What better way to conclude this round of blogs than to write an update to my first blog, Diane Sawyer’s report “A Hidden America: Children of the Mountains”? Here is a recap of that blog: Reporters followed four children: Erica, Shawn, Courtney, and Jeremy. Courtney lives with a lot of relatives in Kentucky and has to keep her clothes in a suitcase under her bed. Her mom has a drug problem and is trying to recuperate and get her GED by walking 2 hours to her class and 2 hours back, a 16 mile round trip! Shawn has to sleep in his truck to avoid all the thievery and dangers, but wishes to be the first in his family to earn his high school diploma and maybe even college. Jeremy had to give up his dreams when his girlfriend got pregnant; he had to accept a job working 3.5 miles underground in the coal mines.
The article also mentioned Dr. Edwin Smith, a dentist in Barbourville, Ky., and how he invested $150,000 of his own money to build a mobile dental clinic inside an 18-wheel truck because Sawyer described something caused “toothlessness” in central Appalachia. According to dentists, one of the main causes is Mountain Dew soda. With 50 percent more caffeine than Coke or Pepsi, Mountain Dew seems to be used as a kind of anti-depressant for children in this part of Appalachia. Smith travels the curvy roads of eastern Kentucky to offer free dental screenings and services to hundreds of children. They line up outside his mobile clinic with excitement.
“Dr. Smith says he's seen firsthand the results of neglect among these children. Teenagers have pulled their own teeth with pliers because of tooth pain, and he's treated 2-year-olds with up to 12 cavities in their baby teeth.” PepsiCo, the maker of Mountain Dew, reportedly has reached out to the dentist to support his service to these children with poor dental health. Kids drink it in school, at football games and before going to bed at night. Drinking the sugary soda loaded with caffeine often starts early, even as early as in babies’ bottles. Smith says, "Other sodas, too, but Mountain Dew is unique because it has a lot of sugar and a lot of acid. If you're taking a drink every 20 minutes, that's like bathing the teeth in it all day."
PepsiCo told ABC News that “it's preposterous to blame soft drinks for dental decay, saying that raisins and cookies stay in the mouth longer. They added that a balanced diet and proper dental hygiene like flossing and brushing teeth after meals and snacks should prevent decay.” One of the main problems for children in this area is that nearly 50% of them are enrolled in Medicaid, which is not
accepted by many dentists at all.
Sources:
http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=6845770&page=1
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=6863173&page=1
Friday, April 22, 2011
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
My Impact on and from Appalachian
The first thing that comes to mind when I reflect on my time here at ASU is how I viewed others. When I met new people I immediately judged them based on how they talked and how they acted. Either they were "authentically Appalachian" or not. Why did I do this? I am still not sure, maybe just in my nature.
As time has gone by though, I have realized that it really isn't important because we are all here for different reasons. I am here at this university simply because it was closest to my hometown and I didn't want to move far away. For the first two years here, I lived in an apartment on King Street with other roommates that were from my hometown too. We spent many hours commenting on how weird everyone here was; it was just so different from our hometown, which is only in the neighboring county of Avery! Therefore, Appalachia is a part of who I am. But I have begun to understand that it is because many students, outside Appalachia, come to Appalachian State for different reasons.
Being here has educated me on the fact that our nation is very diverse; even though I watch the national news and TV programs that feature actors from all over the nation, it was still different seeing different people and interacting with them in person. Sometimes they would comment on how different I was, and it would baffle me because "duh" I am from closer to this university than they were! Maybe they are being educated too on the same matter.
So I have learned that my impact here may be that other people will debunk stereotypes of Appalachian people's being ignorant or toothless or "hillbilly" or whatever they had in mind, just as they will debunk my stereotypes of them, whether they be Northern, Western, or foreign.. They see that there indeed are "mountain people" coming to college to get an education, and are perfectly capable of doing so. Before I learned Spanish, I view Hispanic people as "oh they can't speak English, they are strange" and would not respect them or their opinions. Today I know they are fellow human beings with valid thoughts. We are all human beings. I hope that in the future, our interactions and hard work of increasing our knowledge and technology will be able to destroy all the stereotypes we have of each other.
As time has gone by though, I have realized that it really isn't important because we are all here for different reasons. I am here at this university simply because it was closest to my hometown and I didn't want to move far away. For the first two years here, I lived in an apartment on King Street with other roommates that were from my hometown too. We spent many hours commenting on how weird everyone here was; it was just so different from our hometown, which is only in the neighboring county of Avery! Therefore, Appalachia is a part of who I am. But I have begun to understand that it is because many students, outside Appalachia, come to Appalachian State for different reasons.
Being here has educated me on the fact that our nation is very diverse; even though I watch the national news and TV programs that feature actors from all over the nation, it was still different seeing different people and interacting with them in person. Sometimes they would comment on how different I was, and it would baffle me because "duh" I am from closer to this university than they were! Maybe they are being educated too on the same matter.
