The Bureau of Zhindian Affairs

Happy New Year and new blog!

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 22:02:00 +0000

Happy belated new year everyone!

Forgive me for being away from this blog. My twin girls, who are now two years old, have kept me busy.

I've decided to start another blog called Life as a Twin Proverbs 31 Mom, which will reflect how I try to live in accordance to Proverbs 31. Check it out here.

I will try to add more to this blog, especially as it comes to with dealing with the blended culture of Navajo and African American.

Thank you all for being very patient with me. I hope to see you on the new blog.

-DineBoo

What's new, Zhindians?

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 02:03:00 +0000

Long time no post, everyone.

So, what's new in the land of Zhindian Affairs?

Mr. Salt was Employee of the Quarter earlier this year.

I'm was (and still am) going through a massive writer's block. Which accounts for my lack of postings.

But, that's not all.

I am pleased to finally announce the Tasty Salt Clan is well on its way! Yes, after many prayers and tears, and fighting with my PCOS, I am finally pregnant.

And for an added bonus: I'm going to have twins.

I have to put this squarely in the hands of Lord. He has blessed me and Mr. Salt with these gifts.

I was so surprised that I even got pregnant. I had stopped taking Metmorphin for a long time, concentrating on losing some weight. That, and the Met made me sick. Following our weight loss plans, Mr. Salt and I had lost a combined 60 pounds.

I took some natural remedies, like Vitex, but also Chorline and Inostol for the PCOS. After losing some weight, I scheduled my annual to so what I could do to start trying again. Needless to say, I got a confirmation I was pregnant intstead!

So now I sit, still in a state of disbelief...until my bloating reminds me that I am pregnant. No morning sickness, but a little nausea, which is a blessing in and of itself.

Mr. Salt is very happy, of course. We get our Zhindians. They are due in Janurary, but I expect them in December. I'm higher risk due to my PCOS and my weight, but I don't let that get to me. One day at a time, plus I get ultrasound pics every month!

I hope everyone that follows me stays blessed and happy. The Lord has answered my prayers...in twofold! I'll try to be a better blogger from now on.

Love, peace, and frybread,
-DineBoo

Happy New Year!

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Sat, 03 Jan 2009 01:10:00 +0000

Happy New Year from the Zhindian Clan!

May this year be your best year yet!

Sincerely,
DineBoo & Mr. Salt

What Identifies You?

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 23:39:00 +0000

DineBoo says: Sorry about the long delay updating this blog everyone! I was trying to move this blog over to my new domain, but I realized I don't want to lose all my posts. If anyone knows how to move posts from Blogger to another blogging software like Wordpress, drop me a line.

Mr. Salt is now an International Kokopelli of Mystery.

He has just returned from his first international trip to Zurich, Switzerland for his job. I was so jealous. But I did get Swiss Chocolate out of it. (Yum!)

Being that this was his first international trip, he had to get a passport. Since he was in a rush he had to get it expedited, so that meant chasing down all the needed paperwork identifying himself.

While most people have a driver's license, a birth certificate, a social security card, and maybe a Selective Service card that identifies them, Mr. Salt has one other important piece of information.

His CIB. Otherwise known as the Certificate of Indian Blood.

On this thin piece of paper, Mr. Salt's CIB indicates his name, his degree of Navajo blood (4/4 or full blooded Navajo), and census number from the Tribal Roll as recorded by the Navajo Nation.

The CIB is very important. Being recorded shows that you are a recognized member of the Navajo Nation. It also allows you access to all the Tribal programs(such as free health care) when you need it.

When Mr. Salt and I have our Zhindians, they will be recorded as 2/4 degree Navajo (or one half Navajo). If I recall correctly, the Navajo Nation, by its laws, records people starting at 1/4 Navajo, but that may have changed.

As of the date on Mr. Salt's CIB(February 1980), there were around 200,000 Navajos on the Tribal Rolls. This number has grown by now.

-DineBoo

P.S. Officially, the document is called the Certificate of Navajo Indian Blood, but those on the Rez(and my husband) call it the CIB. Some even know their CIB Roll Number by heart.

Oh, The (Body) Hair Drama

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 02:21:00 +0000

This post was inspired by Kate Harding's guest blog about facial hair. Check it out here.

As you all know, I have PCOS. While it's major affect on the body is no ovulation, it does cause other symptoms, which include difficulty losing weight, and excess body hair.

Ah, the body hair. As I look at myself right now, it's time for a Veet session.

Prior to my diagnosis, I've always tended to be hairy. Now PCOS just exacerbates it. I've got hair everywhere: Arms, legs, upper lip, chin, and other places I don't care to mention.

