Migizi Pensoneau Pens the Most Articulate and Straightforward Letter to Matthew McConaughey about His Nostalgic Paralysis in GQ Regarding the Washington Football Team.

An Open Letter to Matthew McConaughey About the Washington Football Team (Huffington Post)

Dr. Jessica Metcalfe continues to inspire.

Check out what Paul Frank Industries did to earn a Buck @ Beyond Buckskin.
This post was initially written when the issue at Paul Frank Industries occurred, but I neglected to post it.

Departing Syracuse, v1.2

Nearly two years ago, I blogged (http://torrymendoza.blogspot.com/2010/10/giving-up-on-syracuse.html) that I was going to depart Syracuse to head back to Boulder (end of July 2011) with the possibility of finding a teaching position. Since that blog, events have occurred that have changed the direction of my life for the time being. I will remain always chasing my dreams and hope to one day return to Boulder, hopefully for good, but I am not the one to say whether that will happen or not. For now, I have a wonderful job working with stellar people and I will take full advantage of what I am doing, and hopefully find my path clearer than it has been. Things are good, Syracuse is okay, but it's no Boulder.

Andrew MacLean's, "On The Ice" coming Friday

Upcoming soon, I will be posting a review of Andrew MacLean's, On The Ice per a request from a digital promoter with Total Assault LLC.

Johnny Depp's Got Papers. It's Official He's Comanche.

JOHNNY DEPP'S GOT PAPERS NOW, HE'S BEEN GIVEN CREDENTIALS 

So, word has spread across the Internet like a wildfire in the southwest, but the Apache 8 aren't there to comment on this absurdity. If you haven't guessed, Johnny Depp is officially a Comanche. He can now ignore his Cherokee ancestry he so steadfastly clung to while being vetted of his "Nativeness." Or was it Creek? Well that doesn't matter any longer because the Comanche adopted him. I guess he'll be selling his estate in France and flying to Oklahoma or New Mexico (where his adoption ceremony took place):

Johnny Depp adopted into the Comanche Nation

(New Mexico Business Weekly by Megan Kamerick, Senior Reporter

Date: Monday, May 21, 2012, 5:09pm MDT) 

I'm a little dismayed that he would forgo his Cherokee-ness to become Comanche. You know, deny who you say you are to become who you want to be. But that's not unlike what his entire life has been up to this point, maybe this is an apex moment. I mean he has lived a life of lies acting, not literal lies, but pretend lies. He has pretended to be a pirate, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street, an undercover cop in high schools, a scissor-fingered gothic Frankenstein creation, a Public Enemy, a Mad Hatter, an undercover FBI agent, just to name a few, and now his resume will include an Indian and no longer only the kind played on the silver screen, or by young boys with brightly colored feathers in some ridiculous looking headdress. Nope, he has finally realized his dream of becoming Indigenous. I'm not sure but I believe his condition exists somewhere within the pages of the DSM-IV.

In the above article, LaDonna Harris mentions,

It seemed like a natural fit to officially welcome him into our Comanche family. I reached out, and Johnny was very receptive to the idea. He seemed proud to receive the invitation, and we were honored that he so enthusiastically agreed. 

I'm a little lost for words that by PLAYING INDIAN (a phenomenon coined by Phillip DeLoria), specifically Tonto, more specifically a Comanche, makes it "a natural fit" to adopt Depp into the Comanche Nation. Thousands of little kids play "Cowboys and Indians" all the time, some kids are Lakota, some are Pawnee, some are Apache. It makes sense that Depp would be "receptive to the idea . . ." while enthusiastically agreeing to do so, it's nearly every kid's fantasy to be NDN--and it's been no different for Depp, claiming different tribal ties in various interviews as well as directing a film in which for the first time he PLAYED INDIAN, The Brave (1997).  Unfortunately, what Depp is doing isn't catapulting Indigenous culture into the 21st century, nor is his pretending combatting negative stereotypes surrounding NDNs.* On the contrary, his actions are perpetuating stereotypes that continue to diminish who We are by the cinematic mode.

Depp's portrayal, the actual act of taking a role away from a Native actor (playing red face), not his acting, is insidious. He is perpetuating myths about Native people in a medium that is so disseminated and more often than not in America--Americans educate themselves with popular culture--Americans believe, or at least get their information from what they see on the screen, the portrayals by actors (you know pretending to be NDN) as historically accurate and acceptable. These manifestations are so damaging that they hinder Us from moving forward in the 21st century because We are being relegated to anachronistic versions of Ourselves making Our present all the more difficult to negotiate.

