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Well it’s finally happened, the babies have arrived. The past few weeks we’ve had a mother killdeer running a little maternity ward right here in our parking lot. They just dig a little hole right in the gravel, don’t build a nest like most birds do.
I’d been checking on her about every day and when I looked a couple days back she had two little ones hatched out of the four eggs and another one looked to be breaking out. All four finally hatched and they’re gone from the nest now. They fledge real fast, being ground nesting birds, the little ones are on their feet and running around within a few days. The babies are marked up just like the adults but are tiny, not much bigger than a fat bumblebee. The little ones look comical, they remind me of a grey cotton ball with long skinny legs when you see them running around.
The hen kept me entertained for days. Whenever I’d go out to check on her she’d put on the big show of having a broken wing trying to draw me off. As many times as I’d looked in on her you’d think she’d get used to it but it was the same acting job every time.
Feel free to send any gifts for the new mother via us here at The Scout Patch Auction and we’ll make sure she gets them. I’d imagine boxes of crickets or a tub of fishing worms would be much appreciated.
Destry
In my web-searching, I came across this article from Scouting magazine that the BSA has posted to the web. This is a great idea! Collectors in councils should be promoting these types of displays or having similar displays at Scout-o-ramas, summer camps, camporees, etc..
Here’s the link: Preserving the past, Enriching the Future
This was the invocation at my Rotary meeting last week. This being Monday and all, I felt it worth repeating (I know its not patches but we can cover other things here as well.)
“So far today, God, I’ve done all right. I haven’t lost my temper, haven’t been greedy, nasty or self-centered. I am really proud of myself. But in a few minutes, God, I’m really going to need some help, because then I am going to get out of bed.â€
For several years we maintained a blog but it got hacked by Russian spam-masters and our ISP took it down. Many have asked me to re-instate a blog because they enjoyed some of the finds we’ve made over the years. Well, hopefully with better software now we can re-start blogging. I’ve been told I can import my old blog in but I’ll have to see how to do this.
Also, this software makes it easier for folks to add comments. We can all learn from each other.
This site is for and about the hobby of collecting Boy Scout and Girl Scout memorabilia. The Scout Patch Auction is the largest dealer of Scouting memorabilia and have been for more than a decade. Although we specialize in rare and premium Scouting collectibles, we try to offer a broad range of items for all levels of collecting. Besides trying to develop greater knowledge and understanding of Scouting memorabilia, we want folks to have fun with their hobby. Hopefully we are a part of that. Please let us know how we’re doing and what we can do better.
Roy
The federal House of Representatives just passed some very bad legislation. Its the Communications Opportunity, Promotion and Enhancement (COPE) Act. Nice sounding name isn’t it? Unfortunately it is too greatly influenced by lobbyists from Verizon, AT&T, and Comcast.
One of the things it does not do is protect network neutrality. What is network neutrality you say? It says that the providers of the roads (see named companies and others) can not charge for getting on or off the road. Basically it makes the internet content free.
Why is this important? Because of sites like this, or oaimages.com or priceofeverything.com or the vast array of hobbyist and enthusiast oriented sites can’t afford to pay for the “privilege” of getting access to the fast lanes of the internet.
Find out if your congressperson voted for or against the Lamar Smith amendment. This was a pseudo-amendment so they could say they ‘voted for’ network neutrality when in fact the amendment does no such thing. Its one of those look good-type amendments. We need Congress to stay out of the internet as they’ve shown how good they are at running so much else in this country. We need the internet to be free.
For more information on this, check out this web-site – click on the iamge:
Also, send a note to your congressman and your senators. The senators are debating this in the Commerce Committee. We need to get legislation in there so it has a chance in committee (but with all of the lobbying dollars behind it, I’m not hopeful.) This is an example where the power of the few, with a lot of money, can set a legislative agenda that helps them at the harm of the rest of the country. I don’t buy it when ATT, VZ and Comcast say ‘trust us.’ Do you?
