May 2012 Catch Up

Wow. I have been scarce on my own welcome mat for SO long! I apologize for anyone who may have been reading my blog. I am a long way from home at the moment. I am on the east coast for the summer and will be working in the exciting field of Cellular Mechanics with some doctors. I start a full-day tomorrow and have been reading up on research material. I am taking the summer off from school (university) to make some money while gaining some work experience. Granted it is not biochemistry but as long as it pays and I learn new concepts it will totally be worth it!

The dorm I am assigned to stay in is very small! I do have a small fridge and an electric cooking top which should serve to keep this girl fed all summer! I had arrived on Sunday and attended an informal luncheon with my fellow interns. It went fine but I was a bit nervous as there was a short speech we had to make! I forged through despite being very tired from two-hours worth of sleep the night before. I had ventured out on Monday to find some food. I woke around 9ish Monday morning and remembered I only had leftover salad and a half finished soda from our arrival luncheon.

A nice lady pointed me some directions to a nearby grocery store. The path had taken me down the street a couple of blocks in thick swamp blanket humidity! I did not think it was so bad when I had first left but on the walk back with a couple of bags of groceries (people offered me rides which I did not accept) it was pretty bleak. I looked at it like “this is a good experience” and “I do need to eat” but that mood later turned to “Sh*** why does the dorm have to be up the f*g hill?!” I made it back and made myself a French bread pizza. Looking at the weather forecast the high on Monday was 96 F and the humidity was in the 60s. The feeling was that I was sporting a wet look after getting back in and looking in my mirror. Despite the mucky humidity I do have to say that I am fortunate to be in a beautiful central location on the east coast! Major cities associated with the NE are nearby and DC is not that far also. I will definitely make time to go out and see the sights over the course of the summer. Looking in the mirror I also noticed a slight bulge on my side. Erk!!! Need to make use of my running shoes for sure!

That makes this another pin to push on to the map of the world which is wonderful. Plans are wonderful to fulfill so for those of you who dream and feel like they are impossible. Keep working toward it. One step at a time. Take care. 

More to come soon :-)

A Desert Yuletide

Almost time for kids faces to light up with delight at their presents or frown when Grandpa Harry sends them socks and pencils for Christmas. It is supposed to be winter here in northern Arizona but alas there is no precipitation of frozen H20 present. So we’re having the equivalent of a southern Arizona Yuletide- cold and snowless. The cynical side of me says that this time of the year is evil incarnate. It breaks peoples banks, makes lonely people even more lonely, yadda yadda yadda. The optimistic side of me is a little aghast at how much I spent but it will be worth it to see faces when they open up their presents. So.... my take on gift giving time is don't be too much of a tightwad...otherwise you may get handed some form of the proverbial "lump of coal."

I was done with my final semester at college around the week of the 5^th this month. I did well. I got all A’s except for a B in Precalculus. Now the plan is I’ll be leaving for the university in three weeks. I am very excited about this! I am a non-traditional student so this will be interesting all over again...just on a different level :) 

I have:

Organic Chemistry lecture

Organic Chemistry discussion

Organic Chemistry lab

Calculus I

[and a soon to be filled 3 credit hour course]

I was book hunting since last weekend (still am) and looks like I have a nice little book bill that I will be faced with. I decided to use my usual plan and go for online, used, and use member privileges to garner a deal. I found one for my Organic Chem lecture for almost half-off what the school is charging. Ochem lab books will be purchased from the school. It seems that my professor for lab has written two lab books and we will be using her books. 

I’m off to take a nap. I had to take a relative to the hospital late last night and was up all night until we got home this morning. I did sleep for 3 hours when I got back but am still tired. 

If I know you and you know me then I am probably thinking about you. I wish all of you and yours a….

Happy Holidays! Feliz Navidad! Merry Keshmish!

Midterm madness is over...whew!

Just got done with midterms. I am relieved. Now that the halfway point is here I see my transition to university just right around the corner. So far I have submitted my application and will be doing my transcripts very shortly. I have a transfer counselor as of tonight also :)

I need a car! Seriously. I hate to think about the cost of owning a car but it will be a necessity as I leave the reservation. I will be on my own and the need for some type of transportation seems very likely. It's 11:35pm here and I am reading and taking notes for my Patho class. I was SO SO SO tired this morning I came back after classes and fell asleep. I had a two hour nap which helped out immensely.

