Wow was it really May?

Was it really may the last time I posted?  So much has happened in the last few months. I have worked my self out of my real job. The company decide to use me to move their servers to Rackspace managed hosting, a local company from San Antonio.  I've been working on starting my own business. That's pretty much it on the personal side.

On the scout side, I went to summer camp with the troop at Bear Creek Scout Ranch. (http://alamoarea-boyscouts.org/Bear%20Creek/bear%20creek.html) My son went through the 1st year scout program called the Ranger Program. With his troop experiences, that carried him from Scout to Second Class. Another campout and he managed to get First Class in 11 months. Many people in Texas say that Bear Creek have the best new scout program in the state, followed by Buffalo Trails Scout Ranch (BTSR). I'm not prejudiced though, it is our council camp.  At the end of the summer the Troop committee leadership came to me and asked that I take over as Scoutmaster. Two weeks ago  I started  in the Alamo area council's high adventure resource training for troops and crews known as Powder Horn.

I grabbed some interesting  facts  about Powder Horn in my council.  The first course was held in 2003. I am in the 5th course. Our course's normally have a waiting list.  The teaching methodology is based on a Venturing Crew. If you not familiar with Powder Horn, you are probably asking what is Powder Horn? For me, Powder horn so far has been Leave No Trace, COPE, Center-fire, rim-fire, black-powder, shotguns, clay, gear,  SCUBA,Fishing, flies, awesome food, Canoeing, kayaking, Rafting, communications, gear, physical fitness, Climbing, rappelling, Treks, rivers, lakes and scout's own. I still have a weekend left to go.

Back to the troop and the committee though, I have accepted their offer to become Scoutmaster and tomorrow's Court of Honor is to be my installation as Scoutmaster.  The last couple of weeks I've been working on and looking at how to set my tone, my culture for that I'll bring to the troop as the troop's chief mentor and guide. Back at the beginning of the year, I followed a group of bloggers that were writing about 100 days of Scouting. My goal for this blog is now to write about my first 100 days as Scoutmaster. I don't expect to do this daily, but I'll try to do this at least weekly. I started by blocking out time to do that  on my calendar.

(Survival and New foods) Which cacti are the most edible and nutritious?

While this doesn't really answer the question... It does help you to figure out how to harvest and prepare the fruit of our beloved Prickly Pear.  Just don't go hugging any of them.

From Survival Guru Tony Nester

Prickly Pear Cactus (Opuntia spp.) is the most common cactus found throughout not only the desert but much of the U.S. It is my favorite cactus to harvest, and I usually gather up the red, golf-ball sized fruits in August or September, depending on the elevation.

The surface of the fruit has tiny hairs called glochids which can get into your skin (or tongue!) and cause irritation. When gathering the fruit with my kids, I always bring along Elmer's Glue, which can be poured onto the hairs impaled in the fingertips or skin and later peeled off to remove the glochids. Tongs can be most helpful for picking fruit, but it always seems like you end up with a few hairs in your fingertips.

After obtaining the fruit, we then place them over a grill on the fire for 1-2 minutes to singe off the glochids. They can then be eaten raw or cut in half to dry in the sun to make cactus fruit leather. Like most cacti fruit, prickly pear is 80-percent seed on the inside, and it takes quite a bit to make a meal. Your lips and hands also will be stained purple for the next few days.

As with any edible plant or cacti, make sure you know what you are putting in your mouth as some can be toxic and downright deadly. Take a class at a desert botanical center or with a reputable instructor. One such course that focuses on desert edible and medicinal plants is taught in Arizona by Mike Masek (theforagerspath.com) and provides a hands-on approach to learning how to gather your own wild foods.

Other than prickly pear, there are many desert succulents (another name for cacti and their relatives) that can provide fruit, such as the Saguaro, barrel cactus, and cholla. Some are protected, so you will have to look into state laws when gathering.

An excellent book to get started is Food Plants of the Sonoran Desert, by Wendy C. Hodgson.

Here's a list of nutrients you find in the paddle.

Cactus pads contain beta carotene, iron, some B vitamins, and are good sources of both vitamin C and calcium.

There has been medical interest in the Prickly Pear plant. Some studies have shown that the pectin contained in the Prickly Pear pulp lowers levels of "bad" cholesterol while leaving "good" cholesterol levels unchanged. Another study found that the fibrous pectin in the fruit may lowers diabetics' need for insulin. Both fruits and pads of the prickly pear cactus are rich in slowly absorbed soluble fibers that help keep blood sugar stable. There are on going studies and at this point there are no proven results on humans. You can make your own study and see if works for you, which is the only test that really counts.

