Guiding this week

 

I have written a bit around scouting and being a an eternal Brownie as a sissy gurl on here before but just what do I do?

Well, weather this weekend was really quite good so exploring was very much on the agenda here as I followed the canal towpaths taking my time to take in the countryside tucked beyond the built up area.

Sections have rough and ready pathways affording the ability to get close to trees providing much needed shade this week and identify their species before making ones way towards the next lock moving along.

 Inspiration can come from many places and sometimes where you may not expect such as comics where a few did try to do for them what the popular "Why Don't You..." television series on the BBC did and use their medium to encourage children to put down what they were doing and do something like go outside instead.

The girls comic Tammy did a fair bit about being fit and going out exploring the countryside  not just in the regular comics but also in their annuals.

Here from an page in the 1970's they are looking at the things you need on and with you and the things you might do along the way like identify trees, flowers, birds and so on which isn't a million miles removed from what you'd do in Scouts and Girl Guiding but with the advantage anyone anywhere can just do it where there can be waiting lists and in a few places the lack of age appropriate unit for you.

The Integrated Brownie

The genius of this post is a long as this blog goes which is to say when you are a sissy gurl who was brought up on paper at least as a boy many of your social connections  and memories are influenced by the gender divide and this was true of Scouting.

It wasn't that contact with with "the enemy" wasn't always stopped and sometimes even sanctioned as for instance I might of been directed to sit with and even work together with a girl just most activities were self contained so you may as well of come from two different lands.

The thing was sometimes actual integration of gender divided units did happen such as joint camps where Cubs and Brownies while in separate units did take part in shared activities even if you may of had specific time toward your badgework.

The Americans for reasons best kept to themselves styled themselves as Girl Scouts even if they had a Brownies section and these two handbooks form a part of that outlining the program to transition to the next level and around understanding the world around you and all within it.

Sometimes people try to say Scouts has a different and better feel to it than Girl Guiding but both contain elements of each other and while scouts has a more rugged image, Girl Guiding isn't all uber gentile or a soft option.

Tammy could of easily belong in that first picture in more enlightened times as the first person in the second row from the front dressed then in hur Brown Tunic in with the girls as a gurl or today in a simple brown pleated skirt, presenting femininely.

Yes you may of needed separate space for changing for reasons of modesty but that could be easily provided but for the Tammy's of this world it would of been a sensible solution, placed and under the rules of feminine section but not cut off from the boys finding a balanced approach as a gurl, able to do more girly things but join in kickabouts just like Tomboys.

Tammy is a modern Brownie as  Gurl.

Back together again by the camp fire

Tuesday was Founders Day where we give thanks to the Founder of Scouting, the modern Scouts Association and GirlGuiding UK for what he learned and set out to apply for children and young people to help them reach their full potential while having fun as part of World-wide family and in various ways being of service to and becoming fully fledged members of the Community.

One way some mark it is though lead discussion around what he did and what the importance in the modern scouting movement is such as with group of Cubs in Surrey, England, looking at what Cubs means to them.

Similar exercises happen in Brownies.

As you can in cubs as the remainder of Scouts today girls as well as boys belong which they did not when I was officially younger.

It's quite probable ways of finding ways around things such as being a a gurl would of been available and generally there is greater acceptance of difference today mirroring the changes in society as a whole.

For me Brownies is where this gurl always belonged.

Like many I will renew my Promise to uphold the Girl Guides Law.

Brownie scouting autumn 2021 style with Remembrance

This week we return with the on and off annual series of posts connected between scouting and what that means to me.

In both cubs and brownies you can earn you photography badge which apart from feeling great does teach you some useful tips in taking great pictures.

The preferred way to hold a camera, providing it has a viewfinder for the most stability and hence sharpish images involves cradling it against your face, using a camera reliant totally on the screen means tucking your elbows well in while holding it straight while hoping for the best!

I was out exploring the woods which is more challenging with the light but with the colours of the Fall around well worth it using a spot of fill in flash as needed.

The majesty of trees in the fall against brilliant sunshine is a great sight to behold as as here a few leaves have utterly fallen.

Meanwhile near the woods that golden autumnal sun illuminates these leaves well as you feel invigorated for your exploration.

This coming week is always a bit special cos that's when my thoughts go back to those who served this country and those who got caught up in the conflicts as warfare has moved beyond the battlefields since WW1.

The Eleventh of November was Armistice Day, the very day, month and hour we mark the end of that conflict and the Sunday after does happen to be Remembrance Sunday where events will be held across the UK not least at Whitehall, London.

