Ojibwe and a white mutt myself. Wisconsin, haven’t touched the rez in probably 20ish years or so. Hit that grew out of it phase as a teen and hadn’t been back since. My eagle feather for hitting black belt and my old regalia probably molding away somewhere in my dad’s basement.
I was el classico native family of drunks, drugs, and sketch parties. Fun in your late teens and early twenties but gets old quick when your older brother wants to fight constantly then ropes your dad into bad habits too.
My vocab only goes as far as Miigwech and Mukwa. Only recently translated my native name to ojibwe for the first time after I got bugged about speaking to some people about my background since I’m in white folk central. Nothing quite like essentially being a 3rd gen immigrant a short drive away from where we started lol.
Gah … I phrase that just translates to … ‘hmmmm ok got you’ … Gah
I was just about to log off for the night when I saw your note.
I’m pretty much the same way … full blooded Ojibway/Cree or Oji-Cree to some … my parents taught us to speak our language first before we learned English so I’m fluent. Like you I grew up with a ton of classico Native family of drunks, drugs and parties. Saw the signs early on and when I was 20 went into a program and have been clean since for 28 years. And also like you, I haven’t seen the rez or much of my family since then. Many of my friends I grew up with went into the red road Pow Wow scene as dancers, drummers and singers but I never went that way … I’m proud of them and always wished I could do the same but I never had the chance. I’m somewhere in between worlds being an Indian and an Indian living like a white man … lol … I’m neither nor am I part of either so it’s weird most of the time. I’m not Native enough for my Native family and I’ll never be white enough for my wife’s white family. It’s weird being Indigenous … it always has been.
Nice to meet you nichi … it’s a short form for nichi-kwesoo (my brother/sibling) … or nichi-ininew (my fellow Native/my fellow man)
For someone like me … I’m Indigenous Canadian … that is one hell of a username … lol
Anishinaabe myself cuz.
I’m Ojibway / Cree from northern Ontario … tan-teh kee-nah? (Where are you from?)
I’m in that weird mix of languages where some people use Anishinabe and some use Nishnawbe but everyone just says Nish … lol
Ojibwe and a white mutt myself. Wisconsin, haven’t touched the rez in probably 20ish years or so. Hit that grew out of it phase as a teen and hadn’t been back since. My eagle feather for hitting black belt and my old regalia probably molding away somewhere in my dad’s basement.
I was el classico native family of drunks, drugs, and sketch parties. Fun in your late teens and early twenties but gets old quick when your older brother wants to fight constantly then ropes your dad into bad habits too.
My vocab only goes as far as Miigwech and Mukwa. Only recently translated my native name to ojibwe for the first time after I got bugged about speaking to some people about my background since I’m in white folk central. Nothing quite like essentially being a 3rd gen immigrant a short drive away from where we started lol.
Gah … I phrase that just translates to … ‘hmmmm ok got you’ … Gah
I was just about to log off for the night when I saw your note.
I’m pretty much the same way … full blooded Ojibway/Cree or Oji-Cree to some … my parents taught us to speak our language first before we learned English so I’m fluent. Like you I grew up with a ton of classico Native family of drunks, drugs and parties. Saw the signs early on and when I was 20 went into a program and have been clean since for 28 years. And also like you, I haven’t seen the rez or much of my family since then. Many of my friends I grew up with went into the red road Pow Wow scene as dancers, drummers and singers but I never went that way … I’m proud of them and always wished I could do the same but I never had the chance. I’m somewhere in between worlds being an Indian and an Indian living like a white man … lol … I’m neither nor am I part of either so it’s weird most of the time. I’m not Native enough for my Native family and I’ll never be white enough for my wife’s white family. It’s weird being Indigenous … it always has been.
Nice to meet you nichi … it’s a short form for nichi-kwesoo (my brother/sibling) … or nichi-ininew (my fellow Native/my fellow man)
Eh-koo-teh (that is all) … wachiyeh
Heh, the username makes more sense now. It was nice chatting though. Pretty rare to see a native proper almost anywhere online lol.