Naps= good

My post is very short this time. I'm feeling a little sleepy and will turn in soon. I just want to read another page and then I'm taking my heinee to bed. Nite nite.

Post AS/AA Degree

Finished my summer classes with superb results. I got As in my Statistics and Human Development classes. I am now in my second week into Fall 2001 and so far very nice and somewhat easier than the last three semesters….so far. I will have classes pretty much on Mon, Tues, and Weds only after next week. My jogging instructor (lol we need one for this?!) has to teach a “Fitness for Life” class as the instructor for that class is no longer available to teach it. So we ran today and since I come in a little late from Precal he gave me the 411. He said that since we don’t have to show up we will need to keep track of our physical and cardio workouts with worksheets.

You think I have a problem with this??!! Lol.

I do run every other evening, started pilates, and think I’m pretty active so I think I’ll be fine. My precal instructor has also given us the option of having class 2 ½ hours per day Mon-Wed and not coming in on Thurs…. which brings us up to my soon to be “super duper cool” schedule.

Mon                             Tues                      Wed                           Thurs

Precalculus               Precalculus    Precalculus                OFF

Pathophysiology          OFF              Pathophysiology     OFF

Also not shown but another class I am taking is a humanities class that is online. It is called “Humanities Through the Arts” and is interesting. A change of pace and a little wordy but I’ll manage. I think I’ll spend a majority of my class work writing papers and posting class discussion responses for this class.

I <3 <3 <3 this soon to be schedule!

Don’t get me wrong Pathophysiology is pretty hardcore so I’ll be reading for days and looking up videos to give me the layman explanation for some complex concepts. Precal is well….mathy so hopefully the synapses connect and rewiring in my gray matter optimizes for the language of mathematics!

I received my graduation petition and just need to fill out the information, pay my petition fee, and I should receive my degrees in the mail. I now hold an AS degree in Health Occupations and an AS in Social and Behavioral Sciences as of this past month (August). Not bad considering where I was at a couple of years ago. I will keep moving forward and can just repeat what my friend Gwen said about the upcoming struggles and hardships we will face as students of science- Bring it on!

The Real Mamma Jamma

I have some exciting new developments that I'd like to share. First my academics are great so far- straight As across the board. Yep that is for:

Anatomy and Physiology II
General Chemistry II
Nutrition
Microbiology

For those of you new to my blog I had severe doubts about school not that long ago! Now that I'm done with more sciences....there's more to take in the future! I'm excited about this and am studying ahead of time for some classes I wish to take in the future. I've decided to stay with Nursing and do that for awhile and switch over to Biochemistry at a later date. The school I want to go to requires me taking all the sciences (physics, chemistry, and biology), calculus w/analytic geometry, and upper-level major oriented courses.

Yes the road for science is broad and wonderful :)

I have 35 new credit hours of college science courses since I made the decision to return to school in Fall 2009.

Things are moving along now that I've joined a national organization dedicated to Native Americans in higher education :) I recently traveled to compete in a science bowl also. We advanced to the second round but lack of strategy hampered our win. Good stuff and great opportunity to travel. Only drawback was I got behind in my classes and worked like a "mad woman" to get back on track.

Ugh I don't want to go through that anytime soon again!

So now I'm enrolled in two summer courses and have started one online already. Hopefully I can get financial aid as one course is from my current school and the other is from another school. It should go through AFAIK...

*keeping me fingers crossed*

OH and one more thing!!! Does anyone have any suggestions for old school papers??!!! I am collecting quite a bit and losing storage space also! Let me know!!!

Have a great day :) :) :)

Spring Time- 2011

YAWN!!!

It's late here and I've got a dental cleaning tomorrow. Got to remember to give some extra attention to my teeth tonight! Just want to let everyone know I'm still in school and am taking the second sequence of Gen Chem (Gen Chem II) and Anatomy & Physiology (A&P II).

Yeah that means I passed the first classes :) :):) Gen Chem is slowly revealing it's secrets to me... but it's a tough nut for me to crack. I'm feeling more confident but it's been SO long since I've dealt with moles and natural logs of initial reactions and the first order equations. I'm feeling the challenge and love it! A&P isn't too bad. I just had the ummm... recklessness to take two other sciences also for a grand total of four science classes w/3 labs.