Here's a recipe for a tasty, spicy dish:

CACTUS CREOLE

2 cups of diced cactus
1 pound of hamburger (cooked and drained)
6 ounces of tomato paste
1 cup of water
1 diced jalapeño pepper
6-1/2 ounces of canned shrimp (drained)
salt and pepper to taste

Mix all the ingredients together in a pan and cook them over medium heat for about 20 minutes or until the cactus turns a deep green. Serve hot over noodles, rice, or potatoes . . . or in pita bread or a folded tortilla. It's delicious!

Cactus also tastes great with fish. Here's a recipe for pescado, desert-style:

CACTUS OVER FISH

1/2 cup of cooking oil
1 clove of garlic (chopped)
1 teaspoon of chili powder
1 cup of flour
1 pound of filleted fish
1 cup of diced and boiled cactus
1/2 cup of water (from the boiled cactus)
1 hard-boiled egg, sliced
2 teaspoons of lemon juice
salt to taste

Heat the oil in a frying pan, sauté the garlic until light brown, and then remove the garlic pieces with a slotted spatula or spoon. Combine the chili powder and flour in a bowl and roll the fish in the mixture. Fry the coated fillets until they're golden brown . . . add the water (be careful to prevent spattering — pour in just a bit at a time). . . reduce the heat . . . and cook the fish for a few minutes longer. When the fish flakes easily, remove it from the pan and serve it smothered in cactus and topped with sliced egg, lemon juice, and salt.

It was election time.

This week started out with a call that a fellow scouter had died suddenly. He will never know how much he inspired me to be a trainer. He really focused on getting us trained on the trained patch level. Mr. Barrentine, you will be missed.
Next up were  elections  for my sons troop.  The elections went surprisingly well considering the boys elected the  SPL and both PL's before the Scoutmaster announced that the new boys would be in a new boy patrol.  I still have many questions about the elections and how they were carried out.  But I am very proud my son was elected PL of the new boy patrol. The scouts had unknowingly elected  a new boy, an experienced boy  and a solid candidate for SPL.   The Troop committee adoted a training policy so that ASM's get trained within 6 months of joining the troop. This vote was a lot less debated than the healthcare vote. Everyone seemed to be ok with the results.

The pack is doing something interesting tonight, They are having  Den meetings for 45 minutes then 45 minutes of Pack meeting.  I'm not the Cubmaster  and I'm not sure I 'd do it this way.

Saturday, I'm bailing on the troop campout to train some webelos leader's  and my son opted for his school's  spring carnival. But we have a solid show for the campout. 5 adults and 8 or 9 scouts.  This is a backpacking trip in to  a primitive camp site, so it should shake the  new scouts down. They are all looking forward to it.

Storing My camping gear

 I told @scoutdude that My storage arrangements for camping gear was a blog post so here goes. It all lives in my garage. We also have a pop-up, but I prefer to grab the tents and go as I can decide to go camping on the way home on Friday.

Car Camping gear:

Section one the dutch oven stack:  On the bottom is a Sportsman's Warehouse Fire Pan Similar to this. Next is a  Camp Chef Dutch oven Table. My  14" Lodge  Dutch Oven, My two Sportsman Warehouse 12" dutch Ovens, and  2 Cheap  footless dutch ovens. In a bag similar to a USGI mechanics bag  I have  a DO tool set.  gloves/ Mair Lid Lifters, tin spoons, spatulas, and several tongs.  I almost forgot the Chimney Starter.

Another pile / Section 2 is the  Folding aluminum Tables, Camp Chairs, and Our 10 x 10 Canopy.

Section 3 is the cheap sleeping bags There are 5 of us  so that  takes up a shelf on an 18x 36 shelf unit.

The shelf above that has  an army shelter half tent, 3 Coleman 4 man tents ( our normal tents), a Sears 3 room tent, and a two man hiking tent  from Academy Sports. and finally  on top of that is  an Eagles nest outfitters Hammock, strap, and tarp  setup.

Contico Footlocker 1: Coleman stove and Propane canisters, Bowls, Car Camp mess kits, flashlights, emergency ponchos, misc...
Contico Footlocker 2: Dry goods for car camping.

Hiking Gear:
The packs are leaning against the  wall near the car camping gear. Most of the little things stay in the pack while the big items come out to get proper care.

(This is both My son's and My Gear) Pads and Sleeping bags unstuffed / unrolled and laid over top of Shelving unit.

Kelty Super Tioga:  Dad's bathroom ditty bag, Jetboil, Brunton Raptor stove , Xbowl and X cup, MSR folding spork, powedered drink ditty bag, Frog Toggs,  Led light for tent, Stuff sacks for clothing, drop cloth for tent/ tarp. Personal first aid kit, Camp axe, Firestarter. camp towel. Camp cord.

