Reznjun

it is another election year. time to hear the great things some will do for us. its too bad we cant hold them accountable. we hear the same thing every election time. i will be at work every day, my door will be open. i will work for the people. candidates show up in places they rarely frequent like ceremonies. after elected that is forgotten. you cant find some council people. the lights are out and the doors are closed. a good way to get rid of someone is elect them then you will never see them again.  some council couldnt find this rez with a gps. they are so far removed from things they dont have the vaguest idea how things work.  that is why some tribal programs run the way they do. if our leaders dont give a damn why should the workers.  lets hope we can find some candidates that will get out of that mold.

you hear some that say they will change things. then they get elected and nothing changes but them. they become what the system is. the system needs changing not our officials. we get the same kind over and over. the system allows people to skirt grey areas. not necessarily doing something illegal but do  things you would consider morally wrong to do to your own people.  the same people benefit from everything while others get nothing. name a tribal program and most can name the ones that will benefit from it.  some of the ones that are suppose to be working ‘for the people’ are really just in it for themselves.

hoping that voters will wake up to how things work. after all it is the voters that elect the council. a proven tactic by some candidates is lets hate on that family by electing me. voters should realize if they elect a person running a negative campaign they will get a negative official. candidates should run on their record.  voters should realize too that incumbents should have actually done something. they often get enamored of someone that has served on a hundred committees. little do they understand they havent done anything on them but travel. their travel takes them away from the very people they are suppose to serve. voters need to do some homework before they vote. they keep voting in the same type. if someone hasnt done anything in years why re-elect them. it is unlikely they will start working. voters have to question why someone is running now but has never showed any interest in the tribe before. is it the money or perceived power? do voters base their info on input from tribal workers who are afraid for their job security. will tribal workers vote for someone just to keep the little power they hold. do voters only vote for their relatives. there are many questions to ask before voting. voters have to grasp they hold power now. the power to change things by electing someone that wont simply maintain status quo. power to rid our people of ones that wont help us.

the vocal minority should learn to shut the hell up too. they dont speak for anyone but themselves. but they affect elections. some people dont want to run for office because they dont want to face the malcontents that have nothing to do but raise hell at general councils. some council people cater to them but wont listen to the average tribal member. they are afraid of alienating the vocal minority. those council members dont understand the vocal minority dont represent the people anymore than they do. both are just serving their own agendas. wake up council. understand that most things these guy propose are voted down at general councils. it not so much council support as it is the lesser of two evils. people want a stable government. they dont want anarchy to rule the day.

i will vote. i always do. if nothing changes life still goes on. i am optimistic enough that i believe someday we will get people that actually work for the people……..

another birthday came and gone. i spent it on the road. i was visiting friends and relatives in the northern country. they surprised me with a cake. i usually dont get cakes. after a certain age i just dont do birthdays all that much. maybe it had something to do with past birthdays that came  without any one remembering.  i was given a few gifts too. didnt expect that.  i will use the things i got.

it does mean something though that others remember. it is a day that they get in touch with you to send wishes. i like that part.  it is neat when people reach out to others, especially in what is sometimes an impersonal world. i think i had bout 70 happy birthdays on facebook. back in the old days i wouldnt have gotten that many cards in 20 years. so modern technology has its upside.

i made a joke with the people i ate cake with. i said the thing about getting old is that all the women that you thought were hot are now old ladies. i was trying to be funny. one of the older ladies looked at me and said they are still hot. i had to laugh. beauty is deeper than mere looks. i have found some of the most beautiful people i know wouldnt be considered that by some others. i know they are beautiful though.

i kinda got a little philosophical around my birthday. i told people that i had lived twice as long as i thought i would. i figured the lifestyle i used to live was gonna do me in. maybe subconciously i was even in a form of self destruct mode. all the booze dope and violence wasnt conducive to a long life. thankfully i was spared a tragic end at a young age. many of my real down bros didnt make it.  i feel grateful that i can still walk this earth. maybe i will make a contribution up ahead. i hope so. i dont want to just take up time and space.

the one good thing about the traveling i have been doing is the exercise i have been getting. i have been running across airports trying to catch flights. i dont know why they cant make connecting flights in terminals right next to each other. i had to run down flights of stairs to jump on a tram that took me to another part of the airport then ran up the stairs to the gates. when i got back from lima the gate was closed. we said that was our flight. the woman working there just gave us a i’m sorry but…….response. so we had to get in line at customer service. then they asked if anyone was going to kansas city. we raised our hands. they asked where the rest of the tour group was. there were 14 in tour. someone said they were still in customs. so they let us board. it cuts into the profits when there are empty seats. it wasnt for our benefit but for the bottom line.