:Groan:

It's awesome to know that I'm making progress so that makes this temporary torture bearable lol. I'm going to take my Statistics and Human Development this summer. Just need Pathophysiology AFAIK to complete my pre-reqs for BSN school after this summer :)

Now here's the clincher. I'm going to take General Organic I and II if it's available this upcoming academic school year. I'm also going to definitely up the ante on my mathematics. I want to get up to Calc II or Calc w/analytical geometry. Yes this means I have a temporary new interest and that is Biochemistry.

This is going to be a year of tough decisions!!! SO GLAD it's spring break for me right now!!! Just got to keep my spirits up and make that guy I have a crush on fall madly in love with me! Sheesh I know. I'm pretty much an independent woman but I got my needs!!! lol.

I'm out. Good night :)

Next Semester....Por Favor :P

Another semester has gone by so quickly once again. The days of my Blackberry screeching its alarm at 6AM are absent for the time being! It was an interesting experience to live in the school dormitory for a change versus commuting to my classes. The last time I stayed in a dorm was in Job Corps and that was almost over a decade ago!

Grades haven't posted yet but wish me luck!!!

I have a little over a month off of school then it's time to get back to books again. For now I'm just going to chill out and take care of things I could not get to while in school. I really worked my heinee off so if I get a 4.0 then I don't know how I should reward myself.... I've been wanting a smaller laptop but reasonable side of me says the current one will suffice. It's a 14' widescreen laptop and I love it but I've been looking at a 12' widescreen version of what I have and it's definitely appealing. It would also be easier to lug around w/20lbs of Science books!

Here's a tune that I'm going to throw in just because....love it! Have a great night :)

Net Ionic equations....filtering stuffs

They say that "no pain no gain" is a prerequisite to success.

Wonder if that person took 16 credit hours? School has been great so far and the rewards for working hard make for some warm fuzzy feelings. I have a great set of friends whom I never would have thought I'd get along with. It's definitely different this time around as the kids are in a stage of life where they are away from home. I remember those days and it's definitely strange being the adult this time around.

The classes are pretty easy but Chemistry is something that I will have to work at. The concepts are straightforward but wait! I have Anatomy to study for also...oh and a speech to prepare for! You get the picture. I saw my Doc yesterday and he commended me on my workload and how motivated I was. I was thinking just a couple more months and I'll have a degree- and hopefully have time for a much needed break!

I have four more classes left in order to graduate. Those classes are three science classes and a public health class. I also will take my Statistics class in the summer although a classmate basically told me I was crazy for doing that. Apparently it's a difficult class and would be even more so if crammed into a summer session. If...If I can get through this next semester with at least a B average then Statistics will be a piece of cake :)

If anyone reads this send me a word of encouragement sometimes for real! It might seem insignificant but an "out of the blue" message like that just might come at a time I need it!

I'm done with my summer session. I get 2 1/2 weeks off which I plan to spend doing minimal things!

I'm hoping that I have a degree by next summer... depends on how much I bust ass this fall and spring! It's a familiar yet old experience that I feel upon returning to the main campus this fall. I had attended this school way way way back... i'm not going to say when b/c I'm sensitive about my age these days >_< Anyhow I've changed... hopefully for the better. I did not take school seriously back then and dropped out with bad grades. Now I have good grades and have pretty much done a 180. I'm pleased with that and believe me when I say it wasn't easy! Just unbelievable amounts of reading, researching, writing, and studying. I was saying school is my full-time job and I stand by that saying! I've gone through some very traumatic things in the past and have been dealing the best way I can with those memories. Sometimes they render me powerless. Sometimes I'm okay. I'm just hoping that these memories don't interfere when I move to University and start a new experience with a different type of academic environment. I know for sure it'll be tough and people will look at this small-town girl and think I'm a Clampett :P This evening and some other evenings I miss the old days. I remember how I used to feel before all the events that changed my life happened to me. I was pretty much fearless. I didn't get scared. I wasn't so indecisive and worried about what other people thought about me. I almost feel like I'm lucky to count how many people I would consider friends on one hand. I feel alone. When I was out partying and hanging out I had guy friends who meant a lot to me over time. One guy in particular would stand up for me and helped me out once in a while. He's gone now due to violence. I sometimes will think of him and remember the time he showed up out of nowhere and saved me from an unsavory situation. I always feel such a tremendous amount of love for him and regret not being there when he was taken. I know it's not my fault but that what if... comes into my mind and I feel like if I had been in the area maybe he would have been with my friends and I instead of that place where he was taken. I can't even say the word k****d because it hurts to even think about it.

