New Gadget in my life

Well, I got one of those handy dandy Smartphones, a gift from my son.  I've been happily pushing buttons, sliding screens and trying to remember where I saw this gadget or that gadget.  Settings are the main thing.  I received the phone yesterday.

Today, an emergency trip to the ER with my father.  Of course, I had to learn how to message, call and add contacts.  Good thing my sister was with me.  She had her trusty phone and did the majority of the calls.  I managed four out of the 26 notifications we usually send.  Of course, before I could do that, I had to charge the battery.  Still hadn't taken the charger and ear phones out of the plastic.

So, during the time immediately after the ambulance departed with my father, I was tearing open the plastic to charge the phone.  Was able to charge it enough to get it turned on.  Then Sis shows up and we head out.  Lucky for me, I'd bought a car charger.  Unfortunately, it wasn't needed as Sis had one of those handy dandy dual chargers.  So, I'd wasted precious time and energy tearing the plastic off the car charger.  We arrived in time to get the pertinent info to hospital staff.  Then, I made the trek to the waiting room to finish charging the phone, and start the adventure of making phone calls on the handy dandy smartphone.

Yesterday, when my phone was being set up, I was shown the instruction book.  It was carefully packed inside the box along with the other essentials I'd need.  I was duly informed that I'd not need that book as the phone was designed for on the job training.  So, I was sitting there, greeting people who hadn't yet answered their phone.  Why?  Cause I'd forgotten to swipe it to the left; or was that right? Finally broke down and used my old phone to make a couple calls.  Then began the arduous process of finding the phone numbers, transferring them to my new phone, then trying to call or message.

By the time I managed to answer a couple of the messages coming in fast and furious, Sis comes to let me know I needed to call everyone and tell them Father was being held overnight.  I sighed.  She stood there, gave me the look, sat down and proceeded to make a few calls, send text messages like a madwoman, give cheerful greetings to passing people we knew who were also making a trip to the ER.  So, I duly picked up my phone, managed a hello to one person as three were on their way out as the patient was being transferred and proceeded to make one call home.

Still, one out of 26 wasn't bad.  By the time we left, my phone was fully charged, had a few more of the contacts added, and was at least finding the screen where I could call.  Was I happy when Sis came to tell he was in his room and I could leave off trying to call.  We arrived to find him eating, wondering where the TV was.  Relief flooded my frazzled brain.  At last, something I could easily handle.

Miigwetch, Manoomin-Couch Potato

Yesterday was the first 5K Couch Potato on the rez.  The family showed up with running shoes on.  The sun was shining in a bright blue sky.  Picked up our shirts, tags and water.  Sat around waiting for the start.  My nephew and I walked to the starting line.  I finished one hour 6 minutes and 44 seconds later.  My nephew got a blister and went home. Mom and Dad were right there in their wheel chairs.  Babies in strollers were being pushed by runners.  All ages participated and it was fun.  Saw another wheel chair participant.

Turnaround confusion

There were family groups going by me.  The younger ones were a tad bit held up trying to wait for the family.  They exercised a good deal of patience for a bit.  Then were encouraged to "Go, Run."  And they did.  Was fun greeting the youngsters as they went by.  Many of them gave us encouragement and instructions about the course.  Some of them followed the orange cones and ended up running further than necessary.

The course referees explained that we were supposed to follow the neon pink arrows.  Naturally, we only saw the ones at the first turn.  There was someone standing at the top of the hill to point us in the right direction.  At the turnaround, they handed us water.  I heard the runners saying to turn there and called out to Sis and her daughter to turn around.  Teased Mom and Sister about heading out for the casino.  Ate a bunch of grapes while waiting for Sister #2 to come in.  She was one of the last ones in.  She jogged the last few feet.  I couldn't.  Walked as fast as I could though.  Next year, I might jog a little further than I did this year.