It is important to think about what happened to all those who did serve, those who died and those who returned some with physical and mental scars serving our country.

Lots of people were involved during WW1 and 2 people who kept things running while the men went to war, boys and girls in scouting who helped with message relaying or doing countless other things to help.

Beyond reflecting, there are other ways to explore what it means and to pay tribute as this Scouts and Girlguides from Bridgnorth, Shropshire did with art  apart from much excellent material being made available by the Scouting movement to explain to children and young people what it was like and understand how war affected children like them at that time.

Like many I'll be paying my respects too.

Getting away kind off we hope

 

It's the crazy start to the week that after recovering ought to be fun for just being able to do stuff that we'd planned to last year but then with all that crazy zombie stuff around covered didn't happen and couldn't of been pencilled into until about two month ago.

But then we have the will he/she be available to drive your train and the the whole thing around part of the return involving a rail replacement bus and a biggish wait for the actual train coming in and that which really messes my head up to be honest.

It isn't that you don't wish to see people you haven't seen for well a long time, it's just every step is more unstable today than how it was in 2019.

I'd sooner have the rigidity of school where everything has a time and place that you just obey to all this.

Fingers crossed.

Meanwhile autumn is moving along so I was about in the last few weeks exploring as you do.

We are in throws of The Fall here which is one reason I have been about a fair bit of late determined to enjoy the last of warm low sun and that free spectacle in your local parks, playgrounds and woods which as damaged in parts as this area has been for being on fringe of a City Region we are fortunate to possess.

The glow of the forever changing colours of the leaves is vivid and yet a day or two later, you find them down on the grass in an expanse of golden brown carpet ever growing to the point eventually the trees will be denuded.

You might that is sad as it's usually followed by colder weather including snow but come the spring it all rejuvenates and that's what we look forward to.

Whatever happens in the awful adult news this week, just remember the good people have done and that the result of that good will triumph over all else.

Investment

Covid or not, it is time to make those first footways along the path I have joined  and we start getting our Brownies badge.

That can be fastened to our tunic.

We got the pack we need to work through, learning about the history of Brownies, the role of the imps, the place the Toadstool plays in meeting and our promise which is a solemn thing we don't just learn parrot fashion but learn in our understanding of what it means in our everyday lives.

This is the modern version, inclusive of other faiths directly although back when I was officially younger we talked more of God.

Those values are really what I need and in time I would be able to show my abilities by gaining badges.

Scouting onwards

That was always one the things about being me, the first Age Dysphoric signs were the trying on of my youngest siblings Cub uniform after he'd left it and unlike most others hadn't transferred to Scouts (aka Boy Scouts) at around ten and a half when I was around fifteen and sixteen going on ten.

It was stashed away bits in draw and the shirt in the deepest recesses of  a joint wardrobe that whenever I could I'd wear as at that time it wasn't much bigger than a well built twelve year old if that.

I felt happier being something I'd of rather had been being my real developmental age than the teenager I wasn't in any other way except age still stuck in 74/75.

Had I of been invested back in '72 into Brownies I'd of transferred to Girl Guides although you could say mentally I'd of been the youngest guide in the pack probably looking more like this which I do really like the look of.

Self development and mental discipline were things I needed and were looking for at the time as I struggled with motivating myself and being organized apart from needing to create a good circle of friends and learn new skills.

Imagine a twelve or thirteen year old Tammy at camp, having to share with others, take turns doing various chores, mastering new skills learning more about hurself?

That would of been brilliant! 

The outdoor life was one I enjoyed even if chunks were not lived through the Scout Association during that era by through boarding school activities and the odd weekend hike.

It was no accident that scouting became the big thing during the Coronavirus pandemic keeping me on the straight and narrow, helping my mental health because it met my needs for adventure, learning new things and developing self discipline

Brownie and cub scouting Autumn 2020 style

 

Rovering, exploring call it what you want, it's all a part of scouting and so this week gone I was out exploring the woodlands near where I live

As we enter the wood from a residential area, you can see how denuded the top of the tree is looking very stark.

Further along though and you see the colourful tree canopies where often you can see and hear the local birds during the daytime.

Here you can see the interesting shapes of the branches as they throw out from the trunk and the glistening sun kissed foliage.

The thing I love most of all about the autumn is the riot of deep crisp colour and here you can see just how some of the foliage has changed to a copper colour.

It is just magical.

Something we see a lot of at this time of year is Acorns that are collected and stored by the resident squirrels which I have seen a fair bit of this year.

