
Winter Camp 2005 12/26 - 12/31
Winter Camp was lots of fun. It was a pretty cool campout too in that there were a total of four boys present, myself included, and two adults. Of course, it was cold. But let me tell you, no matter how cold it was, I had a blast. It was so much fun. Chasing Thomas around, Jason's "Holy Fajeebas!" (or something of that sort), and the makeshift table were incredible. The whole event was staffed by OA people, so I got to visit with some old Jambo friends of mine, including Mr. Guisinger and Roderick. I also got bossed around by one of the guys who was a patrol leader in my Jambo troop. Of course, because I was ASPL in the Jambo Troop, I completely ignored him. That was fun. I also got to break in my new camera and learn how to use it well on this trip. And surprisingly enough, I captured some pretty cool stuff. Be sure to check out the link at the top of the page for all of my pictures organized into albums and such. I would definitely go back to Winter Camp next year, hopefully on staff.
Henry Horton Boxwell Bike Trip 12/10 - 12-11
This campout was amazing. We, not surprising at all, had a few drop-outs who decided not to come, but that almost made it even better. There were a total of seven people there, including adults. Mr. Wheby, of course, Dr. Bellet, three Bellets, Jason, and myself. It was great. It was a little cold Saturday morning, but we suvived. Layering clothing was key. We camped on this lake, which was partly frozen and served to us as entertainment. We cracked the ice with rocks, sticks, and ice from the lake. Then we ate our lunches and prepared from some biking. I made three trip total. The first being with the other guys on the way to this store where we picked up some Vault. This stuff is over rated and is not worth your money. Moving on, Daniel and I went on an awesome bike ride. We went to the Stahlman Dining Hall, down to our campsite from this summer, down to the Greenbar Program location, Over to the rappeling tower and swimming pool, over to the Fehrman Training Center, and back to camp. And we saw twenty (20) deer in the process. Then we went back down to the store again for no reason and bought some candy in the process. Then we ate dinner, and ate our candy/smores/homemade donuts for desert while playing Mafia, which has apparently become a favorite campfire game for our troop. Then this morning we got up and returned home. We made it back to the church by a record of 10:00 A.M.! This is unheard of for our troop. Then we unpacked the trailer and went home.
Eagle Update 11/24 Thanksgiving Day 2005
I've done my three workdays, which were about 3 hours in length each, and only have a little bit left on the project. I'm pretty much done with the write up too. I need to get some bird feeders with food and put those up tomorrow, get a bench either bought or donated and put that in, and 2 requirements more for communications, and then..... I'll be done. But don't worry, I'll still go on every campout I can and I still plan to stay active. I really plan to get all three Eagle Palms also, but I can't say if that will happen with this troops or not.
Shiloh Orienteering Trip 11/11 - 11/13
I really needed this weekend, for starters. This weekend was pretty nice overall. We went up Friday night and ate dinner at Burger King in Bellevue on the way up. We set up our tents in the dark late at night in the same campground as last year at Shiloh. And unfortunately Judd was my tent mate. I have nothing against him, he's not a bad guy, but I wish one of my better friends in the troop could have been in his place. And Sunday morning when we had a break in between the rain, he wasn't the fastest guy moving to get our stuff packed up. And being the SPL on this trip, I looked kind of bad being the last guy with his tent put up. So anyways, we got up Saturday morning ready to hike 10 miles with our compasses in hand and map in the other. But we somehow only had one copy of the correct question sheet, so instead of going in two groups, we had to go as one. Now, I get to begin my rant on Mr. Cowan. We actually hiked 12 miles on Saturday, because no one checked the distance until we got back. That's not that bad, because I was in shape enough to do this. The worse was the next morning. (By the way, Thanksgiving Feast on saturday night prepared by Chef Bader was absolutely UNbelievable) It was when we got up Sunday morning to leave that we were informed by Seargent Cowan that we were all doing the Shiloh Medal Hike that day (another 16 miles, he said it was 14 until he learned upon arrival back in Nashville that it was 16 miles) and that there was no way around it. Everyone was doing it. I didn't. I told him I wasn't going to and that I couldn't. He wasn't too happy when I told him nor when I left in Mr. Bader's car for home. There were two other boys with me who also went home. So anyways, the remaining nine (I think) did this hike and arrived back home at 7 p.m. And on top of this hike, they have to read a pamphlet about 20 pages long (maybe more) to complete the medal. There's no way I could have gotten any sleep Sunday night if I had done this medal hike. But the campout was lots of fun for everyone, and as far as I'm concerned, I stayed for the whole thing.
