Keeping It Real by Frizzy Lizzy

Hi dear friends and followers, here we are again Saturday, would you join me at Frizzy Lizzy's?

Keeping It Real by Frizzy Lizzy

So you ask me what is the craziest thing that second ex, Frank, ever did? Well, Sarah, that's not an easy question to answer. I suppose that it really depends upon what you call "crazy."

There's the time that he took on the hornets in the yard shed and won. And there's the day that he tried to fix the leak in the roof of our first camper, or maybe the time that he decided to cook steaks over the coals on New Year's Eve. Or maybe when our neighbor gave him the little green peppers to eat - there are many to choose from!

Since we just had New Year's maybe I should reminisce a bit about what we did after the crowd left our home following Christmas dinner.

Now Frank was not always a pain-in-the-ass. For several years he was a pretty good man to live with, and if he wanted to try to recapture the spirit of Christmas past, as it was for him when he was an only child, and do it for his sons and their children, so be it. I'll try anything at least once if there's a good person involved.

So we had a real blowout of a Christmas, complete with more gifts, decorations, food, and people than I have ever seen in my life! We socialized all Christmas Eve while playing cards, drinking, and doing some of the preparations for the dinner. We seldom got 2 hours' sleep before Frank would wake the kids, make the coffee and get all of us adults to drag our butts to the Christmas tree to open gifts.

In short, we were pretty tired by the time Christmas night came around.

It became our custom to go to this campground where Frank and his mom had a camp trailer on a nicely kept campsite for New Year's and a few days beyond. We had the place to ourselves and it was so restful! We slept, woke, and ate on whatever schedule we desired, and since we were not driving anywhere we took a drink or two; or three; or more.

This one New Year's Eve it was rather mild weather with no snow on the ground. Frank and I went into town to buy groceries and he got it into his head that he wanted to make steak and shrimp for supper. It sounded good to me, so I went along with the idea.

We got home and drew water for cooking the shrimp from the freeze-proof faucet outside the trailer and steamed them. They smelled delicious! But the steaks were a different story.

Frank had forgotten to look for charcoal when we were out and by the time he was ready to cook the store had closed.

Now many other men would have settled for taking two New York strip steaks and putting them in a frying pan but not Frank. He had a better idea.

He went out to the fireplace that we had built in the yard in front of the trailer and cleared all of the leaves and debris out of it. Then he came in and had a shot of Canadian Club and a beer. On an empty stomach.

He went out to the shed and found some newspapers and made wads out of them and put the wads in the fireplace. So far, so good. Now to fine some dry kindling wood and bigger wood for a fire. That came after another shot and another beer.

So he went back out and began to search for kindling and wood. A half-hour later he came back and tried to light a fire. The wood was damp and the results were so pitiful! I felt badly for the poor man.

Then he went into the shed and brought our more newspaper. He folded it in two and used it to fan the fire. Sure enough, the smoke dissipated and a flame began to dance in the fireplace, but as soon as he stopped it was back to smoldering again.

And that is when he went back into the shed and came back out with an extension cord. He plugged it in to the outlet on the side of the trailer. I had no idea in hell of what he was doing but he did. He returned to the shed and came back out with a large electric fan that he plugged into the end of the extension.

He took the fan out to the fireplace, turned it on, and aimed it where the smoldering was going on. In a few seconds there was flame again!

Frank left the fan to blow on the damp wood like mechanical bellows! He watched it from inside of the trailer while we both toasted his ingenuity. Then he took the steaks and threaded them onto the long forks that we use for roasting weiners and walked back out to the fire. He returned about 10 minutes later with two nice steaks, done rare!

Now to the untrained mind the notion of steaks cooked over an open fire in the middle of winter might seem like sheer craziness, but not to Frank.

After supper we tried sitting outside by the fireplace. We did that just long enough to feel our front parts staying nice and warm but our backs freezing. He figured out how to cook steaks and give us a nice fire but keeping our asses toasty, well, you can't have everything, can you, Sarah?

How about more coffee and another dip of ice cream with your black forest cake?

Thank you very much again, dear friends, for visiting my blog. Please share your thoughts with us, if you will. have a great Weekend.

✿ ڰۣ❤In Loving Light from the Fairy Lady❤ڰۣ✿

The Buffalo Hunting Porcupine

Hi dear friends and followers. Today we visit the Native Amercan people named Utes

The Native People known as the Utes lived in central and western Colorado for centuries before their contact with the white man. They were a nomadic people who, at first, lived in bark covered dwellings called wikiups, and followed the buffalo herds. A wikiup was rather hard to move so the Ute eventually adopted the teepee as a temporary shelter while on the hunt.