So I have learned that my impact here may be that other people will debunk stereotypes of Appalachian people's being ignorant or toothless or "hillbilly" or whatever they had in mind, just as they will debunk my stereotypes of them, whether they be Northern, Western, or foreign.. They see that there indeed are "mountain people" coming to college to get an education, and are perfectly capable of doing so. Before I learned Spanish, I view Hispanic people as "oh they can't speak English, they are strange" and would not respect them or their opinions. Today I know they are fellow human beings with valid thoughts. We are all human beings. I hope that in the future, our interactions and hard work of increasing our knowledge and technology will be able to destroy all the stereotypes we have of each other.
Friday, April 1, 2011
English Language in Appalachia
In High Mountains Rising, Michael Montgomery did a great job writing his chapter English Language, emphasizing the language used in Appalachia. I mean, I have read a few other articles about the words used in these mountains however this has been the best one I have come across. I feel like his words really described how my family and people from the surrounding counties speak! On top, of that I learned quite a lot, so I wanted to make some comments on what I found to be true with me, what I learned, and what I can add to his point. Plus, I am a Communication Sciences & Disorders undergraduate, so language and dialects is my milieu one could say (see? We mountain people are capable of knowing big words).
First I learned that Appalachian English is not really a remnant of Elizabethan dialect, even though I would like for that to be true so we have more bragging rights. Many people consider the dialect inferior and “an impediment to social mobility and educational progress” (page 147). This is something that has always irked me and flat out hurt my feelings. I personally had no problems with my accent until I got to ASU. Even at my community college, everyone (save a few Marion, NC people) had the same mountain “speech”.
However, when I came to ASU, I already knew how some students talked and was well aware that many students came from different areas in the nation, so I was prepared to run into that. It hit home the most when I worked at Appalachian Fund. I got to where I despised the job because most of the ASU alumni I reached on the telephone would question me about my heritage or have some comment to make on the way I talked (if I was lucky, I reached a person with a southern accent and they would be a joy to talk to, even if they gave no donation). None of the other employees had the same accent as me so I remained alone until I finally couldn’t stand it anymore and quit. The funny thing is that when I leave campus and go into the part of Boone with fast food restaurants, I come across all kinds of people with mountain accents! So I feel that we are still in a trend where people with more Standard English accents go to obtain higher education while those with Appalachian accents end up with blue collar jobs or work in fast food.
I also wanted to comment on some of the vocabulary that Montgomery mentions. I actually use a some of these and can add some more words to the list, however some of the words I have never heard. Where I live, on a daily or weekly basis my relatives use these examples: bawl, green beans, hull (but more as in the shell, not to shell), you’uns, poke, skillet, arm load, little piece, adding the prefix a- on verbs (seldom if not often, though), ain’t, was with plural subjects ("you/we was outside"), ill (bad-tempered), creel (to twist, e.g. “I creeled my ankle”), and sop (gravy). Now these next examples I don’t use, but my mother from the neighboring county has used or at least heard of them: galluses [“suspenders”], swan/swanny (“to swear”), palings [“fence posts”], fit and holp as the past tense of fight and help, knowed and blowed. Some examples I can add are cuckle [“to steal somebody’s girlfriend”] (possibly and Avery County term), and light [“to sit still somewhere/ stop moving around], light into somebody [“to let someone have it”].
I also want to elaborate on a vowel on page 156. Number 5 says “modification of the “long i” to ah in different contexts, so that my right side rhymes with mah raht sahd; wire rhymes with either car or war.” This may be true but more so with the more southern states like Alabama or Louisiana I am guessing. Here in this area of Appalachia, the vowel is actually more between the long I and “ah”, in the phonetic alphabet it has its own symbol, /a/, instead of /aI/ and /ɑ/. In addition, it is actually the same vowel used in Boston for “ar” so with the /a/ vowel, park the car in the garage sounds like pike the kie in the garige. The best way I can explain is in person though, so if you would like to know more ask me in class!
There is too much that can be discussed in this blog about English Language in Appalachia. It is a fascinating subject to me, as well as all of our nation’s dialects and all the world’s languages! It would be nice to eradicate the world’s language barriers and rid of all the prejudices that arise therein but it is also nice to have a special dialect that you belong to.
First I learned that Appalachian English is not really a remnant of Elizabethan dialect, even though I would like for that to be true so we have more bragging rights. Many people consider the dialect inferior and “an impediment to social mobility and educational progress” (page 147). This is something that has always irked me and flat out hurt my feelings. I personally had no problems with my accent until I got to ASU. Even at my community college, everyone (save a few Marion, NC people) had the same mountain “speech”.
However, when I came to ASU, I already knew how some students talked and was well aware that many students came from different areas in the nation, so I was prepared to run into that. It hit home the most when I worked at Appalachian Fund. I got to where I despised the job because most of the ASU alumni I reached on the telephone would question me about my heritage or have some comment to make on the way I talked (if I was lucky, I reached a person with a southern accent and they would be a joy to talk to, even if they gave no donation). None of the other employees had the same accent as me so I remained alone until I finally couldn’t stand it anymore and quit. The funny thing is that when I leave campus and go into the part of Boone with fast food restaurants, I come across all kinds of people with mountain accents! So I feel that we are still in a trend where people with more Standard English accents go to obtain higher education while those with Appalachian accents end up with blue collar jobs or work in fast food.
