About the BSP

“I had all of the tools and none of the skill to light that fire. And I kept thinking, ‘Man, I musta missed that day at Girl Scout camp.’”

Hi there. I’m Jean Synodinos, I live in Austin, TX, and this is the Big Scout Project, a three-year adventure that seems a little healthier than the traditional responses to a mid-life crisis. Watch the introductory video, and read about the project’s genesis and why you might enjoy following its progress.

 

The Universe Laughs At Our Plans: Oh, Boo Hoo Hoo
It began in January 2010. I’d planned what was supposed to be a magical, sexy, romantic winter beach vacation for me and my husband Charles—a quiet, perfect getaway in the small town of Surfside, TX. Free of people, free of work’s demands, free of the internet, free of all worries and cares. Boy, I had that week all mapped out.

But maybe you’ve heard the expression, “Make a plan and watch the Universe [or God] laugh.” Ah, how true.  I didn’t get the vacation I wanted—but I sure got the one I needed.

As we headed off, Charles was clearly ill—let’s go ahead and call it the flu—and after two days, he said what any sane person would say. He said: “Given the choice, I’d rather feel lousy at home than here.”

He wisely left, but I turned into a thoroughly petulant and pouty bee-atch for, oh, I’d say a good 12 hours. Boo hoo hoo – I was left alone with just our dog, Freida, to keep me company in a lovely house on an empty island. Oh, boo hoo hoo.

But that night, while walking Freida, I saw a black sky so crowded with stars that it just knocked me over. It was so quiet, so big, so beautiful. And it had the lovely effect of hushing me up inside.

Nope, this wasn’t the romantic getaway I’d craved and planned for months, but I had five days of time in front of me to think, and read, and write, and think some more, and just be still. And in that moment of clarity, I counted myself as one lucky soul.

An Idea Born From Ineptitude
Two days later, an Arctic cold front brought record-breaking temperature to Texas. It hit the gulf coast and turned everything grey save for the whitecaps on the water. And that night, shortly after 7:00, it also brought a power outage to the island.

Now, if you’re anything like me, you get really, really antsy when the power goes out. You can’t read, you can’t watch TV, you can’t “do” a whole lot of anything. I called Charles, killing 10 minutes, and then I twitched in the warm glow of a small flashlight for about 30 minutes until I got a really good idea: make a fire on the beach! I had wood, I knew where to get kindling, and I had a lighter.

Yep, that was clearly the ticket – make a fire on the beach, then sit next to it, with Freida by my side, and just be all, you know, primitive and stuff.

Only trouble was I couldn’t get the damned thing lit. Not for nothing. Not for thirty minutes. And it just cracked me up. I had all of the tools and none of the skill to light that fire. And I kept thinking, “Man, I musta missed that day at Girl Scout camp!”

Even after the fire was finally blazing, the thought kept crossing my mind, “I should be a better scout. I should know scout things – the things I’ve forgotten, or never learned.” I actually was a Girl Scout – a brownie and a junior – for a coupla years there, and as I tried unsuccessfully to pull some fuzzy memories into focus that night on the beach, I just kept thinking I must’ve been one lame-o scout.

So in that moment, the Big Scout Project was conceived. And now, the idea behind the Big Scout Project is getting ready to get born, on October 26^th, 2010 – which, not coincidentally, is my 50^th birthday.

The Actual Project
Starting on that day, I’m gonna work my way through the all of the badges in the current Jr. Girl Scout handbook—the one that girls are using today in the U.S. And from the looks of it, girls today have a lot of badges to keep ‘em busy. When I was a kid, there were about forty badges a Junior scout could do, but lordy, there’s over a hundred of ‘em now, which is why I’m gonna take three years to do it.

And here’s what I think: It’ll be easy and hard, fun and miserable. It’ll be a piece of cake, and it’ll kick my ass.

Does it Matter?
Can’t ask a crystal ball for the definitive answer, but I think it’s gonna prove to be a great metaphor for all of us middle-aged men and women who are starin’ that second half of the century in the face and wondering if we’ve done the best we can with what we have—or if we should maybe do a little better going forward.

It’ll be a vehicle for those of us who’ve become so specialized in our work and what we do, that we’ve forgotten to explore other ideas and disciplines—or we’ve put them to the side for want of time. To put it another way, can we re-learn how to live a “wide” life?

It’ll be a tap on the shoulder to those of us who are perfectly fine within the confines of our own comfort zones, thank you very much—even though there’s that little voice inside that says maybe even a little change would do us some good.

And finally, it’ll be a reminder for all of us who just miss having the kind of fun we used to have – or should have had — when we were kids.

Follow the BSP
If any of these thoughts resonate with you, then I hope you’ll follow this sincere and goofy adventure starting on October 26^th, 2010. Subscribe to the blog’s feed, and follow it on Facebook, on Twitter, on Flickr, and on YouTube. Share it with your friends and family. Or make it your own guilty pleasure. Post your comments, your ideas, your wisdom any time.

Thanks.