i must be in a traveling mode. i want to go somewhere again. i like to experience other places and people. it makes me appreciate home. this rez is and has always been my starting out and ending up spot.

i named 16 kids and young adults this weekend. among them was my grandson. i was happy to be able to name him. he will carry my brother larry’s name. his has the english name of my other brother bubs. i will never forget those guys. same with my brother mikey. now i will remember them anytime i call my grandson by his names.

we had a good crowd. everything went smoothly. everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. some of the babies maybe had too much excitement when they were being passed around. they were good otherwise. they must have known something good was happening for them. there have been a number of namings this spring. as a result many people are asking what their names mean. i have heard fluent speakers in the past say they dont know the meaning of the names. some are easy to interpret. others are not. most of the meanings of names remembered are because they have been passed down thru family histories. i know some of our names because i was told what they meant by my relatives.

it is time to plant my corn. i need some more since i have been using it when i need to. i was reminded of corn when i was in south america. i seen miles and miles of corn fields while i was on my train ride thru the incan valley. it is fall season down there. so some people were already drying corn. i seen alot of it spread out and drying. they also had piles and piles of potatoes. they grow alot of them down there. i think i read somewhere it is where potatoes were first cultivated. they experimented with them and came up with 3000 varieties of them. i ate some that looked like our wild indian potaoes we have here on the rez.

i had my tiller worked on by one of our rez guys. he changed the oil and tuned it up. he replaced a bad gas line. a mouse built a nest in the place where the pull rope to start the engine is. so it wouldnt start. that was cleaned out. now the tiller runs real good. it is a troy bilt. that is a real good tiller. i put it to work as soon as i got home. the garden program tilled my garden spot with the tractor. it had weeded over so i need to till the weeds under. i will get my corn in now.

some people have commented on the pictures of south america i posted on facebook. one told me they seen resemblances of people they know in the south american people. it kinda reminded me of something. when i was on the longest walk back in my militant days. one of the other tribes had a prophecy that said north and south american people were not two different peoples but were the same people. i can buy that. i seen alot of similiarities in their culture as i do ours. some people want me to have a public showing of my pictures and do a presentation on my trip. they are interested in the culture down there because of my  pictures. i just may do that.

nothing ages a person like a birthday coming up. mine is this week…..

i needed to rest up from my vacation. i got up early a number of days to catch a train or plane or tour bus. i had to be on the go to catch all the sites i was to see. i put in some long hour days most of the time i was gone.  i will remember this trip for the rest of my life. i have always wanted to see machu picchu. i read about it as i was growing up. the same with other ruin sites. i have visited a few of those places. that is something that i thought wasnt possible. i saved for this trip. now i want to go some place else. i havent decided where yet but i will go somewhere.

i was kinda proud of myself that i was able to hang in there at the altitudes i was at. i have to be honest i was short of breath a few times. i just rested until i could go on. i was running on will power. i wanted to see the places we were at. a week wasnt enough time to see everything. i wish i had more time to explore more. i am satisfied about what i did get to see and experience.

i enjoyed south america. i got off on the fact many of the people were brown like i am. i had a few minor problems communicating since i dont speak spanish or quechua. i was able to get by though. i got what ever i needed one way or other. people are the same the world over. if there is a need to communicate it can be done. i find that out while in france and italy. i got by over there too.

the first thing i did when i got back home was to go see my grand son. i hadnt seen him in 10 days. i was hoping he didnt forget me. he is only two months old. as soon as he heard my voice he turned to where i was. i held him and talked to him. i got caught up in south america but i kept thinking about the little guy. i would see children playing everywhere and that made me think of my grand son. i cant wait til i can play games with him. i love that boy.

this week end will be an honor for me. i will get to name my grandson. there will be about a dozen children that we will name. i still remember the words of one of our old men. he said that one of the highest honors there is, is to name ones own grand child. i have named kids a few times. i enjoy that. i do so many funerals that it is nice to see new life starting too. the same with doing marriages. i have a few of them to do down the road.

another thing i did when i got home was to go check on the young red elm trees that i transplanted before i left. as soon as i saw that each tree was sprouting new leaves i felt glad. i know they made it. red elm is the wood we use for our sacred fire. i heard that our people only expanded as far north into canada as there was elm. thats how important the tree was to our people. the same when they were moving our people to our new home here in kansas. when the old ones seen there was elm they accepted the place. i will mulch the trees next. i gotta make sure that they make it.