I also wanted to comment on some of the vocabulary that Montgomery mentions. I actually use a some of these and can add some more words to the list, however some of the words I have never heard. Where I live, on a daily or weekly basis my relatives use these examples: bawl, green beans, hull (but more as in the shell, not to shell), you’uns, poke, skillet, arm load, little piece, adding the prefix a- on verbs (seldom if not often, though), ain’t, was with plural subjects ("you/we was outside"), ill (bad-tempered), creel (to twist, e.g. “I creeled my ankle”), and sop (gravy). Now these next examples I don’t use, but my mother from the neighboring county has used or at least heard of them: galluses [“suspenders”], swan/swanny (“to swear”), palings [“fence posts”], fit and holp as the past tense of fight and help, knowed and blowed. Some examples I can add are cuckle [“to steal somebody’s girlfriend”] (possibly and Avery County term), and light [“to sit still somewhere/ stop moving around], light into somebody [“to let someone have it”].
I also want to elaborate on a vowel on page 156. Number 5 says “modification of the “long i” to ah in different contexts, so that my right side rhymes with mah raht sahd; wire rhymes with either car or war.” This may be true but more so with the more southern states like Alabama or Louisiana I am guessing. Here in this area of Appalachia, the vowel is actually more between the long I and “ah”, in the phonetic alphabet it has its own symbol, /a/, instead of /aI/ and /ɑ/. In addition, it is actually the same vowel used in Boston for “ar” so with the /a/ vowel, park the car in the garage sounds like pike the kie in the garige. The best way I can explain is in person though, so if you would like to know more ask me in class!
There is too much that can be discussed in this blog about English Language in Appalachia. It is a fascinating subject to me, as well as all of our nation’s dialects and all the world’s languages! It would be nice to eradicate the world’s language barriers and rid of all the prejudices that arise therein but it is also nice to have a special dialect that you belong to.
Friday, March 18, 2011
My People's Values
I just finished reading “Appalachian Values” written by Loyal Jones, former director of the Appalachian Center at Berea College. Being from Appalachia, I can relate to most of the values he lists (religion, individualism, neighborliness and hospitality, familism, personalism, love of place, modesty, sense of beauty, and sense of humor). I believe Mr. Jones “hit the nail on the head” in his description of Appalachian people.
One of my first reactions after reading his article was, “wow I didn’t have to look up a single word he wrote!” It bothers me to come across a word I am unfamiliar with, so I have my dictionary nearby to look up words. This article, however, did not have any hard words. One thing I can say about Appalachian people, or at least myself, is that we write how we talk (not verbatim; I don’t include words like “ain’t” and “you’ns” when writing for a scholarly assignments). I suppose Loyal Jones didn’t feel the need to use any pompous words, making his writing a breeze to read and his point come across well.
Jones’s first point is religion, and I agree with most everything he stated. Mountaineers have deep roots in faith, which has shaped the mountaineer culture. From the viewpoint of nonbelievers, religion is a “hindrance to social progress”. However, from the Appalachians’ viewpoint, social progress (if there is any at all) is only in this life and is not worth sacrificing their faith. I personally am also a Baptist like the ones that Jones refers to. I believe earth “shall pass away” and relate to his next point about accepting Jesus as a personal savior.
Next is individualism and pride. One example I have of this is probably my dad. He is more characteristic of Appalachian people than me! He is very self reliant and hardly asks anyone for help unless it is something outside his knowledge, such as computers and technology. I see satisfaction in being able to do tasks myself.
I see neighborliness and hospitality every day here in the Avery/Mitchell area where I live. Just like Jones says in the article about the host saying, “Just reach and get anything you want,” so does my family and my girlfriend’s family when they have big dinners or cookouts. Another example I can think of is when I went to my girlfriend’s great uncle’s funeral. On the way we picked up her 60-year old 3rd cousin to go with us. When we came back that night and dropped her off, at 9 something o’clock, she asked each one of us to come in for a while. Now she probably wasn’t serious, just as none of us wanted to go in either. She was being hospitable and polite.
As for personalism, we Appalachians do care a great deal about our relationships with people, some more than others. This is important because here in the mountains we see and interact with the same people daily. Whether going to a local restaurant, grocery store, or bank, etc, chances are that we will be waited on by people we know and/or have known our whole lives.
Another important part of being Appalachian is knowing our way around (I can’t say much, I don’t have a good sense of direction). However most mountaineers know most of the roads, lanes, and “hollars” in the county, not to mention four-wheeler trails! Our way of giving directions can be confusing to the passersby.
We are modest in that we don’t shout the stereotypical “well I never!” when somebody puts their elbows on the table or forgets which fork to use. Like Jones says, we don’t “put on airs.” We realize nobody is perfect and that allows us to be at peace and be happy with ourselves.
