We did it again.  For the sixth successive year since the Crew has been chartered, we earned the top award for BSA units.  This included a review of our membership growth and retention, having all adults fully trained, Venturers earning recognition awards, and an active calendar of activities based on an annual planning conference lead by the youth. This was the first year that used a grading criteria which is goal-oriented.  The new system is called the Journey To Excellence, and all Venturing Crews nationwide are compared to standards set by the National Council.  The new grading is much more challenging and winners are designed as Bronze, Silver, and Gold level.

Each season, Philmont employs more than 1,000 staff members to operate and support Philmont's program, Training Center, food service, maintenance, and ranching museums, and to assist the administrative staff.  A wide variety of paid positions are available, including rangers, backcountry program counselors, and Training Center and base camp support staff.

The majority of contracts coincide with the summer season, from late May through mid-August, though some temporary positions are available at other times to support the spring, fall, and winter programs.  All staff members, no matter what their job is or where they work, have a very important role to play in the total success of Philmont.

For more information about summer jobs at Philmont, talk to Jeff Z, who worked there for the 2011 season.  Go to their web site and read some more at www.philmontscoutranch.org.

Winter storm warnings posted at New Dungeness Light, wind chill at 18F, what was 3 inches of snow is now a thin layer of ice.  More snow enroute.  It is beautiful, but hypothermic.  For exposure rations, the Crew does fresh pizza from Central Market, and "On Stranger Tides" shown in home theater on Blu-Ray.  Oh, yeah...because that's the way we roll.

The Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster is a drink, invented by Zaphod Beeblebrox, a major character in Douglas Adams' novel The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. The effect of a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster is like "having your brains smashed out by a slice of lemon, wrapped around a large gold brick." It has also been described in the novel as a "equivalent to a mugging; expensive and bad for the head."

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (H2G2) theme has served as the legacy of our Venturing Crew.  When we formed, they asked "What number would you like for your unit?"  At the time, the Hollywood movie based on the novel was running in the theaters and we unanimously requested 42 (the supercomputer Deep Thought's answer to Life the Universe, and Everything).  The confused look on the BSA professional's face quickly convinced us we had chosen wisely.  Because of our location, the local BSA Council declared we would need four numbers, prefixed with a 1.  Thus, 1042 was born and we celebrate during the Christmas holiday with an annual viewing of the movie and our fun, party event of a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster Brew Off.

One of these years, our annual superactivity will be a trek to Magrathea to meet with Slartibartifast.  Since he is an award-winning creator of coastlines, we figure we'll invite him to kayak with us out to the Restaurant at the End of the Universe.

Here's a video of the 2011 Brewoff entries.  No animals were harmed in the creation of these beverages.