A delightful surprise

[vanillafluffy]

I have been avoiding the mailbox for a couple days---it's always bills, or so it seems---but this morning when I took out the trash, there was an envelope from dine with some classic tinted postcards!

I have a an office building in El Paso, TX---the Bassett Towers, all 16 stories of it, and it's the tallest building in sight. There are several from the Southwest---cacti, a canal, scenes of native life---an old woman weaving a basket bigger than she is, and an adobe house festooned with strings of chili peppers. The latter informs me on the back that, "The Indians, like the Mexicans, are lovers of Chili, and the red peppers are ever in evidence hanging in front of their dwellings."

Of course, the dates of the postmarks are 1944, 1945 and 1946, so this was before the term "Native American" was in common use. I suspect that most of those people, if confronted with the term, would have furrowed their brows and said, "Of course I'm a native American, I was born here, wasn't I?" I think "indigenous Americans" would be more accurate, but what do I know?

There's also one basic black and white picture card of Faribault, Minnesota, which is so 40s, between the old cars and the ladies' fashions, that I'm swooning, and wondering if Central Ave. South still looks like that...?

Anyway, the postcards are ear-marked for my hall bath, if/when I get around to cleaning it out completely and hanging the wallpaper I got for it. It's only been on my to-do list for the last 5 years or so.


.

Comments

[pwcorgigirl.livejournal.com]

I think it's the Canadians who started using the term First Nations people, which is a pretty good way to put it.

The postcards sound quite cool. I often wish our family had been the corresponding kind, but they weren't so no such wonderful memorabilia exists.

[vanillafluffy.livejournal.com]

These are all addressed to the same folks in Oregon. Too bad the writing is atrocious, I'd like to know more of the story.

[louisiane-fille.livejournal.com]

It's funny that we call them Native Americans, because their ancestors came here just like everyone else. They've simply been here the longest.

And yay! for postcards.

[vanillafluffy.livejournal.com]

Yeah, but seniority doesn't count for much in this world! (If it did, I'd still have a job.)

[chocolate-frapp.livejournal.com]

I've heard "First Americans" but then I live not far from Berkeley. Of course, taste in food is cultural, not inborn, I love hot spicy food and I'm Irish!

[vanillafluffy.livejournal.com]

I'm not a big fan of spicy, but I love salty...unfortunately, my ankles don't, so I can't indulge as I'd like to.

[dine.livejournal.com]

I'm glad they arrived, and were a nice change from the bills (I can totally relate to mailbox dread - I generally only check mine a couple times a week, and then only because it's small and the carrier just keeps cramming crap in, so if I don't it becomes a real mess and a challenge to empty

enjoy!

[vanillafluffy.livejournal.com]

Will do! Thanks again!

[foreverhermit.livejournal.com]

I've never understood why the term "Indian" isn't good enough any more. For that matter, "African American" bugs the hell outta me. They're NOT all from Africa!

Sheesh.

[vanillafluffy.livejournal.com]

Don't get me started. Seriously. The preferred term has changed FOUR times in my lifetime, it's very frustrating. I don't want to offend anyone, but the rules keep changing without notice. Me, I'm white, I've always been white (except for ten minutes or so during the 1970's when I was a "honkie". --?!)

[foreverhermit.livejournal.com]

Exactly! I don't give a shit what you call me. I know what I am. So what?