Half Term

We haven't had much of a break this half term, Cog was working constantly at course work or homework, and I was working most of it too.

But we did take time out to go pottery painting.  We've been a few times together across the years.  Sometimes with groups of people or for parties but mostly just the two of us.

Cog enjoys the milkshakes.

I enjoy the company.

It's a relaxing time.

 Whilst Cog was at a music lesson, I took the opportunity to test my suffering knee with a short run.

Whilst I was messing around selfie-ing, I suddenly twigged that behind me was a ridge.  About 350 years ago these fields would have been full of about 3000 cavalry men about to fight one of the most important battles of the civil war.  We have been so wrapped up in the War of the Roses, Richard III and Bosworth around here I think we mostly forget that Naseby is on the doorstep.

I had a sobering dusk run back to the car wondering how many men had died in these fields.










 Not all doom and gloom though.  The daylight hours are extending nicely, and leaving work in the light is giving some lovely homeward bound vistas.  I love it as I come over the hill and see the old windmill in the distance.


But it is just as nice to see the new wind turbines turning gently as the sunsets.

Beautiful.

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Is it not enough to know that you could run a marathon

This week's Gallery is Health and Fitness.

I have always exercised. When I was younger I swam competitively, trained 5 days a week, competitions every Saturday. Long after I left school I carried on playing hockey for a ladies team.  I then moved onto a running track at a local stadium.  When I moved further away from the city, I started step aerobics locally, then circuit training.  I've always been active and finally went back to running as the one thing that always lifted me come rain or shine.

And then my back injury struck.  Walking kept my general fitness levels up until I could get back to running. But this time my knee has given up and I haven't been able to walk either.

What started it was running too far.  It's a self competitive addiction.  I was pushing myself harder.  Doing about 18km each Friday and a couple more 8-10km runs during the week.

The endorphin rush of a good run is a high, stopping exercise again has pushed me back into a period of depression.

I've had an MRI scan and I'm waiting for the results, but by the sounds of it the outcome will be 'your knee is wearing out, stop running'.

 Start cycling the consultant said.

NO - I said!

I like mud, I like being on my feet.

I like this view and I don't want to do it on a bike.

Go swimming he said.   I hate swimming these days.  I just can't be doing with the driving to the pool (too lazy), the changing, the slimy wet floor.

I just want to do this, on my own.

I see others saying "This year I will run a marathon" and they do, "I'll bike to Paris" and so be it.  My body just seems to break every time I push it to go just that bit further.

Maybe I don't plan enough, don't build up to the endurance and that means I keep breaking it.

"Is it not enough to know that you could run a marathon if you wanted to, but choose not to break yourself doing it"  said the consultant,

I guess it's going to have to be.  But I am fed up of being second best all the time, a fitness failure.  The one with the bad back, bad knee, bad attitude.


There was  a blogger (and life counsellor) that told me if I had a more positive mental out look I would not have a bad back.  I told her it was a a bit hard to think your way out of the pain of 3 major disk herniations.   But she insisted the pain was all in my mind and controllable with the right attitude.  I told her she knew jack shit about pain.  And she pointed out that it was exactly that attitude that was my problem.

So with that in mind, I've started strapping up my knee, taking gargantuan amounts of pain killers and doing exactly what my physio and consultant have told me not to do - I've been out running.

Expect a surgery post coming this way soon.

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Fun gift game for a group

We call this game a 'Chinese Raffle' but it isn't really a chinese raffle at all.

We've done it more than once with Rangers now and they love it.

Wrap up a lot of 'things' some could be nail varnishes or make-up, sweets, a bottle of water or pop.  Add in some less wanted ones like washing up sponges, dish cloths or wooden spoons (I wrapped a candy cane with each 'bad' one to soften the blow).  Try to wrap them so they can't tell what they are.   I like to do enough for 2 each.

The Rangers also brought in one gift each, something cheap or maybe unwanted, just a chocolate bar or a shower gel or similar.

The Rangers throw a dice in turn and follow these rules:

6 - take a gift from the pile
5 - pass one gift left
4 - pass one gift right
3 - steal a gift from someone
2 - unwrap one of your gifts
1 - put one gift back in the middle

A person may have a maximum of three gifts in their possession at one time.
If you need to pass left or right and the person to your left or right already has three gifts, give it to the next person in that direction who does not have the maximum number of gifts.
You cannot steal a gift from the person who took it from you.
Once you unwrap a gift, you keep it, and are out.
All other gifts in your possession are put back into the middle.
When everyone has unwrapped a gift, everyone is back in, and the game continues with the remaining wrapped gifts until all gifts are unwrapped.