Went down to the pow wow after Grand Entry and picked up some Fry Bread Taco.  It was very tasty after all the exercise in the morning. Waited 3 hours for it cause they were just starting to set up when I first checked. After a few hours recuperating, Sis, Brother and I headed out to watch the dancers for a bit.  Checked out the food stands and bought wild rice soup and fry bread.  It got a tad bit cold when the sun went down.  Checked out the crafts, bought some beaded key chains, mostly to see how they had been made.  Not that I'm going to be making any of them.  "Jus checkin'" as working with beads is something I enjoyed.  Considered dancing.  Not sure if I could make it around.  Was very happy when sibs suggested coming home.

Looking forward to the day's activities and especially, the fry bread and rice.  Mmm.  Breakfast is being served pretty soon.  Wondering what to cook for the evening meal.  Hmm, think I'll go get something to eat.

"Don't click on the links"

I have a new outlook on life as reflected in my blog. In part, this outlook has been influenced by the techies. I have been doing research of a sort as background for two of my novels. I've decided that I will only have to work in those types of details for five of my characters, thus only two books. Yay. I was going to have one character be in most of the novels dealing with tech portion of the history timeline of my world.

Then, after reading and following a few techies, I decided that I'd only do two novels. Much of my timeline will deal with earlier portions of history as those are what I'm most familiar with. Why did I title my post the way I did? In the course of my research among the techie blogs, I came across one in the Blogger world, the forums. If you do any delving at all in that forum, you'll probably have come across the most helpful one's post and possibly even checked his blog.

In the course of being helpful, there are the usual number of people who follow the maxim "When all else fails, read the directions," he has found a way to tell people how to stop referrer spam. Thus "Don't click the links" has become my mantra. I came across it again yesterday in the course of trying to figure out how to get those off the stats portion of my dashboard. Yay. I looked for help first remembering my other foray into the fast moving world of high tech.

Yes, I learned the hard way not "to click the links." Simple. Now, mind you, those posts were from a year ago but I've just gotten those from about a month or two ago. I had hoped they'd be gone by now. Being the sort that tries to learn from one mistake, I entered the help forum at Blogger. There they were, the three dastardly musketeers and of course, I read for about an hour. There was a post about editing html and such. Unfortunately, I didn't bookmark that particular post. Thus I only have half the info I needed. I was too tired to do anything more last night. This morning after the usual chores, visiting my second and 7th favorite haunts, I decided I was going to try the portion that takes hours.

Well, one of the helpful suggestions I remembered is what I tried already. The rest of it is going to take a few trial and errors which is what I seriously didn't want to have to do at this point. Therefore, those of you who have links on my site, not to worry. I have to test them all. There were only three that I had added or clicked on that need to be tested. Thank goodness, I haven't put up the pages link section yet. Once again, I think the brownies are being helpful. As it is, I can only do one thing at a time, even though I have millions of to-do's in my head. One of the other things is the dratted scheduler again. I used it once and once only. Now I have to keep resetting it.

HaHaHahaHeeheeheeheeHoHoHoHo. They'll definitely be coming to take me away sometime before the new Year if this keeps up. Well, I finally sent off a help request and will be doing any sort of suggestion that comes up. I hope the mallet falls and hard on those 3 dastardly musketeers and the righteous Musketeers win the day.

All Aboard

We arrived in Flagstaff last evening where we went to Black Bart's for dinner. It was fun to listen to the waiters and waitresses singing. Yesterday was the highlight of the trip: the Grand Canyon.

We stopped at three places where we were able to look out. The date is wrong on the picture. Apparently, a couple of the gremlins decided to vacation with me. The date should have stayed set.

I don't think we were as excited as we were the day we went to Bryce Canyon. I have a lot of pictures that I took and I will be setting up a public album when I get home.

This is some really beautiful country. Our tour guide, Brian, told us to smell the bark of the Ponderosa Pine: vanilla or butterscotch. I smelled butterscotch.

This morning, we were standing outside and saw a "jackalope?" crossing the street. He'd sit and wait for the cars to go by and move a little bit. Just like the two legged jaywalkers I've seen.

I have only an hour to get ready to leave, so more on our trip later, Most likely on Thursday.

