Winter outdoors

The start of the Winter outdoor season will be soon upon us as the temperatures drop and one thing I look forward to ever year is snowball fights and making snow sculptures, a never ending boyhood ritual.

I tossed snowballs, got hit by them, had snow put in my tops and would do the same to any boy that did instinctively as every boy knew I had 'the bottle' to give as good as I got nay even thriving on it.

Winter isn't an excuse to stay in!

The Winter skyline

It's still cool as I type this and more to the point by later today and Saturday we are expecting snow to land here if the forecasters have got this right so we'll how getting out goes then I guess.

Technically it is Winter but as you can see some of the trees haven't lost their foliage looking magnificent in the low level sun, most crisp. 

Even where coverage is more spare those that are out look great as they turn to a golden colour.

Walking back yesterday I saw the birds gathering in the wood arguing about whose was having which tree quite loudly which was fun to observe for several minutes.

A Winter's Day

Following on from the comment on Monday, indeed it did turn rather cold as I was out on that day with temperatures around minus one or two with my thick socks on apart from a marginally longer pair of short trousers and a coat that covered more of my body outside of thick gloves and a hat!

Although the ground was a bit soft under foot in recent days the bails had been put out with fairly regular spacing.

I thought this tree framed the scene rather well.

A broader view from a different point shows the ridges in the background with frost with the brilliance of the deciduous trees illuminated by the warm glow of the sun.   

Strangely enough it did feel warmer in the field while taking these pictures than it did than it did within yards of leaving the path for the roadside.

Ready for Winter

We are going through a period of variable weather from relatively warm to the expectations after a week or so for sub zero temperatures and snow so we'll see how things go.

Grass and pavements are covered especially near the wood leaves and indeed I saw a number just falling,  fluttering in the sky as they fell as the smaller birds were flying from tree to tree.

Looking across to the smallholdings low sun is making an appearance although I have noticed a number of mole holes on my travels lately.

 

A walk in the wood

Today I was out walking near our woods admiring the colour carpet of fallen leaves and the more hardier greenery that was still around, listening in the still air to the birdsong.

It was just magical to be out being at one with nature.

The sunlight as I type this is glistening.

A relaxing time

Monday morning was really quite foggy first thing while I was out after a rough few days where I needed to rest where I did spy some grey squirrels while watching the birds.

Much of the leaf canopy is depleted at present with the floor in the woods and even the pavements nearby covered in yellow leaves I am mind of in case of slippage when we've had a shower or so. 

Remembrance Sunday 2021

This Sunday was Remembrance Sunday where would parade to the cenotaph in our area and the wreath would be placed by the person chosen to represent your local unit in order with all the other official wreathes such as those by the Royal British Legion and the local authority normally by the mayor.

We pay our respects not just in honour of those who died for our freedom but also in recognition of scouts contributions as some saw active service and many more helped the war effort by passing on messages, identifying enemy aircraft, helping with casualties at home, assembling air raid shelters and so on 

There are badges available such as the one below, a special neckerchief and other things for scouts connected with this important act.

For the Fallen by Robert Laurence Binyon (1869-1943), published in The Times newspaper on 21 September 1914.

With proud thanksgiving, a mother for her children,

England mourns for her dead across the sea.

Flesh of her flesh they were, spirit of her spirit,

Fallen in the cause of the free.

Solemn the drums thrill: Death august and royal

Sings sorrow up into immortal spheres.

There is music in the midst of desolation

And a glory that shines upon our tears.

They went with songs to the battle, they were young,

Straight of limb, true of eye, steady and aglow.

They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted,

They fell with their faces to the foe.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning

We will remember them.

They mingle not with their laughing comrades again;

They sit no more at familiar tables of home;

They have no lot in our labour of the day-time;

They sleep beyond England's foam.

But where our desires are and our hopes profound,

Felt as a well-spring that is hidden from sight,

To the innermost heart of their own land they are known

As the stars are known to the Night;

As the stars that shall be bright when we are dust,

Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain,

As the stars that are starry in the time of our darkness,

To the end, to the end, they remain.

Armistice Day

Today is the nearest day to Armistice Day when on the Eleventh Hour of the Eleventh Day of the Eleventh Month a peace agreement was signed and WW1 stopped.