Our sense of beauty is in our culture, our language, building things, and simply how we interact with others. For example, it is richer to us eating a simple homemade supper at home with family than going out to an exquisite restaurant dining with unfamiliar people.
Finally we have a sense of humor. Probably because we can aim the target of the jokes at ourselves is what makes our sense of humor seem more harmless and everybody laughs. I believe that in Appalachia it would be harder to find a person so mature that he or she can hardly laugh at anything besides a political cartoon.
I really enjoyed this article because I felt it had a lot to say about who I am and about the culture of my people. Therefore, reflecting upon it was very easy.
One of my first reactions after reading his article was, “wow I didn’t have to look up a single word he wrote!” It bothers me to come across a word I am unfamiliar with, so I have my dictionary nearby to look up words. This article, however, did not have any hard words. One thing I can say about Appalachian people, or at least myself, is that we write how we talk (not verbatim; I don’t include words like “ain’t” and “you’ns” when writing for a scholarly assignments). I suppose Loyal Jones didn’t feel the need to use any pompous words, making his writing a breeze to read and his point come across well.
Jones’s first point is religion, and I agree with most everything he stated. Mountaineers have deep roots in faith, which has shaped the mountaineer culture. From the viewpoint of nonbelievers, religion is a “hindrance to social progress”. However, from the Appalachians’ viewpoint, social progress (if there is any at all) is only in this life and is not worth sacrificing their faith. I personally am also a Baptist like the ones that Jones refers to. I believe earth “shall pass away” and relate to his next point about accepting Jesus as a personal savior.
Next is individualism and pride. One example I have of this is probably my dad. He is more characteristic of Appalachian people than me! He is very self reliant and hardly asks anyone for help unless it is something outside his knowledge, such as computers and technology. I see satisfaction in being able to do tasks myself.
I see neighborliness and hospitality every day here in the Avery/Mitchell area where I live. Just like Jones says in the article about the host saying, “Just reach and get anything you want,” so does my family and my girlfriend’s family when they have big dinners or cookouts. Another example I can think of is when I went to my girlfriend’s great uncle’s funeral. On the way we picked up her 60-year old 3rd cousin to go with us. When we came back that night and dropped her off, at 9 something o’clock, she asked each one of us to come in for a while. Now she probably wasn’t serious, just as none of us wanted to go in either. She was being hospitable and polite.
As for personalism, we Appalachians do care a great deal about our relationships with people, some more than others. This is important because here in the mountains we see and interact with the same people daily. Whether going to a local restaurant, grocery store, or bank, etc, chances are that we will be waited on by people we know and/or have known our whole lives.
Another important part of being Appalachian is knowing our way around (I can’t say much, I don’t have a good sense of direction). However most mountaineers know most of the roads, lanes, and “hollars” in the county, not to mention four-wheeler trails! Our way of giving directions can be confusing to the passersby.
We are modest in that we don’t shout the stereotypical “well I never!” when somebody puts their elbows on the table or forgets which fork to use. Like Jones says, we don’t “put on airs.” We realize nobody is perfect and that allows us to be at peace and be happy with ourselves.
Our sense of beauty is in our culture, our language, building things, and simply how we interact with others. For example, it is richer to us eating a simple homemade supper at home with family than going out to an exquisite restaurant dining with unfamiliar people.
Finally we have a sense of humor. Probably because we can aim the target of the jokes at ourselves is what makes our sense of humor seem more harmless and everybody laughs. I believe that in Appalachia it would be harder to find a person so mature that he or she can hardly laugh at anything besides a political cartoon.
I really enjoyed this article because I felt it had a lot to say about who I am and about the culture of my people. Therefore, reflecting upon it was very easy.
Monday, February 28, 2011
More Pics for "Piddling with Fiddles" post
Here is my grandma with Raymond Fairchild
This is my other late grandma with Bill Monroe!
Friday, February 25, 2011
On Mountaintop and Human Decency Removal
After all the reading I did last week and watching the Black Diamond video on Friday, I have formed several opinions regarding not only what is happening to our land, but what we people are doing to each other. I have a lot to say in this blog post, probably more than I can remember to type in this sitting. If any of you reading this has any comments, feel free to mention them in class because maybe we will learn something!
First, after reading all the horrifying tales of coal mining and what the miners have gone through in our nation’s history, I was shocked that we would let something like the UMW miners’ uprising in West Virginia happen. The Civil War should have been a reminder to those oppressing the miners that you cannot treat people, your fellow human beings, so poorly and expect them to accept it for long. I know I wouldn’t. Even I complain about a certain job, working for millionaires for 25 cents above minimum wage after being there for 3 years; but that’s nothing compared to how I felt about men risking their lives underground, not seeing their families, for meager pay and having to spend it at a company-owned store where everything is overpriced! What human oppression. That leads me to the topic of empathy and being considerate as a person, which I will get into in a bit. First, though, I wanted to talk about how I feel about coal mining in general.