Now, whatever the Comanche Nation wants to do is their business, but I'm not sure how Johnny Depp's "acting" role as Tonto in The Lone Ranger has anything to do with adopting a movie star into a tribe. Maybe I'm missing something? Comanche Nation Tribal Chairman, Johnny Wauqua commented about Depp in a news release that,

He's a very thoughtful human being, and throughout his life and career, he has exhibited traits that are aligned with the values and worldview that indigenous people share. 

Really? I'm a bit perplexed in regards to Depp's "exhibited traits" aligning him with Indigenous people. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure he gives money to worthy causes, and he's probably a very nice guy. But just why didn't his directorial debut film, The Brave (1997) ever hit a screen in North America? Was it really because of the negative reception it received at the Canne Film Festival? Was he hurt because his moment of make-believe wasn't believable (that no one could believe he was Native, onscreen or off)? The Brave (1997) didn't receive rave reviews, and therefore by association Johnny Depp wasn't validated as BEING INDIAN, which negated his fantasy of BECOMING INDIAN. I think these particular acts speak volumes when it comes to "exhibited traits."

In my opinion, this is a simple case of someone being starstruck, "it seemed a natural fit to officially welcome him into our Comanche family." Is that what "IT" is? Never is "it" elaborated upon, unless you assume Depp's role as a fictional Comanche is "IT."
________________________________________________

* To add to my argument I reference my earlier post, Johnny Depp to Play Tonto, Once Again Depp Has Some Degree of NDN Blood? Perfect Timing!
and elaborate that Depp mentions in an interview (Linthicum, Albuquerque Journal, 3/8/2012) how he'll handle the years of stereotyped portrayals of Natives in film. Apparently, through his performance he imagines he will somehow combat these stereotypes by not acting like the stereotypes, but what he fails to comprehend is no matter how good his intentions, the mere fact of him portraying an Indigenous persona, real or fictional, is what will contribute to the damage toll of Indigenous representation in film. One of the most problematic issues of Native Representation in film was and continues to be non-Natives playing the role of Natives. This has got to stop. It's 2012 and there are enough Native actors to play these parts, but it's Hollywood's lack of vision and bottom line that perpetuates the utilization of non-Native movie stars in the roles of Native characters.

Johnny Depp to Play Tonto, Once Again Depp Has Some Degree of NDN Blood? Perfect Timing!

I'm pissed off, no, better yet I'm f**king outraged at what I am seeing regarding Johnny Depp's desire to speak for Native people through a fictional role on the silver screen via his vision of Tonto. Depp has claimed Native blood on various occasions via the Cherokee Nation, the Creek Nation and the Navajo Nation, most recently standing more concretely with his alleged ties to the Cherokee Nation--in NDN Country saying so, doesn't make it so.

But, if this is what Johnny Depp envisions Tonto to be:



Then I absolutely have to argue that he stole his Native "identity" from the Kirby Sattler painting, I Am Crow. Proof positive:



This whole concept from Depp is ridiculous. His vision to turn ". . . the way Indians were treated throughout history ‍of cinema, and turn it on its head” through the realization of the character Tonto is myopic at best (Linthicum, Albuquerque Journal, 3/8/2012). His comprehension of what has happened to Indigenous people is from the colonizer's perspective. He has no inside first-hand knowledge aside from his sense of how Tonto was wronged in the television series, The Lone Ranger. When the idea of this film came to him, Depp thought, ". . . about Tonto and what could be done in my own small way (to) try to — ‘eliminate’ isn’t possible —but reinvent the relationship, to attempt to take some ‍of the ugliness thrown on the Native Americans" (Linthicum, Albuquerque Journal, 3/8/2012). Has he ever played a Native American role? Yes, in his 1997 film, The Brave. This film was never released in the U.S. (North America) and I wonder why? Because the film is based on the book of the same name by Fletch author, Gregory McDonald--which is steeped in Native American stereotypes, that's why.