We have had enough gifts for 3 full games, with a break for a Christmas food craft and Christmas music playing, the laughter was infectious.

 

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Guiding Flags

This week's Gallery is colour.  When I read it I heard "colour party halt" being shouted on Remembrance parade.  But our flags do come out more than once a year.  They are an important part of the symbolism of who we are.

 This year at remembrance, Bunny's daughter carried the Union Flag in our village parade.  Although there is no recorded history, in my 20 year memory of this village's parades a girl has never carried it before and I have every reason to believe she was the first girl ever to carry it, let alone a non-scout!  We were all so proud.

We have had a new flag this year for our Rangers.  It's lovely and bright, and very heavy. 

There are standards as well as flags that come out on special occasions such as award ceremonies.


















I like to have flags up at camp, even if it is rather informal and probably too festival style for Guiding proper.











But they make a good weather barometer:

Flying well - check your tent pegs

Stuck to the pole - cooking in the rain

Frozen Solid - just damned cold!

 And there are those moments when it is just me, the view and the flag.


A Guides Own time -  a time for personal reflection, as well as a time to give thanks for all our blessings.

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Leadership - Paying it Forwards

"take time to give - it is too short a day to be selfish"

I've spent many, many hours recently writing letters, wording reply slips, investigating options, setting up trips, emailing Rangers, texting Rangers, printing letters and handing them out to Rangers. Everything has a reply date on it, some are marked 'urgent - must reply by...'

I have had one parent send me a no, and another parent send me a maybe to one 'urgent response needed' nothing from 17 girls and 2 responses from parents on their behalves.

I feel like I'm slogging away setting up 'opportunities' for girls that don't care and have absolutely no appreciation of work I do for them or the work involved. At meetings they rarely listen to me, Cog is the worst for that, she continues to chat and laugh with her BFF regardless of what I am saying. No respect at all.

I've chased parents for gift aid forms 2, 3 or 4 times over.  I am absolutely positive that only 2 the parents have any idea how much effort I put in for their children.  One is a Scouter (and his wife was Bunny Guider, she spoke to me once about how much I was doing for each girl individually) and the other is my friend who often listens to my moans with tea and blessed sympathy.  There are 4 other Rangers who have parents who are current or ex guiders and scouters but I'm still not sure they get it.  I don't think there is enough contact with parents for them to realise what I am doing or how much the girls don't respond.

A couple of the girls rarely turn up to weekly meetings, which is fine, but I do ask that girls tell me if they won't be coming,  they never let me know.  They often don't bring subs if they do turn up, so they generally owe money.  I see them on a fairly regularly basis about the village, at brownies, where they work etc, they never apologise for not turning up, I write yet more letters asking for the money they owe, one of them never pays it.  They are also the ones that criticise the most.

So you are getting the general gist here I think, I wonder sometimes why the heck I do this.  There is no pay back in the unit running week by week slog.  There is admin, ungrateful parents and teenagers.

One day when they are adults in a particularly important or difficult situation they will get through it because of some Guiding experience they had, whether at Rainbows, Brownies, Guides or Rangers.   They will be more likely to make morally appropriate decisions in their lives, they will be more likely to give to charity, to do volunteer work, to be really decent people for the rest of their lives.  They will make great mums, they might change something important (like the attitude to topless women in family newspapers), or talk to the UN about women's rights, and maybe some of them will become leaders themselves and do the same for another generation.

Sometimes I think I just have to look at my box of admin, the teenagery, criticising eyes of the Rangers and the lack of care from the parents and think:

making a difference to the world one girl at a time, paying it forwards.

"take time to give - it is too short a day to be selfish"

The first time I read this quote was in a book at Our Chalet. It was written by the ladies of the Juliette Low session of 1959. What they gave has been passed through to me by WAGGGS.  I guess it's not always about what's in it for me today, it's about setting out a store for the future.

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Pipe Cleaner Brownie Six Emblems

These little people are really easy to make.

A great cheap, quick craft.