I don't know. I think of how my life was back then and how it is now. I just thank my lucky stars I made it out of there alive.

Kinda a venting blog. Rambling too. I just feel I need to do it sometimes. Anyhoo I'm out. I'm going to finish checking on my favorite sites and then finish watching a bit of a potty humor kind of movie to take my mind off things. Have a good night or day wherever you are. I miss you B!

Cellular None- in Rezzie Land

I am the proud owner of a new-to-me Blackberry 8900.



It is TMobile branded and works with a SIM card. I was very excited in my purchase of this device and was thinking what great ways I could use this as it has a built-in keyboard. Texting and writing covert notes to my classmates came to mind! Little did I know that the signal was crap out here!

In my neck of the desert Cellular One is the owner of every cotton-pickin' cell phone tower out here!

What does this mean??? It means that they have authority over which company they will allow to piggy-back off their towers! My coverage just stinks! For those of you who aren't familiar with the Navajo reservation Cellular One seems to have been picked as the sole cellular provider out here on the reservation. My gripe is I don't want to use Cellular One. I would prefer to have variety and a choice in what cell company I can use in the comfort of my own home! I feel shady politics has a lot to do with giving this cell company such a stranglehold on the cell phone consumer out here.

I'm only keeping the Blackberry for future investment. I should have my AS degree by next May so I'm planning on going on to University in a nearby city. I know they have coverage out there so I'll be keeping it for that. What burns me up is the fact that despite living in a democracy there are no plans in our tribal future to allow more cell companies to set up antennas here. I've looked through the Cellular One website and from what I can tell they don't have any Blackberries there. I see a Nokia E75 and Samsung Jack but I don't have the funds to buy another phone... nor do I want to start a plan!

For other reservation people who may think of getting a WIFI-capable Tmobile Blackberry. There is the ability to run off a service called UMA. This will allow your phone to create an Tmobile connection with your existing WIFI router and allow you to use your phone to make calls, text, etc. That's fine and dandy until you decide to walk about 100 ft away from the router and suddenly you realize your phone has you under house arrest!!!


Come back near the router! You aren't allowed any further!!!

Needless to say I'm disappointed and will leave a message for the Tribal President and Speaker of the Tribe tomorrow regarding the lackluster cell coverage out here!

I'll be here for anyone who has questions on my sitch or is just flabbergasted on the chintzy cell phone state of affairs out here!

a little rant... um actually a big one

I feel it is someone's duty to inform everyone that MTF transgender come in all shapes, sizes, and mannerisms. Like all girls some of us might have a tad bit of tomboyishness and others might conform to the stereotypes that we do not know what a hammer is and all like the color pink!

The path to reconcile how I feel inside and what the body I'm in is a fucking difficult task! Just like everyone else I have days that I'm bulletproof and other days my hormones are not quite balanced that cause me to cry at the smallest provocation.

Some days I am dismayed when I am called a sir or have someone I know refer to me as a man. That literally just sends daggers into my spirit and I feel myself bleeding to death.

It does get that way sometimes.

My dream is to get my SRS and align how I feel with the vessel I am experiencing this life in. I cannot think of any other way to express the horror I feel when I have to wake up everyday and know that I'm in this body. I don't want to be a f*n princess. I am not girly girly and feel I can make shit happen for myself. That's where I'm at mentally! I like messing around with computers and like science. Does that make it right to place value judgments on me?! I know plenty of uterus-equipped women that like to rumble and tumble with the boys and hold non-traditional jobs that some women would crumble under. Does that make them less woman or not a woman?

I beg of everyone who knows me to quit reminding me about my biological misalignment and show this woman some respect. She's worked her ass off and is trying her best to make her way through this life with some shred of happiness. Thank you.

Need a ride to..... anywhere.