There is no escaping the fact that there is a plethora of Native American actors who could play this part infusing it with a realistic portrayal of Indigeneity, but Hollywood in its infinite wisdom, better yet, Johnny Depp, Gore Verbinski, Jerry Bruckheimer and Disney in their combined infinite wisdom believe that Depp's limited claim of Cherokee blood--remember his multiple claims to the Navajo and Creek Nations too--is enough to represent a, none-the-less fictional, Native character. After all, we do suspended disbelief while watching films, so how big of a stretch will it be for us to do so for this production? But that's not the issue. The issue is the continued persistance by Hollywood to negate the Native American in any role that involves Indigeneity. People love Johnny Depp, I get it, but his claims of Indigeneity have gone from the eastern seaboard to the southwest: Cherokee, then Creek and finally Navajo. Really? Really? How many times have we seen this? Too many.

I understand that this film is historical fiction, but that doesn't mean Our image has to be molested and reinvented on the silver screen. That's what Depp claims he wants to "turn on its head." But by concocting some over the top exaggerated caricature of what he thinks Native identity was or is, is doing more harm than good. I cannot say for sure that's what he's doing, but given his previous caricatures of the roles he's played, it's expected.

The counter argument to this is a sophomoric and often moronic one, that implies, "well then only White people should play White people, only Black people should play Black people," and dumbing down the argument to an absurd level, something like, "only police officers should portray police officers." Really? Really? How disconnected can one become? That argument is so off topic that it becomes sadly absurd. Now the argument becomes one contrasting ethnicity/identity with profession. This particular mindset is responsible for the Washington Redskins. Denigrate all you want, your argument is baseless, a foundation rooted in some no doubt sincere but misplaced perspective that one group of people is honoring another, yet without ever asking the other group if they feel honored.

Hollywood and Native American representation is a whole other monster. It's not about depicting portrayals or representations that honor Native Americans and their cultures. In all reality it indirectly concerns Native Americans. It's about entertainment--absent reality, absent truth--and completely commodified. No one actually cares about portraying Native Americans accurately, other than Native Americans and those individuals interested in accurate representations in film, media and elsewhere. The issue is polarizing because one set of people are concerned with the ignorance that is American history, where the Native American has vanished because of American popular culture's perpetuation of a myth they created, all the while wondering why We, Native Americans or Indigenous people, are up in arms over this projected fallacy; and then you have the other set of people, that believe it's only cinema or fiction and that accurate representations really needn't be considered. Unfortunately, that's where they're wrong. It is because of cinema and media and the rest of American popular culture that We as Indigenous people are often considered a vanquished people, represented in stereotypic fashion, because Our voices aren't loud enough to be heard over the din that is American ignorance, even better still, the machinery that is Hollywood and the mechanisms of cultural pedagogy.

John Cusack

Okay, as a huge fan of John Cusack I have been compelled to attempt to make contact, not in person, but virtually via Twitter. I follow his tweets and he's in Syracuse shooting the film, Adult World. Now I'm not holding my breath that he'll ever respond to this lunatic tweeting at him asking if he'd like to get a glass of 21 year old Aberfeldy scotch or attend a tradish sweat on Onondaga, the two are diametrically opposed. But, the little kid in me holds out hope that some contact may be made somehow. If not, no big deal, it never hurts to try, nothing ventured, nothing gained.

"The Lone Ranger" with Johnny Depp.

For now, the production of "The Lone Ranger" has been postponed, ah!

Source Code

As an individual that utilizes Google's "Analytics" in my website, I have found that it functions as a decent tool for me to track where and who and how my website is being viewed. Unfortunately, as a designer I have run into a specific issue with someone else "designing" another person's website by taking my source code and not deleting my unique Google Urchin Tracker ID from their site, which then provides me with reports from that site. Now, I've created individual filters to omit that information and I've tracked the URL owner and contacted him about this issue, nothing has happened. So, to all you self-proclaimed web-designers, when you use other people's Source Code make sure you know HTML, CSS, Flash, XHTML, JAVA or whatever language you are using to construct with so you don't take information that isn't applicable to your site.