From time to time one experiences those little moments that actually are insights into much bigger issues. Destry had one such today that we got to talking about. He needed a pair of slacks pressed but did not have the time to leave them for overnight cleaning. He just wanted a press put on them. Well, he stopped at a local cleaners and asked if they could do it. They said no, they only provide that service with cleanings. So he went to another cleaners. The counter person was standing there. Their pants press was unused but no, they wouldn’t do a while you wait order as they had other orders ahead of his (but no one waiting). There are lots of cleaners in our town so he went on to the next one. This one said sure. Glad to do it. $5. Did a lint clean. Did a press. Had them ready for him as he waited. What was the difference between the three? The first two had anglo’s running them. The last one had an oriental owner/operator. As Destry pointed out ‘Its this attitude that will be the fall of America.’ Now I’m pretty sure the oriental owner is an American as well but that owner has the cultural attitude to help customers. The others clearly did not.
The reason I say this is an insight into a bigger issue is the problem we are facing here in Michigan that is replicated in many other states and communities. We have a very well paid but long-time union work force. These employees have become ingrained with an entitlement mentality. Jobs are owed them. Benefits are owed them. A bountiful retirement is owed them. It has gotten so bad that they easily joke about how much they’ve gamed the system. This was possible when the Michigan automakers were an oligopoly and owned the vast majority of the US market. The auto companies’ management could pass on exorbitant compensation packages and tax the rest of the country to pay for it. Not any more. (And those who want to point fingers at us and that this doesn’t go on today need to look no further than to Seattle and Microsoft. We are all paying a tax to MSFT for a bug-ridden, in-secure operating system that is often the most expensive single component in a microcomputer.)
This is not a blog on union bashing. There clearly were needs for unions but like most, if not all, bureaucracies they become self-serving. They become more concerned with their own perpetuation and the perpetuation of their own positions than they are concerned about the people they are paid to help. Ultimately, the market will shake this out. I hope. The one cleaner got Destry’s $5. The other two did not. Where will Destry think of going next time?
Over the past couple of weeks I’ve had different conversations with different retirees the common thread with them was their interest and time spent gambling. Whether at casinos in Michigan or Las Vegas part of their time was spent gambling. Clearly its a form of entertainment. They say they do okay at it. But I know the casinos were not built because the house always lost money. One person is at the level where he and his wife get rooms comped to them both here in Michigan and affiliated casinos in the Carribean. These casinos know their business and their customers. He’s got to be a net loser and in a pretty big way.
I think about those of us though that have a hobby. Maybe more retirees would be better off with a hobby. Even paying money for little Boy Scout patches, which may sound crazy to many, at the end of the day you still have a Boy Scout patch. And there is so much more that one can do within the hobby that doesn’t cost money (for example, researching out your local camps, early Eagle Scouts, jamboree troops, conclaves – the list of ideas is nearly endless). Further, in this hobby, the people are really nice.
There are a lot of us approaching retirement age. How many have planned for what they are going to do with their remaining time? Casino gambling can be fun and entertaining but the experience passes. With collections, you have something to show for time and resources.
The More family certainly tried to help keep the economy green this Christmas. After a marathon wrapping session Christmas Eve, it struck me that there is a common joy in opening presents as there is when getting a neat find in a group of Scout patches.
It doesn’t really matter the value of the find. Its just a certain psychological “kick” from the unknown. We enjoy receiving estates and and large lot groupings just to see what’s in there. Now for us this happens on a regular basis so we are jaded. It usually takes something pretty special to get us to notice. Still, we can enjoy going through a collection and seeing the things we’ve not seen before. This happened recently with a little grouping of 1983 World Jamboree participant pieces. Nothing killer but it was just fun to see things we had not seen before.
Much of the joy on Christmas morning is seeing the group of presents and the sense of expectation and excitement of the unknown. Then comes the un-wrapping which is often a frenzy and the sense of discovery of what was inside. If we keep that with our patch acquisitions, we’ll be doing alright.
Occaisionally we host guests in our office and warehouse. The look on their eyes are like that of a kid in a candy shop. They don’t know where to begin nor what they’ll find. I read an article prior to the holidays that there is some of this when people go shopping. Its the sense of explorartion and then the excitement of finding something new or different that they weren’t expecting. The researchers have been able to prove that it gives off a chemical reaction that makes us feel good. Its all about dopamine and adrenaline.
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