I’m slowly getting over a cold… argh! I was quite vigilant in my daily running but this has set me back a couple of days. I had a deviated septum repair last month so I think pushing myself so hard has aggravated the area and caused me to get sick! It stinks but I’ll deal. I am relieved that the halfway point is coming up for the semester and that more credits will be added to my graduation checklist. I have certainly been working hard as far as studies go! On a different topic I was online last night and got an email from Amtrak that stated I could get extra points if I made a reservation right away! I got to thinking and wished that I could just get a ticket to Chicago, Los Angeles (LA), San Francisco (San Fran), or New York. I used to live in Chicago and had been to LA and San Fran so that left New York.

Now you’re in New Yoooorrrkk. City where dreams are made of.. there’s nothing you can’t doooo! Now you’re in New York New York Neewww Yooorrrk!

The song by Alicia Keys came to mind immediately. I seriously need some downtime and a getaway for myself! One thing that presents serious consideration is how much money I have in the bank! I think at this point a trip to Albuquerque may be more realistic. I’ve always loved traveling from as far back as I can remember. My dad used to load us up and we’d take off for Tucson, Phoenix, or Albuquerque just because. We did go to Las Vegas (while I was 9 or 10) and Los Angeles (to visit relatives) but that was only once. These days Dad is just about seventy and mom is right behind him so traveling consists of going out to town (Gallup) and occasionally to Albuquerque.

The concept of embarking on a trip alone is a little intimidating but I’m old enough to know when to proceed with caution or what situations I need to stay out of. I am not drinking these days so the lifestyle that comes with that crowd would not be involved. I don’t drug or am not planning some bank heist either!

I admit that school is very important to me right now but I’ve wanted to go out of the country for a long time now. I would like to go to Japan, China, Spain, Italy, Greece, Egypt, the Gobi Desert, and England. My language skills certainly need some expanding and conceptualizing as customs come along with language. The one thing I find motivating me is the local cuisine of other countries. I never did like onions, bell peppers, and all those icky things that I used to pick off of a supreme pizza that someone ordered. Now I love them and almost feel like I want to experience new things… maybe there’s a connection with traveling??? At any rate don’t be surprised if you hear that I am anywhere but here sometime next year or the year after that. One can only wait!

The sound of spring has waken me this morning. The birds are singing and the temperatures have been heating up steadily over the last week or so. I am almost done with the Spring 2010 session of school. I feel quite content with the way that aspect of my life is going. I will be attending the Summer session this year. I am taking two classes that sound very interesting and am wondering what I can squeeze in for the fall semester.

Let's see. I am 3x years old.. I mean young but I sure don't feel it. I have much on my young mind these days regarding when I should transfer. The school I go to has the classes I need at their main campus while I commute to a satellite center. I do not particularly want to live on the main campus. Been there done that. My other option is to move to the city and take the classes at a different college. The pros would be independence, proximity to school, and establishing a life away from home... sober this time.

I am somewhat shocked that I have won a scholarship. I had been looking at scholarships and grants trying to figure out how I will be able to make it through school. The business woman in me has been making a little money on the side but only enough to pay for the bare necessities.

It's tough!

I saw a bulletin the school had left in my email so I figured why not? I printed out an application and wrote an essay about my future plans and why I could use that scholarship. Pretty much a "no brainer." :)

I recently ran into the man who sent me to Iron Working Training two weeks ago at a local office. I passed a man in the hallway and he sure was staring. I was thinking "Are my boobs that noticeable???" I had a realization and was like, "Hiiii. Mr. X! I'm SO sorry I didn't recognize you."

Yeah. It was an awkward moment. He and I chatted for a minute and apparently the union is still reeling over the recession we had two years ago. I told him I was back in school and am loving it. We shook hands, said our goodbyes, he wished me luck, and parted ways then.

I know. I'm SO serious these days. I suppose encroaching accumulation of years and a need to finish all the things I have started are prompting me. Not being serious would reduce me to a clown... I do not want to be a clown. I think I've already acquired an Ph.D in that field anyway.

I have an appointment this week with two school officials who will grill and fry me.. maybe sautee. I will do my best to be the most congenial and impressionable lady for them!

So that's my State of the Flea Market for now. Happy Sundays people and take care.

Breezy Lady!