The Age Dysphoric Brownie

One aspect of both the battle over my sense of identity and of my age dysphoria is that I am in spirit  a Brownie in the tried and true feminine place in scouting, GirlGuiding, who loves going on adventures and  exploring learning practical skills.

What that amounts to is following the sorts of programs linked to badges the modern brownie does which also was what I wanted to do when I was in juniors with my friends but but my family didn't seem to think I would want to  or they would have me even if many of things in it actually would of been beneficial.

The idea of having a code of honour  with Brownie Law and Rules would also of provided me with a sense of moral discipline, a framework for being a gurl of value to hur community and of learning self respect and self discipline.

With consideration for where I might be and the likelihood of encountering bio-girl browniess, I tend to wear a fairly traditional skirted uniform.

Molly Brett was a great illustrator who did a number of  Enid Blyton's illustrations but she also had a lot to do with Guides, designing the original certificate of induction into brownies and wrote this short Brownies story which is from 1951 that I acquired recently.

Going forward with the Brownie ethos makes sense for me. It'll make a good gurl of me.

Getting that Cubby feeling II

This week as we're well into Autumn I was outside exploring Brownie style in grey shorts and socks taking a few pictures.

The local trees are a little late changing colour this year but this group looked just great having spotted one of few dry moments  with sunshine to capture them.

At ground level  good number of leaves have already fallen and in with them were bits of branches and pine cones.

I took back in the coat pocket of my red cagoule this Horse Chestnut aka a Conker, one a a good number and the least damaged of them which we played Conkers with when I was younger.

Berries are out and these were in a hedgerow nearby where I did spot a few finches scuttling about.

These leaves bring back a lot of memories as they were near my first school, the building still surviving but repurposed for light engineering as even then I always followed the seasons.

This was always what I loved.

Time to be out

Seeing we had some good weather not unsurprisingly I have been out of doors a far bit  this last week or so and one thing I always found handy was the able to read a map and to take a smallish one me in case either I get lost which can happen or for extra details about the terrain or area  that might prove most useful.

One thing I always looked forward to seeing when I was younger were the Dandelion's coming out after Winter even though as you can see in this photograph the soil is fairly dry underneath, they  are all out and I can enjoy blowing the seeds away which always seemed magical to me.
It was taken on my new camera last weekend.

This was one of those I took of a group of flowers illuminated by natural sunlight using the Tamron 90mm Macro lens using a wide aperture to keep a shallow depth of field between the group of flowers I wanted and the remainder.

That kind of control about how one controls a pictorial composition was why I wanted a digital system camera.

Winter in the Wood

While it was a little cold this week I took a bit of time out to look at what else is around me.

Fortunately here, even in the built up envelope you do have woodland pockets and about a week ago woodland management trimmed some dead wood off to let a bit of light in for new growth.
These trees have been here for over twenty-five years that I can recall.

Even though part of last week was relatively cool, the general temperature trend has been above the seasonal norm so these berries are out all ready.

Surprisingly so are these blossoms in an adjacent hedgerow approaching the built up core that I spotted yesterday while out dodging the ice.
Getting out of the discourse is so much healthier.

Taking a rest

This last week has been a bit different with not being here for a few days so in a  way it feels rather like I'm playing catch up right now like with dealing with unopened mail and the like apart from getting the washing done.

One great thing about where I live is even in more built up centre there are undeveloped patches of land that are a haven for wildlife which may be things like birds and small mammals but as here actually you can get to see horses grazing  where the fields are let to individuals although this very field was the one in 2005 where one horse decided to steal my camera bag using his teeth that had my then Minolta camera with lenses and run off with them.

I had to get the owner to go in there and retrieve it all covered in horse spit and clean it!
I have  been walking both when I was away and also here where it's gotten a bit cooler from the start of last week but I think we'll be back to t shirts and shorts with fairly soon as while very hot weather isn't my thing, being able to drop off the layers and taking in some sun as well as fresh air is something I do really like.
The cherry blossoms and blue bells are still out here.

Going back to being a Brownie

 

Brownies on parade making the salute are part of my memories of the 1970's and early 1980's although this picture is a more recent one from a country where the poat 90's uniform changes here in the UK didn't happen so the brown tunic remained.

Although being socialized as a boy back then meant I knew more cubs and scouts, Brownies and Guides were more my thing and for me a resumption of much of that makes sense.