Somedays it bothers me, somedays it doesn't. My chin hairs fortunately grow weirdly horizontal instead of down. Which makes them less noticeable. Mr. Salt doesn't mind it too much...except when he calls my chin hairs "billy goat" hairs. Thanks, dear. He also says this in Navajo, though I can't recall the spelling for it.

So now it's time for a Veet session. I use Veet because Nair burns me, and I don't like shaving. I slather two formulas on: The new shower version for my legs, and the pump version that I use for everything else. All this usually entails me sitting in the restroom for about twenty minutes, since Mr. Salt has a sensitive nose and doesn't like the smell. I jump in the shower afterwords.

I usually do this about once or twice a month. I probably should do it every weekend, but like I said, it doesn't bother me that much. But if I do have a major event to go to, I do Veet then. And I do Veet my underarms more often just for hygenie sakes.

Just another day in the life of a womn with PCOS.

-DineBoo

P.S. Great quote of the day from Mr. Salt:

Mr. Salt: I'm just an Indian trying to live in the White Man's World.

A tale of two Kims

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 04:57:00 +0000

My first name is Kim.

My best gal pal's name is Kim.

Our husbands (Mr. Salt and P) work at the same company.

Kim and I used to work at the same company (a different one).

Conversations between our husbands go something like this:

P: My Kim said to tell your Kim to call my Kim this evening.
Mr.Salt: My Kim to call your Kim. Got it.

Here's a bonus:
Our group used to have another Kim(before she moved), who photographed me and Mr. Salt's wedding. We were called 'Double Stuff" since she was white, and me and Kim were black.

Confused yet?

-DineBoo

P.S. Random quote from Mr. Salt:

DB: (While watching Major League) Is Chief Wahoo the name of the mascot for the Cleveland Indians?
Mr. Salt: Hey, just because I'm Indian, doesn't mean I know that!

Got a question for us? Leave them in comments, and I'll see if Mr. Salt will answer some.
-DB

I write, therefore I am

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 02:33:00 +0000

Picture this:

Mr. Salt and I in the Books section of a Walmart in Mesquite, Texas a few weeks back.

Like I usually do, I take a look at some of Romance book summaries. I'm not into reading a lot of romances(mysteries, fantasy, and action novels are my thing), but I do have two Romance authors that I like. I pick up a book. It's a romance between a Native American and a white woman. I talk about the summary. Mr. Salt goes on to have a nice little rant:

DineBoo: Babe, check this out: "The warrior must claim this 'honey haired goddess...'

Mr. Salt: What? Honey haired goddess? Why does the woman always have to be white? Couldn't she be black? And why is the Indian always Sioux or Cheyenne? Where are the Navajo and the Utes?

DineBoo: Maybe I can write it someday. I do have the real thing. Why don't you grow your hair out for me?

Mr. Salt: Aaayyy!

Sometimes I can't believe that sort of stuff is still being written. The women is pure, light, and white (usually oppressed someway) and here comes the mythical Indian who will save her! It falls into that line that views Native Americans as one tribe or entity. Or, they are the savages that must be tamed. And to think we blacks have image problems!

This isn't a rant against romance per se. I'm a writer, or try to be. I love to write. I hope to have a novel published someday. I'm working on it now, after months of fininally figuring out a plot. It's a fantasy/mystery thing, merging two of my favorite genres. As my writing alter ego on the net, I write romances for practice.

I can't really condemn the novel having not read it, but if it's anything like the novels I have seen discussed, I won't be surprised.

But for me, I want to finish something. It never seems like I get past the first chapter. I'm great at writing myself into corners, or forgetting the plot. Hopefully, this time will be different.

-DineBoo

The Dreaded Two Week Wait

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 04:55:00 +0000

Last night I had a very vivid dream.

I was taking my infant son (or daughter, couldn't really tell) to the doctor along with Mr. Salt. The baby was light skinned (around the coloring of my sister-in-law and Mr. Salt during the winter) with really curly black hair. What I remember the most was the eyes. Dark big eyes. Must have came from my side of the family.

It wasn't the dreaded/hoped for fish dream, but I'll take what I can get.

As I stated in the title, I'm in what the "trying to conceive" community calls the Two Week Wait. That period of time after ovulation where you can't test for pregnancy for two weeks (or one week and some change, depending on the test). It's a very interesting time. You either obsess about every little possible pregnancy sign, or count down the days on calender.

Myself, I'm trying to stay neutral. I've had so many BFNs (Big Fat Negative on a pregnancy test, another term from the TTC community) that I'm rather wary about testing myself. The kicker is that I have to test myself if I consider myself late since I have to have a negative test before I start a cycle inducing drug. Luckily, I haven't had to take that drug since I've started on my own (Yay!).

