Weekend Patrol Box #11

The snow is beginning outside my window. Lows this weekend in the teens--but a whole lot warmer than my years growing up on Eielson AFB, Alaska!

Yep, I'm still in t-shirts. And loving the cool weather.

I do try to encourage my Scouts to mentally fight the cold. A little toughness can go a long way with the weather. You learn a few tricks walking to school at 40 below zero!

Like how to hustle.

(By the way, if any Scout or Scouter from the Fairbanks or Eielson area see this, I'd love to hear about the troop on base!)

This week's Patrol Box will help you think about something besides the cold, too.

1. Going somewhere? Use boyscouttrail.com's Online Tour Permit--you can edit it online, save it to your system, and not have to hunt down the information each time.
2. Maybe we could feature a recipe from their site, too: Train Wreck
3. Let the cold motivate you to earn a merit badge indoors: Art is online at Scoutsigns and will keep you busy.
4. In case you missed it, Architecture was posted. Dr. Architecture wants to help spread the word to your Scouts, too.
5. Go to Iceland! Roverway registration for Scouts 16 and up, per boyandgirlscouts.com. It should be warmer that time of the year...
6. Probably a good time to review hypothermia with backpacker.com, a part of their Survival 101 program.
7. Free BSA basketball: spend $75 at Scoutstuff.org (until 31 DEC or until they run out of basketballs!) Use Promo Code BB24108 at checkout.
8. Autumn is a great time to collect things for a nature table, courtesy of the National Wildlife Federation. We have had one in our house for decades now. Kids love it!
9. A Scoutmaster's Blog has a number of good things this week, but I'm partial to the manual collection.
10. Christmas ornament from Hallmark (in store only): Snoopy and troop on Beagle Scout Day Out.
11. Does anyone else wish we could order these ornaments (not just on cards)?
12. The last Patrol Box mentioned woodworking--Bell Forest Products have an inexpensive assortment of exotic woods your Scouts might like to see (think Craftsman, Wood Carving and Woodwork).
13. Kismif.org reminds us that the Pinewood Derby is just around the corner...thanks...
14. OK, Scoutsigns isn't listed, but I'm sure it was an oversight: 30 Links for Cub Scouters
15. A random click at Ropes and Poles brought me to "Fun with Ropes and Spars" at The Dump.
16. Mike Rowe, Eagle Scout, just in case you are the last Scouter in America to see this letter.
17. Do you need a copy sent to your Scout? From the bottom of the page:

    All you have to do is mail a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Eagle Scout Letter, Pilgrim Films and Television, 6180 Laurel Canyon Blvd., #350, No. Hollywood, CA 91606. Please allow 12+ weeks for Mike to fill it out, sign it and get it in the mail to you. And folks - this is an offer, a nice thing, a volunteer deal Mike wants to do for you - please don't complain if it takes a while to get to you, OK?

See anything you like, or didn't and you think should be here? Email me and let me know.

Now off to add Mike's show to my DVR...

Merit Badge of the Week: Art

Art merit badge has the distinction of being the shortest named merit badge.

Since I cannot draw a straight line, even with a ruler, let us say I never considered this one when I was a Scout.

Many Scouts can tell you that there are 8 basic colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, black, and white . "Brown" is a fancy name for "dirt". Any 8 pack of Crayolas is more than sufficient.

Despite this limited selection, art surrounds us. From pictures posted to your refrigerator, to movies, to comic books, to photography, to music, to a limitless list of things crafted out of other things, art is everywhere.

Artists even help design products so we will want to buy them--think iPod.

Despite my efforts to personally avoid the Art merit badge, it remains wildly popular. It has a lifetime total of 1.1 million, and 27,112 new badges issued in 2007. (BSA Fact Sheet)

In the Art merit badge, you will tell a story with a picture; design a logo or something useful; create 4 different images of the same thing with different mediums; visit art; and learn about careers in art.

The latest Art merit badge requirements from the BSA:

1. Tell a story with a picture or pictures or using a 3-D rendering.

2. Do ONE of the following:
a. Design something useful. Make a sketch or model of your design and get your counselor's approval before you proceed. Then create a promotional piece for the item using a picture or pictures.
b. Design a logo. Share your design with your counselor and explain the significance of your logo. Then, with your parent's permission and your counselor's approval, put your logo on Scout equipment, furniture, ceramics, or fabric.

3. Render a subject of your choice in FOUR of these ways:
a. Pen and ink
b. Watercolors
c. Pencil
d. Pastels
e. Oil paints
f. Tempera
g. Acrylics
h. Charcoal
i. Computer drawing or painting

4. With your parent's permission and your counselor's approval, visit a museum, art exhibit, art gallery, artists' co-op, or artist's workshop. Find out about the art displayed or created there. Discuss what you learn with your counselor.

5. Find out about three career opportunities in art. Pick one and find out the education, training, and experience required for this profession. Discuss this with your counselor, and explain why this profession might interest you.

Resource List:

1. Always start with Introduction to Merit Badges for the steps to a successful merit badge.
2. Worksheet on Art from usscouts.org. This is a great tool to organize your work, projects and thoughts.
3. How to write a comic strip.
4. Google helps you with free 3-D software: SketchUp
5. USScouts.org has good notes on storytelling.
6. About painting with acrylics--lots of links.
7. About painting with watercolors--tons of links.
8. About painting with oils--scads of links.
9. About painting with pastels--more links.
10. Artist's magazine online.
11. How to draw with charcoal and pencil. Um, the piece of paper is drawn, too...
12. Details behind careers in art--U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Related BSA merit badges: Architecture, Basketry, Cinematography, Photography, Pottery, Sculpture, Theatre, Wood Carving, and Woodwork.

Do you have a resource for the Art merit badge? Please let me know via email or the comments below.