The Aging Dinosaur: Virtual Reality vs. Reality Reality

It seems unfathomable to me that our world has developed so far beyond interpersonal relationships and into the realm of AI that contact with other people is becoming more and more virtual. This has been going on for quite some time, beginning with chat rooms, online gaming, and now the ever annoying facebook or social networking platform. When I say that, I say that with some humor, I am one of the millions of individuals on fb. Although lately, I am beginning to become perturbed by that social network, not that I'm looking for another one. I have friends, close friends, and family all over the country and my only connection with them is through fb? That's so fucked up. I even have family locally and my only connection with them is via fb, how disturbing is that? Granted, I don't necessarily want to see all these people everyday, or talk to them everyday, but the personal disconnect that is fb is quite unsettling. At first, the novelty was interesting. I could find out what my friends/family were doing, but now it's an inundation of status updates, attention seeking "look at me" posts, which not only seems to be a form of virtual pollution but has got to be the most arrogant and conceited cry for attention in a forum that is responsible for severing human contact. It does have its advantages. When you have friends and family all over you can keep in touch, although you could actually talk and see those friends and family through Skype if you are so inclined in utilizing technology, you could also use a phone, making the experience less barren. It does function well as a platform to disseminate information, that is undeniable. Events that are happening are distributed via facebook invitations, but with the ease in doing so, the amount of events that are now taking place has risen exponentially, as have the "specialty" pages on fb.

I am an individual that would rather engage others in person, but distance makes that difficult, the phone is preference one for me, preference two is email, fb is further down the ladder in my book. The ability to network is my main reason for utilizing facebook. Although my main preference is the phone, there are some individuals that are just not good at returning calls if you cannot connect initially. Others are just not good phone people, they call you and they don't maintain the conversation or barely initiate a conversation and yet they've called you. I've called people and it seems like I've caught them at a bad time, but they don't inform you of that, usually they treat you like you've imposed yourself on them, it's a phone for god's sake. I'm not sure if it's because virtual reality has forced an awkward wedge in between people, you know, virtual distance, yet it has also created virtual closeness. People don't want to be bothered and they can use technology to their advantage, e.g. caller ID, IM blocks/online status notifications. I wonder if all this technology and the advances in virtual reality hasn't placed humankind behind the proverbial eight ball. We aren't necessarily as social as other animals on our planet, but interaction occurs on a daily basis for those of us that leave our homes everyday. If you want a job, you're typically asked whether or not you're a "team player" or if you "work well with others." Well most people have jobs, and in the countries that unfortunately exist as third world countries, the people still interact with one another and actually exist in a more developed social structure than those of us with computers, cell phones, flat screen televisions and any other smart technology you want to throw in there.

As someone that loves the outdoors and nature, I have a difficult time navigating between virtual reality and reality reality. Ironic enough, I work within virtual reality.

Johnny Depp as Tonto, Postscript

After posting the Johnny Depp as Tonto blog, I was thinking how coincidental it was that Depp decided to adapt a novel about an Indigenous person after having starred two years earlier as William Blake, beside Indigenous actor, comedian, musician; Gary Farmer (Exaybachay, a.k.a Nobody) in Jim Jarmusch's, Dead Man? It seems to have been a logical chain of events for Depp. First, you play a role next to an Indigenous actor, who is playing a character that is Indigenous. Secondly, you find a novel centered on an Indigenous character and all the strife of Indigenous culture, adapt it for the screen and then star in said adaptation. I never mentioned that the author of the novel, The Brave, is also the author of the Fletch and Flynn series of novels. Therefore, The Brave is quite a departure from the cultural content he was used to depicting or even knowing about.

Johnny Depp as Tonto

Now as an artist that has utilized The Lone Ranger as part of his body of work and is a staunch advocate for the accuracy of Indigenous portrayal in media, I am interested in this turn of events. Granted, Johnny Depp has claimed he is Cherokee, Irish, German with some Navajo(?) [via IMDB] all well and fine. The problem isn't is Johnny Depp Cherokee, it's what does he know about being INDIGENOUS, there I said it.

What authenticity is he going to bring to the silver screen that will translate what you and I know as Our shared cultural experience, Pan-Indian as some of it might be? I don't think he is going to offer anything to Indigeneity other than some dressed-up caricature of what he and Verbinski thinks "Indian" is. Now, is it okay since Tonto is a fictional character? How much fantasy is he going to project to an audience that not only loves Depp, but practically worships him? How much of this character will the audience actually walk away with as truth and how much as fiction? We know that the majority of America gets their information from media, and that information is framed in its presentation. So, if Depp's portrayal of Tonto is a caricature of what he has conjured in his mind about Indigenous people then we should be prepared to do battle with fantasy. If he doesn't embellish on his character's persona, a la Capt. Jack Sparrow then we might hope for a more humanistic approach to his rendition of Tonto. I'm hoping for the latter. My biggest qualm regarding this turn of events, Johnny Depp as Tonto is when has he ever portrayed an Indigenous person?* Why now? What not utilize the myriad other Indigenous actors known for their Native roles? Wes Studi? Damn, even Cherokilmer (term coined by friend, Maria Colon of FLABMAG.COM), Val Kilmer is more known for his role as FBI half-breed, Ray Levoi as well as his charitable endeavors with the Native American Indigenous Cinema and Arts Organization. Why not Adam Beach or Benjamin Bratt?