If you'd like to do the Pick Your Own Adventure, just click on the link in the picture on the sidebar. That's the start of the Adventure.

And we're off

Well, the post is a little late. We actually left on Tuesday morning. Flew out of Mpls and arrived in Vegas in the early evening. Went on a tour of the city the next morning. Then to my surprise, I couldn't get on the internet until this evening. Not that it wasn't available. I just didn't have the cash to spare for the fee.

So far, we have been very tired at the end of the day. Our tour guides, bus drivers, travel assistants and hotel staff have been doing their best in making sure we are having fun.

Our days are scheduled right up until evening. I have had very little free time to post. Will be setting up some pictures on Monday or so. I might pick a few to post and comment on right in the blog. Most will be in an online album.

We will be getting up very early tomorrow again, and in the evening, I must get the Pick Your Own Adventure set up to be published Monday morning.

The country we have been touring is very beautiful. We are making our way around the rim of the Grand Canyon. Very tiring also, we aren't used to the altitude.

Celebrate

I've been looking at various posts from other bloggers where they have a giveaway to celebrate different achievements: number of followers, a new book, etc. I've been thinking about when I could have my own giveaway and what it should celebrate. These thoughts have been percolating through my "little bird brain" and I've been setting different achievements of my own with which to celebrate to decide which was best.

Then, just a few short minutes ago, inspiration struck. My tribe has giveaways all the time. I've talked about pow-wows, different aspects of cultural life, describing a little of what goes on and maybe even the whys, wherefores and whatnots. The main ones are the seasonal ceremonies-Spring, summer, fall and winter. Why the very next celebration is the Mii-gwetch Manoomin happening this very weekend. [Miigwetch Manoomin=Thanks for the Wild Rice]

I am Anishinabeikwe [Chippewa woman], a jingle dress dancer, a newly arrived Elder [though I still feel like a kid], a student of the old ways, a mother, a daughter, a sister, an aunt. I have learned how to do our traditional artwork, crafts and can do work good enough to sell for whatever I want. I have learned how to cook many traditional dishes using traditional foods. I have done my share of passing on the old ways to the next generation.

The inspiration which struck me on the head is: my own giveaway to celebrate Fall. I will giveaway four items to give thanks for the fall harvest and the knowledge I have learned from others who are passing on their knowledge. I will be gathering these items as I travel about. When I return I will post what the prizes will be and how to go about doing the giveaway. It won't give people much time since I expect to giveaway these items on 31 October 2011 about 4:30 p.m CST. Stay tuned for further details.

New Look - Sort of

Imagine that. I've spent all this time trying to get something done on the coding aspect of my blog. Now, there is some changes to make my life easier. We'll see. So far, I like the changes.

In honor of that I decided I'd change the color at least. I thought about changing the whole thing. Not after this day and last evening though. Methinks the gr....ns are back and I'm being very quiet just in case they lost. However, if they advanced and are just resting, then I'd like them to get all the rest they need.

I need to check on an adventure I signed up for. Been so busy the last 20 hours. And I'll be busy for a little in the morning. We are having an Elder's Dinner with some visitors tomorrow. I had to help fix the gifts for an hour or so today. The Elders will be here mid-morning til mid-afternoon.

Off to get my beeeauuuuty, rats. Now, all I see is coding stuff. Giigawabamin. (See you tomorrow)

New Comment options added

Another day filled with what ifs and why nots as I continue to write the stories that I have already begun, editing {which is more of the deleting extraneous words, highlighting what I need to look at more closely variety} and making sure my time lines are correct. Have added some more relatives of some of the characters for inclusion in future stories.

Man, I've been busy catching up with reading all the blogs in my groups at the Campaign. Am excited to read quite a few of them as I'd never have found them without this Campaign. I did find some that aren't participating and I've tried to remember who is who. Next is the great hunt for the comment code for FB, etc. In the sidebar is the like button for my FB page.

Neither of the places I looked at brought me any less of a headache. In fact, our sites have to have a certain code by 01 OCT and I am just figuring out the little stuff. heeheehaahaa.

