LOL. How bout , how native is your white world?

[Kiwehnzii]

How come there's no zhaaganosh, chimooks, bilangas, wasicus replying to this thread?

[ndngirl70]

How come there's no zhaaganosh, chimooks, bilangas, wasicus replying to this thread?

Probably because they've never lived without a toliet and lights! I grew up without modern conviences and an outhouse and I have to say....I like the flush!
And I've done the tv hooked up to the car thing too! It was a 6 in!

[wyo_rose]

Well, I like the flush too. But I think guys should have an outhouse still. Then my bathroom would stay clean. And with all these modern conveniences come all the hassles - water freezing up, flapper needs replaced, kids flushing foreign objects, toliet overflows, septic needs to be pumped - and that's just the LOO!!!

My ex used to say that Indians would be the ones that could live off the land when/if there was a breakdown of society, nuclear attack, WWIII or whatever. But the youngsters nowadays are pretty spoilt.

I could live without a lot of things, but being able to run my hands under hot water in the morning is one thing I don't want to give up. **looking up how to install a solar water heater**

[Cherie]

I have a washer/ dryer but I still perferr to hang our clothes outdoors. I don't own a sewing machine,glue gun etc.

I still think it's much more fun to rough it in the woods. And I do mean roughing it.And I don't mean sleeping in tents in sleeping bags or sleeping in a camper/motorhome. There's no comparison between cooking food over a open fire, catching your own fish instead of that junk that you find in the stores.

There are probably some modern conveniences I couldn't live without but I feel it wouldn't make me any less of who and what I am.

[**jdazmum**]

I'm there with you Wyo, men need to use outhouses so they can splish splash all they want and we don't have to clean up. I'd rather give up t.v. than hot water too. Taking cold showers or baths isn't clean enough for me. I can't live without bleach or cleaning stuff, gotta have them. I can live without phones too. I sometimes wonder about living with nature would sure save me a lot of money! I spend about $1,000 a month on bills! All that could be going in my pocket. Something I've been considering lately, it's a long shot though, just as long as I can heat up my water and take a descent shower I'm fine.

[little bird]

How native is my white world? Not very 'round here there's alot of wannabe's, natives that act more "white", and the natives I do know, are treated bad by the system in one way or another.

[Wakalapi]

How native is my white world? Not very 'round here there's alot of wannabe's, natives that act more "white", and the natives I do know, are treated bad by the system in one way or another.

I find it is like that around Seattle, too.

What I find kinda funny, not funny ha-ha but funny as in what-the-, is that some white people will not accept that we can be "traditional" unless we go all the way back to the stone age. Like we can't even hit a drum or sing a song as long as we have a car, somehow our "modern" lifestyles completely invalidates who we are. I think it's their conquest-mentality acting up sometimes and needing a good whippin'.

[Hwii Siziinii]

(a bilagaana has entered the thread...) How native is my white world? Not enough! As a white person with no native experiences at all, my first thoughts when seeing the Hopi rez in 1990 were "my god! look at the poverty these people live in!" Then, not long after, I began to realize there wasn't a sense of great despair that your average non-native would feel being placed in that situation. Everyone seemed content. Even the animals seemed happy. Years later as I became swayed by a Navajo woman to learn more, I found things to be so much more relaxed around natives. People found humor in no so obvious things. There wasn't that stupid racing to get to no where in particular right away. Hanging around with native friends, I saw more sharing, more respect for family. I learned to enjoy mutton, blue corn mush, and that there's a lot of things that taste good on frybread! Showing up at a friend's aunt's house on the rez at 12:30a (without notice) and being welcome as long as there was floor space. Hanging out on the side of the road with your friend's brother you just saw an hour ago. Eating with your hands. Pointing with my lips. Telling the white lady at the Indian Hospital that I'm part Cherokee then telling her I'm just kidding, just so I could crack up the other natives waiting for their prescriptions. Besides the ignorance, racism, and history, there's a lot I can do without in my white world. I can't change what I am. Don't want to. But I can learn and take in the lessons that can be learned from natives. I wish more people would...

