[Gossamer's Scrapbook] The Ethereal Canyon I

[Torc Ironwood]

Just thought I would say publicly, thank you for all your time and effort that you put into Miz.

[Jilitse]

I just have to ask if that pink banner is going up because I love the tagline. Mmmm. It's so fruity!

[Gossamer]

. Good Puppy & Evil Puppy Everyone needs some cuteness in their lives. I promised some pictures of Mojo. We finally got him registered. He's a Chow Chow and his total full name is Magic Mojo. We had some good news today, in case some of you are following the saga... the second of his family jewels put in an appearance so we can breed in the future if we'd like. Thank goodness we only got one puppy at a time though. I'm not sure we can survive this one. Anyhow, here's good puppy... his sweet soft side. There's Always A Dark Side... : First he did this... Then he did that.... Next he did this.... Then he was so tired he passed out...

[Gossamer]

. Are You Smarter Than An Elementary School Kid? If I show you this picture, can you answer a simple question? Which way is the bus traveling? It's really not that hard... Look closer... Now, do you know yet? Almost a hundred percent of elementary school kids (grade k-5) answered correctly. Did you? It's simple. They said 'We can't see the door you get into the bus with, so it must be going left." I thought this was great logic.. and wanted to share it with you. I couldn't figure it out at first either.

[Diane]

Magic "Mojo" is so sweet, cute <3 Hihi -giggles badly- Doggies are sweet, along with that - responsibility- comes on the way. ^^ I am sure you will manage in doing so, you are a good person and the puppy will be happy around there. ^_^ >.> along with his "dark- evil" side as any other dog has XD and they just like to chew things and make mess as they are in the growing stage.Mine did the same, when he was small D: only to make you work harder and to clean after them.Other than that, all it's good. And as for the bus, drawing pic..I had no idea.It was weird to try and figure, since exactly didn't had a door. but yes I agree now, it must go to the left cause the door is on the other side[left of course] and you can't see it. : )

[Dhanya]

OMG PUPPY!

Also, did not get the bus thing at first, even though I take public transport all the time.

[Eanos]

I failed the bus test. But whilst the kids were right I have to disagree. It has to be heading to the right since you can't see the door.


Dart on the 562 by ƒliçkrwåy, on Flickr

[Gossamer]

Eanos! Hehehe I knew someone would post a pic of something that contradicted left... but this survey was taken in the US where we drive on the right (no pun intended!) side of the road and our buses have doors on the right.

[Gossamer]

. Thanksgiving So I spent the day with my mother, my husband, and my brother and his wife. I actually had a good time. I cooked the dinner and did the dishes and visited, chatted, and hung out after wards while my hubby changed the headlight in my Sebring so we could drive home. I'm tired, but its a good tired. I'm just sorry I didn't get to relax on my day off. But sometimes days off aren't about relaxing, they are about taking time for family and friends. Its good not to do the same old thing all the time. Sometimes having a break needs taking time to do something completely different and uncharacteristic of usual routine. Which leads me to think about Thanksgiving and the meaning of it. Traditionally, its about the first celebration where the Native Americans and the Pilgrams sat down to share a meal. Whites think this is an amazing thing and the prelude to the founding of the United States. You should see the face I'm making right now. To a native woman like me, we understand it was the prelude genocide. Its a dark secret in the US that no one ever talks about. Our land was stolen, whole tribes sent into oblivion, and traditional native ways changed forever. I've always hated Thanksgiving. These days though, hardly anyone cares about the past. That's all there is too it. Each of us knows that one person in our circle of friends that will get their kicks off an antique find or some tidbit of history that someone brought up and they debate heavily. But overall, people try not to remember things. They 'move on' or are 'forward thinking' but rarely do they think about the past. There seems to be an 'over and done with' mentality that leads everyone to go "Okay, tomorrow is another day. Lets try to be better in the future." My ancestors and indeed my present relatives are not okay with this. Just like the jewish people are definitely not okay with antisemitism when it crops up. But I get a little pissed off too about that. Why do the jews get a special name for jewish racism? Doesn't other people who have had genocide happen to them merit enough attention to be recognized in the terminology of the world? No. Sorry. We don't. The slaughter of the jews was terrible. It was unforgivable. But it also happened in a relatively short period of time. Was it more brutal than other genocides? Unfortunately not. Just look around world wide. Genocide is brutal, violent, bloody and often attempts to be 'thorough'. The destruction of the Natives of the US and the First Nations of Canada took far longer. And it was blatant. Its only now being slowly recognized. I hate thanksgiving for it. Most of us Natives do. We lived well. We had a rich culture. And contrary to what most people think, were were just people. We didn't care take the land like we do today. The land was vast and unending and we were too busy fighting for chunks of it and staying alive against cougar, bear, and the weather itself. The glorification of anything sucks bigtime. The romanticism of it is even worse. Thanksgiving (and native peoples for that matter) has been overworked by both concepts into a 'Can't we all just get along...' holiday filled with commercialism and narcissism. I kinda like what it is now. People forget about the past. People don't really give a rats ass about the fact they are celebrating a holiday that marked the end of a whole way of life for multiple peoples across an entire continent from sea to sea. Instead they have turned it into a holiday where we give thanks. This is okay... really. It's fine. I'm pro gathering with your family, counting your blessings, and getting all sappy about what you have in life. I just feel a little nauseated when elementary school kids dress up as Indians and pilgrims and play nice with each other. Seriously. I throw up in my mouth. Thank god I don't have any little kids. That PTA and Schoolboard would never hear the end of it. As is, I know a lot of native parents that raise hell anyhow. I always cheer them on. And so why did my family gather? We all had time off together because of the holiday and my mother was feeling lonely (she lost my father this year) and it is going to be a rough holiday season without him. we went to cheer her up and offer moral support. We went so she doesn't feel abandoned or so alone. And we tuckered her out so she just went straight to bed afterwards too tired to miss my father much.

[Eanos]

Well said Goss. Even if my claimed heritage is a bunch of axe wielding, land grabbing mercenaries, genocide was not part of their moral code, indeed I think it would have been incomprehensible to them. Whilst in the past I've wondered why the past can't be left in the past, I know now that the past reverberates down into the present and drives what we do. It's way past time for that dark secret to be brought out into the light and dealt with.