I am sure, as Tim/Darrell said in his blog, there must be some way to phase out the disastrous process of mining, just like there was a way to avoid all of it in the first place- not having electricity at all, and not needing all the coal in the first place (only hypothetically speaking of course). As I watched the video, one of the things I thought of is, “look at what we have done to ourselves.” I mean, yes we have great technology and have accomplished very much with it, but at what cost? We are dependent on electricity every day, and therefore we are dependent on coal until we use the same technology to figure out another reliable source of energy (fossil fuels will not be here forever). Even cutting down on electricity would slow the progression of blowing up the mountains, and that is better than nothing.
Now for empathy and being considerate: as a human society, it is hard to label ourselves as a whole. As I was reading our homework on a library computer, I was also eavesdropping on a “California-sounding ‘dude’” with a camouflaged sun visor go on and on about something stupid, and a girl came up to him asking him if he was using his computer (the computers were full at the time, even I had to sweet talk a frozen computer that was vacant to work for me so I could have one too). He said no, and she kept asking, “Are you sure, are you sure?” That is human decency. That is the majority of what I see in my daily life. That is how we treat people in my town. Even if she was thinking, “you stupid loudmouth moron, sitting at the computer not even using it,” she was being considerate and polite. Now, let’s take a company “big wheel”, as my mom calls them, at the top of the company, aiding in the decision to blow somebody’s mountain up to get the precious “black diamonds” that are buried underneath. Is that being considerate? Is that human decency? Is that respect? Being polite?
First, after reading all the horrifying tales of coal mining and what the miners have gone through in our nation’s history, I was shocked that we would let something like the UMW miners’ uprising in West Virginia happen. The Civil War should have been a reminder to those oppressing the miners that you cannot treat people, your fellow human beings, so poorly and expect them to accept it for long. I know I wouldn’t. Even I complain about a certain job, working for millionaires for 25 cents above minimum wage after being there for 3 years; but that’s nothing compared to how I felt about men risking their lives underground, not seeing their families, for meager pay and having to spend it at a company-owned store where everything is overpriced! What human oppression. That leads me to the topic of empathy and being considerate as a person, which I will get into in a bit. First, though, I wanted to talk about how I feel about coal mining in general.
I am sure, as Tim/Darrell said in his blog, there must be some way to phase out the disastrous process of mining, just like there was a way to avoid all of it in the first place- not having electricity at all, and not needing all the coal in the first place (only hypothetically speaking of course). As I watched the video, one of the things I thought of is, “look at what we have done to ourselves.” I mean, yes we have great technology and have accomplished very much with it, but at what cost? We are dependent on electricity every day, and therefore we are dependent on coal until we use the same technology to figure out another reliable source of energy (fossil fuels will not be here forever). Even cutting down on electricity would slow the progression of blowing up the mountains, and that is better than nothing.
Now for empathy and being considerate: as a human society, it is hard to label ourselves as a whole. As I was reading our homework on a library computer, I was also eavesdropping on a “California-sounding ‘dude’” with a camouflaged sun visor go on and on about something stupid, and a girl came up to him asking him if he was using his computer (the computers were full at the time, even I had to sweet talk a frozen computer that was vacant to work for me so I could have one too). He said no, and she kept asking, “Are you sure, are you sure?” That is human decency. That is the majority of what I see in my daily life. That is how we treat people in my town. Even if she was thinking, “you stupid loudmouth moron, sitting at the computer not even using it,” she was being considerate and polite. Now, let’s take a company “big wheel”, as my mom calls them, at the top of the company, aiding in the decision to blow somebody’s mountain up to get the precious “black diamonds” that are buried underneath. Is that being considerate? Is that human decency? Is that respect? Being polite?
Friday, February 18, 2011
World News Blogs
Here are a couple of World news blogs I found (they may slow your system down while they load).
http://worldblog.msnbc.msn.com/
http://blogs.reuters.com/global/
http://worldblog.msnbc.msn.com/
http://blogs.reuters.com/global/
History of ASU
“What is the history of Appalachian State University?” was the question posed last class that got me thinking; what is the history of ASU? So I took it upon myself to figure out and blog about it this week (this same information can be found at the website listed at the end of this blog, however).
Watauga Academy was founded in 1899 by brothers Blanford B. Dougherty and Dauphin D. Dougherty. It only had 53 students enrolled in 3 grades. It then became the Appalachian State Teachers College in 1929 with over 1,300 students enrolled in the Bachelor of Science degree programs.
Appalachian then grew into a university between 1955 and 1969, with Dr. William H. Plemmons as president. “Appalachian State Teachers College became Appalachian State University in 1967. Appalachian experienced a doubling of enrollment during the 1970s to about 9,500.”
In 1969, Dr. Herbert Wey succeeded Dr. Plemmons. He was president first, then chancellor in 1971. Dr. Wey started the student teacher program that is still here today, founded the College of Business, and allowed students to take more elective courses. Finally the Bachelor of Arts degree program was added.
