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Ode To Toadies!

PostScript Version
(C) Sun Feb 16 12:36:04 EST 1997 Explorer Post 369

Calendar of Events:


August Court-of-Honor
August 29 Dayton Computer Fest
October 31 Halloween Party
November 7 Elections
December 18 Christmas Party
December 21,22,23 Food Drive
December 25 No Meeting
January 1 No Meeting
January 23 Advancement Tests
January 30 Post Elections
February 3 Court-of-Honor
February 4 Scout Sunday

Happy Birthday


DJ Gregor 7/28/95
Michael C. Turner 7/30/78
David Wolfe 8/30/78

West Point

David Wolfe

I recently had the opportunity to attend the 1995 Invitational Academic Workshop at the United States Military Academy. One of the classes I attended was a WarGames simulation run on UNIX workstations. The JANUS system, as the WarGames is called, was fought by a number of people filling various command roles from their individual terminals. The system was amazingly realistic. The orders that could be given were limited to those that a real battlefield commander could give. Appropriate delays were attached to various commands, underlings acted as they could be expected, not always as you wanted them, information was hard to come by, and other features made the simulation seem extremely realistic. However, it did crash once. Oh well, nothing works all the time.

Summer Camp

James D. Corder

We had 15 youth Scouts and Explorers attend Summer camp at the Chief Logan Reservation.

Other than the inevitable rain it was an extremely enjoyable week long event. Mr. Niedzielski once again rowed a boat for Melody Channell as she successfully swam for her five mile patch. I say that Ms. Channell fared better than Mr. Niedzielski, for as he climbed out of the boat after the long endeavor he murmured something about feeling like a baked lobster.

All five of the Post Toadies attended camp. It was a wonderful opportunity to work with the young lads on their Scouting skills.

It is a sad state when the only tent that fell belonged to a Life Scout. [One step away from Eagle].

For the first time in my eighteen years in Exploring I am proud to announce that we have an Explorer that has earned not only one but three merit badges within the Explorer Post. It is a nice feeling to have almost 50% of the youth and 70% of the adults in the Post being an Eagle Scout.

Ode to Toadies -or- What is a Toady

James D. Corder

I received so many responses from last months issue of the ExpNews asking about "What a Toady" is:

When I was a youth Explorer I was fortunate enough to have three mentors. Each of these men took me under their proverbial wing and taught me, Engineering Computer Information & Science, Electrical Engineering, and Group Dynamics. I can truly state that I would not be where I am today if it was not for these gentlemen.

While a youth Explorer I attempted to utilize the skills I learned to educate the newest members of the Post. It was most gratifying. However, when the term "Corder's Toadies" was coined it was done in a negative tone by the UNIX group's arch rival the VMSers. But as my Grandfather always said: "When life gives you lemons, make lemon aide." For the rest of my youth and all of my adult life in Exploring we had "Toadies". However, with Explorer Post 369 in its infantcy the ability to have Toadies would be almost a decade away. Since Explorer Post 369 is so closely associated with Boy Scout Troop 369 it was inevitable that the two units would form a symbiotic relationship.

With the bulk of the Explorer Post having successfully obtaining the rank of Eagle it made since that the Explorers would each adopt a Scout [no more than 10% of the Troop can be a Toady and no more than one Toady per Explorer]. The Explorer would then aide the young Scout on their Eagle Trail. Ok, being a tad bit greedy, it is the hopes that the Troop will feed membership into the Post in the same way that the Cubs feeds the Troop.

Each Toady is permitted into the Explorer's room before the Troop Meeting and during the Troop Game.

The Toady wears the Explorer White Primary cord along with the Explorer Neckerchief embossed with a Toad Patrol Patch and two Exploring Es on their collar. This symbolizes his association with the older Explorers.

I must admit that I never foresaw the energy and enthusiasm that the Toadies put forth nor the place of honor the other Troop members placed on being a Toady. I asked some of the Toadies to write a short paragraph on what it means to be a Toady, to them:

Post Toadies

DJ Gregor

Toadies are these cool little kids that do a lot of stuff for you. Really, Toadies are the ``members" of the Post that are too young to be an Explorer. These Toadies will be members of the Post when they are old enough.

The Toadies help out the Explorers and the Explorers help out the Toadies. For example, the Toadies help out the Explorers with various tasks such as putting up their tents when they are camping, and the Explorers help to teach the Toadies scout skills.

The Toadies also get to hang out with the Post at meetings now and then. The Explorers, unlike the Scouts, are allowed to have food and pop when they meet. Since the Toadies get to chill with the Post they can share with the refreshments. The Toadies seem to really like this.

One of the biggest issues facing current Explorers is where are the future Explorers coming from. Explorers have only 7 years of eligibility, and our post has come up with the Toady system to help solve this problem. This gets the younger kids interested in Explorers at an early age and it allows them to enter the Post with a higher level of knowledge since they have been exposed to our program. Our close association with a Boy Scout Troop 369 makes this possible, and to the best of our knowledge, is a unique program.


The Page

Sam Sherwin, age 13

Being a Post Toady is a very special privilege. You have to help the Post allot, but you get some privileges too! The Post helps you just as much as you help them. As the Post Page I have to try to keep the Post Toadies under control, as well as myself.