Still and all, I'm satisfied with what I have accomplished for the day. Wishing everyone has as much luck as I did with my machines. Thinking those tournaments must be heating up because things are going great here. [Yay doing cartwheels]

Tournaments have been held

I thought those little people were having great fun. I received word of their tournament. No word about the results. Seems that they were having regionals. Their next stop must be state, then on to nationals. Could be they're headed to international tournaments. Held back in the old country? Or are they styling them like the Olympics? Must be Word somewhere. I'll be on the lookout for Word of any State tournaments. I think I know where the brownies are. I saw evidence of this when I was walking last evening. The lake was so pretty. They were working on their skills for beautifying their surroundings. There were birds cheering on their efforts. I appreciated this very much. They're having fun themselves.

I've discovered pixies also immigrated from Great Britain. Wow. I've often wondered about pixies. I thought Disney might have distorted their origins. Cause it always seemed to me that Tinkerbell was a fairy. A fairy who uses pixie dust? Pixies don't have pixie dust. Turns out they're mostly from Devon and Cornwall, maybe a small race of Celtic origins. Hmm.

I wonder about this because the little people have tunnels. We were shown the entrances where we weren't supposed to play. The descriptions I read sound awfully familiar. I've not known anyone who went with them though it was a possibility. Hmm.

Will be on the lookout. Maybe I'll do a photo shoot of these places. Methinks I might find out when they immigrated. I've often wondered about our "little people." Off to check out the descriptions of their houses, land, habits, etc. And the tournaments.

Halfway to Nikes

Since July 27 or thereabouts, I've been walking at least one mile a day six days a week. I might have mentioned this before. Currently I am only one mile behind my sis, the athletic one of the family. We are halfway through the 56 mile requirement to get our first pair of Nikes. This program will be closing sometime in August or September. I didn't check the date, and it was 3 months when we first starting walking. Will have to check today.

We walk on average two miles per day, which works out to 12 miles per week. I did do three miles one day. Arriving at the Fitness Center huffing and puffing, legs feeling rubbery, and throat parched is not my idea of healthy and fit. I forgot how long it's actually been since I walked/jogged/ran for any length for more than two or three minutes. Great good news though. I've managed to lost 7 pounds. Yay.

Just got back from walking three miles. Finally caught up to sis. Now, she's going to be walking faster because she isn't losing weight as much as me. I've told her to walk fast before. She kept walking alongside me. Thanks because forcing me to keep up with you has helped me tremendously.

We have various cheerleaders and supporters while we walk, especially in the evenings. It's nice to see them waving, hear the "Keep going" and "How many miles today?" Last evening, there were three kids who asked if we were going to the Fitness Center. Yes, we were. There are a surprising number of children who wave at us as we walk by. A few of them say hello. I'm tempted to answer "Aaniin." Problem would be they start speaking back and then I'd have a problem. I'd get home and try to repeat what they said to my mom for an interpretation. Some words I know, most Nah.

I'm most glad for the return of the energy I used to have. I think my metabolism has returned to its' previous state. I have a hunger level that's rarely gone. I guess I'll have to eat more veggies and fruits. Well, those are something relatively easy to get for now. My protein needs will be a little more difficult. I don't care for legumes all that much. Still having to eat them would be cheaper than buying the meats. Ahh. I'll just keep my calorie level at around 1700 for now. I think, back in the day, (thanks D.B. for that reminder) that I ate about 2000 calories per day. Never counted them, just have this memory of constantly eating something about every two hours until bedtime. With 18 hours in the day, that's about 8 snacks with one meal. A lot of eating. And a lot more walking.

Fathers who should know better.

My father and I sat and had a long talk about the business yesterday. Interesting.

Me: Well.

Father: {shrugs his shoulders while trying to hide a grin.}

Me: {tapping my foot}

Me: {drumming my fingers on the table}

Father: {puts palms up in the air, shakes his head, then hides his mouth with one hand.}

I gave an exasperated sigh, shook my head and left the room before he could see the twinkle in my eyes.