But its really getting to the point where I don't want to buy the blasted sticks anymore. Every negative result chips away at you, and it gets to the point where you just want to get it over with. I don't really test with Mr. Salt is around, though he wants to be there sometimes. He's really seeing my disappointment now, and I don't want to compound things. We're already breaking Navajo cultural taboo with his extensive knowledge of my cycles.

But don't worry. I've resolved that if/when I get a possible BFP (Big Fat Positive) on a test, he'll be involved with the test that confirms it.

-DineBoo

The BZA Weight Loss Challenge!

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Sat, 03 May 2008 23:26:00 +0000

Even though Mr. Salt and I started on Atkins/Low Carb about two weeks ago, we had measured ourselves prior to that. So since it was the beginning of a new month, I thought it was time to drag out the tape measure and see if anything has changed. And guess what?

I've lost 11 inches! And since I've started (and restarted) Atkins induction, I've lost 6 pounds in two weeks! I'm very pleased.

You know, I thought I'd be miserable with Atkins as I was with South Beach when I tried that a couple of years ago, but I'm not. I'm thinking I just needed the fat, which South Beach restricted. So now I'm enjoying Mushroom Soup made with real cream, cheese (plenty of string cheese. It helps), and lean cuts of meat. This had also helped me my medications, as Metmorphin is notorious for is gastric disturbances if you don't eat low carb, so this is great.

I still miss my pasta, but I can sacrifice that (and even get the low carb versions) for now.

Mr. Salt is doing well with Atkins. I can see his weight loss in his pants. Lucky. Guys have it way easier.

Question: Does anyone out there want to do some weight loss blogging/challenges together? It doesn't have to be Atkins. I want to be held accountable, and I want to up my blogging posts.

Goals for May:

Stay on induction for at least another week.
Drink more water.
Exercise more.
Find some more good recipes.

That's it for now. Thanks for all your comments, and welcome newcomers! Blogger wouldn't let me reply to some comments for some reason.

-DineBoo

P.S. Happy Anniversary to me! Mr. Salt and I have been married for one year this past April 21st. Sure doesn't feel like it. I love you, sweetie! Aaay!

P.P.S. Check out this video for some weight loss inspiration. It inspired Mr. Salt:

Pills, pills, pills...

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 01:54:00 +0000

Again, TMI warning.

After much research(thanks ChelB for the website), I've finally plotted which pills to take in order to restore some balance thrown out of whack by PCOS. Here's what I'm taking thus far.

Metmorphin (for insulin resistance)
Vitex/Chaseberry (to get my female hormones balanced so I don't need Progesterone pills to start my cycle)
Black Cohosh (for hormones and to help with my cycle. I get terrible cramps now that I'm off the pill)
Multivitamin (for diet and folic acid)
Mucinex (thins out the mucus...everywhere)

All pills except for the Mucinex and multivitem, I'm taking twice a day. I need to take my Metmorphin three times a day, but I have to work up to it (and remember to take it).

Pill total: 8. Yikes!

Now that I'm doing low carb, my Metmorphin doesn't bother me as much. Which is a good thing.

I wonder if I should throw in some corn pollen, too...

-DineBoo

Glad to see ya!

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 22:04:00 +0000

TMI warning for the post, just in case.

Here's a conversation I had with Mr. Salt the other day:

DB: No zhindians this month...But at least my cycle started.
Mr. Salt: That's good.
DB: Must be the corn pollen.
Mr. Salt: You know, shi ma(SaltMama, Mr. Salt's mom) said that some people back home on the Rez are mixing drugs with corn pollen now.
DB: ...What?
Mr. Salt: It was talked about on Navajo Hour on Rez Radio (660 KTNN-AM). Some Medicine Man was probably blessing someone with the corn pollen and they both got high.

A day in the life of being Mrs. Salt.

I've never been so glad to start on my cycle. Or to see it. Hated when I was young. Like seeing it now...though it comes with disappointment now these days. It shows that my drugs are working.

People in my PCOS post mentioned natural remedies regarding regulating one's cycle. If you're still out there, e-mail me or send me a comment about some suggested herbs to take with Metmorphin, or what to take in general. I'm really getting serious about this.

In the mean time, I'm going (and Mr. Salt too) are going low carb. Mr. Salt moreso is going on Atkins. I pretty much have to go low carb since I'm taking Metmorphin, or else I get some really interesting side effects of the gastrointestinal kind. It'll be hard...I love bread and pasta, but that may have gotten me insulin resistant in the first place.

Also, we got a used Gazelle Elite for sixty bucks (thank you Craig's List). I need to use it more, and Mr. Salt has been on it every morning. He also joined the Biggest Loser at work. Ironically, he complained about all the skinny people who do not have much or any to lose being on his team. Now I have to lose for everyone, he said.