You need:

12 inch pipecleaners (chenille craft stems)
Wooden Round Drum Beads 15x17mm

Split Key Rings 25mm  (cheap ones are good, they are easier to put on)

bend  pipe cleaner in half

Make a star, leaving enough at the top for the bead to go on to.

Twist the arms together

Twist the body and shape some feet
















Slip the bead over the head and draw a face on with permanent markers and bingo.

Use pipe cleaners the colour of the six emblem for the sixes, they can draw on the hats for those that have them.

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Fingers of warmth

This week's Gallery is Light.

I walked across a canal bridge last Sunday and turned back to see fingers of light melting the sheet of ice like lasers.  Each ray creating a hole in the ice.

Beautiful.

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Brownie Ring and Six Songs

There is a rhyme that goes with each six emblem for Brownies.

After singing Brownie ring, the idea is that each six step forward and sing their own piece and step back in again, then at the end they all join together for the final part.

"We’re Brownie Guides, we’re Brownie Guides, we’re here to lend a hand.
To love our God and serve our Queen, and help our homes and lands.
We’re Brownie friends, we’re Brownie friends, in North, South, East and West,
We’re joined together in our wish to try to do our best. "

Here you see the laughing Gnomes
Helping mother in our homes.

We're the ever helpful Imps, 

Quick and quiet as any shrimps.

Here we come the leprechauns,
Bright and early when day dawns.

Here we are the jolly Pixes 

Helping others when in fixes. 

Here we come, the cheerful Sprites,

Brave and helpful like the knights.

We’re the little happy Elves

We think of others before ourselves

We're the little Scottish Kelpies

Smart and quick and ready helpers

We're the Bwbachod from Wales

Filling farmers' milking pails

Ghillie Dhu it is our name

We guard the bairns and lead them hame

We're the Brownies, here's our aim,

 Lend a Hand and play the game

This is a great link for learning more about the mythology behind each type of Brownie six emblems.

I've also found these rhymes on a hunt around the Internet for the 'new' animal six emblems :

We’re the Badgers, kind & gentle
Faithful friends & always helpful

We’re the Foxes, tall and proud,
Smart and cunning but never loud.

Here we come, the brave Hedgehogs,
Being helpful’s not a slog.

Here we come the little Moles,
Being useful round our homes.

Here we are the happy Rabbits,
Careful not to make a racket.

We’re the Squirrels, always careful
Ready for anything and resourceful

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Home Made Lava Lamps

Lava Lamps are really easy to make, we did them at Rangers as a part of the Groovy Challenge we are doing.

You need:

A plastic bottle
Cheap vegetable oil
water
food colouring
Alka-seltzer (effervescent tablet)
Glitter (optional)

Wash out the plastic bottle. A 500ml one is a good size.

3/4 fill it with cheap vegetable oil and top up with water.

Add a teaspoon of food colouring and maybe some glitter.

DO NOT STIR OR SHAKE IT!

You need the elements to be separate to get the effect.  If you shake it up it takes a while for them to separate again.
















The final part is to add alka-seltzer.

I gave the girls a tablet each and they put it in quarter at a time.

The effect is, well, rather effective!

You could shine a torch through the bottom of the bottle for an additional touch.

(Don't put the bottle on a heat source, the plastic may melt)

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Four Seasons Camping Challenge - Cold and Colder

This week's Gallery is cold.

I was sewing some camp badges on my blanket this weekend, badly as I am rubbish at it!

But I am particularly proud of this set, the Midland Four Seasons Camping Challenge.  I've just completed it with our winter sleep out.










The sleep over when the flag was frozen solid in the morning, the fire bucket was iced over and the water left over night in the kettle was so solid I couldn't get it out to refill it.


But I should have known better than to leave water in the kettle over night....













I learnt that lesson at our spring camp (yes it was snowing in spring - oh how lucky were we?!) when exactly the same thing happened and I made a morning battle cry (literally crying) of  "I will never leave water in the kettle overnight again"

But the coldest camp ever, I swear, was the winter camp before that.  I did not sleep there, I merely visited, even the hardiest of Rangers were wearing every layer they had brought with them and that was at midday.  (We normally save layers to be able to add to in the evening as it starts to get even colder).

So yes, I am proud of this set of badges because it takes someone of stern stuff to be able to sleep out in -5C (latest winter camp), break the ice on the fire bucket and start a fresh day with a smile on her face.

But it takes an idiot (or a Guider) to also say :  I really enjoyed it and yes, we will do it again next year!

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