That's the extent of the conversation we had about the 'guest post'. He followed me into the kitchen and told me I write good. Told my sister I'm a chip off the old block. As if that will excuse any more pranks he has up his sleeve. Somehow, I'd forgotten just where my sister gets her sense of humor. I failed to foresee this possibility.

I've been working on some guidelines for him. Today, he told me that he'd come up with something for me. Huuuuh, I don't know. I don't think I will announce when he is guest blogging anymore. I'll just post it after I see it. That way, if I get two or three solved crytograms as his post, I can leave it on my computer. Sometimes, it's hard to keep one step ahead of him, and come to think of it, my sister. I grew up with gullible written on my forehead.

I am the oldest, hence I shouldn't be falling for these little pranks of theirs. I may have posted on this very subject before, somewhere, somewhen. I keep telling myself, "I won't fall for their tricks again." A week, two weeks, sometimes a month goes by. Wham. There goes Millie's forehead again. Gullible must be painted in neon colors and it just gets to be too much for them to resist.

That's the only explanation I can think of. The younger ones also do this on a smaller scale. So far, I've managed to discourage them at least. Now, they all know how to read. It might get to be a tad difficult to keep their shenanigans in check.

I will see if my father is sufficiently recovered from his bout of laughter over the past day or so. Maybe I will get a decent blog post from him. I should strike while the guilt is thick. Yes, that is exactly what I'll do. {leaving to get a pack of the 'you know what' while the getting is good.}

Guest Blogger - My father

Well, I received the guest blog entry. The guest blogger is my father, of course. He is the man who wrote a column called "Facts by Ax" in the reservation newspaper in the nineties. Here is his entry:

computers make it less complicated to do more things, but most of the things they make less complicated to do don't need to be done.

Methinks he's having a bit of fun with me. Fathers. He does cryptograms. He calls me on the phone to give me words of wisdom. The foregoing is an example of the words he expects me to live by. And now, that his debut is over, maybe we'll get more of the same. Or not.

One never really knows just what he is likely to write. And, of course, now you have an idea of where I get some of my humor from. Ahhh well. I shouldn't have told him to keep it short. It must be my own fault. Methinks a submissions guideline is in order specifically tailored to my father. I must get to working on that right away.

Blue clear sky

Blue clear sky, deep green tree outlined against that sky. Warm sunshine, able to curl up like a cat does this morning. Woke up early this a.m. and promptly went back to sleep. Woke up an hour later to the beautiful morning, fresh coffee {made by my brother}, sat on the porch enjoying my first you know what.

My soul is singing, my feet are dancing, all the while my body is sitting in the sun. I'm enjoying the music composed by Gitchimanitou. Extremely gratifying. Yes, singing and dancing is how I feel this day. Being relaxed, doing things one at a time.

Online, looking at various sites, trying to figure out what the next scene in my story contains. Commented on one blog earlier this morning. I just went back to check on something she posted {Blogolopolis} and look over the comments. The last two are dated "August 1, 2011" and mine is July 31, 2011. Whoohoo. Birthday started already and I didn't even finish this day. Wonders of date line. Yes. Does that mean I am now officially an Elder? Must I wait until 0000 hrs. our time? A point to ponder.

I have several ponders in the works. Must set up a spreadsheet for listing them. Or should I just leave it for posterity to ponder on? Might give them something to hunt down, hey, it could even be a homework assignment or something. Or it might even become the subject of whatever passes for movies in the future. Could become something like our searches through the ancient past. I think some of those writings are like our form of graffiti. Someone might spend their entire life researching my ponders on this blog. Hah. Well, it's a nice thought that.

See what happens when you get nice sunshiny days and nothing pressing to do. I can let my imagination soar in that blue clear sky. I mean clear, blue sky, I think. Somehow, methinks George Strait has influenced me more than I thought. Blue clear sky it is.