my dogs were happy to see me too. i missed them as well. i treat them good. they are loyal to me. i am glad that we had people looking after them while we were gone. they fed my chickens too. i like to keep animals on my place. i am used to having them around.

now i got to get back into the routine….

i havent been looking forward to this day at all. it is when i will be leaving peru. i will take a cab to downtown puno this morning to watch a parade and take pictures. the cab ride will cost 10 soles each way or less than 4 bucks. they have this parade every sunday at the main plaza. i will go to watch people. we are suppose to meet back here at the hotel for lunch. it is included in the package deal i paid for.

after lunch we will catch a tour bus to the airport. we will fly to lima. we will get there around 3.  our domestic flight to kansas city will fly out around midnight. so we will have to hang out at the airport for nine hours.  our tour group will have supper together but that wont take long. we will have a layover in houston after we finally get in the air. then we get to kc around 9 in the morning on monday. this will be a long day. we have been getting up early to go on tours. so i will nap somewhere on the plane or aeroporte.

as i said i dont want to leave, i have had such a great time. it seemed like all that existed was right now, where i am at. it was good to get away for a vacation. i am required to do so many things at home. sometimes i have to put my plans aside to help others out. when i see others just blow it off time after time i wonder why i continue to do it.  then i question whether anyone appreciates it or not. then i realize its because thats what i do. i would hate to see our way of life die out just because we wont make the time to keep it going. seeing other cultures strive to survive makes it all worth while.

i enjoyed this country. i couldnt help but think of back home though. when i seen these indians i thought of our own people. when i heard millions still speak quechua i felt sad that our language is on the verge of dying out and not many really care. i am not surprised at all to see the indians in this country are pushed to the side or ignored in their own country. they are to provide color and then disappear. just like back home.

when i seen children i took some pictures of them because that is how they make money. i gave them whatever coins i had. when i seen these children i thought of my grandson back home. i wonder if he has forgotten me in the short time i have been gone. i thought of him often. i wondered about the future of these children in peru. will they maintain their cultural heritage. then i thought what about our children at home will they do the same.

it seems like some in this country have tried to eliminate all traces of the great indian civilization that built this country. indian temples were replaced by churches, using the same stone. no matter how much was taken away from these indians you can still see what they did in this country. there are still terraces in the mountains. there are still irrigation channels being used. many of the buildings in modern peru are built upon the foundations laid by the indians hundreds of years ago. there are still many ruins everywhere. on a island we toured the people build their houses all over except on the tops of the hills where the temple ruins are. they say it is because their ancestors still live there. i thought that was beautiful when i heard that.

i will miss this country. i will remember it again when i go thru the over 1800 pictures that i took. and watch the video i shot. i seen things i will never forget even though i didnt take a picture of it.  the beggars in the street etched an image in my mind i wont forget. i will think of the smiles that indians gave me. they recognized i was a brown man too. we do have something in common. we have our own culture and no one can take that away from us.

time to head into town to see my last glimpses of a beautiful people……….

i went on a tour today on lake titicaca. we traveled by boat to one of the floating islands they have on the lake. the indian people there welcomed us and put on a show for us. then we got to wander around the island to view their handicrafts. i ended up buying more than i wanted to. i seen indian people that had to make a living. so i bought from them. i bought a small reed boat, a baby gourd for my grandson and a colorful hand stitched wall hanging. it had some real bright colors. and i bought some bracelets they weave by hand. i figure i will use them as giveaways.

we then took a ride on one of the reed boats to another island nearby. the tour boat picked us up there. we went to another island that used to be inhabited by quecha then incan people and then the spainards. today the people there still speak quechua and dress in their own clothing. we ate lunch just off the plaza. i had some sopa and trout that was caught in lake titicaca. it was good. after dinner i drank hot coca tea. i have that almost every day. it is how you deal with the altitude. they also have medicinal plants that you breathe. it helps with altitude sickness. so far it hasnt bothered me.

most of the towns here have a central plaza. part of the spanish influence. lotta spanish is spoken too. the plaza on this island was full of natives selling the things they make. many kids come up and try to sell you something. you cant buy from every one of them. so i just buy from a few and call it good. this indian gotta have money too.

after lunch we walked down the trail to the tour boat. it was a 45 minute walk over a stone paved trail. it has been used for hundreds of years.  it went down the hill side to the harbor. i had to stop and rest a few times to catch my breathe. i took pictures too. they still use the terraces to grow food. the terraces and irrigation channels are every where in this country. you dont see all the terraces being used to grow food tho. this island used them.