Today is a very blustery day! Where's that bear w/ the red shirt and potbelly???

Sheesh. I forgot my password for this account and I've been very very very busy lately. I've got an all-consuming passion to quickly do something w/ my life and am now attending college.

Yes people. Mizz Banks is higher education diva these days! She's got to show those people that she's more than a statuesque mutton girl! She's got more than reservation rocks in her head lol.

:D

Anyhow. I really was waiting for a job w/my Union. I kept hearing about how there wasn't any need for apprentices here in AZ. A different job landed me doing office work for five months. A pretty nice run for some survival money and time to think. Total time after Iron Working training was going on 10 months w/o any concrete reason to move to Phoenix.

It is very expensive to just pick up and move and there had better be something that pays at the end of the trail!

During my stint w/ office work I began to think that during that 10 month waiting period I could have added more credits to my repertoire. I've got around 50 credit hours and a degree in Nursing seemed like a good idea. I did work as a CNA and Nurse Tech for a couple of years and the availability of jobs appealed to me. It was pretty much a no-brainer after that. I'm now in school and am just taking one pre-req b/c I have other bills to worry about besides school tuition. Hopefully next semester I get some type of assistance and really wouldn't mind taking three courses.

Two at the least.

Personal life is all about stability and recapturing these days. After all the carousing I've done in the past I've slowly begun to find what makes me tick. What makes me scared. What makes me happy. Analyzing and trying to see what will be the best course of action for me to take. I don't like to ask for a lot in this life. I do believe in prayer and "ask and you shall receive" type of stuff so if anyone who reads this has some spare positive energy... please think of me!

I have a Chapter quiz tomorrow and midterms coming up!

Hasta Luego! Agoh i ne eh :)

She's Still Here!

Hey HO! Land Ho! Scalliwaggers!!!

Yeah I'm not making any sense. It's late and I'm trying to get stuff done before bed. I'm doing fine and am still here on rezzie land. Things are slow these days and I've been looking for a job!

Anyone hiring???

I've been doing the whole homemaking thing for now and am excited that I have my own comp now. Well a laptop actually. I bought this thing used and out of sheer desperation I clicked on the "buy" button. I mean, come on, I'm a gabber and love to type so I needed something to get online and bug people with :P

I now am going to start looking in personals for anyone who needs a roommate. I prefer a room with a view but I'll take anything now! lol.

Let's hope Obama was thinking of a fleamarketrezqueen when he was dreaming of stimulus packages!

Anyhoo. I'm *yawn* tired and am seeing sheep and stars. I've got a date with the sandman now ppl. I'm off to bed. Sweet dreams and a good night.

Tyrene

Four Weeks

Life has been a long winding road for this gal. She's been blindsided and shoved around but she's still standing. For those of you who don't know Tyrene- she is a proud Transwoman! Life is unexpected and full of surprises. From the moment I wake up and see my nephew to the little treasures in the smiles and twinkle of my close one's eyes. It's a gratifying feeling I wouldn't give up for anything.

Tyrene Banks is a pseudonym. It's no disrespect to the name given me by my parents. I just feel as a woman I should not have a man's name. Translife for me is everything. Yeah it's very hard to be living the life I have but there's a lesson to be learned here. Not too cliche but it's something I've learned in my young 36 years of living.

I have now come to a firm decision. I am going to begin taking my hormones again. With the aid of an anti-androgen I should begin feeling and looking like how I feel inside.

Yes. I'm still going to Iron Work. How the guys handle that is up to them. I haven't started yet but when I do- it could be bad or good.

Good I hope.

Things get crazy sometimes and religion helps me out quite a bit. In all honesty religion is something that I've shied away from most of my life. I do believe that we did not come from nothing. I can't even conceive that we are the byproduct of chance. Religion is what has carried me this far and has helped me retain my santiy through all the crazy shit Transwomen go through.

I haven't been writing as much as I had hoped lately. I'm busy busy busy with moving forward with my life and really haven't had the time to sit down and actually continue writing. I have not given up on the books I am working on- but with my latest jaunts I have more things and experiences to enrich my palette..er keyboard with :-)

He he he. Change of topic but I still get a little "ga ga" over handsome men and will stick my foot in my mouth but that's just me. I'm young at heart is my excuse :-P

Freebies? Gratis? Why not??!!!