To be a Post Toady you have to have an Explorer of Post 369 adopt you. I myself am Post Page, the President of Post 369 adopted me. I love being a Post Toady and, Post Page

It's an honor to be a Toady

Matt Gross, Age 11

Being a Toady is a honor to me because most Scouts aren't able to be a Toady. I think being a Toady is a honor because we can go in the Explorer's room have chips and play on the computer and when your not a Toady you can not go in the Explorers room. All I can say is being a Toady is the best thing you can be in Troop 369.


Toddiedum

Chris Gauger, Age 11

Hello: I'm Chris Gauger and I am a Toady. What is a Toady? A Toady is a Scout adopted by an Explorer to began to observe what an Explorer does. In exchange for this opportunity the Toady makes campout life easier for the Explorers. How I became a Toady? I became a Toady because an Explorer noticed I demonstrated the essentials to be an Explorer when I'm old enough. Now I am proud to be a Toady and I'm sure I'll stay that way.


Why I want to be a Toady

Allen Hamilton, Age 11

My reason can be summed up in two words, help & fun. Help because considerateness come from my family on my dad's side to me and it just feels right to help them. And fun because I thought it would be neat to some of the things the Explorer Post does.

Plus, the Post members are righteous dudes!

Do a Good Turn Daily

James D. Corder

On July 18th Explorer Post 369 & Troop 369 passed out over 15,000 Vacation Bible Study School flyers for the Church.

The weekend of June 23 & 24th both the Post and Troop spend some 30 hours stripping the church floors then waxing them. It was extremely appreciated when Pasture Mentor came and cooked us breakfast on Saturday morning.


Circulation

DJ Gregor

I am pleased to announce that the ExpNews is now being distributed in four countries: We just had a request from a Scout in Belgium to be added to our mailing list. Therefore, we are now read in:

America, Australia, Belgium, & Canada.

Unfortunately we do not have an accurate account of the number of copies that are distributed since most Adult leaders are copying the ExpNews redistributing it. Of course they are welcome to do so.

Adventures with Riley - or How I Bought a Workstation Part III

Andy P. Drake

As of this point, I have purchased two expensive machines and countless of other small packages over the Internet, all sent COD and to my house. Each time I have bought a computer, I check out the buyer ahead of time down to the very nitty gritty. I want to know all relevant information, including occupation, place of employment, home address, etc. In this particular instance, I called the University of California at San Diego to verify the seller was who he claimed to be, as I really didn't want to receive a package of bricks from some huckster for my efforts. It turned out that yes, he was very legitimate, being the associate chair of the Mathematics Department, which qualified him in my book.

At the same time, I am convinced of the idea that there are far fewer bad guys in smaller computer communities like Amiga, NeXT, SUN or HP, simply because everyone basically knows each other, and references are a lot easier to obtain. Therefore, the deal seemed legitimate.

So, the Friday arrived when Federal Express was scheduled to drop by my house. I played hooky from school in order to catch the 120 pounds of boxes coming second day air, as I didn't particularly feel like trying to run and get them. However, before I could head back home, a caller from the Federal Express office here in Columbus left a note on my answering machine saying that they tried to deliver the packages (yes more than one box), and that I would now have to pick it up myself after 4:00 if I wanted it before Monday morning. As I had gone through the process now for more than two months, to be held back by this was really frustrating. But, with the prospect of playing with it all weekend looming after 4:00 P.M., I bided my time by taking my dog for a walk. At precisely 4:00:24 P.M., I walked into the Federal Express office and demanded my package. Demanded I guess is a little too strong a word, but when you have so much pent up frustration in a situation, you tend to be a little on edge. After paying for the packages, the FedEx lady disappeared for about 5 minutes and returned with a cart full of boxes. She worked slowly handing over the packages, and at this precise time her magic wand package scanner chose to start acting up. It got through four boxes and then died. After everything finally checked out and scanned through, I found I had to borrow the dolly to wheel everything to my car. The computer itself was pretty light, but I guess I underestimated how much a MegaPixel display and 2 cartons of administration books actually weighs, especially when you have to move them from one place to another without back support!

Postage

Andy P. Drake

International postage rates have risen. Therefore, the cost of distributing the ExpNews internationally is $1.25US and $.45 within the US {each}.

The above cost include paper, copying and postage.


Our Principals:


1) Honor before all else.
2) The difference between a winner and a looser is that the winner tried one more time.
3) K.I.S.M.I.F.

Our Creed:


Exploring: Enthusiasm, Energy, & Excellence.

Post Finances


Explorer Post 369 has -$105.00.

Up-an-Coming Post Expenses


12/01/95 Post Charter $30.00
12/01/95 Post Insurance $85.00

Up-an-Coming Member Expenses

Registration 11/01/95 $15.00


Explorer Post 369:

Explorer Post 369 was chartered on December 31, 1994 to the Reformation Luthern Church.

Explorer Post 369 specializes in UNIX for Programmers while emphasizing a deep theme of Engineering Computer Information & Science

Membership in Explorer Post 369 is open to young men and women between the ages of 14 [and in high school] and not yet 20. Annual Membership fees are $15.00.


Quote of the Month

George McGovern

I'm fed up to the ears with old men dreaming up wars for young men to die in.




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