Thursday saw Armistice Day, the day WW1 was brought to an end after just over four years of bloody battle in Europe, not least the trenches of France and Belgium where tens of thousands lost their lives and many towns and villages were badly damaged physically.

Many people were damaged psychologically from that conflict too as they fought for freedom as Belgium and France were occupied in acts that had little to do with the initial cause of  that war and saw the horrors of poison gas and flying bombs emerge.

We remember because during the World Wars, tens of thousands of Scouts served in various ways – watching the coasts, delivering messages, administering first aid and sometimes, even fighting at the frontline.

They made a difference to the outcome so today and on Remembrance Sunday we will be paying our respects.

Taking a reading

 

I can remember the first time I owned a electrical multi-meter, it would of been around the age of eight and it was an analogue display model rather like this one except mine was made Tandy/Radio Shack at the time.

It's good you can learn to use use in Scouts as you can check if a battery is "dead" or not, trace continuity in wiring in case a broken connection is causing issues and use it as tool in fault finding using a schematic/circuit diagram with information such as Voltages at points shown to find where the fault is.

It is a most useful skill.

Introducing The Squirrels!

Most of us are broadly familiar with the structure of the Scouting Association programs and corresponding groups even if some titles and uniforms have changed over the decades and at present we have Beavers 6 to 8, Cubs 8 1/2 to 10 1/2 and Scouts 10 1/2 to 14  and so on.

@Pix credit Scout Association

We now have starting a new group and program which in its own way is a big as starting Beavers was and they are the Squirrels. That's investiture with the uniform.

The Squirrels really fills the gap being for 4 and 5 year olds (in scouting some leeway is allowed for developmental reasons so ages aren't an absolute) in a typically one hour a week session covering from fun things outdoors to do to learning about cooking, exploring, building, safety and creativity with a similar awards system to Beavers

It looks rather like this:

12 Activity Badges

This includes the Explore Outdoors Activity Badge, Feel Good Activity Badge and All Together Challenge Award that looks at teamwork and co-operation

Four Challenge Awards

a Top Award

a Membership Award

a Joining In Award

a Moving On Award

It was  also decided that Squirrels would be able to earn Staged Activity Badges.

The Uniform main colour is red having a clear link to squirrels, very visible a good idea with young children and popular with all, girls as well as boys of all ethnicities and so the Jersey is red to which as we should know the badges are sown onto.

Part the aim is to get people who for whatever reason never previously connected with scouting involved from an early age so inclusion by gender, disability, faith (or none) and ethnicity are at the core from day one.

It is early days as this is being set up but it's a major and I feel welcome additional offering to our youngest.

Religion in scouting

Original source: roverscoutandy

Scouts taking part in a service might be a child's blessing at the point of Communion in Catholic worship.
Some scouts are affiliated to specific churches, chapels or other places that used for worship by non Christians such as Jews, Moslems, Hindus, Buddhists and Sikhs.

Halloween weekend

 Things were going on during the weekend because it was Halloween so I was out enjoying it.

Like a number of people I do enjoy taking part in lantern making cutting and scooping out a pumpkin before inserting a lit tea light and watching it in the dark evening sky.

I was with friends so we had a bonfire and many fireworks going off such as catherine wheels with bright colourful geometric shapes.

I was just so enjoyable to make things, play games and have fun together.

A Cubby Alphabet

 

A WOLF CUB is

A - for ALERT

B - for BRAVE

C - for CAREFUL

D - for DETERMINED

E - for ENERGETIC

F - for FRIENDLY

G - for GENEROUS

H - for HAPPY

I - for INGENIOUS

J - for JOLLY

K - for KIND

L - for LIVELY

M - for MANLY

N - for NEAT

O - for OBEDIENT

P - for POLITE

Q - for QUESTING

R - for READY

S - for SENSIBLE

T - for TRUTHFULL

U - for USEFUL

V - for VALUABLE

W - for WILLING

X - for worth TEN of an ordinary boy

Y - YOUNG

Z - ZEALOUS - and that means KEEN.

Typed with great care from the 1957 Wolf Cub annual