Honestly, I look at this casting existing only in the end product, cha-ching $$$. Director Gore Verbinski, Pirates of the Caribbean franchise will be taking on the task of directing Depp once again in his performance of Tonto. Now, that franchise has earned to date $2.68 billion in worldwide box office revenue. How is this not the reason? Where are the other people dismayed at having Tonto resurrected by Verbinski, Disney, and Johnny Depp and thrust into the popular culture as something that is Indigenous? Disney is infamous for its horrendous representations of Indigeneity and its place in popular culture as somehow the man behind the curtain.

* Yesterday my friend, colleague and FLABMAG.COM founder/editor extraordinaire, Maria Colon enlightened me. I didn't know Depp was the star of his own directorial debut in The Brave, where he plays what is a typical Native American stereotype. Funny thing is Depp adapted the novel of the same name from Gregory McDonald. "The film was first shown at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival[1] where it received mixed reviews. The film was released in theaters and on DVD internationally, but not in the United States." You can actually view it on youtube. Thanks to Maria for bringing this to my attention.

Congratulations to the people of Egypt

A simple congratulations to the citizens of Egypt for their unwavering perseverance and steadfast commitment to change. I wish you much success in the coming months and years in forging a new path toward democracy of equality and peace determined by the people for the people and hope that your struggles are filled with determination and strength in seeing a future that is much brighter than what has been, you've already made the first step. Please do not lose sight of the freedoms he denied you and the tyranny of his cabinet, stay on path and work to unify your country. Congratulations. Oneh.

Possibilities?

My plan is to depart Syracuse, where I have been mired since graduating from the SU MFA film program since 2007. With family and well to be honest, a limited amount of friends in the area (not as many as while I was in school--they were bright enough to leave quickly after graduating) I didn't think my life would be as uneventful as it is. So with this tentative plan in motion, or conceptually in motion, I intend to move back out west, the southwest to be specific. I figured I'll be able to move out there with or without a job, but I think my age and the caution that comes with being older is keeping me from making such a risky move. I no longer throw caution to the wind, don't take as many chances as I used to . . . now, chances are well calculated to have minimal risk.

I have a fellowship application in at the School for Advanced Research in Santa Fe, NM, which begins in the fall. I am applying to IAIA for a position as a New Media instructor. And then there's a possibility to teach film and video this fall at my old Art School (Munson Williams Proctor at Pratt), where I received my foundational training. So, three possibilities, not too bad, but the waiting and not knowing is uncomfortable, but I have to endure. So, depending on what comes of these possibilities moving may or may not be in the cards.

I was hoping to get back to the Denver/Boulder Indian Community, or become a part of the Santa Fe/Albuquerque Indian Community. As a displaced Mescalero Apache in Haudenosaunee country I am not an active member, though I am part of the community. Since my lineage isn't matrilineal, I cannot take part in Longhouse ceremonies, which I respect because that is the way of the Haudenosaunee (there was limited discussion on this aspect, but since I believe in traditionalism as does my brother, I decided that it was really a moot point to even think about it regardless if no one else knew where my lineage lay). I am fortunate and grateful to be able to take part in other events that occur. I was honored to be able to meet and photograph Tadodaho, Leon Shenandoah, my brother's grandfather before his passing in 1996 as well as photographing Oren Lyons in the same year. After talking with Oren for some time, he gave me some advice: not to dip my cup upstream. Apparently, our short conversation gave him great insight into my rather confrontational and radical personality, at least when coping with fairness. Although, to this day I still seem to disrupt the flow of things for those people downstream, it is an intentional choice and not one of desire for confrontation, anger or animosity but one of perspective. My time spent with the Onondaga and Mohawk (specifically Tom Porter at Kanatsiohareke) has taught me a lot about myself, my identity, my family and my desire to be an active member within the community, no matter what that entails. I know I will miss my brother and his family most, since wherever the possibilities take me will take me away from them. I've enjoyed helping my family out when needed, taking my niece or nephew to Tsha'Hon'nonyen'dakhwa' (the Onondaga Nation Arena) for hockey and lacrosse practice. It's been a great privilege watching my nieces grow up and turn into beautiful young ladies, as well as watching my nephew and my youngest niece develop personalities that sparkle and shine. I've been fortunate to be able to get to know my sister-in-law better and see what a wonderful mother she is and how she juggles motherhood and teaching, to this day she will always amaze me how women are capable of doing this while being so tender and strong. This is why the Haudenosaunee are so wonderful, the women are truly the foundation of this amazing culture.