Fall Camporee 10/14 - 10/16
This weekend we had the Fall Camporee. I was greatly anticipating this campout with both the need to get away from my family (mainly my dad) and the possibility of seeing some friends from National Jamboree. We went up Friday night stopping at Subway for dinner. Then we arrived at camp around eight o'clock and began setting up. Once all was taken care of, Daniel, Matthew, Ben, Alan, and I all played cards in Daniel and Matthew's tent. The next morning we went and listened to the TEMA people talk to us and got a tour of their gear and cars. After that we listened to a park ranger give a presentation on survival. Then we ate lunch and attempted to set up a "gateway", which never actually worked out. After that we went and did a series of programs in the afternoon, which included working on fire safety merit badge. All we have to do to finish it is make a fire escape plan and then we're done. This completes the entire merit badge. That's pretty cool that we didn't exactly do much of anything and now we're pretty much done. Then we cooked our hamburgers and beans for dinner and worked on our skit. We would have won the skit competition if they had given awards for it, but of course, they didn't. Then we went back to camp and ate s'mores around the camp fire. Then the tent raiding began. First, everyone raided Daniel and Matthew's tent. We tried to get everyone inside this little two man tent, and I'm not sure if we actually did or not, but it was pretty tight. Then because everyone was talking about some party in my tent, another two person, they decided to raid mine. Twice. It was all pretty funny, until they let a two inch grasshopper into my tent. So I got John Mark to catch it and then we sneaked up on Ben and Alex's tent and after I quickly unzipped it we threw the grasshopper into their tent. They bailed out of that tent as if there was an Iraqi with a bomb in there. And because all their stuff was spread across the tent, they had to take everything out in order to find it. Then the next morning, we pack up camp and headed out. On a side note, I did see Peter/Petey/Schnitzer on the Camporee which was cool because we played some frisbee and football. He said Lee couldn't make it because he had something else. I really wanted to hang out with Lee there, but oh well. Maybe he'll come in the spring to the Spring Camporee.
Elections 10/3
Elections were held last tonight and there were many good candidates for each category. The race was on to see who our new youth leaders would be. Ben Bellet and Alex Cheij are the new SPL and ASPL pair. Daniel Bellet will be our Chaplain's Aide. Philip Grand will be the Librarian. Quinn Cowan will be the Quartermaster, which, I don't intend to anger anyone, but is usually a position held by those who are bigger in stature in order to help carry things. And last in the youth leadership is myself as the Scribe. I felt like doing it because lately, as you can see do to this page, I've taken up an interest in writing about Troop events. I am also the Order of the Arrow Representative, which will likely be a job that even though I am enthusiastic about it, will be hard to do with all of the outside meetings and lack of familiar members. We'll see how that goes. And then each patrol elected Patrol Leaders and Assistant Patrol Leaders. The only ones I can remember are the ones for the Turtle/Storm Trooper/Nameless Patrol (because that's my patrol) because I don't actually have the list in front of me. Rather than list those alone, I'll wait until I can put them all up after I get the list back from Mr. Whittle Monday night.
Eagle Update 9/28
My Eagle Rank is coming close to the end. I have about half of Communications merit badge left, and I have scheduled the two dates for my project. On October 8 from 9 A.M. to 12 P.M. we will be putting in the flowers at the school. Along with possibly cleaning the grill. On October 29, we will be painting the benches and finishing up the project. Then all that will be left is a scout master's conference and a board of review. Please, if anyone from my troop reads this, come help me on these two dates with my project. Service hours will be provided to all who help.
Spaghetti Supper 9/25
On this day, many enjoyed some of the best spaghetti in town. Whether they came for the food after the church service or came just for fun, all had a good time. The auction items, while there weren't as many as usual, still sold well. The gateway was a success outside, although it seemed to be hanging a little too low. Every scout and parent in attendance was in correct uniform, and this year there were more scouts who participated than I have seen for a long time. The 2005 BSA Troop 6 Spaghetti Supper was a huge success.
Virgin Falls Backpacking Trip 9/9 - 9/11
This trip was one of the best our troop has had in awhile. We went up Friday night (although I did not) and ate at a Subway. Three day and two night campouts are unusual outside of Camporees, which made this one fun. My dad went on this one, which was indeed a change. We went up Saturday morning (unlike the rest) and caught up with the slower crew early in our hike. It was only 2.5 miles to our campsite. That is not far at all, and it was only 2.0 more miles to Virgin Falls. We set up camp early Saturday morning, ate lunch in camp, and went to the falls. While there, we found a cave and explored part of it. We went into a total of three caves while on this trip. We had a big fire in the cave near our campsite and played mafia by the fire Saturday Night. Then we hiked out Sunday morning and stopped for lunch on the way back. Alex and I went to the Taco Bell instead of McDonalds, because he wanted to eat there and I like using youth leadership priveleges.