Many Native American legends feature animals animals who embody a certain spirit or are known for a particular skill or "virtue" as the central characters; whether it's part of a creation myth, or legends and fables, they manage to hold our attention, and teach us in the process.

One story tells of a time when animals ruled the earth, and a buffalo tracking porcupine.

The Buffalo Hunting Porcupine

The porcupine had been following the buffalo by their manure chips, asking each and every one in which direction the buffalo were headed. One answered it was "fresh", and the porcupine followed its directions to a river which the buffalo had just crossed.

The porcupine called out for a buffalo to carry him across the river, but as each one replied, "Do you mean me?", he said, "No, I want a different buffalo," and moved on to the next one until he finally found the strongest buffalo in the herd who said, "I shall carry you across the river!," and proceeded to cross the river to fetch the porcupine.

The porcupine, unsure for his safety, was apprehensive about getting on the buffalo's back. Every suggestion offered by the buffalo was declined by the frightened porcupine until the buffalo asked him if he would rather cross the river inside him. The porcupine agreed, and was swallowed by the buffalo.

As they crossed the river, the anxious porcupine asked the buffalo if they had arrived. The buffalo answered, "No, not yet." Then a little while later, he asked again and the buffalo replied, "We have just come out of the water, it is safe for you to leave my insides." But the porcupine replied: "Not yet, wait a little longer."

A while later, the buffalo grew tired of carrying the porcupine inside him, and ordered it to come out. The porcupine came out, but his heavy tail, full of quills punctured the buffalo's heart on the way, causing it to charge and die suddenly. This angered the other buffalo, who tried to kill the porcupine, but he stayed beneath the buffalo's ribs, safe from their horned attacks.

After the buffalo got tired and abandoned their efforts, the porcupine emerged, and looking at the buffalo carcass said, "I wish I had something with which to butcher this buffalo."

A coyote who happened to be sleeping nearby heard the porcupine, and quickly got to its feet, and rushed to help the porcupine. He said, "Here is my knife for butchering", and joined the porcupine at the dead buffalo's side.

The coyote issued a challenge: "Let he who can leap over the beast butcher it." The porcupine got a good start, ran, and jumped, but he fell short of the mark. Of course, the coyote achieved the jump in a single bound, not even grazing the dead buffalo, so he got to carve up the beast.

After a while, he removed the paunch, and gave it to the porcupine for him to go and clean in the river, asking him to wait before eating any of it. The porcupine, hungry from all the excitement, tore off a little piece and ate it, but not so little a piece, and not eaten fast enough that the coyote didn't see, and the latter howled with anger at the disobedient porcupine whom he chased and killed with a club, then stuffed inside the buffalo's carcass.

When he later joined his family, the coyote told them he had killed both the porcupine and the buffalo, and he asked them to help carry them home.

Before being removed from inside the buffalo, the spirit of the porcupine said the magic words, "Let a red pine tree grow here - fast." The tree sprang upwards from beneath the meat and the porcupine, carrying them to the heavens, with the porcupine miraculously coming back to life.

When the coyote and his family returned to get the meat, they were surprised to find it had gone missing, and he asked his family to search the area, hoping to pick up a scent.

Porcupine, sitting atop the tall red pine, wished the coyotes would look up and see him there. Then it happened: the smallest coyote looked up and saw the porcupine, sitting up at the top of the branches on a small hill of meat.

Coyote asked the porcupine to throw them a piece, for they were starving, but the porcupine had one request: "Place the smallest of your children a little farther away." The coyotes did as they were asked, placing their youngest off to the side. "Now make a circle and hold your hands upward to the heavens," so they did, and porcupine began throwing down the huge chunks of meat which ended up knocking the coyote and his family dead, with the exception of the little one.

When he came back down, Porcupine took care the little coyote, fed him some meat and then went home with as much as he could carry. Later on, the porcupine and the coyote, who had since become close friends, ended up helping each other in 

the hunt for buffalo.

Thank you very much again, dear friends, for visiting my blog. Please share your thoughts with us, if you will. have a great Week.

✿ ڰۣ❤In Loving Light from the Fairy Lady❤ڰۣ✿

HOW THE BUFFALO HUNT BEGAN

Hi dear friends and followers

Tonight we will stay in Wyoming to look at the companion piece to last night's legend, the Origin of the Buffalo. As always, this tale explains a lot in a short time. I hope that find it interesting because our next stop is Colorado and I have no idea what we will find there. Have a great Wednesday!