Being a kid on the reservation for me was a funny time when potty humor and Atari was all the rage! Growing up on the reservation, of course, is a little different.... well a lot different than other areas. I remember going off the reservation with my mom to the University in Flagstaff and having friends of other races and loving it! I loved it because the white kids seemed to have rich parents and had all the latest games and computers (Commodore 64 games). Other kids I met talked different and were "wild in the streets!"



It was just a fun time :-)

By the time I was getting a roller-coaster routine down my mom was done with summer courses and it was school time. Around this time everyone needed new clothes!!! Luckily for us poor Dine kids there was a Tribal Government Ration Santa!

Tribal Clothing!!!

There was something about those days when the words Tribal Clothing floated around school. Getting tribal clothing could be used to make fun of people and their disadvantaged economic backgrounds (having material things and rich parents were all the rage back then; sad but true). Tribal Clothing were donations of clothing that were dispersed throughout the various school districts on Dine-land. They were then handed out to students with the economic demographics that warranted assistance- which was almost everyone!

Come on now! Anytime you get free clothing is cool!!! However tribal clothing time could also be a time you would cross your fingers and pray that you didn't get anything "uncool." The plastic bags the clothes came in were the clear 30 gallon size janitor specials! There were the occasional teasings because someone had underwear visible from the bags!

"Ewww. Her panties are showing!!!"

"Look she got hamburger shoes!!! Ha ha ha" Of course no one was immune from the teasings because it was a mixed-bag of luck when it came to what you got! Hamburger shoes were generic brown dress shoes. They were cheap and lo and behold this is what I found while cleaning out the house this past weekend!

Sometimes you would get lucky and get the now "fucking awesome" Converses and the (anyone member these???) Kangaroos. The Kangaroos were nifty and groundbreaking cuz' they had a pocket with a zipper on em'! I loved those shoes!!!

Tribal Clothing was a godsend to parents in the early days of the Navajo Nation. The Seventies, when I was a little girl, were rough times for a lot of folks. My parents were young thirty-somethings who were in university during the summers and working at entry-level positions at the local boarding school the rest of the year. We had a two bedroom trailer that we called home at the time. Horribly hot summers when the air-conditioning was on the fritz and a horrible cockroach infestation were the nightmares associated with that trailer. My dad and mom may have been making just above minimum-wage at the time while supporting the three of us rugrats (the other two came later).

Years later my dad finished University and bought us a brand new spanking home! Nothing fancy just a three-bedroom, one bath, and no fence home. These homes are part of the housing development agency here on the reservation which is another blog in itself! It was a step-up from the trailer believe me!

These days with all the high gas prices and need for more "things"- I'm thankful this program is still ongoing. My niece, who has absolutely no shame in social settings, proudly proclaims, "I'm getting tribal clothing!!! Yay!"

Gee. I wish I was still eligible for that program!!!

On a totally unrelated note!

Ahem. Ladies!

Go Team USA!!!

;-)

Okay I'm over Ignoramus. It didn't take me long to see the light in that situation. I was going over my Yahoo site tweaking my page when I ran across the horoscope section.

I see a tall, dark, and handsome man coming to your rescue... and he's got money and tons of unconditional love!

It said. lol. No it didn't say that but that'd be nice!!!

I'm all gaga over divine intervention these days. What would it mean if I were to find a thousand dollars in a purse or wallet these days??? I certainly need the money and would have two fierce Tyrenes on my shoulders as I contemplated on keeping it!!! Or if by some miracle I was at the casino and through the hazy smokey ambiance my knight in shining armor would lock eyes with me!

Okay my life's fruition is much more meaningful than landing a man or material things :-P

I KNOW ALL!

I'd like to get moving on my path to success. Success means personal best to myself. That's how I'd like to sum up the word. For reasons unknown I've been having a helluva time doing it! Maybe I'm just picking the wrong horoscopes to read or my Divine chauffeur is on strike.

I don't know.

My father and mother grew up speaking English as a second language and are now both graduates of higher learning. I see that as inspiration to try my best. I also have nieces and nephews who I want to dazzle and motivate! I'm still working on getting to my Union site. Things have come up such as needing to own a vehicle and financial roadblocks. I'm seeing these things as pains-in-the-asses and try to take them in stride. I completed my Iron Working program but actually being able to get to work has been difficult for me. I live a four and a half hour drive from my Union headquarters and times are hard!