I love my Salt.

-DineBoo

Of Zhindians and Corn Pollen

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 21:06:00 +0000

Long time no post, everyone.

A few weeks ago, Mr. Salt and I babysat for my friend's children while they took a well deserved outing out of town for their anniversary. In addition to their older boys, they are taking care of a toddler they recently gained guardianship of. The toddler pretty much knows what is expected of him, but he can leave a mess.

And boy did he.

He's potty trained pretty well, but he had an accident. And not of the first kind. The poor kid had gotten "number two" all over himself, and had attempted to hide it to no avail. Mr. Salt kindly(and promptly) gave him to me to clean up. Use it as practice, he said.

Great.

I think I did surprisingly well. After an initial gaging session (It was bright green, y'all), I cleaned him up real good and calmed him down. Not bad for a girl that didn't have younger siblings or babysat growing up.

So that the little guy wouldn't have an accident again, Mr. Salt brilliantly sent him to the bathroom on the hour. It was genius. Might have to remember that if/when we babysit again.

Later, after all that, it kinda got us thinking seriously about having zhindians. So we're getting serious. From my medication, to thermometers, and charting. I joked with Mr. Salt that he should sprinkle corn pollen on me to speed things up.

Corn is sacred to the Dine. Corn pollen symbolizes the birth or start of new life or new places. When we moved to our new place, I sprinkled corn pollen on all the doors and windows. Blesses our new place, and gets rid of the old ways.

Mr. Salt hasn't done it yet, but who knows....

-DineBoo

P.S. Thanks to everyone who responded on my last two posts, as well as the PCOS one. I do want to respond to them in a concise way, so be on the look out for that. -DB

Getting on my soapbox...again

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 17:18:00 +0000

Time to get on my soapbox again.

This quote comes from Halima's blog, at Black Women's IR Circle. Excuse me while I roll my eyes at some of this:

The emphasis on white men (not exclusively though) is because wm are the largest group of men available to black women. There is no getting around this fact and it would be another form of sabotaging bw relationship ambitions, to direct them towards men who are less likely to be physically available and who might also be culturally unavailable to them. I much rather focus on the 'surplus' group while also pointing out that IR means more than just black and white.

There is also a subtext to this argument. When people say 'if you cant get with bm etc, why not try Asian and Hispanic, I usually detect its simply the 'anything but a wm' argument. Its all about avoiding wm at all costs and sustianing the histporical fued with wm/the white race. Since I am really bothered little about continuing this fueding, I choose to approach the IR idea differently.

Let me also say that I do not detect from bw any strong aversion towards other non-white men if they are open to IR at all. There is indeed no historical basis for bw to have deep 'issues' with HM, AM, NAM and so there is no need for me to 'work' on bw opening themselves to these others.

A couple of comments I have to make about this.

1. White men are the surplus? Depending on where you are in America, they might be the minority. In Texas, especially where I am, Hispanics are becoming the majority. In certain parts of New Mexico and Arizona, there are plenty of Native Americans of various tribes around. Hell, in chocolate cities, there are more black people around than white.

2. Culturally, I'm sure white men are not one homogenized group. They have their own cultures that black women have to deal with as well. Just as I must understand where Mr. Salt comes from on certain topics, as did Diva when she married her husband as well.

3. The "anyone but a white man" argument may have its points with some black women who think dating out is betraying the black race, but it is also a cop out to those who feel that the whole black women IR community is pushing white men above all other men. As I said before, we should be glad when any black women breaks the cycle and marries (or does what she wants to do with) her true love regardless of their race. We, who did not marry a white man, are not sustaining the feud with race just because of who we married. We married who we loved. And granted, while Mr. Salt and I do get the whole "Living in a white man's world" due to our understanding of what has happened to both our races (and Mr. Salt even more so), it only serves as a survival tool at best. I did not marry Mr. Salt just because I wouldn't consider white men.

4. Even though there shouldn't be any issues between black women and other minorities, it doesn't mean that they do not exist. Even certain members of Mr. Salt's clans had issues with me that they probably would not have had if I where white. I have not personally dealt with them, but I know I have Mr. Salt support at the expense of his family. Not that I would want it to come to that, of course. I also have SaltMama and Sister, so that's all it matters to me.

So in conclusion, just because I and other ladies didn't marry white, doesn't mean we had it easier, or that it's more acceptable. We still get stared at, we still get comments, and we all have issues we both have to deal with. We do not want what happened between black women and black men to happen between black women and white men just because they are presented as the only acceptable or most sought after people.

Love is for everyone, regardless of race.