Jansport scout: Son's Bathroom ditty, Coleman  exponent stove,  GSI Outdoors  group pot set,  Camp towel, Rain gear, Personal First Aid kit, Stuff sacks for clothing.

The Googling Commissioner Service

About mid February, I registered  a URL for  my district UC  service and a toy for me.  I wanted to see how google apps and sites tied together and how best to use it.  You can get an awesome front end view from  the Scouting units that have come to use Google apps.

I was just handed a couple of necessary but annoying  forms that needed to be completed and turned in.  So I went and created google apps forms to replace the paper forms. So  for now  We don't have a Commissioner's website, just a commissioner's tools website.  Hopefully it has the tools we need to be more successful as Commissioners.

The best part of  this was  I shared it with my District Commissioner, who in turn spoke about it  at a Council commissioners meeting.  The other districts' commisioners were  all like, "I want  those tools too!"  While the tools aren't exactly what I'd want to go public on  they are a far site better than we have available otherwise.

What tools did I create? Unit Self assessments, District monthly awards nomination form and Unit contact  information submittal.

Intro to Outdoor Leader Skills

I'm off to the new Intro to Outdoor Leader Skills. It isn't really a new course as far as I know It's just the first time my council has offered it since it became a requirement for Webelos Leaders. This meant that council had to make a new flyer for the Class. It will be akin to spending 28 hours camping in my backyard. WOO HOO! Our training / cub scout campground is surrounded by city. All around you here the sounds of cars and freeways and sleep under the light of the near by fast food joints.


Since I'm a gear nut, I decided to celebrate by spending lunch at Whole Earth Provisions. Why there and not our other trusty sporting goods store Academy. WEP has the Therm-a-rest Neo Air. It is supposed to be the best Camp pad since self inflating pads. They had 3 sizes in stock. Fortunately for my pocketbook I was not yet prepared to part ways with $170.


I did however pickup an Xbowl and Xmug from Sea to Summit (http://www.seatosummit.com). Together they are smaller and flatter than my current mess set. I also picked up a folding spork from MSR. (http://cascadedesigns.com/msr/cookware/cookware-accessories/folding-eating-utensils/product) the spork is longer than my current set of Light My Fire Sporks. The current ones are just a bit short reaching into a Jetboil pot.


Last but not least I grabbed the wrong book, but hope it will pay off in the end. The Best in Tent Camping: Texas (http://www.amazon.com/Best-Tent-Camping-Concrete-Portable/dp/0897326849). Why did I say Grabbed the wrong book  Because I didn't see the subtitle any where. "A Guide for Car Campers Who Hate RVs, Concrete Slabs, and Loud Portable Stereos"  I do fall into the category  of disliking Concrete Slabs, and Loud Portable Stereos. Occasionally I like the comfort of a RV in the form of a pop-up camper. Yet I was hoping for the top 50 tent camping sites in Texas no matter who else may show up. 


I'll let you know how things turn out. I almost forgot because I was so busy.  My son finally had his Crossover ceremony last Sunday. I rechartered with  the pack as Committee Chair  because we had two few  stand up. 

Girl Scout Cookies

My wife is fully engrossed in that American tradition called Girl Scout Cookies. I haven't seen her most of the week. Now that is partly because I haven't been home much, but neither has she.

She is at booth sales and delivering cookies.

If your council uses Trails-end the popcorn money is pretty easy to follow. But no-one could really tell me where all the money from the Girl Scout cookies went, until now.

http://www.walletpop.com/blog/2010/02/06/girl-scout-cookies-by-the-numbers-just-where-do-all-those-dolla/

$0.85 Bakery

$0.50 Troop

$0.08 Patches

$2.07 Local Council

For a total of $3.50

So let's scale this up to the $9.00 tub o' popcorn the Boy Scouts sell.

So for the $9.00 you'd get 39 cookies from the GSUSA or 8.5 oz of Carmel popcorn from the BSA.

GSUSA	BSA
$2.25 or 25% to the Bakery	$2.25 or 25% to Trails-end
$0.18 or 2% to prize patches	$0.45 or 5% to Prizes
$5.31 or 59% to the Local Council	$3.15 or 35% to the Local Council
$1.26 or 14% to the Troop	$3.15 or 35% to the Unit

I'm not so angry at the baker's anymore. I know the BSA has FOS, United Way, and other fundraising going on throughout the year. I wonder what other funds the GSUSA raises during the year. It seems the girl scouts put more of the council's financial burden on the girls. My daughters goals were to sell 150 boxes each for a total of $73 in the troop coffers. But nearly double the total sales of my pack for nearly the same commission per scout.

To me it would seem the Local GSUSA council could give a bit more back to the scouts.