Surfing and madmares

Aaniin. Greetings. I've been surfing the net once again. Most interesting. I read a few blogs about writing. Most are about technique, making time etc. Haven't read all of them. Looking for some who are more inspirational for me. I don't want to get too bogged down with craft type blogs. I'm the type who will inevitably start to worry about what people think of my writing, is it good enough, that sort of thing. I write because I want to. It is good to know that I am tightening up my sentences. It's good to know my grammar is readable. {I say that because some of my writing is based on dialogue-not always spoken with perfect grammar.}

I am looking for a few blogs written by crafts people. I enjoy crafts such as beading, quilting, working with colors mostly. Some crafts, I mostly admire. I don't have the inclination to actually do these things myself. After all, I only have 24 hours, six of which I spend in refreshing sleep. {Okay, last night I had a madmare. Not to be confused with nightmare. This is one of those dreams that I get angry with someone and try to give them a piece of my mind. Then someone in the real world wakes me up. "Are you having a nightmare?' "No, I'm mad." Stayed mad for a full 45 minutes after waking. Mostly, cause I couldn't get my words said. My family weren't the ones I was mad at. And staying mad about it is not good. It is something over which I have no control, thus a waste of time and energy.}

I'm also trying to find a blogger with my sense of humor. Not very many of those. In fact, there are only about 10 that I've come across. And are there any Shinab bloggers besides me? And are there any who listen to the type of music I do. Not many. I found one who had an excellent playlist on her blog. {I'm still figuring that out. Playlists are my next objective. So far, I listen to my son's list. Not always what I want to hear at the moment.}

I found some websites containing info I need to strengthen my understanding of the sciences, math and magic. I may post these at some point. I am looking for the sites I used to use before the motherboard gave up the last bit of electronic data I had stored and went out in a star shaped burst of blue-white glory. The geeks here have the hard drive but I haven't taken the time to try to pull those. I think he said some of the files were fried. I did get the ones most important-my writing. Then I also found a tool to restore the backup from my x drive. Yay. My family history files.

Oh, I changed the desktop background. It's got more colors to frame windows I have open. Looks nice. Has a few of my favorite colors. Yippee. And floral too. Yes. Makes a difference in my attitude. {I'd have to say I'm fully over my madmare.} Guess I will continue to surf and see if I can find a few of those blogs or sites. Somewhere there has to be more of what I'm looking for. Could get lost for days in this library.

Childhood dream

Very soon all caution will be thrown to the winds. A new phase of life begins, a new attitude will be forged from the ashes of the old and time will be critical. Most people want to slow down and relax during their retirement years. I'm not doing that. I'm well on my way to adding stress, tension and unknown foreseen plots to my way of life.

I'm not officially retired, just entering the ranks of the Elders. I want to explore the world of books from the vantage of the inside, not just the pleasurable aspects of exploring worlds others have created. I will be exploring the real world also, traveling to far flung places. I've saved some money hoping to realize my childhood dream of visiting Stonehenge, checking out the Tower of London, seeing if the grass is really made of emeralds, kissing the Blarney Stone.

That last underwent a slight change after I found out one had to lean down to do so. I will ponder on that item as I make the preparations to visit. I'd like my mother to be able to go. My sons aren't really into it. Their interests are in the opposite side of the world.

Now, I've made some tentative plans for financing the rest of my visit. Hopefully, those will be finalized in the next few weeks. Adventure is about to hit my life and magic will create memories to last a lifetime and beyond. {I really believe magic exists. It's not the cast a spell type, change the environment, one needs to study for years one either; though there are reports that people can and have done so. No, I believe it's already around us. The spells have already been cast. One just needs to reach out and touch the results. }

Once I've realized that dream, I have a couple others that are lining themselves up, jostling for the second position. Methinks, I will leave it so for awhile.

On becoming an Elder

Things have been rather hectic the last couple days. Sunday was search day, not for my USB cord, for a family history file. I'd hoped to find the cord because one of Murphy's laws {at least for me} is I'll find everything but what I'm looking for. The black hole was not in evidence this day, as I didn't find the file, the cord or anything else I had been looking for. I may have chased the brownies away the last time. Yet, I will persevere.