-DineBoo

Politics, FaceBook, Gaming, and other stuff

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 22:11:00 +0000

While I think up another post, here are random thoughts and news:

Anyone on FaceBook? Look me up by searching for Kim Toney from the ATX. Also, anyone playing X-Box 360 games? Look for DineBoo on X-Box live. Mr. Salt is on there, too, but you have to play a mean game of Halo 3.

I am very happy that the game Mass Effect (X-Box 360) allowed me to create a black female character that kicks all kinds of ass. You rarely get this in other games. Bioware take a bow.

I may not talk politics on this blog, but I will say that Mr. Salt was very impressed that Sen. Barack Obama mentioned Native Americans in his speech accepting Sen. Ted Kennedy's endorsement.

The Salt Clan(Mr. Salt's maternal clan) is asking about future zhindians.

Anyone want to start that BW-Non white man community we've been talking about the past few weeks? I'm interested.

-DineBoo

Blog mentions and the IR Community

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 03:09:00 +0000

I was very humbled and excited to learn that my blog and my previous blog post, "Don't Leave Us Out", was mentioned in Angry Black Cat's eighth podcast! ABC and JeffG discuss the survey I was ranting about plus more. It was a great piece. Check it out here. You must be registered to listen to it.

I also received some great responses to that post. ChelB and Diva(Thanks for the comments ladies!) both expressed disappointment at feeling left out of the whole black women IR community just because they married men that weren't white.

I feel the same way at times. I got into the community relatively late because I had already married my husband prior to finding the community. As I said before, it's great that a movement has started to get black women to expand their options. But, it also feels like the IR community is pushing white men at the expense of other races.

Black women need to consider and expand all their options. Should Diva, ChelB, and myself be excluded from this movement just because our husbands aren't white? Didn't this movement get started because a majority of black women were limiting themselves to black men?

Expanding our options and finding love should be the key terms for the BW IR community. If you find love with a white man, great. If you find it with another race, that's great, too. No one should be made to feel like they're on the fringes of a community that can give great support just by the race of the man she married.

Don't ignore us

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 17:18:00 +0000

I was reading Halima's blog recently where she posted some information about a doctoral candidate surveying interracial couples. It sounded interesting, so I decided to look into it a little more. I like sharing my views.

Needless to say, I was dissapointed for the survey to narrow down who they wanted to black women/men to white men/women couples.

It points out a issue I have with the interracial community at times. While I get that they want to show black women are desirable, and that white men should be considered among their dating choices, there are other choices out there.

I didn't marry a white man. I married a Dine man. We have our own unique situations that a bw/wm couple would never face. Is my opinion any less than those who married a white man?

Sometimes I feel as though I'm on the outskirts of the whole IR movement. I bucked the statistics that said a lot of black women would stay single. And I opened my options to include other people. Shouldn't that count for something?

There are other races that should be considered for black women. White men shouldn't be the the only one. There are Hispanic, Asian, Native American and others to consider as well.

We should be telling any black women not to limit her choices to white men only. Whe should be considering all people and all races. Because we did that with black men, and look what happened to us.

Maybe I should start my own community for black women who didn't marry a white man.

-DineBoo

The Shattered Heart Effect...and the Nosy Aunt

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 06:34:00 +0000

I debated with myself if I should write this. But, I always feel better after I write, and I haven't posted in a while, so here goes.

I call it the "Shattered Heart" effect.

Mr. Salt and I visited my aunt's house for Christmas. The house was full, I was expecting my side (i.e. my mother's side) of the family to be around. But, my aunt's husband's family was there too. No big deal, just means I can't 'visit' with the family as I would like. Too many people around.

So after the obligatory hugs and kisses between my aunts (younger, whom I'm referring to now, and older, who I'll get to in a minute), grandma, and cousin, I get drawn to a side room I realized now after all this that I was trying to get away. Maybe I sensed something.

Younger Aunt: I have something to tell you.
DineBoo: What?
Y. Aunt: I'm expecting twins.

Instantly, I felt my heart literately break. The Shattered Heart Effect struck again. The Shattered Heart Effect when something causes me extreme deress.

Nobody noticed the fake smile I pasted on my face as my immediate family surrounded my younger aunt with excited tones. Nobody noticed how quiet I got, not really cotributing to the good cheer. Nobody noticed when I excused myself(twice) from the grand announcement to the rest of the family to go to the restroom and cry my heart out. Nobody noticed my red eyes, or how I clung to Mr. Salt.

I felt so alone.

I felt crushed, but so guilty. My aunt has a one year son already, and now she's having twins? I can't get just one! But why am I not happy for her? Why do look at her with envy?

This, as you can see, caused me extreme duress. Why, you ask?

PCOS.

I've talked about it here. My PCOS prevents me from having a regular cycle, and how my chances of having kids drop if I don't take the require meds.