Dr. John E. Thomas was the next chancellor. He was an engineer, a lawyer, and a manager. He was dedicated to expand growth to a maximum resident enrollment of 10,000 students. Chancellor Thomas then sought out a top-notch faculty. He supported international studies and education, seeing the rise of exchange programs with campuses in countries including China, Germany, and Costa Rica. Appalachian was the recognized by U.S. News & World Report, as “one of the outstanding comprehensive universities in the Southeast and nation.”
In 1993, Dr. Francis T. Borkowski became chancellor. He made partnerships with two-year colleges in the region and worked to better Appalachian’s affiliations with other universities in the world. Appalachian was also named Time Magazine’s “College of the Year in 2001”!
One thing I didn’t get to mention in class is that I used to work at the Appalachian Fund here on campus every night over at Raley Hall. “App Fund” is a student caller organization where students call Appalachian alumni and ask for donations for the university while we also fill them in on current events at ASU that may interest them and answer any questions they may have (I loathed that job; that’s why I only stayed there a year. I hated calling strangers asking for money, even though App Fund is a very good cause). However, what I want to mention is that we had different groups we would call; one group was the “Black and Gold” group that consisted of alumni that, get this, graduated between 1920 and 1940 (if I recall correctly)! I never reached any of them when we were calling but I hated to imagine trying to talk to such “decagenarians” (is that the polite term?) on the phone and get a donation from them without any trouble (some would not be able to hear you and many would be deceased).
http://www.appstate.edu/about/history.php
Watauga Academy was founded in 1899 by brothers Blanford B. Dougherty and Dauphin D. Dougherty. It only had 53 students enrolled in 3 grades. It then became the Appalachian State Teachers College in 1929 with over 1,300 students enrolled in the Bachelor of Science degree programs.
Appalachian then grew into a university between 1955 and 1969, with Dr. William H. Plemmons as president. “Appalachian State Teachers College became Appalachian State University in 1967. Appalachian experienced a doubling of enrollment during the 1970s to about 9,500.”
In 1969, Dr. Herbert Wey succeeded Dr. Plemmons. He was president first, then chancellor in 1971. Dr. Wey started the student teacher program that is still here today, founded the College of Business, and allowed students to take more elective courses. Finally the Bachelor of Arts degree program was added.
Dr. John E. Thomas was the next chancellor. He was an engineer, a lawyer, and a manager. He was dedicated to expand growth to a maximum resident enrollment of 10,000 students. Chancellor Thomas then sought out a top-notch faculty. He supported international studies and education, seeing the rise of exchange programs with campuses in countries including China, Germany, and Costa Rica. Appalachian was the recognized by U.S. News & World Report, as “one of the outstanding comprehensive universities in the Southeast and nation.”
In 1993, Dr. Francis T. Borkowski became chancellor. He made partnerships with two-year colleges in the region and worked to better Appalachian’s affiliations with other universities in the world. Appalachian was also named Time Magazine’s “College of the Year in 2001”!
One thing I didn’t get to mention in class is that I used to work at the Appalachian Fund here on campus every night over at Raley Hall. “App Fund” is a student caller organization where students call Appalachian alumni and ask for donations for the university while we also fill them in on current events at ASU that may interest them and answer any questions they may have (I loathed that job; that’s why I only stayed there a year. I hated calling strangers asking for money, even though App Fund is a very good cause). However, what I want to mention is that we had different groups we would call; one group was the “Black and Gold” group that consisted of alumni that, get this, graduated between 1920 and 1940 (if I recall correctly)! I never reached any of them when we were calling but I hated to imagine trying to talk to such “decagenarians” (is that the polite term?) on the phone and get a donation from them without any trouble (some would not be able to hear you and many would be deceased).
http://www.appstate.edu/about/history.php
Friday, February 11, 2011
Piddling with Fiddles
So, I had planned on going to the fiddler’s convention in the Plemmons Student Union today, but they said it wasn’t going to start until 7:30 tonight and I wasn’t going to be on campus then and cannot go tomorrow because of work. I would have come to see Rick Ward if I hadn’t thought that the convention was all day Friday. However, I have been to the fiddler’s convention before here at ASU with my father and grandfather. All three of us play bluegrass instruments (I play mandolin, Dad plays banjo, and my grandfather plays the fiddle/mandolin/guitar) so it was interesting to see people crowded together for the sake of bluegrass music, musicians and luthiers alike!
What I can remember is that Dad took a particular interest in the banjos made by a man named Clancy Mullins from Tennessee. His banjos were beautiful; he made different sizes and he had them stained all sorts of colors. Dad’s attention was mostly focused on one with a green hue to the wood (since green is his favorite color). A few weeks after we went to that convention, Dad eventually got in contact with Mr. Mullins to trade in his old banjo for that green one. This would eventually inspire my father to undertake a project like nothing he had ever done before!