Sometimes though as important as any and all the things elsewhere are, somehow you feel overwhelmed by it all and that was both a major trigger in the regressed side of my life and connected to some changes around this blog.

For me the walk down that road wasn't the easiest thing to do and indeed physically walking isn't for me but it was necessary to go beyond that busy core where one could instead focus more calming sounds, smells and warm colours and yes take a breather.

The spirit of Scouting lives through me being mentioned from time to time through my explorations and adventures.

Spring outdoor week

Phew, it's been a warm week out with plenty of sunshine so I've been out for quite a while so if I haven't been as active as I might on social media, that's unfortunate but I honestly feel it's better to prioritize my physical and psychological well-being.

It's so great to start to wake up to the dawn chorus now that it's getting a bit bit bright and for longer because it sounds so peaceful and when I'm out walking often I stop and listen out for them spotting them in the trees or just overhead near the fields.

Also the people who look after our Inland Waterway have been at work so I've been over there on my travels talking with them and other people about too.

It's strange but all of this actually leads to me feeling less stressed and from that much less likely to lash out at people when it just all becomes too much emotionally and when it comes to stimulation too which is a great help not just to me but Mom too.

Fresh air and exposure to sunlight  ultimately are better for me.

Spring days on foot

Officially we're in spring now so it's a bit warmer again which helps when it comes to getting out as ice and walking don't mix with me at all.

 Sometimes you just come across things when you happen to be out aided no doubt for more tuned into nature, rather less on techno and groan up things and that is where this nice picture comes in as just happening to be passing thinking to myself "This looks good", quickly framing it up old school style with twin finger actions.
At a more technical level I did stretch the lens out to 114mm (in 35mm film terms) to fill the frame better and soften the background a little and corrected the colour in Roxio but otherwise it is 'as is'.
Just obscured by the tree, there is a very famous North Staffordshire landmark that is the home of a certain running event and playing a central place in establishment of the form of Methodist Christian teaching known as "Primitive Methodism" which shaped much of our region. 

The Brownie Annual

It's rare for me to post much about "the other half" of the Scouting Movement for a host of reasons such as having very little to do with in any capacity but as you would expect their are parallels.

Rather like Wolf Cubs/Cubs, until more recent times there were annuals published that any Brownie would expect to get with the bindings being made easier to printed over time.

The start point of any annual is having an eye catching illustration for the front as this isn't an instruction manual and typically a Brownie annual would show brownies in uniform undertaking some task.

The back of this one features the faces of some, a number of which contributed to the contents.

This one is the 1962 edition and as was usual at the time has a formal introduction from the World Chief Guide addressed to the individual Brownie welcoming them to the publication which is official.

Here we have a contents page which is well indexed by makes, things of interest, about Brownie life such as pack holidays and the like.

Because rather like Cubs, you might of joined but not done everything yet, you'd have things about what you may get to do such as a pack holiday complete with pictures which are printed on glossy paper.

Very much with the whole Pixies and Elfs and so on, concept running in Brownies, there's a section with rhymes about them a brownie would no doubt love.

Something I don't think the Girl Guides Association then would of been unaware of is a copy about perhaps belonging to a friend or sister of another girl would act as a shop window to them to join up too, sharing the fun.

Annuals in general seem an endangered species, always out of date at the time of printing, lacking the interactivity some crave today and yet I know the Comic annual is still a popular thing as are tv and movie tie ins.

As children still love physical gifts they can treasure perhaps annuals connected with scouting can comeback.

Scouting for Gurls

Whatever was really going on around 1971/2 when my parents made that mistake, the fact remains cut me up along my trunk and you'll find a Scout on the inside who follows the rules just as my older brother did and my younger brother although he only stayed in the Cubs and I'd rather be a Brownie.

It didn't and doesn't matter what my disabilities are and the many ways they do impact my life the practise of the basic principals of Scouting, the learning of new skills, the exploration of our environment and  the enjoyment of like-minded company are what makes me, well me.

Scouting in the general sense was always my thing, it would of provided some of the sense of belonging I was so looking for so join me for a exploration of the wood.

We'll be starting with these Bluebells that I came by while walking a few days back, covered up from bitey things.

Here you can see all that lush green foliage where the birds locally have built their nests from twigs.I just love hearing birdsong.

Meanwhile over in our Meadow there's plenty of life and you can make a wish with the Dandelion 

And this lovely blossom was out too.

Finally in my garden  these flowers are have a great time and look so pretty.

Technical note: all shot on that Canon  A470 digital compact with just a touch of exposure correction and cropping, that's all.