Also, Mr. Salt and I have been wanting zhindians for a while now. This year, we're really getting serious about it. For me to have even a chance, I have to be serious about taking all my meds, even though they make me nauseous, and have some interesting side effects. Looking at my pill box, I have to take five pills a day right now, dropping to four once I induce a cycle. There's insiline resistance drugs, prenatal drugs, and progesterone to reboot the system, as I call it.

All this for a Zhindian. Which will be worth it. But now, I hurt.

And what bothers me is that no one, besides Mr. Salt, saw how hurt I was. Granted, I'm good at hiding it, but when Mr. Salt decides that leaving the celebration is good for my well being, no pings to radar went off. I guess everyone was wrapped up with the celebration to notice.

And, just when I thought my older (and the nosiest) aunt was going to ask me what's wrong (she had dragged me to a quiet room to talk), all she asks was if Mr. Salt and I were having any money problems, how long my hair is getting, and my job. If I ever thought about opening up to her, it stopped just because of it. I know my eyes were red during the whole evening.

And nobody asked why.

Sigh. I'm rambling, but tha's what blogs are for. Hopefully, I'll have good news to share someday. But for now, I'll just pray.

-DineBoo

Zhini on the Rez

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 07:47:00 +0000

Greetings from Dinetah! The Navajo Reservation! (Well, to be honest, I'm just north of it now in Colorado. But I spent a majority of my time on it.)

This is third time visiting the Rez, and I learn something new every time. While I wanted to come in less urgent circumstances around Christmas, I still loved my time here.

A bit of back story: The Salt Clan (SaltMama's clan and Mr. Salt's maternal clan) had a family emergency, so Mr. Salt and I took the 18 hour trip from Texas to get all the way to Rez. Why not fly? It still takes four hours to drive to Shiprock, Mr. Salt hometown on the Rez, from Albuquerque.

So while I have a moment, I thought I'd post some random thoughts about my time here. I'll have pictures soon as I develop them, as well as some more in depth posts:

1. I was probably the only Zhini (black person) for miles in certain areas of the Rez.

2. SaltMama's cooking, especially her frybread, is heaven.

3. I received a Storyteller's bracelet from SaltMama as an early Christmas gift.

4. I got a chance to meet more of Mr. Salt's family this time around.

5. SaltMama is my mom, shi ma in Navajo. SisterSalt is my sister. They're in laws, but I only refer to them as that when I'm talking to other people. Otherwise, it's my mom or my sister. It's common terminology for the Dine.

6. Rez dogs are everywhere on the Rez. Rez Dogs are dogs "owned" by people as far as being fed, but are allowed to roam free since there are no fences around the houses.

7. You truly make your own roads on the Rez. It was muddy around SaltMama's housing complex, and you could see the deep grooves in the dirt paths leading to the houses.

8. It's very cold up here! As a Texan, it's something I have to get used to.

More coming soon! Hopefully, I would have done the City Market experiment the next time I post. City Market is a store in Shiprock, and I need to by my quarterly supply of Blue Bird flour.

-DineBoo

Dreaming of fish?

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 01:21:00 +0000

This is the one time in my life that I want to be told that someone in my family was dreaming of fish.

As a lot of black people know, to dream of fish is a very good sign that someone you know is pregnant. I'm unaware of any signs that the Dine'(Navajo) people use (and I have asked Mr. Salt), but I do know that SaltMama is very keen on her predictions.

Yaah! (Navajo translation: An expression of frustration) Who knew that trying to create a Zhindian would be so much work! Especially with my PCOS. I've finally delved deep into the Trying to Conceive world and it can be intimidating. From basal temperatures, to egg whites, to 'Tussen, and baby dancing of course, there's a lot of information out there to make your head spin. And I'm beat.

PCOS, how I hate thee. I used to be regular to the day. Now I'm lucky to have a period. Mr. Salt is always happy for me when I do get it, though I always feel guilty about it. Why? Because culturally, Navajo men are not supposed to know when their ladies have their periods. The women just make sure that everything associated with it (like pads) are out of sight and unseen. So I feel like I'm shattering some of his traditions when I talk about it.

I don't know why I'm making myself depressed right now. It's still to early to know if I'm carrying a Zhindian or not. I'm hopeful, but all my twinges and signs in the past have been false alarms. So I don't want to be too disappointed.

But maybe one day...soon...

-DineBoo

The Kokopelli Recipe Box: 'Ghetto' Navajo Tacos

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Sun, 11 Nov 2007 06:10:00 +0000

This is the first in a couple of entries for The Kokopelli Recipe Box, which includes all sorts of recipes from frybread to red beans. I hope others will like my recipes and use them.