I haven’t mentioned this in class yet, but Dad is a very gifted carpenter/woodworker. He recently built his own workshop where our old woodshed used to be. He spends most of his free time out there working on birdhouses, mailboxes, and even the popular “corn toss” game boards for anybody wanting some. However, some time after buying that banjo, he decided to make an actual fiddle! He was able to get in touch with some luthiers (makers of stringed instruments) and find online videos to teach himself how to construct a fiddle. He used a very pretty leopard wood and ordered the neck and chin guard from Taiwan. Finally he finished the fiddle after 6 whole months! I have provided a picture of it and the banjo made by Clancy Mullins below.
What I can remember is that Dad took a particular interest in the banjos made by a man named Clancy Mullins from Tennessee. His banjos were beautiful; he made different sizes and he had them stained all sorts of colors. Dad’s attention was mostly focused on one with a green hue to the wood (since green is his favorite color). A few weeks after we went to that convention, Dad eventually got in contact with Mr. Mullins to trade in his old banjo for that green one. This would eventually inspire my father to undertake a project like nothing he had ever done before!
I haven’t mentioned this in class yet, but Dad is a very gifted carpenter/woodworker. He recently built his own workshop where our old woodshed used to be. He spends most of his free time out there working on birdhouses, mailboxes, and even the popular “corn toss” game boards for anybody wanting some. However, some time after buying that banjo, he decided to make an actual fiddle! He was able to get in touch with some luthiers (makers of stringed instruments) and find online videos to teach himself how to construct a fiddle. He used a very pretty leopard wood and ordered the neck and chin guard from Taiwan. Finally he finished the fiddle after 6 whole months! I have provided a picture of it and the banjo made by Clancy Mullins below.
Friday, February 4, 2011
Washingtonians: A Separate Entity
I just finished rereading the chapter in The United States of Appalachia called “The First Washington, D.C.” The chapter provides a very important insight to understanding American history, not to mention Appalachian history as well.
Basically the colonists were able to find a loophole that would allow them to lease land from the Cherokee, not breaking any of the rules given by the British treaty. They leased the land for ten years. Of course, soon after is when the rebellion grew even worse. The colonists just started purchasing more and more forbidden land in America. The Cherokees soon learned how powerless the British were in controlling the Americans.
A newly elected Carter was able to use the “community’s long-perfected stall tactics” by declaring that the Washingtonians were still loyal and used a delay as an excuse for their actions. “Amazingly, the British authorities and the Cherokee accepted the appeal.” They then were able to use that grace period to build two forts before they were attacked by the Cherokee. The Washingtonians held off the attack though. Afterwards they ravaged through the Cherokee villages. The battles between the Americans and Cherokee would continue for another generation. These battles would be a precursor to the American Revolution.
After reading this chapter over, I was able to cultivate a few thoughts. My first thought is that it is absurd to think that during the Eighteenth Century, one nation could successfully control a new nation across the ocean. The people colonizing the new territory were already looking for new lives. Of course they will eventually be tempted to want pure unadulterated freedom in their new land, it being even easier when the Crown is thousands of miles away! These people knew what they wanted and were not afraid to take it. They were “outlaws” rebellious to the law, and took action.
My second thought is about the Cherokee. One part that stunned me was how peacefully the Cherokee and Washingtonians were able to “commingle”. The Cherokee even offered atonement for those “who ambushed innocent Cherokee”. However that peaceful coexistence did not sustain long due to the Washingtonians’ refusal to compromise and further expansion into land illegally. What could have been a beautiful cohabitation ended up being a war between two nations, leading to much bloodshed and ultimately the future American Revolution.
This chapter is very informative and I have left many details out to cut this post short. It is a great chapter though, teaching me much that I didn’t know about our country’s history.
Basically the colonists were able to find a loophole that would allow them to lease land from the Cherokee, not breaking any of the rules given by the British treaty. They leased the land for ten years. Of course, soon after is when the rebellion grew even worse. The colonists just started purchasing more and more forbidden land in America. The Cherokees soon learned how powerless the British were in controlling the Americans.
A newly elected Carter was able to use the “community’s long-perfected stall tactics” by declaring that the Washingtonians were still loyal and used a delay as an excuse for their actions. “Amazingly, the British authorities and the Cherokee accepted the appeal.” They then were able to use that grace period to build two forts before they were attacked by the Cherokee. The Washingtonians held off the attack though. Afterwards they ravaged through the Cherokee villages. The battles between the Americans and Cherokee would continue for another generation. These battles would be a precursor to the American Revolution.
After reading this chapter over, I was able to cultivate a few thoughts. My first thought is that it is absurd to think that during the Eighteenth Century, one nation could successfully control a new nation across the ocean. The people colonizing the new territory were already looking for new lives. Of course they will eventually be tempted to want pure unadulterated freedom in their new land, it being even easier when the Crown is thousands of miles away! These people knew what they wanted and were not afraid to take it. They were “outlaws” rebellious to the law, and took action.
My second thought is about the Cherokee. One part that stunned me was how peacefully the Cherokee and Washingtonians were able to “commingle”. The Cherokee even offered atonement for those “who ambushed innocent Cherokee”. However that peaceful coexistence did not sustain long due to the Washingtonians’ refusal to compromise and further expansion into land illegally. What could have been a beautiful cohabitation ended up being a war between two nations, leading to much bloodshed and ultimately the future American Revolution.
