So You've Got A Beaver, Now You Need A Plot?

Justin of the Mascoutens 8's BEAVER NEWS recently sent out a plea to the 644 members on Patch-L for help in developing plots/storylines for his new Bucky-the-Lodge Beaver newsletter cartoon strip. He's got his beaver character finely drawn but he's got nothing to do, he needs a plot or two. It got me musing what if Bucky was a Ol' Curmudgeon Patch Tradin' Beaver? We've got some lodge-codgers that would make perfect models for his cartoon strip, and each one has a story to tell. If given half a chance, they could supply Justin with enough story lines to take us into the next millennium!

Here in Leatherstocking country, we sometimes refer to our 1948 charter lodge brothers (there are a handful still living of the original 40 inducted) as "Bumpho's Brigade," a venerable bunch of Red-JacShirts who claim Chingatchcook and Uncas actually showed up at their induction ceremony. We have our fair share of the Patch Crazers and the Ceremonial Cultists, too, but out here on the Central Frontier of New York, we tend to tolerate them as long as they stay out in the woods out of sight.

Recently, some minor changes in our camp policies have helped deal with the problem, such as practicing the principles of LNT and not leaving trails of old camp patches and pony beads around that draw these guys out of retirement homes and into camp. Setting time limits around the ol' 'endless coffee pot' in the dining hall has cut down on the rounds of stories that begin with: "When I was a young Scout here......" The edicts of "Two-deep Leadership" have been extended to include "Too Deep to Wade Through It!" as a guideline of safe scouting and posted in latrines, the scoutmasters' lounge, or wherever these moth-eaten Threadheads congregate.

Justin, here's my plot. Let me tell you the story of when the boys nominated a beaver for OA membership? Voted twice as "Best Lodge Brother By a Dam Site," he would of made Lodge Chief too if he hadn'ta chewed a hole in the spillway and drained the lake. Took us several days to get all the stranded boaters and canoeists back on shore....

Does anyone know a good Dutch oven recipe for "Roasted Haunch of Beaver Tail"?