I just had lunch with my brother, something we used to do once a week until he began his new job (it's his fourth anniversary there, but it's the job I call new). He's been busy and with four kids, his constant traveling for his job limits our time together, but a weekend soon here will bring me back to their home to help my family finish my nephew's new bedroom (an expansion to their home) in hanging sheet rock and mudding. This will give me more time to spend with them and for that I am grateful. My brother told me at lunch yesterday, after having filled him in on the possibilities, that he sees me teaching, more of a prophetic announcement than an opinion, my brother's been very accurate on issues of importance like this. He helped to set my mood at ease, because that which I cannot control I often dwell over.

I am excited and nervous for the possibilities to show themselves and look forward to finding out which ones poke their little heads out for me to see.

Oneh.

Alma mater matters?

So, I just received my third rejection in as many years from my alma mater for an assistant professor position within their film department. I always thought that your alma mater was preferential in looking at you as an option for hire. I understand I may not have the requisite screening record they may be looking for or the teaching experience, but we all know that's a catch-22. I do know this, they aren't going to find anyone with more passion than me and well, that's their loss. I'll probably hold off on reapplying for a few years if they ever advertise in that time frame. I realize my acceptance or even consideration as a candidate for that job was a long shot, considering there are faculty there that know me, and I'm sure they've gone to bat for me, proves that the politics will probably never allow them to consider me. It looks like I need to search elsewhere for suitable employment if I plan on heading back west to live, to escape CNY and its gloomy gray skies. Although, I realize one of my letters of recommendation wasn't sent through their electronic portal, so I wonder if because of that I wasn't considered, an incomplete application? *scratches head* If that was the case I desperately need to find another reference. It would have been nice to work on a campus and within a community I adore, but that's neither here nor there. Tomorrow will be here soon enough and that said, so will the possibilities! Dare to dream!

Columbus Day: An American Farce — a documentary

Columbus Day: An American Farce — a documentary, is a collaborative feature length project in preproduction between Torry Mendoza and Terrance Houle. It exists near the fringe of mockumentary, although it is a genuine documentary exploring important issues of contention, and is established in the depths of satire. This documentary aims to examine the perpetuation of this myth while it continues to be observed as an American Holiday and persists as fact in American history. While exploring its pedagogical roots and historical inaccuracy, Columbus Day: An American Farce will utilize man-on-the-street interviews, along with interviews from academic administrators at the primary, secondary and post-secondary education systems within New York State, as well as interviews with various members and groups from the Italian-American community (Knights of Columbus and the Sons of Italy). The documentary will also approach various members of the American government in an effort to realize the continued perpetuation of a man who not only didn't "discover" America, but was a criminal and perpetrator of genocide as one of America's "own." Columbus Day also resolves to answer the question, "What does Columbus Day mean to you?" and "How do you celebrate Columbus Day?"

Interviews will be conducted by interdisciplinary media artist and Blackfeet Native, Terrance "TJ" Houle as his Indigenous identity, Iiniiwahkiimah (pronounced: ee-nee-wah-kee-mah) or Buffalo Herder. Dressed in only part of his regalia, Iiniiwahkiimah dons a vest -- no shirt, a breachcloth -- no leggings, mocassins and roach with Houle's signature black rimmed glasses. Houle's articulate eloquence and intellectual presence stands in stark contrast to cinema's widely accepted constructs of Native stereotypes.