HOW THE BUFFALO HUNT BEGAN

The buffalo formerly ate man. The magpie and the hawk were on the side of the people, for neither ate the other or the people. These two birds flew away from a council between animals and men. They determined that a race would be held, the winners to eat the losers.

The course was long, around a mountain. The swiftest buffalo was a cow called Neika, "swift head." She believed she would win and entered the race. On the other hand, the people were afraid because of the long distance. They were trying to get medicine to prevent fatigue.

All the birds and animals painted themselves for the race, and since that time they have all been brightly coloured. Even the water turtle put red paint around his eyes. The magpie painted himself white on head, shoulders, and tail. At last all were ready for the race, and stood in a row for the start.

They ran and ran, making some loud noises in place of singing to help themselves to run faster. All small birds, turtles, rabbits, coyotes, wolves, flies, ants, insects, and snakes were soon left far behind. When they approached the mountain the buffalo-cow was ahead; then came the magpie, hawk, and the people; the rest were strung out along the way. The dust rose so quickly that nothing could be seen.

All around the mountain the buffalo-cow led the race, but the two birds knew they could win, and merely kept up with her until they neared the finish line, which was back to the starting place. Then both birds whooshed by her and won the race for man. As they flew the course, they had seen fallen animals and birds all over the place, who had run themselves to death, turning the ground and rocks red from the blood.

The buffalo then told their young to hide from the people, who were going out to hunt them; and also told them to take some human flesh with them for the last time. The young buffaloes did this, and stuck that meat in front of their chests, beneath the throat. Therefore, the people do not eat that part of the buffalo, saying it is part human flesh.

From that day forward the Cheyennes began to hunt buffalo. Since all the friendly animals and birds were on the people's side, they are not eaten by people, but they do wear and use their beautiful feathers for ornaments.

Thank you very much again, dear friends, for visiting my blog. Please share your thoughts with us, if you will. have a great Week.

✿ ڰۣ❤In Loving Light from the Fairy Lady❤ڰۣ✿

ORIGIN OF THE BUFFALO

Hi dear friends and followers. Today we follow the legends of the  Cheyenne.

I have traveled through Wyoming and while it was not particularly remarkable to me, it was home to more than one Native American People, among them the Cheyenne, a people who followed the migration of the buffalo herds.

But it wasn't always that way. At some point eons ago, the Cheyenne did not even know what a buffalo looked like, and they were starving. This legend tells how that was remedied.

ORIGIN OF THE BUFFALO

Long ago, a tribe of Cheyenne hunters lived at the head of a rushing stream, which eventually emptied into a large cave.

Because of the great need for a new food supply for his people, the Chief called a council meeting.

"We should explore the large cave," he told his people. "How many brave hunters will offer to go on this venture? Of course, it may be very dangerous, but we have brave hunters." No one responded to the Chief's request.

Finally, one young brave painted himself for hunting and stepped forth, replying to the Chief, "I will go and sacrifice myself for our people." He arrived at the cave, and to his surprise, First Brave found two other Cheyenne hunters near the opening, where the stream rushed underground.

"Are they here to taunt me," First Brave wondered? "Will they only pretend to jump when I do?"

But the other two braves assured him they would go.

"No, you are mistaken about us. We really do want to enter the cave with you," they said.

First Brave then joined hands with them and together they jumped into the huge opening of the cave. Because of the darkness, it took some time for their eyes to adjust. They then discovered what looked like a door. First Brave knocked, but there was no response. He knocked again, louder.

"What do you want, my brave ones?" asked an old Indian grandmother as she opened her door.

"Grandmother, we are searching for a new food supply for our tribe," First Brave replied. "Our people never seem to have enough food to eat."

"Are you hungry now?" she asked.

"Oh, yes, kind Grandmother, we are very hungry," all three braves answered.

The old grandmother opened her door wide, inviting the young braves to enter.

"Look out there!" she pointed for them to look through her window.

A beautiful wide prairie stretched before their eyes. Great herds of buffalo were grazing contentedly. The young hunters could hardly believe what they saw!

The old grandmother brought each of them a stone pan full of buffalo meat. How good it tasted, as they ate and ate until they were filled. To their surprise, more buffalo meat remained in their stone pans!

"I want you to take your stone pans of buffalo meat back to your people at your camp," said the old grandmother. "Tell them that soon I will send some live buffalo."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, kind Grandmother," said the three young Cheyenne braves.