Monday I filled out various applications in anticipation of my official entry into the ranks of the Elders. Reaching this status is a hallmark, an honor that feels unreal. Intellectually, I know that I've earned this status. Emotionally, I'm still learning, therefore, I can't be an Elder. Elders are wise. Elders understand and teach those who are younger the ways of the Tribe.

I have much to learn myself. There are many things I plan on making time for. One shows respect for those who have earned that respect. One honors those who have earned honor. One trusts those who have earned trust. Each year on my birthday, I ask myself if I've earned respect, honor, and trust. Each year, I decide that I have progressed a little further down the path I have chosen. Each year, I tell myself that I will do better in the coming year. I ask for guidance, patience and understanding, for myself and for others.

I've heard it said "You don't have to listen to them. They're just old ladies who need to gossip." This year I've decided that I will look into this thing called "gossip." What, exactly, is gossip? Why are young people being given that advice? I take into consideration; who is telling me what, and why? I have been told, "Ask. Don't be afraid to ask, if you don't know." Yet, it feels like I don't have the knack for asking the right questions the right way. So, does this mean I have nothing of importance to contribute?

No. It means that the experiences I learned from have made me who I am. The contributions I make are based on those experiences and I trust, honor and respect those who have helped me get to where I am today.

I enter a new phase of my life, one where I will continue to learn. Life is meant to be lived to the fullest. For me, there will always be something new to learn, something new to see, something new to do. I enter this new phase with faith, hope and courage. I will continue to earn trust, respect, and honor as I continue to give those to others. Life is a circle.

That family history file I was looking for is important to all of us in my family. I am in contact with family members who are asking for what I can contribute, and who I will learn from. Yes, it is good to know I have earned the right to be called "Elder" and will pass on what I have learned to those who want to know. {which brings up another subject I've often wondered about. Don't worry, I am done philosophizing for this day.}

Thunderstorms

It's great to hear the thunder. It's still off in the distance. I am glad for the rain. It's been dry here. Yesterday, went for a walk with my sisters. Could have used some of the cool then. After the walk, I was sitting on the porch having my daily "habit that most of the world thinks I should quit" and the wind had changed from south to north. Yay. I hoped most of the lightening would happen while I was sleeping.

I like to listen to thunder. Just not for hours upon hours. That's when I think the Spirits might be getting angry because no one is listening to them. I like to watch the lightening, from a distance. Up close is very heart pounding sort of stuff. I don't want the Spirits to think I am defying them. No, no, no. It's the first displays that I have the greatest appreciation for.

Gentle rain is fine for a day or so. The sound of the rain is peaceful and I can go to sleep listening to that sound. Not Thunderstorms. They make me want to do something. Problem is I don't always know what.

The restless nature of storms highlight my restless nature. That may be why I want to have a blanket handy. Hiding from the storm, from the call of the Thunder Spirit because I'm not doing what I need to be doing. Dreading the lightening because I don't want the stark view of my environment.

Storms don't happen very often. A good thing from my point of view. Looking for the imbalance in myself is scary. Figuring out who, what, where, when and why is not an easy thing. When I do those things, and get a little more in balance, the next storm isn't as scary. In fact, the next few are ones I revel in. I can sit and watch through most of the storm. Sleep sometimes needs to be attended to but I don't huddle under the blankets trying to will myself to sleep.

Sometimes, I have to drive through a storm. Then, it's concentrate, focus, find the right speed to navigate the wet roads. Try to decide if I should slow down, speed up, stop altogether. Try to loosen my grip on the wheel so I can feel the slight changes in the tires. Try to gauge if the wind is changing direction. Sometimes, lightening flashes interfere with my vision. Other times, they startle me and I just know the thunder is going to crash and rattle my eardrums.

When I arrive at my destination, it's great to know I did it. At those times, I feel a greater kinship with the Thunder Spirits. Yes! It's great to be alive. It's great to hear the thunder.

