look what i made :D

)

In hopes that everyone is enjoying their day with the craziest people they know I would like to send a reminder out that this evening is the Onkwehonwe Womens Sharing Circle...tonight's topic is Self-Care and Self Expressions...I look forward to seeing ya ladies out tonight...I have a door prize for attendees!!! 7pm at 724 Chiefswood Rd

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7fAxa8s3lY&feature=share

Hey There!!! *REMINDER* Meeting this Thursday the 13th in the evening 6:30pm-8:30pm at the G.R.E.A.T. Building in Ohsweken in the Theatre. This weeks Guest Speaker > Rick Hill - History of Living Tax-Free.

Issues

Seems like moving home is beginning to finally feel like home again, and yet I still need my own home :( saddens me to not have my own home to call home, I need to rent a spot...something big enough, nice enough, just something to call my own home :(

The night falls deeper as I await to see your face
So far away and so close and near
time does not relive the empty space

No One Deserves A Healthier Lifestyle More Than You ~ Andrea Curley

“NO ONE DESERVES TO LIVE A TRULY HEALTHY LIFE MORE THAN YOU!” – Andrea Curley

Now I have never been the person that ‘took care’ of my physical self.  Sure, I have visited the dentist, eye doctor and my family physician regularly throughout my life.  When it came to listening to people, I didn’t listen to the good advice, or make better choices, and I couldn’t see past what I trusted to be true in my own thinking.  At age 16, I ventured into the world on my own, making it and breaking it along the way, without ever taking the responsibility of my physical health as a priority.  As long as I was in no physical pain, I thought I was healthy!

Because of the inherited blood that runs through my veins and some self inflicted damage of alcoholism, bad food and no consistent exercise routine I am a person that has lived with being over weight, high blood pressure and diabetes.   So, skip a few and a lot of details, time and events, and there I am meeting my new family physician while setting some roots in the town of Salamanca NY.  Week 1 - December 17th 2011, is the day that it began… I walked into an office with an open mind yet an uneasy feeling of “WHAT EVER” all along thinking “I hope my new doc is right on about introducing me to this program”.   Upon entering this office there sat this woman at her desk with the biggest friendliest smile.  She begins welcoming me to her place of employment by starting off introducing herself and walking me through the perimeters of the gym explaining all its contents.  Her sense of seriousness and humor captivated me instantaneously. By time the introduction of the program and assessment of my self was complete I just knew that I was going to listen to everything that this woman tells me.   Why?  Throughout the visit she goes on to say things like “what we are going to do is fix you from the inside out” and “exercise IS a dose of medication” and “it is going to be a lot of work on your part” and “you have to do what I tell you, there are no short cuts”.  You know the typical things you might hear from any personal trainer.  But wait! The key that unlocked my old instilled beliefs were – “what we are going to do is fix you from the inside out”.   See?  

In retrospect it has been hard for me to always believe it when people would tell me I was smart.    My history of education, work experience, travels, overcoming and soldiering on from life’s trials and tribulations, all along building a large circle of networking professional and social resources, could prove iota’s of a smartness.  Anything my history tells are things anyone could accomplish.  Quite honestly I often wondered how people could look at me and tell me they see me as a smart woman; I mean no one knew my health issues!  Anyone can further their education and anyone can build relations.  However, I thought this because I was overweight.  I was an obese, high blood pressured diabetic, and that just sounds unhealthy!  So how can unhealthy be in the equation of all those positive characteristics? 