[Wakalapi]

(a bilagaana has entered the thread...) How native is my white world? Not enough! As a white person with no native experiences at all, my first thoughts when seeing the Hopi rez in 1990 were "my god! look at the poverty these people live in!" Then, not long after, I began to realize there wasn't a sense of great despair that your average non-native would feel being placed in that situation. Everyone seemed content. Even the animals seemed happy. Years later as I became swayed by a Navajo woman to learn more, I found things to be so much more relaxed around natives. People found humor in no so obvious things. There wasn't that stupid racing to get to no where in particular right away. Hanging around with native friends, I saw more sharing, more respect for family. I learned to enjoy mutton, blue corn mush, and that there's a lot of things that taste good on frybread! Showing up at a friend's aunt's house on the rez at 12:30a (without notice) and being welcome as long as there was floor space. Hanging out on the side of the road with your friend's brother you just saw an hour ago. Eating with your hands. Pointing with my lips. Telling the white lady at the Indian Hospital that I'm part Cherokee then telling her I'm just kidding, just so I could crack up the other natives waiting for their prescriptions. Besides the ignorance, racism, and history, there's a lot I can do without in my white world. I can't change what I am. Don't want to. But I can learn and take in the lessons that can be learned from natives. I wish more people would...

If every white person who visits powwows thought like you do, there would be so much more respect between the two worlds. Good post!

[Kiwehnzii]

Hey there, Bilanga! You're alright. Some of my good friends are white people.

I know a coupla them like you.

[**jdazmum**]

I like that response HS, I really admire your open-heart. Some whites don't answer culture shock like you did, but for those who do, I see them hanging around the rez more often than none. They marry into families on the rez, get a job on the rez, build a home and their kids go to the same schools as ours, it's all good. I'm still waiting for which one of my neices will marry a non-native.

[Hwii Siziinii]

How old are your nieces? I like it up there. I've visited about 5 times whether it be going up there alone, with the woman I was going out with ("we're just friends!"), or with one of my language classes at Phoenix College. I've got my favorite towns and places. It's all like 'well, whatever'. Everybody's just chill. By the way, native time is contagious. Living up there might be a trick 'cause I'm a city kid. The smallest place I've lived is Tucson. A native friend (I call her shadi) tells me I'd never make it on the rez. But, I do like to go up there when I can. For everyone's kind remarks, ahehee'.

[Joe's Dad]

How old are your nieces? I like it up there. I've visited about 5 times whether it be going up there alone, with the woman I was going out with ("we're just friends!"), or with one of my language classes at Phoenix College. I've got my favorite towns and places. It's all like 'well, whatever'. Everybody's just chill. By the way, native time is contagious. Living up there might be a trick 'cause I'm a city kid. The smallest place I've lived is Tucson. A native friend (I call her shadi) tells me I'd never make it on the rez. But, I do like to go up there when I can. For everyone's kind remarks, ahehee'.

I like the part about where you grab a blanket and sleep on the floor when you 'drop by'!!!

[lshields]

back in the old days.

Those of you who can remember way back when and how things were. No Radio, TV, Electricity, or indoor plumbing may wish your kids had a chance to live it. Well I grew up in a totally white world. Interestingly enough I too had a chance to relish things like out houses, drinking water from streams, milking cows by hand, and etc.
I still on occasion even experience no electricity.
Then someone else mentioned ‘back in the day of wagons, plows, and oil lamps. Were they not intrusion into the way of life in their own time?
And here I sit trying to get with the program and revive some of my roots. When you are only 5% or so you have a very small plant to nurture and take root so that your children will have a small plant to take care of and make grow. So be thankful of what culture you have, some of us don’t even have that.
Now the real nut to crack is getting the youth of today interested enough in the culture of our ancestors. How often have you hear something to the following: ‘But Grandma we don’t need a medicine bag, We have doctors and pills to get us well!’
‘Grandpa, can we borrow the truck/car to go into town so we can see our friends and shop (walk around the mall)?’
Hummm, Some say we need to get the kids more interested into doing some of the old things. Maybe we do but we must also make the youth want to think on their own. The society of today made up of 99% sheep. Just the other day I went to get my grandson from school to home. It was only 3 miles but he called his mother 3 times wanting to know when he was going to come and pick him up. It was sunny out and about 65 degrees. I asked his mother why can't he walk instead of you taking off from work to pick him up and carting him home where he is going to sit in front of the TV. She said it was unsafe and anyway she would have to put up with his lip for weeks. Well I went to get him just to be nice to my daughter. When I got to the school I could not tell him from any of the other students till he walked up to me. When I mentioned his clothes to him he said hew was not in a uniform but that he was doing his own thing. Then on the next breath he asked me to not come to the front of the school because my car and I were not’ Cool’. I was driving a white Ford Focus with a 34 inch wingspan western Swallowtail butterfly painted on the hood (done in memory of his grandmother). You don’t know how tempted I was to take away his cell phone and make him get out and walk the remaining 2 miles home.
If he ever does it again he will be walking.

[WocusWoman]

I like the part about where you grab a blanket and sleep on the floor when you 'drop by'!!!

-boy that brings up memories..... then you wake up wondering where that blanket has been, and how long ago it was washed, but you don't say a darned thing because you were so darned tired and grateful for the space on the floor!