When the young hunters returned to their tribe with the gifts of buffalo meat, their people rejoiced over the new, good food. Their entire tribe ate heartily from the old grandmother's three magic pans, and were grateful.

When the Cheyenne woke at dawn the next day, herds of buffalo had mysteriously appeared, surrounding their village! They were truly thankful to the old Indian grandmother and to the Sky Spirits for their good fortune.

Thank you very much again, dear friends, for visiting my blog. Please share your thoughts with us, if you will. have a great Week.

✿ ڰۣ❤In Loving Light from the Fairy Lady❤ڰۣ✿

The Origin of Tobacco - A Crow Legend

Hi dear friends and followers. Today we follow the legends of the Crow
This is a legend taken from the Crow, one of the Native American peoples of the State of Montana. They shared that region with the Blackfeet, Kalispell, Sioux, Shoshone, and Kootenai, and others.

Today's legend accounts for the origin of many things, not the least among them, tobacco, something that was not smoked by the Native peoples in the same way that it came to be used by the white man. Enjoy this legend and have a great Monday.

The Origin of Tobacco - A Crow Legend
A long time ago the Indians roamed the West like the buffalo, one family scattered and returned by change. There were no separate tribes.

One of the Indians was a woman of powerful beauty. She gave birth to twin sons, but she did not know who their father was. The beautiful woman sang her sons to sleep with a heartbreaking lullaby, and everyone who heard it took pity on her.

Finally, the Earth agreed to claim the first son, and the stars took the second son as one of their own. From then on, the people called them Earth-Boy and Star-Boy.

When the boys were near manhood, they began to behave a little differently from their friends. Earth-Boy stopped following the buffalo everywhere and began to stay close beneath the willows of his home, searching for pretty rocks and carefully observing the slow growth of the plants. Star-Boy also grew lax in his hunting but rather than staying at home he began to wander far beyond the buffalo. He slept during the days so that at night he could watch the travels of his star family.

One day Star-Boy's wanderings brought him to the foot of the highest mountain. No one had climbed it before, but Star-Boy started the slow climb upward without hesitating. Somewhere near the sky, Star-Boy fainted. A shining silver man appeared to him.

The man was a star. He told Star-Boy that he was his father but that he spent his time traveling far beyond the Earth, and he said that he would not pass near the mountain again in his son's lifetime.

"And so to show my love and concern for you, my son, I will give you a gift of great strength and colors of the sunset. Keep this plant with you wherever you wander, and in the springtime plant it wherever you go. Tend the sacred beds, and harvest them when they are tall." With these words, the star plunged his hands into his own silver chest. When he pulled them out again, they were full of tobacco.

He told Star-Boy that tobacco would make everyone in their family strong and free. To share tobacco and its power, people must be adopted into Star-Boy's family. Star-Boy listened carefully, but he was too overwhelmed to speak. He nodded his head gratefully, and his father burst away from him, back to the sky.

When Star-Boy came down from the mountains, he found Earth-Boy, and offered to adopt him and share the tobacco.

Earth-Boy laughed and said, "Brother, you don't need to climb mountains to have visions. While you were gone, I met my Father Earth and he taught me some secrets of my own. Your family may become powerful wanderers, but mine is going to become a family of peaceful farmers. We will grow everything except tobacco and you will grow nothing more."

"I don't want to grow anything more," said Star-Boy. "I will follow the buffalo, and be as strong as an eagle, and as free as the wind."

Earth-Boy smiled. "I will be as strong as rock, my brother," he said, "and steady as sunrise. But no matter how different our families become, we will never quarrel. Your father has given you tobacco, and mine has given me the way of the Medicine Pipe. When we smoke together, your plant with my pipe, our fathers will give us peace and colors of the sunset."

Earth-Boy brought forward a beautiful pipe made from rock and willow of his own home. Star-Boy filled it with tobacco from the heart of the star, and the brothers smoked together.

When Star-Boy left, some of the people went with him, hoping to be adopted into his family. Even before they learned the secrets of tobacco, the people who followed Star-Boy took a name, and called themselves the Crow.

The ones who stayed with Earth-Boy to learn to farm were called after the willows of their home, Hidatsa.

And so the people were divided into tribes, but the power of 

tobacco and the pipe kept them from becoming enemies

Thank you again for dropping by dear friends and for visiting my blog. Please share your thoughts with us, if you will. have a great Week.

✿ ڰۣ❤In Loving Light from the Fairy Lady❤ڰۣ✿