Mmm...Navajo tacos. I made this for Mr. Salt's dinner last week. You can find these for sall back on the Navajo Reservation. The Cheesecake Factory has a version called The Navajo, but it isn't the same. I call my version 'ghetto' because a true Navajo taco uses beans. I replaced the beans with ground beef in my version:

'Ghetto' Navajo Tacos
Recipe by DineBoo

A few pieces of frybread (check my Frybread Power! post for recipe)
A pound of ground round beef
Diced tomatoes
Shredded lettuce
Grated cheddar cheese
Seasonings (salt, pepper, Accent, etc) for taste

Prepare your frybread recipe. You can cook the frybread before or after you cook your meat. I perfer after, so the frybread is warm.

Crumble the ground round in a pan. Season the ground beef the way you like it. I like it a little plain, so I add a little Accent to it, or maybe some salt. Cook until brown, and be sure to not let it cook until it's dry. You want the meat to be cooked, but a little juicy. Drain away excess grease.

Take a piece of warm frybread and sit it on a plate. Spoon some ground beef on top of it, as much as you like.

Add some shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, and cheddar cheese, so it looks like a taco. Viola! Ghetto Navajo Taco. Aside from making the frybread, this is very easy to make and filling. Serve with a Coke.

You can eat it with a knife and fork like I do, or you can do what Mr. Salt does and fold the frybread in half like a taco and eat it that way. It kind of looks like a Taco Bell Chalupa if you do it like that.

If you have any frybead leftover, treat it as dessert and drizzle it with honey. Yum!

Happy Eating!
-DineBoo

You said what?

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 02:01:00 +0000

It's always been a fear of mine that I would say something horrible in a another language just by mispronouncing something.

For me, it was speaking Navajo to Mr. Salt a few weeks ago.

As I said to Diva in the comments below, Navajo (Dine bizaad) is a tonal language, meaning that where you put the emphasis in a good portion of the words can totally change the meaning of the word. Say it one way, it means this. Say it another, it means that.

So, when we were at the softball game I referenced a few posts ago, there was a grill fired up to cook burgers. Mr. Salt referenced the smoke coming our way in Navajo. Repeating him, I attempted to say the word for smoke. Mr. Salt immediately corrects me.

What I said wasn't smoke.

I had said shit.

Ah, for the joys of learning a new language.

It does has it fun moments. For instance, you can talk about people that give us evil looks (Angry Black Cat referenced this in her blog), and they can be totally confused because they expect Spanish(due to Mr. Salt's coloring). It always throws them for a loop.

Saying "over there" in Navajo can be fun too. The distance to get to o'er there where something is can change from two feet to ten miles depending how long you draw out a certain constant.

And, of course, misspeaking the language isn't always limited to me. Mr. Salt says that when he was little and learning the language, SaltMama had sent him over to his grandma's house for onions. So when he gets there, he tries to ask for onions using Navajo.

He didn't say onion. He said the vulgar word for a woman's lower anatomy.

So grandma was offended and was mad at SaltMama for teaching Mr. Salt dirty words.

Oh, and Mr. Salt's first learned English word?

Shit.

-DineBoo

Tales from Dinetah: Sleeping Man and Sleeping Woman

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Sat, 27 Oct 2007 19:22:00 +0000

This is the first of a few tales that come from Mr. Salt family in Dinetah. Dinetah is Mr. Salt's home, the Navajo reservation.

Mornings in the Mr. Salt/DineBoo residence go something like this:

DineBoo: Get up! Sleeping Woman was crawling all over you!
Mr. Salt: I know. She had me wrapped up pretty tight. I had to get Sleeping Man to come get her off me.

When you have trouble waking up in the morning (or just waking up period like I do), it is said that Sleeping Man (or Woman if you're a guy) has you all wrapped up tight and is not letting you go.

Sleeping Man and Sleeping Woman are said to be foul, smelly people. Just really rank and dirty. Their breath stinks (morning breath) and they have matty hair (bed hair). That dried, crusty matter in your eyes after you wake up either dried drool from your respected Sleeping person or something else entirely. Mr. Salt can get creative with what that 'something else' is, so I'll just leave it as other body fluids and continue on.

Sleeping Man is always trying to get with Sleeping Woman, but if she rejects him, he'll find someone else to be with for the night. Same with Sleeping Woman. So you (or your partner) need to shake him off and chase him away.

When you're waking somebody up you need to shake them hard so that Sleeping Man will go away and find another person to be with for rest the night. The harder it is to wake the person up, the harder you need the shake the person awake. You might say some really gross things (like Sleeping Man's drool is all over them) so that they'll wake up faster. Mr. Salt says this works great with kids.