Troop 6 Court of Honor 8/29
We held this ceremony to honor everyone in the troop and formally present them with the awards that they had earned. This was our annual Court of Honor to be held at Percy Warner Parks. It is usually nicer, but because Nashville was being hit by hurricane Katrina at the time, the weather was not as nice. We still held it outside though, and everyone who was present received at least one award.
Random News 8/21
I finished two more merit badges before the Court of Honor this coming Monday. Now I'll get three merit badges and be that much closer to Eagle. I also showed off my patches and whatnot from Jambo. There were some older guys and some adults who came over and talked with me about what they had and their experiences with patch trading. One of my favorite things that got the best reaction (besides the talking Spider Man patch) was my Staff hat from Jambo. I need to wear that more often.
Moving the Shed 8/20
This one was a little bit last minute because I found out about it for the first time on Friday, but I'm the current Quartermaster, so I had to go. First thing we moved everything out of the shed. Then we sorted through all of the tents and everything else to throw away what is no longer needed or what is to old to use anymore. Then we had some guy who was a real redneck come and use his truck to move the shed. It was kind of cool watching him move it with this big piece of machinery and all. Then we got the shed perfectly squared up on the new concrete slab, and loaded everything back in. All of this was done from nine until about two in the middle of an open field with no tree cover in 100 degree heat. It sucked, but it was a job that had to be done and will be very helpful in the future.
Eagle Update 8/4
Well, I got back from Jamboree yesterday and I had a packet awaiting me. It was addressed to Scott Larson, future Eagle Scout candidate. I opened only to be overjoyed that my project had been accepted and approved. Now all I have to do is collect the supllies and schedule a work day for my troop, friends, and others to come and assisit with the project. Then with the completion of one more merit badge, Communications, and a successful board of review, I'll officially be an Eagle Scout.
2005 National Jamboree 7/25 - 8/3
So the I was in Troop 2071. We left Thursday night, July 21, to drive to Washington D.C. They thought we'd sleep on the bus. I laugh. Once again, I laugh. They had to be out of their minds thinking we'd actually sleep on the bus. So when we got there we saw the Capitol in the morning and went to Union Station in the afternoon. Then the hotel plus lots of swimming and staying up late. My room contained the four youth leaders of Troop 2071 (Senior Patrol Leader, Assistant Senior Patrol Leader, Scribe, and Quartermaster), so we never went to sleep before one. The next day we went to the Mall at the Smithsonian. My group went to the Air and Space Museum, the Museum of Natural History, and the American Indian Museum, which was my favorite and really cool for those of you who are active in the Order of the Arrow. That night my roomates and I played Texas Hold'em with a national highschool girls basketball team. Then we witnessed the marriage of Daniel and Regina (it's an inside joke). Best wishes for them. The next day we went to Arlington and A Nationals baseball game. IF any of you out there follow baseball, it was against the Astros and lasted about 14 innings. The next day, Monday, we went to Jamboree. The entire day with a heat index of 110 degrees was setting up camp. I got sunburned, which healed over the course of the ten days we were there. Then the events. I earned Citizenship in the World at Merit Badge Midway, which offered many other merit badges. I traded patches with kids from all over the WORLD. I thought it was national. It was International for sure. I obtained International National Jamboree patches from Sweden, New Zealand, Australia, South America, and a World Jamboree patch from the 2003 one. Halo patches were the number one patch to have. I didn't get one of those. I earned all five of the rockers, which go around the National Jamboree patch on your uniform. In the future they will continue to show that I was at the 2005 National Jamboree and that I did almost everything there was to offer. To earn these, you had to participate in a 5k walk/run, be Dutiful to God, visit activities, go to action centers and do things like biking, rifle, and shotgun shooting, and go to outback centers and do things like scuba, kayak, sail, or canoe. I also witnessed President Bush address 75,000 people from about 100 feet away. That was close enough for me. He made his formal entry in a nice Air Force One helicopter surrounded by snipers and soldiers galore. I also so the OA show titled Twelve Cubed. It was ok. And the lights and fireworks show after the arena show was INCREDIBLE. It's the best I've ever seen. No seriously. I've seen shows in person and in New York City on tv, and trust me, nothing could match this one. If there's one thing I'll get from this Jamboree experience, it was watching 75,000 candles be lit after the arena show. The Army band was standing up there singing God Bless America and America the beautiful. Everyone had their candle lit and was singing along. It was incredibly moving. This was truly the experience of a lifetime and will be one of my favorite memories ever.
If you're in another troop who was at the 2005 National Jamboree, e-mail me and tell me your thoughts.
National Jamboree Photos
