Ali Blog
Musings on Indigenous issues, disability issues and family
March 2023
It’s 4am and I can’t sleep. Neither do I have the energy to do anything. For a few hours, I cat nap, listen to cooking shows on YouTube and occasionally doom scroll TikTok. On the outside, it likely looks like I’m ‘doing nothing’. Oh, but if you could be privy to the thoughts that endlessly … Read more
January 2023
“What do we do now?” I knew the question was coming, but I would not have the desired answer – a solution. When Raphael asked me this on the way to work, I had to think about it a few seconds before uttering, “I don’t know.” Our latest disaster has me with the least amount … Read more
Beware Econo Auto Sales Denver
This is from Econo Auto Sales’ ‘About’ page. https://www.econoautosale.com/about-us/ “Used car dealers come and go, but Econo Auto Sales has been serving the Denver metro area for over two decades, and counting. We have an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau, due to our exceptional customer service track record and because we’re a low … Read more
The final straw
(Author’s note: my name is the only real one. Names have been changed.) CW: there is a lot of heaviness in this entry. Mentions of abuse, physical and mental, suicide ideation, graphic description of a car accident involving minors and death mentions. Please take care when reading. I took over guardianship of my younger sister’s … Read more
April to present Oglala tent post
That first night when we set up the tent. One of the first things my brother told my kids before his epic meltdown was, ‘this isn’t camping’ and then he’d laughed about it. Because we brought one of our TVs with us. We had the generator. We had a large 10’x17’ dome tent, that TV, … Read more
Who made the pretendian part two
[Ali note: A previous version made a reference to ‘amoeba’, “Are we Indigenous or amoeba”. I’ve been informed that the “amoeba” reference has been inflicted on Natives in general but has also been used to specifically target the Lumbee. While my use of the phrase didn’t have that intention, it’s important to note that this … Read more
November 2021 blog
Today, I want to give a brief glimpse of our family life the last few months. CW: suicide and death ideation. In August, I pleaded for help because we were drowning. We hit another snag in trying to get the kids’ benefits reinstated. Bills piled up and I was very much already in despair. But … Read more
Who made the pretendian
How much or how little that I speak on this issue is dependent on the energy I have to put toward it. Thus, this may end up being more of a small series. While I have not spoken previously on this ‘alleged pretendian list’, I am aware of it. I’d meant to look into it … Read more
Just-a-bully Sarah
Update 7/7/2021. Almost a year to the day! Sarah’s new handle is @SaliSaeLeigh. Way too many of us knew it was to good to last. Let’s get back into it… Mickey Barrett and Raccorny say I’ve admitted to having 2 white parents. Yes. They signed my birth certificate and treated me as their own the … Read more
There is a sense of helplessness…
There is a sense of helplessness that comes with knowing that something you’ve tried has failed. I’ve been in a position to reach out to certain artists and for the most part, nothing comes of trying to educate about cultural appropriation. I’d stopped reaching out to tattoo artists when responses from them were often aggressive … Read more