So the work outs begin.  Sweat drips on the mats, muscles feel good sore (if that makes any sense), and my thinking was “OMG 8 minutes left???” or “5 more???” or “10 more seconds???  Who does this crap???”  The eating changes:  absolutely no salt, no pop, no more than a palm of pastas, rice, or potatoes if any at all, and no bread of any kind at all. Next thing you know I am at week 4 and after revisiting my doc the insulin I had to inject with 2 meals a day for the last 3 years is now gone.  That part of my unhealthy life is now dead.  By week 7 my pant size went from 22 to 16.  That part of my unhealthy life is now dead.  The belief that I was going to be on all diabetic medication and that it would only INCREASE with time, depressed me…and that part of my unhealthy life is now dead.  The change in eating has been just making smarter choices starting at the grocery store > looking at sodium and carbohydrate and fats amounts, by looking on line and in magazines about foods.  By realizing that WE DO NOT NEED a lot of the junk we so voluntarily just put into our bodies.  February 27th embarks the beginning of week 10 scaling in at a loss of 26.5 lbs and counting.  Most importantly new thinking and beliefs are instilled.  It is because of the internal results of becoming physically healthier that I see ME in a healthier state.  It is also because I simply LISTENED to a very educated, compassionate, walking her talk, woman that possesses a great love for her people.  It is because of her very existence that lives are changing for the better.  She is right here, right now, please do not let the opportunity pass you by to spend some time with Andrea John-Ortego and her amazing team in this amazing diabetic program that works for YOU! 

We owe it to ourselves to become stronger NOW for healthier generations to come.   Why waste any more time?  It all starts with your thinking.  Change your thinking and the feelings and actions change.   Don’t you WANT to be as healthy as you can be?   My goal is to be able to run with and teach my grandchildren, and my great-grandchildren.  At 37 yrs old with two sons ages 11 & 15, I look forward to everything that’s in store for us.  We are all becoming stronger.  So go ahead become selfish, take time for yourself, get healthier so you can teach your children by being an example of how to live longer and stronger.                      

HERE TO STAY

Such a peculiar time we are in, Living free imprisoned inside

Screaming for a voice, Seeking to change the mind

No guns to our heads, At least not today

Who understands, Where is our way

Slave for money, Craving the song

Sensing the plateau, Of which we belong

There is only hard and harder, And the hardest is worst

Seeking the easiest, Is life’s biggest curse

So much beauty is missed, So much love unfound

We know right from wrong, Yet to despair and grief we are bound

Who will guide us to let go, Who will show us our way

Mother Earth continues, And WE are here to stay

STEAL ME

I feel an approach, in my mind, overtaking my dreams

May it be that everything is exactly as it seems

Like the Thunder that aims and soars through the skies

The Grandmothers whisper and it just feels right

Certainty crumbles every wicked doubt within

These thoughts of misjudgment will never win

Creation has placed me and I will learn to accept

All that has been lived and what to live yet

Mountains of grey so quiet and bold

Listen to my secrets that I have never told

Shadows of valleys and caves unfound

Hear my roar and untie what is bound

The mist that lingers and lifts off the tree tops

Take what resides in all tainted that is lost

E’re a gentle breeze that comforts every tiny breath

And there is a slight of knowing in every single step

Nya:weha to the gifts that are given so freely

I feel an approach, a goodness that steals me

right place - right time

So...guess it's all about timing! and all I can really do is just say-oh well time for me to breathe!

MAN BEAUTY

ok so today embarks an obsession for me, it has been a LONG time since I felt like buying a poster of a celebrity but ummm yea I want a poster of him somewhere on a wall of mine :)

Well, I have decided to use my blogspot to express some opinions...say whats on my mind... and journal some new poetry and art endeavors...sounds exciting!!! Lotsa changes in this last year of my life and now I am going to call this a new beginning, looking ahead with one main goal-to surround myself with happiness :) let's see how that works out for me and this blog spot :)

clench

It wasn't so long ago that I could see far away
Now my squints are foggy and I see disarray
The sludge built up within crevices of the cry
Must see the light so en route may pass by
Scream and beg for the clench to set this free
Take hold of temptation as the thirst bleeds

Newsletters are always good!

It is important to keep up to date on what is going on and what is being said and what info is being put out to benefit the public. Check it out!

School is OVERRRR!