every time you take a picture of or with someone you have to give them a soles, which amounts to about 37 cents. sometimes i dont have the coins so i give more. i reason that the indian people need it. so i dont sweat it. some tourists dont pay a cent for the pictures.

tonight we are heading into town to eat. and people watch. i have been doing that all the time while here. i try to greet whoever i see. many smile and talk to me. thing is my spanish is very limited. i am amazed at how many of the people are brown. browner than i am. i think they are a beautiful people. i admire them for keeping their culture alive. and their languages. i have enjoyed this trip immensely. tomorrow we just kick back and rest for the long flight home. we catch a plane to lima. then catch a domestic flight to kansas city. i will be home early monday morning. i sure wish this trip would have lasted longer. i will remember it the rest of my life.

i spent the whole day on a train ride thru the sacred valley of the inca. it was a real nice train. it had real nice soft seats. they had a observation car where you could go back to the rear of the train and look out. it was open air with just a hand rail to hold you in. i took a few pictures from there. i still marvel at the height of the mountains.  they as high as some of the peaks in colorado. we passed thru many incan towns. looked like all the inhabitants were indians. i waved at a few. they waved backed. i took pictures of many natives.

i had to laugh at one town. i was standing at the back watching the people. one old man hollered at the train ´gringos´. i just pointed at him and smiled cuz i thought that was funny. he must have too because he laughed and waved back. probably seen i was a brown man. i met a few people on this trip that got off on me being an indian from north america. one said we were the same. i agreed. i have tried to use what little spanish i know. once i said good day to someone. i walked on a few feet and they said americano. guess i dont sound right. maybe i will start to learn spanish. its funny here most of the t v stations are in spanish. so i dont watch much t v.

i am feeling healthier because i am eating better down here. the food is great. i am trying all kinds of foods i wouldnt eat back home.  probably cuz we traveling first class and staying at the best hotels. i imagine its different in other parts of town. you can see signs of poverty in this country. just like anywhere else. you dont see the people as being down tho. they are a good looking people. where i am at now are mostly indians. a few spanish. they run the hotels, diners, tours etc. the indians are second class citizens in their own land. kinda like brown indians back home.

i bought a few t shirts and a coupla alpaca sweaters. they told me they were grande. i tried them on and found out grande here is a little guy. it dont fit an injun like me. they dont have pow wow size. i guess now i will have some more giveaways. i have bought a few trinkets here and there. the natives must peg me as an easy mark. i dont haggle much. i figured hell help out the indians. so they just give me a price and i usually go with it. now and then i will try to get it lower. i have gotten some good deals.

tomorrow we are going on a tour of lake titicaca. will even have a chance to ride one of the reed boats they use here. i may go for that. i gotta make sure i am downing my coca tea because of the altitude. i have been drinking it regularly. it helps alot. the altitude hasnt bothered me that much. a few times i had to catch my breathe. must be going on sheer will power. got go find something to eat. they fed us lunch on the train but not supper.

went on a tour today in cuzco. we went to a church of some kind. it showed what the spaniards did to the incan temple which was basically took it apart and made a church out of it. i still get the willies when i go into a church, a holdover from the days at boarding school.  some of the original wall is still left. i took many pictures of it. i forgot to take my arthritis pill so my back was hurting from standing on all that stone work. the original complex was the incan capitals temple of the sun. i wonder why the world has to try to destroy the indian world to save the indian.

after we left the church we went to several incan ruin sites. at one park the stone walls were gigantic. one of the stones weighed 200 tons. the stones we engineered to fit together with no room in the seams. it was magnificent work. the walls were actually higher but the spainards raided the place to take the stone to build with. they couldnt move the larger stones so they left then. evidently they didnt possess the indians knowledge.  i took many pictures of that place. we went to another place that was the temple of the cougar. only a part of it was still standing. way back in the day some priest had parts of it destroyed to stop the worship there.

after that our tour went to another church. it was a huge cathedral. i heard a few comments about the pagan incas. i wonder how they arrived at that. some religions arent tolerate about other peoples beliefs. they cant believe that all religions worship the same god. the cathedral was full of gold and silver. i wondered at that. why do churchs have to possess wealth. why not take the gold and silver and help the poor. or all of mankind.

we had lunch near the central plaza. i had prawn soup. it tasted good. the prawns looked like crawdads to me. i asked if i was suppose to eat them.  i was told yes. so i used my hands to tear the prawns apart and ate the meat. it wasnt that bad. my main course was suckling pig that was deboned and stuffed. it was kinda tough. i thought young pig would be real tender. i just had to try it. so far on this trip the only thing that i ate that was fried was the guinea pig. the rest was broiled or cooked. i am eating alot of fresh vegetables and fruit. i am drinking alot of bottled water too. i wonder why i dont eat this healthy at home.

