Thursday was yesterday...

Yesterday, Thursday, was a hot one with intermittent rain showers. Thunderstorms were threatening but did not materialize, but we did have one very hard rain with really large drops. I went to check our tent (too late) and got drenched letting down the sides. Inside the big army tent I covered beds with plastic to keep the ceiling drips off. Floorless, a few low spots collected water but quickly soaked in and dried. Later, the sun came out and as you can guess, it was oppressively steamy.

I did not get a post out last night because while uploading photos it became unresponsive. The Jambo IT guys came by, checked a few things and told me there was nothing they could do to get it running again. They figured it had gotten too hot -- and they were probably right, despite having it propped up and a fan on it. If you would like to contribute to the Trish-Love-I-Have-To-Have-A-New-Computer-Because-Mine-Fried-At-Jambo Fund, I will let you know where to mail the check!

So as not to disappoint our followers, I am now using Vance Lacky's personal computer. Vance is a Scouting professional from Georgia and keeps us in stitches. Thanks for the loan, Vance.

Thursday morning I visited the Order of the Arrow Mysterium Compass. It is, reportedly, a very cool "augmented reality" experience for boys only - no adults allowed. Actors portray various scenarios and he Scouts have to make decisions and take actions as they go through. Outside the Compass is "The Vault." Think you are a memorabilia or patch collector? THINK AGAIN. A guide told me that the display represents about $8 million dollars and nearly every bit of it belongs to one man. It was all displayed in plexi-glass wall cases. Various rooms highlighted areas such as Diversity; merit badges and insignia at the beginning; old patches by state, representing different camps; Service; Scouting founders and more. One of the fascinating things shown was a long, cloth piece to which all the original patches had been sewn and pins pinned. The piece belonged to a traveling salesman who would go from council to council. I took great pleasure in watching the scouts reaction and seeing their interest to the "old stuff". Many photos were taken by youth -- proof that Scouting is indeed timeless in its appeal. Here are a few highlights.

As you parents know, boys of scouting age can be bottomless pits when it comes to food. To ease their hunger there are many concessions around the Jamboree. This concession was doing a booming business selling hamburgers, fries and chicken strips among other things.

I did a walk through the our subcamp which nearly overlaps subcamp 14 from the Central Region and took pictures of the troop gateways. Arizona brought 10 troops I think and designed gateways on an old Southwest ghost town theme that all worked together and was connected by a split rail fence.

The Commissary gets very busy at times. I took a few shots of some of the scouts coming after their food. Each troop is to bring a wagon for this purpose. After getting their food they head to the cooler if there is something cold, then to the ice chests for bagged ice.

More later...