Well it is about that time that I begin to settle down and get going, lol, seems like the course Indigenous Public Relations is just overrrrrr, yet seems like a whole new beginning in a new way, a way that I would have never thought possible, yet, seems like the best thing to do is to accept the good, and deal with the bad so that there is a balance. Sometimes knowing the bigger picture isn't for everyone, and I thought I had a good handle on it, seems like knowing isn't the problem, it's knowing and then not knowing what to do. Who do I trust? Who is authentic? Who is out for personal gain? I think the answer to all of this is me, or atleast it should be, I trust myself, I am authentic, and I am out for personal gain>personal growth. With this and constant learning of respecting all and fearing nothing, I should be getting better and better everyday and that is one hell of a good goal for the rest of my life. PEACE OUT!!!

Is Canada coming together?

Undermining Canadians regarding HUMAN RIGHTS

Everywhere is Genocide?

Indigenous People Across Latin America Protest Spanish 'Genocide'

By Agence France-Presse

October 13, 2009 "AFP" -- GUATEMALA CITY - Tens of thousands of indigenous people took to the streets across Latin America on Monday to protest the anniversary of Christopher Columbus's 1492 discovery of the Americas.

Columbus Day is celebrated as the Day of Hispanic Heritage in Latin America, but protesters marked the holiday as a reminder of the atrocities Spanish conquistadors wrought on indigenous people throughout the region.

In Guatemala City, 19-year-old demonstrator Imer Boror was killed and two were wounded as Maya Indians blocked entry points into the capital to protest their government's mining policies.

Protesters were marching on what they called the Day of Dignity and Resistance of the Indian People, protest leader Juana Mulul told AFP, saying the movement "is purely in defense of Mother Earth and our territory."

In a gesture toward reconciliation with indigenous groups, a special roundtable appointed by President Alvaro Colom after the incident was to meet with 14 poor farmers late Monday to discuss their demands.

Aparicio Perez of the Farmers Union Committee (CUC) said representatives would ask the government to annul mining, hydroelectric and cement concessions because "multinational companies are taking over natural resources, which have long been the source of life for rural families."

According to government statistics, 42 percent of Guatemala's 12 million inhabitants are Indians, although some groups put the figure at over 60 percent.

In southwestern Colombia, some 25,000 people set out from several towns and cities in Valle del Cauca department to protest President Alvaro Uribe's environmental policies and his alleged broken promises to their communities.

They planned to join up Friday in a larger demonstration of some 40,000 in the department's capital of Cali.

"We're demonstrating against the degradation of the planet... against President Alvaro Uribe's neglect" of indigenous communities, National Indigenous Organization of Colombia member Feliciano Valencia told reporters.

Indigenous people, who represent three percent of Colombia's 45 million inhabitants, accuse the conservative Uribe administration of failing to enact social programs and release state funds it promised indigenous communities when it came to power in 2002.

They also protested being regular targets of guerrilla, paramilitary and drug trafficking violence, despite their professed neutrality in the country's ongoing internal conflicts.

During an extraordinary session held at the National Pantheon, the Venezuelan National Assembly passed a bill proposing a "Day of Indigenous Resistance" to be held throughout South America.

National Assembly Speaker Cilia Flores hailed the event as proof lawmakers were "working with all the people and with a revolutionary government to build a new nation."

At the National Pantheon, where the remains of Venezuelan heroes are buried, dozens of indigenous representatives gathered in a demonstration organized by the ruling Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) to protest the "genocide of the (Spanish) empire" 500 years ago.

A group of indigenous people kept the Panama-Costa Rica border closed for several hours in the morning at the Sixaola border crossing and later protested in front of the Spanish embassy.

Several thousand native activists were joined by environmentalists, farmers and students for protests across Panama demanding respect for their land rights and rejecting energy projects that "do not respect the autonomy of indigenous people" and cause "forced evictions."

"The arrival of the Spaniards in the Americas in 1492 brought about the destruction of the Indian way of life and broke a series of political and economic institutions that has since driven us into poverty," said Cecilio Guerra before burning a Spanish flag close to the presidential palace.

According to Guerra, over 21 hydroelectric concessions and nine mining projects are affecting indigenous communities.

© 2009 Agence France-Press

My Photo Diary for FNTI

Sometimes life is what you make it and sometimes life is where it takes you!!!

