Glad to see ya!

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

Zhini on the Rez

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?

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

You said what?

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

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

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

Frybread Power!

Diamond in the blog post below this asked about frybread, so I decided to post about this since I finally uploaded my pictures.

Frybread is dough fried in shortening or lard until it's crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. The Dine like their frybread just a tad bit more salty than other tribes, so the recipe I use for Mr. Salt adds just a bit more salt.

The recipe for frybread I use calls for:

2 Cups of flour. I use Bluebird Flour from the Rez when I can get it. If not,
use King Author All purpose flour. This is the brand I've found that is closest to BlueBird.

1/2 Tablespoon of Baking Powder. Make sure it's fresh!

1/2 teaspoon plus a little more of salt. This varies a bit since I eyeball it. I can use up to 3/4 of a teaspoon. If you don't like salty food, use a little less than half .

Enough warm water to make a dough ball, about a 1 cup.

Mix the flour, salt, and baking powder in a bowl. Add enough water to form a ball of dough. Note the spoon in the bowl. SaltMama uses her hands to mix the flour and water together. I have long nails, so I use the spoon.

Turn the dough onto a floured surface, and kneed the dough until it's soft, but not sticky. Separate the dough into smaller pieces, about 6 or 7.

Now here's the tricky part: You need to flatten a piece a dough to a uniform thickness. I press the dough ball between the palms of my hands to flatten it out, forming a shape like a miniature pizza. You can use a small rolling pin for this if it's easier for you. SaltMama(and others) can do this really fast by tossing the dough between their hands like a pizza. I'm not up to that level yet. Google some frybread making on YouTube to get a better picture.

Melt enough shortening in a large skillet so that the oil comes halfway up the side. Gently place one of the flattened pieces of dough into the skillet. The dough will cook quickly...and watch out for spatter. When it puffs up, floats and turns brown around the edges, flip the piece of dough with a pair of tongs. Let cook for about two minutes more, then remove when browned. Place frybread onto paper towels towels to drain.

While the dough is cooking, I'm usually flattening another piece of dough. You can do this advance, because if you're not fast enough, the bread can burn. Continue frying the dough, and stacking the frybread on a paper towel.

Voila! You get the frybread pictured at the beginning of the post. You can eat the frybread as is, or drizzle it with some honey. Eat it while it's hot!

The batch pictured here was called my best batch I've ever made by Mr. Salt. Yum!

-DineBoo

P.S. Oh yeah...make sure you have some sort of vent and close the doors to your kitchen when you make frybread. Or open a window.The smell of frybread gets everywhere, so if you don't want to smell like a fried bread at state fair the next day, make sure the vent is on. ;)

Mmm...Comfort foods

This evening, I made a pan of cornbread from scratch just for the express purpose of being eaten with milk. Mmmm....

Something I got from my father, sweet cornbread with a splash of milk is a dish I eat when there's nothing else to eat or I'm sick. Reminds me when I was little, learning how to cook from Dad. It's very filling and a great meal replacer in a pinch.

Fettuccine Alfredo is another comfort food of mine. It's usually made for my lunch, but only when I have good Parmesan, cream and garlic in the house. Since I've been trying to lose weight, this dish hasn't been made in a while.

Mr. Salt's comfort foods are ground beef with fried potatoes. With frybread, this is made when he's going on a work trip somewhere. Other comfort foods are beef stew and fried bologna sandwiches. And fried SPAM. All made by SaltMama back in day.

Yum. You know, maybe I'll make a small dish of Fettuccine Alfredo with my fish tomorrow...

DineBoo

"Don't use your lips!"

Whenever SaltMama calls or when Mr. Salt calls her, I try to use it as a chance to practice my understanding of the Navajo language.

Since I've met Mr. Salt, I've learned bits and pieces. It's not an easy language to learn. There's a reason why the military used Navajo Code Talkers in World War II.

Mr. Salt says not to use my lips as much, and concentrate on using my tongue more. It's hard to adapt to since English and the French lessons I took almost require you to use your lips, but I'm working on it.

Why am I doing this? So I can enjoy talking with SaltMama(who knows English) and Mr. Salt more, and to pass along the language to any Zhindians that may come along. Mr. Salt and I both want our kids to know their language.

So for now, I practice. And enjoy Mr. Salt when he speaks it. One of the most beautiful things he has ever said to me is that he loved me in Navajo...and that's not the full translation.

DineBo