after i left lunch i found a tobacco store that had cuban cigars. they only had one left. a cohiba for 8 bucks. i took it and smoked it in the plaza. i enjoyed that smoke. the only thing about the plaza is local street vendors come up to you and give you a strong sales pitch. they even follow you and ask ‘how you you pay. i dont mind looking but i do want my privacy. no i dont wont to buy now leave me the hell alone.

kicking back at the hotel now. we are staying at some real nice places. these arent chain motels. i am resting up for tomorrow. we have a 10 hour train ride thru the sacred valley of the inca. that should be fun. i am charging my camera batteries. i have taken over 1200 pictures so far. and shot video. i will go eat with my daugther wabeno tonite. having a great time….

we left agua calientes today. i didnt return to machu picchu for another tour. i stayed in town to shop and walk around. i also got a righteous massage for 25 bucks for an hour. it was so good after walking all day yesterday that i almost proposed to the lady that gave me a massage. the resorts we have been staying at are charging like a 100 bucks for a massage. i look for a good value.

we took a train to cuzco. it was about a 4 hour ride. they threw in lunch. and they put on a fashion show. we got to cuzco around 7. we checked into the hotel. it is about 2 blocks from the main plaza. they said all the action revolves around the square. after i dropped my back pack off in the room i headed to the square to smoke a cigar. i bought what i thought was a cuban cigar for 20 bucks in agua calientes but it wouldnt draw. they musta thought sell this one to the crazy looking turisto. so i ended up smoking my cheap cigar from back home.

i walked around the square and sat down on a park bench. while there a number of street vendors came up to sell their wares. i bought a number of things. i got a sack full for 20 bucks. it was a good deal. i am wondering how i will pack all the things i am buying. i have 4 t shirts and other things. maybe i will have to toss some of my old clothes out to make room. tomorrow we will go on another tour of ruins. so far i have taken over a thousand pictures.

i am really enjoying this trip. i still have a few more days.

we left our lodging this morning at 5 oclock. we had to catch a train to agua calientes which is at the bottom of the hill of machu picchu. the train followed the river. you could see the white water of the rapids. several years ago it rained so much it washed out the train tracks. we transferred to a bus that took us on a ride that had me wondering. it was back and forth up the mountain in a series of hair pin turns. we met other busses full of turistos. there was barely enough room to pass each other on the narrow road. the scary part was seeing straight down the mountain side. there were only a few places that had guard rails.

after the ride we finally arrived at machu picchu early in the morning. thats the reason we left so early. so we could beat the turistos to the site. we walked and walked and walked. we covered part of it and had lunch. our tour group has 14 people in it. after lunch about half went back to the hotel. i continued on with the tour. most of the tourists left early. it is considered to be the start of the fall season here. because the place became kinda deserted compared to the morning crowd our tour guide asked if we wanted to do something that wasnt on the tour. we said sure. so he took us on a hike up part of the incan trail.

that was quite a hike. we walked along just a narrow trail on the side of the mountain. you could look down and see the river way below. they said you had to lean back against the rocks or you could fall forward. we climbed higher and higher. i marveled that i made the walk. it is at altitude and is a steep climb. i figured the cheap cigars i smoked would prevent me from enjoying all of the tour. but i hung in there. we followed the incan trail until we came to a bridge. after the bridge the trail was covered over. that was part of the escape route the incans took back in the day. the trail was covered to prevent those following from catcing up with them. it was a good adventure to walk that trail.

so far on this trip i have taken over 900 pictures. i also shot video. i know i have taken many good pictures. maybe a few bad ones but probably not that many. photography has been a hobby of mine for years. i also bought a brand new nikon camera with an extra battery just for this trip. i didnt want to miss any shots because i had a cheap camera. or because the batteries died on me. i have been lucky in that i can charge my camera batteries every night at the hotels i stayed at. they are rather nice places to stay. plus i dont need a converter to use american products. i am on public access computers so i cant post any of my pictures.

another thing i am enjoying is the food. i am staying away from american type dishes. so far i have tried octopus, shrimp, trout, several kinds of potatoes, lots of fresh fruits, guinea pig, raw fish, and other dishes i dont even know the names for. it is all good. havent had one bad meal.

i wont get to go soak in the hot springs here. the locals say the place isnt kept clean. oh well.  i wonder what the rest of the  trip will be like. i will see…