Quarterly Report Card is In!

Posted on February 23, 2012 by

Earlier this month, I offered a little data on the BSP’s progress, and in this post, I’m pleased to announce that the Virtual Troop Leaders have wisely approved the task work done in the 1st quarter of the 2nd year. Woo Hoo!

That means we’ve got a total of 190 tasks approved for work on 74 badges so far, and you can always track the project’s progress here.

I’ve got a few big takeaways from this quarter which are about to inform future work.

Loving: Drawing and Painting

Crazy fun to just sit and sketch/paint.

Yes, I’ve really enjoyed those periodic art night classes about which I’ve written, but it wasn’t until I was at Surfside last month that I realized I ***love*** this work. It feels like my eyes become stronger; in fact, it feels as though all my senses were becoming stronger, just sitting and sketching a silly shell. Time took on a slower quality as well–and, for me, that’s a strong, strong test of my love for anything.

So, I’ve decided that drawing and painting will be the core of my work on the “Doing Hobbies” badge, which I’ve not yet begun.

Not So Much With the Love: Jewelry Making

Nice to do, but it'll never be a passion.

Having now done most of the tasks for the “Jeweler” badge, I can officially tell you that’s it not my thing. Much as I appreciate a beautiful piece of jewelry (trust me, I do), I’ve got no burning desire to up my game in this area.

I share this small personal insight because I’d thought jewelry making might become the focus of the “Making Hobbies” badge, which also hasn’t been started. But I just don’t have the bug.

I’m not sure I have to look too hard, however, to fill this void. I’ve actually got an idea for a garden decor item the likes of which I’ve not seen before. I’m investigating methods for making these items, and the idea looks feasible, I’ll be sharing by summer time. Fingers crossed — it’ll be very cool!

That Which I Dread: All Tasks Requiring Real Physical Exertion

If you were to take a gander at the “Track the Project” page you’d see a bit of a trend there: I’ve avoided a whole lot of tasks that require me to actually get fit. 

It’s a lifelong trend. In fact, my motto has generally been “My idea of running is running for the bus.” The upshot, dear readers, is that I’m in the worst shape of my life, in no shape to tackle a good many of these tasks… yet.

These bad boys may be ugly, but they're my new sneaks and they feel great.

As it happens, there are a slew of tasks I’ve also avoided for different badges all about being your best–getting in shape, eating well, taking care of yourself. They’re the perfect focus now so I can take on the harder physical tasks 6-12 months from now. A few of them warrant some tweaking, and I’ll be asking for that blessing from the VTLs in the next couple of weeks.

But here’s the thing: these self-improvement tasks aren’t “one-offs.” They’re not the kind of task you can do in a weekend and blog about once. They take time.

And that means that instead of offering just one post summarizing a task’s results, these tasks almost demand progress reports along the way.

And here’s one more thing — a warning for the men who read this blog (yes, they’re out there!). Gentlemen, I’m offering my apologies up front. Many of these posts are going to be of little interest or value to you. Sorry guys, this is just the way it’s gonna be, off and on, for the next several months.

So here’s the goal, clearly stated: In six months time, I’ll be strong enough and fit enough to take on challenging physical tasks I couldn’t possibly manage today.

Can I get an amen? No? Well, maybe all y’all will join me in a collective… sigh…


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Make a Simple Seashell Mobile

Posted on February 21, 2012 by

Ladies and gentlemen, this is the last post in a string of posts that will mention seashells for a long, long time. Thank the heavens or curse the stars if you like. I’m just saying Amen.

If you saw the recently jewelry posts (here and here), as well as reports from last month’s trip to Surfside Beach, TX, you know I came home with a boat load of shells.

My haul from a January junket to the TX Gulf Coast.

I thought this was a stunning, amazing collection… until my sister and Virtual Troop Leader Victoria Gertenbach shared a photo of HER recent haul on the shores of Puerto Rico. Check it out:

My sister's AMAZING haul from her recent trip to Puerto Rico. I am colored with envy.

Now THAT’s a collection of shells.

But we make do with what we have, I actually have something she doesn’t. I’ve got a staggering number of shells with holes naturally drilled into them (see this post for a quick explanation).

And it led me to one… more… task…

BADGE WORK UPDATE: ART IN 3-D

Have you ever heard wind chimes create music in the breeze? Have you ever seen toy planes or birds suspended over a crib lull a baby into sleep? They have something in common: they move. They’re kinetic. They’re mobile.

We’ve hung interesting things for a long, long time, but we can thank sculptor Alexander Calder for coining the word “mobile.” Correction: Avant-garde artist Marcel Duchamp actually coined the word upon seeing Calder’s work.

Mobile by the Father of Modern Mobiles, Alexander Calder

Let’s clear up some definitions here: 

– A mobile is suspended. It’s engineered and balanced. It moves, either of its own accord, as a result of interaction with the viewer, or as a result of motors or electronics.