The Road

Aaniin.  Greetings all. This morning finds me up and about quite early.  The fact that I had to work didn't have anything to do with my early rising.  I went to sleep early due to the amount of exercise I got last evening.  And the reaction from several sand fly bites.  We mowed the lawn at my brother's house.  And several feet of overgrown grass between his place and his sister's place.  The actual undertaking took about 2 hours and I decided I was coming home.  


Deeds like this are okay once in a great while.  Reminds me of the old days.  When we'd help someone with their chores so we could all do something fun together.  Well, maybe not fun by today's standards.  Oh no.  Then we'd ride bikes, walk around the village, play softball.  Didn't do any of those last night.  Came home and went to sleep.


There were some plans to go back to my dad's and move a car.  Not sure about that.  The rest can go up there.  I'm sticking close to home what with 4 hours between shifts and three shifts today.  I'm researching also.  And figured out some more of the tech stuff as you can see by the header on my blog.


That road has been a huge part of my life.  I traveled to school on it.  And no, I didn't walk to school.  I rode the bus like any other civilized child of the 60's and 70's.  And it was high school, a school which is no more.  It closed at the end of this school year.   I came home to get married.  I brought my sons home from the hospital.  I traveled back and forth for the past 15 years to and from employment.  It has seen my relatives come home for visits.  


It has changed little in the last 40 years. It has been repaved every few years.  Four houses were located along this stretch.  Those are now in the pages of history.  I think of all my relatives who traveled this road in the past.  There are a lot of memories on this road.


I'm hoping I'll be traveling on that road on my way to book signings and all the other author type stuff one has to do to sell books.  I'm hoping my relatives will continue to visit.  I know there will be lots of occasions to travel on this road-celebrations, visits with family elsewhere, homecoming.  


The road has lots of possibilities.  

Beliefs, Values, Traditions

Read a preface today that said the Chippewa called winter "waboose" and that the symbol was a white buffalo withstanding the effects of winter.  I grew up with the knowledge that waboose meant rabbit.  I'm not familiar with the White buffalo as symbol of winter.  

It feels like everything I grew up knowing is now wrong.  I was taught by my elders about many traditional ways.  My family practices old ways without thinking about it.  That's how ingrained the values and beliefs are.  I had/have role models who lived the life, who showed me without my asking, and explained what seemed to me to be a contradiction.  

Part of the process of solidifying my life foundation was going through my value system and  leaving behind what didn't belong to me.  I learned that I couldn't step into another's steps all my life.  I had to make my own tracks.  I was told by an Elder teacher "you already know" when I was going to ask her something.  This made me think.  I do know.  I do live my life according to what I was taught and it has served me well.

The thing I remember the most, and also the thing I most fought, was "think, figure out how you are going to do this, which ever way is easiest, best for you."  I didn't want that. I wanted someone to do for me.  I wanted to be a child while still having adult privileges.  It doesn't work that way.  

"The Look" is sufficient to get me to correct my behavior, or make me think about what I am doing at the moment I get "The Look"; not always what I want to know either.  "Be quiet and listen" sometimes gets me the knowledge I've been seeking, sometimes without even knowing it.  "Shh" gets my attention now.  "Munge" means I need to look elsewhere because "don't know" can mean several things, likeliest, they don't have time and this is the polite way of saying so.  

One of the most irritating values is "sharing" because it is the one most taken advantage of.  I share.  Others share.  The thing is your family needs must be met before others.  It is out of the "more than you need" category that sharing comes into play.  "Don't have" means just that.  I don't have enough to give you.  My mom says what little we have is shared out.  I sometimes dread this one because little ones most often need to be taken care of and the parent knows this.  Along with sharing is "Replace what you took." That one gets ignored.  

Leaving behind what didn't belong to me included false teachings-ones that were twisted out of recognition.  I struggled with some of them; finally remembered things that helped me sort things out.  Once I got a dream answer.  The world began to make sense, I was finally home.  I know where I come from and I know where I'm going.  Getting there is what makes life worth living.
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added 02 Jul 2012
here is a link that explains a little more about the value system I grew up with
native-art-in-canada.com/index.html