Reznjun

been off line for a week. it was pure hell. i called the company that has a monopoly on wireless internet on the rez bout a month ago. then i waited. and waited. i called them back a coupla times. once they said they would get a technician out here as soon as possible. a week and a half later they said they would call me back. they never did. so i called the cable company i get my tv package from, they said they would be here in 3 days to hook me up. they did. which brings me back to the people that have a deal with our tribe. they put their equipment on our tower and for this we are suppose to get like a 10 dollar discount a month. i dont expect preferential treatment because of that, i just expect fair treatment. to wait almost a month for service is not fair treatment. i called a councilman that works with this company. i got his voicemail. it sounded so sincere. i left a message. havent heard a thing from him either. seems like when some companies do business with us, we get screwed. just like back in the old fort system. we just dont learn. to stimulate competition we should do business with at least two companies. then maybe, just maybe we could get better service for a better price. not likely tho.

have been reading about the ’sweat lodge’ deaths down in the southwest. wish they would stop referring to this as a ’sweat lodge’. it is roughly based on the concept of a sweat lodge. i doubt you could call it a sweat lodge. i first went into a sweat about 50 years ago. i have been in sweats all over the country with many different tribes. i have never been in one that held 60 people. nor was there a $10 thou price tag on going in.  sure i have seen that there are plenty of scam artists that try to profit off native spirituality. seen that all over the country. some were passing them selves off as natives, even had what they thought were  ’native’ sounding names. names like raven, or two wolves, or princess moonbeam.  their credentials often stated they studied under some un-named tribal elder, usually the grandson of a past chief. i dont know bout other tribes but i do know that prairie band leaders are here on the rez. not out on the traveling medicine show circuit.

 when i worked with native prisoners i seen there were more scams doing the work than natives. at one place i was involved in a squeeze play by a wannabe. he and his followers (these guys always have followers) wanted me out of the way, so they worked the administration against me. said there were secret rituals that i didnt know about. secret rituals? wtf.  he was a light skin, so his word had more sway than this blanket ass injun. i was out the door in no time. i seen this guy recently. he turned around and walked away from me, as if i had done something wrong to him. i just laughed at him.

i have met many people that want to learn native ways. i dont know if this is right or wrong. really isnt my place to judge one way or the other. many were bright, sincere people. its too bad that they end up following the charlatans that are out there. i dont believe that spirituality can be bought. nor do i believe natives have the only spiritual ways. i think everyone can be spiritual. i dont think they have to follow the ways of potawatomis to be spiritual. they have their own way within themselves that they need to find.  i just wish that people would be smart enough to know it costs nothing to find God.

i had my regular 3 month lab work done at the clinic. while there i was asked if i wanted a flu shot. i thought sure why not, i am here anyway. a couple of days later i got sick. more like a cold than the flu.  since i am a homebody i wondered how i caught the bug. only solace i had was that whoever gave the bug to me musta felt that miserable too at one time. hope the shot keeps the flu away. the experts say as a safegaurd against the swine flu we should constantly wash our hands. in that case the politicians in our country are safe, since they wash their hands of everything.

now that i have wireless i can surf a little faster…..so i am off….