Columbus Day: An American Farce proposes to end its journey seeking the perspective of the citizens of Italy and Spain after a group of Indigenous individuals land ashore discovering those countries in the name of Indigeneity!

remnants of me

December has rolled in like a lion, just over three days of continuous snowfall with an accumulation of over 41 inches of snow. I feel like I'm reliving the film, Ground Hog's Day. It wouldn't be so bad if the city plows didn't move the detritus of people's once parked cars at the end of my freshly shoveled driveway. The snow pack is wet and thick, heavy from friction, like concrete. My body aches in specific areas from shoveling and negotiating the uncleared walkways of the neighborhood with my dog pulling at me to move faster. I slip and slide with every footfall and cannot seem to find any rhythm to my gait in this incredibly annoying inconvenience. I used to love the snow. The cold air that feels like it's burning my lungs. Snowflakes melting on my face, those that bless my eyelids with their touch and the ones I unintentionally inhale while walking. It's a serene landscape in an otherwise irksome college neighborhood, with freshman and other class men/women imposing themselves on my tired disturbed mind. Their obnoxious self-involved actions direct my mind to spaces unreached, places I don't want to dwell, angry and violent thoughts exist there, straight-jacketed so as not to harm anyone. As a youth, my walls used to bare the brunt of that part of me, now controlled, but seething just beneath the surface on the verge of erupting into a frenzied attack against my sanity. Syracuse has found a way to resurrect those remnants of me, which I thought I had laid to rest a long time ago.

Last November Blog -- the Future.

Well, November is nearly over and I look forward to what December will bring. I am obviously hoping for good things, but I'll take everything in stride. I have applied (my third time in almost as many years) for one position with my alma mater (University of Colorado, Boulder), which is my dream job. I just had the greatest experience with the faculty and the majority of people I met there, I cannot recall a downside to my time spent there. I'm hoping it's not a long shot for me to teach there, I realize my artist exhibition record doesn't include prestigious film festivals. Nor does it include a teaching record that involves production, but I was the GA that manned the film cage for my 3 years at Syracuse University, therefore I am intimately familiar with all the production equipment both analog and digital. I know I would make a great assistant professor/cinema artist because I possess the passion and determination to be one at this particular institution. I also believe that I owe this specific community because of how well I was treated and giving back in kind through my knowledge, experience and connections is what I bring to the table. There is nothing left for me in Syracuse. My job is great, though it hasn't been made into a full-time (with benefits) position, that was one point I would take into consideration in staying. It's a great job where I work with wonderful people, no bad experiences whatsoever. I think I have already distanced myself from Syracuse, not because it's necessarily a bad area, more so for the lack of opportunities that exist for me here. I will miss my family and friends and colleagues, but those relationships aren't what ties a person to any particular place. Happiness has eluded me here, friends that regard themselves as friends have little if anything to do with me, and others are under some odd pretense that they are my "friends." My return to the Southwest has lit a fire in me, awakening ideas, and excitement that have long since left me abandoned and alone in Syracuse. I am heading back to the southwest, where is the only question that remains unanswered, Santa Fe would be an ideal place for my uneasy spirit right now as would Boulder. My friends there are actually my friends and not some concept of friendship that exists without contact. My sister and niece, the two most important aspects of my life that aren't physically with me live there, the one most important aspect is man's best friend, my boy Milo. UC-Boulder, I hope you don't do yourself a disservice and ignore my third attempt at coming home to teach simply because my exhibition record is somewhat anemic from "prestigious" film festivals. Consider the big picture.

Round Up @ the Museum of Contemporary Native Art & Santa Fe

So, Saturday came and went, quickly. My artist talk went well, though nervous and worried, it went well. Two new pieces were added to the exhibition, which were initially lost to the hard drive crash, but they were resurrected from memory, maybe not 100% of what they once were, but none-the-less they were resurrected! Seven of my friends from the Boulder community attended, they all now live in the Albuquerque/Santa Fe area, except one who had flown in for another event, but Nicole made it in time to catch the tail end of the talk and view my work in the gallery. My young friend (cousin) Sylv works in Santa Fe and I had him as my guest at the hotel since he's been couch surfin' in Albuquerque, somewhat without a home, so we hung out and caught up, which was nice to have company. The food was great, you can never beat authentic southwest cuisine and New Mexican green chili, which I am already missing the morning I left it began.

The exhibition looks great and is running with four other exhibitions that are wonderful. The museum is beautiful, right there on Cathedral Place.

Next up another talk about a PBS series from the 70's at ArtRage this Friday evening.

Round Up - Museum of Contemporary Native Arts, Santa Fe, NM