– A stabile (also made famous by Calder), is mounted or sits on the ground. Its primary structure does not move, although it may have moving parts.

I’ve come to care about these things because, as is often the case these days, a badge task told me I should. In fact, it’s a scout’s job to construct a mobile. 

And, naturally (and for which I mildly apologize), I still had so many naturally-drilled shells left over from my January beach junket that I decided to give it a go. Here’s how I did it:

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A Rant About Girl Scout Cookies

Posted on February 16, 2012 by
Boxes of the two most popular Girl Scout cooki...

Image via Wikipedia

Have you seen ‘em? Smart young girls in front of supermarkets and drug stores and Wal-Marts, surrounded by boxes of Thin Mints and Caramel deLites?

I haven’t!

I haven’t seen a single box of these bad boys this year, and I’m conflicted about this. In January, I’d have scarfed ‘em up by the box, but I recently started one of those diet thing-y’s, and those sugary carbs just aren’t the menu.

Which is why I was so happy to hear from a BSP fan last night about whether I’d be willing to buy a few boxes from her daughter to support the military. You buy ‘em, they deliver ‘em — either to active duty military or to veterans back at home.

I bought 10 boxes on the spot. It completely satisfied my desire to support scouts AND stick to my diet, and it has the added benefit of thanking our men and women who’ve served our country, if only in a small, tasty way.

Thing is, I would LOVE to tell YOU how to support this program. I would like nothing better than to direct you right to a website where you could buy a few boxes that would go right to the troops.

But I can’t. I couldn’t find an actual link to this program on the national or district websites.

And that’s because the Girls Scouts have the wackiest business model for these cookies in the whole wide world. You can’t buy them online, and you can’t buy them in stores. You can only buy them from girls in front of stores (if you happen to be in the vicinity), and only for a few months of the year.*

And, far as I can tell, you only find out about cookies for troops if you happen to know a mom who knows about the program. Geez.

Now, I get it, I really do. This business model means that cookie sales are the true domain of scouts. The program presumably teaches girls money management, a bit about running a business, and some people skills. And if cookies were available any time, through any outlet, girls wouldn’t have the same experience. I get it.

But not every girl is cut out for sales–and that’s what this is. This is THE big money maker for GSofA.

When I was a scout, I dreaded cookie time each year. There was no way to get out of it. The pressure to sell was palpable. I hated knocking on neighbors’ doors. I hated asking for money. Frankly, I just wanted to give them away, or eat them all myself. It kind of made me sick to my stomach.

Sales. Blech.

When Juliette Gordon Low founded the GSofA, one of her prime directives was to allow girls to guide the troop’s activities. As scouting evolved, girls were encouraged to pursue activities of interest to them. That’s what all that badge work is about. But cookie season seems like the opposite of that; if you’re a scout, you’re expected to do it, and do it well.

So I can’t help but wonder if there isn’t a happy medium. Some middle ground which would allow cookie fans to perhaps buy them online throughout the year? Hell, make it even more exclusive by selling only one type of cookie each month! They’d make good money and there wouldn’t be so much pressure on every girl to sell, sell, sell. Some people have a knack for sales in their DNA, and it’s just anathema to others. I think that should be okay.

And if nothing else, give me a link online that let’s me buy a cookie for a soldier. Know what I mean?

Thus endeth the rare rant, and now I shall return to being a good, big scout.

__________________________

* Of course, there is another way most people I know actually get their cookies. They get ‘em from the devoted (or tired?) mom/dad who oh-so-gently strong-arms co-workers into buying their daughters’ inventory. Don’t tell me you don’t know what I’m talking about. :-)  

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It’s Valentine’s Day: Love Thyself!

Posted on February 14, 2012 by
Children's Valentine, 1940–1950

Image via Wikipedia

I’ve been working on a post on the subject of Valentine’s Day for days now and just tossed it in the virtual trash. It was a mildly amusing tale of disappointing celebrations, major disaster, and some personal (wholly unattractive) martyrdom.

None of it matters. What matters, dear scouts, is this: On this day, as with all others, give yourself a little love, a little self-care, a little forgiveness and compassion. We can’t do a very good job of loving others until we take care of ourselves first.

Now, let me be clear: I think partners really should pony up a little something for each other on Valentine’s Day. Why not acknowledge a day for love? And there are red roses on my desk tonight, a gift from my husband, and I’m digging it big time.

But these days, there are always flowers on my desk. I put them there, even if it’s just a single stem. It makes me feel like a million bucks. And you can’t act like a martyr when you feel that good.

So that’s my two cents. When we respect, love, and treat ourselves well first, we do a significantly better job of doing it for others.

Happy Valentine’s Day, you sweetie pies.

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Don’t Need No Fancy Tools to Make Your Fancy Jewels!

Posted on February 9, 2012 by

Seashell earrings: cheap & easy!