Harmonized Sales Tax?

What is going to happen with the Harmonized Sales Tax?

Canada has no history of colonialism? WTF?

Really Harper, Canada has no history of colonialism? By Harsha Walia 28 Sep 2009 "We also have no history of colonialism..." - Prime Minister Stephen Harper. On the heels of a massive exercise of U.S. police repression against G20protestors, including use of a wartime sonic acoustic weapon also beingutilized in Iraq, Stephen Harper made the above declaration during a pressconference in Pittsburgh where it was announced that Canada would be hostingthe next G20 meeting in 2010. Perhaps Harper and I are not on the same page - is colonialism not definedas the practice and processes of domination, control, and forced subjugationof one people to another? As most bluntly stated by Duncan Campbell Scott,Head of the Department of Indian Affairs in the 1920's: "Our objective is tocontinue until there is not a single Indian in Canada that has not beenabsorbed into the body politic and there is no Indian question." I expect Harper has read the federal government's own report on the RoyalCommission on Aboriginal Peoples, which explicitly lays out Canada'simposition of a colonial relationship (indeed, that is the heading of one ofthe chapters) on Indigenous people. Measures employed include the IndianAct, residential schools, forcible relocation including to reservations, theimposed Band Council system, institution of a pass system (which wassubsequently borrowed by apartheid South Africa), germ warfare, outlawing ofceremonies such as the potlatch and traditional activities such as fishing,failed treaty processes, and other forced assimilation polices including theAct for the Gradual Assimilation of Indian Peoples. Considering that his government has so ardently voted against it, it wouldbe safe to presume that Harper is aware of the 2007 United NationsDeclaration on the Rights of Indigenous People. If Canada has no history ofcolonialism, then what else could possibly explain that Canada - along withother settler states such as Australia - have yet to sign on to theDeclaration? Other than the glaringly obvious and painful reality ofcolonization, what would make the Declaration "unworkable for Canada", asstated by the Harper government? This Declaration, endorsed by an overwhelming majority of the 144 memberstates, recognizes that "Indigenous peoples have suffered from historicinjustices as a result of, inter alia, their colonization and dispossession"and therefore affirms that "Indigenous peoples have the right ofself-determination". According to the Declaration, thisincludes: the right to autonomy and self government, right to maintain andstrengthen political, legal, economic, social and cultural institutions,collective right to live in freedom without being subjected to acts ofgenocide, and right to redress and compensation for the lands, territoriesand resources confiscated, taken, occupied, used or damaged without free,prior and informed consent. And was it not Harper's government that finally issued an official apologyfor residential schools which separated children from their families,communities, and culture in order to 'take kill the Indian in the child'. Ithas been extensively documented that children suffered unimaginableabuses- including sexual violence, physical beatings, emotional andpsychological torture, and death - in residential schools. The traumas ofthis colonial legacy continues today with Indigenous peopledisproportionately experiencing poverty, poor health, incarceration, youthsuicides, unprecedented levels of violence against Indigenous women, childapprehension, and substandard levels of access to basic needs includingwater and homes. Indigenous people from Akwasasne, Tyendinaga, Six Nations, AthabascaChipewyan, Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug, Secwepemc, and many more are forced to throw up blockades to halt environmentally devastating mineralexploration, clearcut and logging practices, and resource extractionactivities that continue to infringe on their lands. Clearly, Harper hasnot been blind to these very public struggles that his government iscomplicit in criminalizing as Canada becomes notorious for a growing groupof Indigenous political prisoners, prisoners of Canada's colonial democracy. So obviously what Harper meant to say was the more factually accurate:"Canada has no history of colonialism, except for the ongoing internalcolonization of Indigenous people and the external colonization andoccupation of, amongst others, the people of Afghanistan. Not one to breakwith history, my government too has been making strides in asserting greaterdominance over Indigenous peoples lives, lands, and governance. " At least we can take some comfort in the fact that Harper is just anotherhypocritical and self-serving politician and not a history teacher.