I even wrote my Districts Senate rep for help! It may sound ludicrous but desperate times call for desperate measures!

Anyway.

I don't know about them fortune tellers anymore but wonder if they had roadblocks on their path to success. So I wonder if anyone out there may have some suggestions for me. And looting or pillaging is not an option here!!! Nor is pawning my ruby encrusted Spud Wrench!!!

Hmmmm.....

Ignoramus

These are the "dog days of summer!" It's been somewhat hot here on Dine-land. For people who are not Navajo- Dine is how we identify ourselves. Anyway it hasn't been extremely hot but is uncomfortable enough to keep our A/C on quite a bit. I just got off a newsletter website geared toward people who reside within earshot of a certain New Mexico town and am dismayed. I don't like to become too "emo' about things but there are certain times when I cannot keep my mouth shut! I had every intention of posting an update on me but "selective ignorance" on the part of some chuckle-head compels me to write and post my thoughts.

As you may or may not know there was a segment about life on the Dine Reservation from Morgan Spurlock on his show "30 Days." The segment from what I saw was about some of the current state of affairs here on the reservation. It may also have just touched upon a minuscule amount of deep seated emotions for non-Navajo people and also hit some situations right on the proverbial "head!"

I mean how many things can you fit into an hour-long segment??!!!

Anyway this guy on the forum said that he's tired of reverse discrimination and must have felt overly sensitive because he felt the show was lambasting anyone non-Navajo. I have to admit I was pissed that people still thought this way. I simmered a bit and felt the need to respond to this guy. I felt like responding with all kinds of crap!

I just reminded myself that Tyrene was somewhat "edu-macated" and SO not an IGNORAMUS!

I'm over being mad and am actually quite amused that this guy feels the way he does. It's amusing because anyone with a sufficient amount of intellect and education would have worded his thoughts more eloquently. He just basically said, "I'm tired of everything in Gallup being about Navajo people and how bad they're treated!" Anyone could have said that and goes to show how much thought he put into this! He did not even cite any reason or give any valid points to back up his "two cents!" From what I saw of the show it was just a show touching upon some concerns that Dine people face "day-in-and-out." There was no "finger pointing" or even audacious "calling out!" All it did was present the living situations we deal with and Morgans experiences with them.

That's all it was plain and simple.

If anyone gets offended by that they need to go move somewhere else! I'm sorry but LOL this is for anyone who doesn't know- the Navajo Nation is bigger than a couple of states and isn't going anywhere! Nor are the people who live here! For your information Dine people aren't living with "silver spoons" in their mouths! I'm struggling like all hell just to make it now. Okay enough wasted energy!

Anyway on to my favorite subject- ME!!! lol Just playing :-P

I'm doing extremely well and just thought I'd vent a little. Sorry if I made anyone uncomfortable. Ta ta for now :-) Time to go raise hell and share my thoughts with people.

Pics of School :-)

Here are two pics of Ironworking School.

Here we are in downtown Chicago! This was taken near the NBC studios. It was a nice day because we got away from boring classroom work and got to check downtown out! The first couple of weeks was very classroom oriented and BORING!!! Almost everyone struggled to stay awake for the eight hours we were in class! Doing "hands-on" stuff is WAY better than sitting on your keester for the whole day!

Here is part of my group, The Blue Hats, putting together stairs. For those of you unfamiliar with Ironworking it is a profession divided into specialty areas. Putting together stairs falls into Ornamental work. I'm not too crazy about the hard physical work (and getting all bacon face and sweaty!!!) but am growing to appreciate the benefits. Increased strength, agility, and stamina! So in other words it keeps one in shape!

I am going to post a link here for people who read this and am interested in the program. It's a great stepping stone for Native Americans like myself who are in desperate need of money and just can't afford higher education yet! This is the link Ironworking School for Native Americans The site has changed from the last time I looked at it. So if you have any questions please ask me. I have other info but am sorta in a rush right now. Have a great day guys!

Oh! I really would love to work on a blog about Natives in the Iron Working field this summer when I get the time so keep an eye out for that one!!!

Bye :-)