In the last post, I shared a quick video on making simple jewelry from seashells and beads, and today I’m sharing two more items I made on the same weekend. You get on a roll, and you gotta go with this stuff, know what I mean?

Plus, I really wanted to explore whether I wanted to pursue jewelry making as part of the “Doing” or “Making” hobbies badges. Turns out I’m not feeling all that hungry to get to the next level with jewelry, and that’s just fine (plus, it confirmed to me what I will be pursuing for these badges down the road).

Anyway, here are the last two jewelry tasks I’ll be doing for a while, and I’d like to think these demonstrations prove that you don’t need no fancy tools to make your jewels.

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Simple Seashell Jewelry

Posted on February 7, 2012 by

Seashell and bead necklace and earring set

It already feels as though it’s been months since I’ve been back to Surfside Beach, TX. It hasn’t, it’s only been a couple of weeks, but I suppose that’s pretty par for the course. We go away for a bit of  fun and come right back to packed inboxes and full calendars. 

I’ve still got a bit of the vacation glow in me, though, and I suppose that’s because I keep plugging away at some beach-inspired badge tasks, including a task that calls for scouts to make jewelry from items they have found in nature.

BADGE WORK UPDATE: JEWELER

If you’ve followed recent posts, you know I collected an unholy number of seashells on my trip, and a number of them looked like this:

Seashells with holes naturally "drilled" into them


See those little holes at the top of the shells? That’s how I found them, which makes them a jeweler’s dream — naturally “pre-drilled.” BSP devotees may have noted a comment from astute reader Jamie H. on an earlier post that these holes are the result of “carnivorous snails that drill through the hinge portion to eat the mollusk from within with a long, tubal ‘tongue,’ technically called the radula.”

Go Jamie! (And Jamie… by way of thanks, and because I know you’ve been looking for some of these suckers, I’ve got a passel of them set aside for you — let’s connect!)

Anyway, I took a few of these babies and set out to make some jewelry. Today, we walk through how to make a simple necklace and earring set.

In the next post, I’ll finish up with two more items of jewelry…

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Wrap of of First Quarter, 2nd Year

Posted on February 2, 2012 by

Kiddos, the BSP is officially well into its second year! In fact, it’s time to submit the most recent quarter’s task work to those fabulous fancy-pants Virtual Troop Leaders (VTLs). And while we wait a few weeks to see if the ladies give the thumbs up for the official tally, let’s look at the latest project stats — they’re fabulous!

The (kind of amazing, to me at least), numbers:

In  the first quarter of the project’s second year, the blog received just shy of 4,000 views — waaaay higher than any other quarter to date! See what I mean??

And what were intrepid readers learning? Well, the top most-viewed posts for this quarter were:

  • Reuse, Recycle, Redecorate! [Christmas Tree door decoration] — 906 views*
  • The Tangrams: Great Name for a Band! — 827 views
  • A Map of the World — 371 views
  • Pottery & Sculpting: File Under “Needs Work” — 242 views
  • Inspired, Inspiring Architecture: Contemporary, Sustainable, and Totally Prefab! — 96 views

But wait, that’s not all — YouTube channel views went hog wild! Three new videos were uploaded in this quarter, but several others got crazy  views in the past three months–8,696 of them, in fact, more than twice the views the channel’s gotten in the whole first year! Take a gander at this monthly YouTube trend chart since the project began:

YouTube Channel Views Since Launch

Again, I say, “Wha??”

Of course, all we need to do is look at the top five most-viewed videos on the YouTube channel in the past quarter to tell us why:

  • How to Make a Christmas Tree Door Decoration — 4,578 views*
  • Fun with Polymers! (Part 1) — 1,024 views
  • Growing Crystals: Kitchen Science 101 — 729 views
  • Inspired, Inspiring Architecture — 524 views
  • How to Make a Scotch Oven (aka Box Oven) — 470 views
* Yes, clearly people are eager to learn how to make a Christmas door decoration out of old compact discs. Thousands of people appear to have been inspired by this small venture here on the blog and on YouTube, even though I clearly state that just because you can do something really doesn’t mean you should.

In other words, I fully expect this holiday surge to wane, but I have to confess — I was pretty friggin’ tickled by these numbers. And while we were at it, a few new pix got uploaded to the Flickr page, we kept posting to the Facebook page, and the Tweets were few and far between, but things are, in fact, looking up.

Coming up…

I’ll post the new official badge task tally after the VTL’s have given their thumbs up or down in the next few weeks. There are still several tasks I started at the beach recently which will be written up and posted in the next few weeks. And finally, I’ll be rolling out a new set of tasks, which actually take some real time to do, and posting some ongoing progress reports. All of this in the next few months.

Finally, if you’re digging this one woman’s commitment to learn stuff, apply it, and keep living a slightly wider life each day, then subscribe via email or RSS posts, “like” that Facebook page, follow the project on Twitter, and share it with five of your most delightfully geeky friends. 


Posted in Badge Work, Big Scout Project | 1 Comment