It can also be a sign of laziness when you are told that Sleeping Man(or Woman) is always around you. It means you're sleeping too much and not getting ready for the day!

-DineBoo

Wait a minute...weren't you black last week?

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 04:27:00 +0000

First of all, I would like to thank all my visitors to my little corner of the web, as well as Halima and Diva for linking to me. Thank you so much!

This past Tuesday, I was watching ECW. A wrestling program. Weird I know, but I've been watching some sort of wrestling program every week for the past ten years and it's a very hard habit to break. Or maybe I like watching guys in skimpy shorts.

Anyway, there's this black looking lady called Layla that shows up at almost every show. I think she's the only black (looking ethnic) 'Diva' in WWE right now due to the fact they let go of the only other black Diva last week. In the picture here, she has curly hair and has noticeable black features.

Fast foward to this past Tuesday. She shows up as a part of this wierd entourage, and I had a hard time placing her. In fact, I thought she got replaced by someone else! But a few rewinds with with my trusty DVR confirmed it was indeed her. What was it that made her look so differnt?

She had straightened her hair.

Granted, I also chemically straighten my hair, but with her, she didn't look black at all! It was like she changed ethnicities overnight. Now, she could be of different heritages, but this one change made her completely look like a different race.

This kinda disturbed me, because I don't know why this change had to be made. Is she getting rid of one stereotype for the other? The wrestling world is built on all types of stereotypes. From the redneck, to the hoodrat, to the war chanting Indian, the wrestling world has or had these characters. Here, Layla flip flops from looking ethnic to looking white in a week!

I don't know. I guess I should be used to this by now. But Layla, please, bring back your curly hair!

-DineBoo

Rezzed Out...aaayyy!

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Sun, 21 Oct 2007 16:30:00 +0000

Over time, Mr. Salt and I have developed our own unique way of talking and mannerisms. Some words we use are taken from the Rez, the Navajo language, and black slang. I'll start with the word 'john' from my previous post.

'John': Mr. Salt says this means a really bozzie "ghetto" Navajo. Yes, they can be ghetto. More relates to the way they live on the Rez and life itself.

"...aaayyy!" Attached to the end of the sentence, it's how women flirt on the Rez. "That guy was giving you the eye, aaayyy!" RezDog.com has a great shirt with this saying on it. I want one.

"...and everything!" Attached to the end of sentence, it rolls up what could goes on with a person or a situation into one word. "He was drinking with his friends and everything!" "He was running around and everything!" Most people know what the "Everything" is.

"O'er there!" Basically, "over there!" Also point with your lips when you say this to give the right directions. Mr. Salt rubbed off on me because now I say this every time I give out directions.

"Ckys!" Put your tongue at the roof of mouth and make the 'ck' sound. Basically used when you have a "Are you kidding me? No way!" moment.

'ennit': No explanation necessary. Really.

Indianuity: Whenever Mr. Salt figures out how to rig something to make it work or make it work better. Similar to N*gger rigging.

-DineBoo

One little, two little, three little zhindians...

noreply@blogger.com (DineBoo) — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 01:34:00 +0000

Zhindian.

That term was created by SaltMama when Mr. Salt and I were dating. "You two will have zhindians!" she said. It's a fun term. Mr. Salt and I use it a lot to talk about any future children and situations.

Yesterday, we headed to see a softball game (which was part of a tournament) of a couple we know from church. Their youngest daughter was the flowergirl in our wedding, and we've had fellowship with them for the past year. It was a great outing. We got fresh air, visited a new restaurant, and if I wasn't sick, I would have stayed longer.

Mr. Salt admitted today that seeing all the kids made him wish for kids...zhindians. I know I want to have them. I wanted my mother to see any grandkids, but she passed before she could even meet Mr. Salt. My PCOS (PolyCystic Ovarian Syndrome) worries me, but if I get it under control, I should be fine. My PCOS has given me plenty of false alarms though, and even now, I dread taking another pregnancy test. I want it to be positive.

Having zhindians also creates some interesting discussions when it comes to Navajo clans. As I stated in my very first post, Mr. Salt has four clans, his main two being the Salt and Mexican People clans. When we have kids, the kids loses two clans, compared to another Navajo who have four. SaltMama has it figured it out to where any kids of ours will belong to a black person (me) and born for the Mexican People (Mr. Salt).

We hope this would do if our kids have to go to school on the Rez. One of the very first greetings to one another on the Rez is "What are your clans?" It helps establish family, friendship, and dating possibilies (You're not supposed to date within your clan. It's considered incest).

So for now, we talk about future zhindians we will have. And how 'john' they will be. What is 'john'. Rez terminology that have to dedicate a future post to. But for now, think upper class ghetto.

DineBoo