This chapter is very informative and I have left many details out to cut this post short. It is a great chapter though, teaching me much that I didn’t know about our country’s history.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Tsalagi (ᏣᎳᎩ): The Cherokee Syllabary
After reading “The Trail of Words” in The United States of Appalachia, my interest was sparked by Sequoyah Gist’s amazing accomplishment: the creation of the Cherokee syllabary. I wanted to go into more detail about this than the reading did, however. What is a syllabary you may ask? And what does the Cherokee one look like? The reading did not provide much information about these two questions, as it does not provide any pictures (I hate when books don’t cater to the visual learners such as me; that’s why I don’t read more than I do). So I am going to delve into it so you will have a better idea of what Sequoyah accomplished, instead of having to imagine (even though imagination is a great gift, I feel that it’s even better to have some pictures).
A syllabary is similar to an alphabet. We know there are several different alphabets, such as the Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, and Russian alphabets. However, some languages have syllabaries, for instance Japanese. A syllabary, instead of just letters, consists of symbols that usually represent a consonant and a vowel (as we have “K” to represent the k sound, Japanese has different symbols for “ka”, “ki”, “ku”, “ke”, “ko” か、き、く、け、こ, in two different syllabaries). The Cherokee syllabary (ᏣᎳᎩ / Tsalagi) works the same way. Here is a chart of the symbols.
We can certainly see on this chart that it was invented due to the fact that there are many Roman letters in the syllabary, even though they don't necessarily correspond to the Roman sound. However, some of the symbols are unique without a doubt! I can say from experience that this system of writing is definitely not the most difficult. In fact, I feel that this would be easy to learn. Perhaps that is how so many Cherokee people were able to learn it quickly, making Sequoyah's innovative writing system such a success.
According to Omniglot website, Sequoyah's descendants claim that he was the last surviving member of his tribe's scribe clan and the Cherokee syllabary was invented by persons unknown at a much earlier date. By 1820 thousands of Cherokees had learned the syllabary. By 1830, 90% were literate in their own language. Books, religious texts, almanacs and newspapers were all published using the syllabary, which was widely used for over 100 years.
Today the syllabary is still used. Efforts are being made to bring back both the Cherokee language and the Cherokee syllabary. Cherokee courses are even offered at a number of schools, colleges and universities.
Also on Omniglot, I found this text:
The Tower of Babel (Genesis 11: 1-9)
ᏣᎳᎩ / Tsalagi (Cherokee)
1. ᎠᎴ ᏒᎳᏂᎬ ᏌᏉᏉ ᎨᏐ ᎠᏂᏬᏂᏍᎬ, ᎠᎴ ᎤᏠᏱᏉ ᎨᏎ ᎠᏂᏁᎬᎢ.
2. ᎯᎠᏃ ᏄᏝᏍᏔᏁᎢ, ᎾᏍᎩ ᎠᎾᎢᏒ ᏗᎧᎸᎬ ᏅᏓᏳᎾᏂᎩᏛ, ᎤᏪᏓᎸ ᎤᏂᏩᏛᏔᏁᎢ ᎾᎿ ᎦᏙᎯ ᏌᎾ ᏚᏙᎥᎢ; ᎠᎴ ᎾᎿ ᏚᎾᏁᎳᏨᎢ.
3. ᎯᎠᏃ ᏂᏚᎾᏓᏪᏎᎴᎢ, Ꭷ, ᏗᏛᏓᏅᎯ ᏗᏙᏢᎾ, ᎠᎴ ᎣᏍᏛ ᏗᏗᏕᏴᏓ. ᏗᏛᏓᏅᎯᏃ ᏅᏍ ᏚᏂᏰᎸ-ᏎᎢ, ᏩᏖᎳᎨᏃ ᏝᏪᏚ ᎤᏂᏰᏎᎢ.
4. ᎯᎠᏃ ᏄᏂᏪᏎᎢ, Ꭷ, ᎢᏗᏚᎲᎦ, ᎠᎴ, ᎢᏅ ᎢᎦᏘ ᎢᏓᏐᏪᎦ, ᎠᎴ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎤᏍᎪᏝ ᎦᎸᎳᏗ ᏫᎦᏃ- ᏠᏨᎭ; ᎠᎴ ᏗᎦᏙᏍᏙᏗ ᎢᏙᏢᎾ, ᏒᎶᎯᏰᏃ ᏂᎬᎾᏛ ᏱᏓᏠᎦᎴᏲᎩ.
5. ᏱᎰᏩᏃ ᎤᏠᎠᏂᎴ ᎤᎦᏔᏂᎴ ᎦᏚᎲ ᎠᎴ ᎢᏅ ᎢᎦᏘ ᎤᎾᏐᏴᎢ, ᎾᏍᎩ ᏴᏫ ᎫᏁᏓ ᎫᎾᏐᏲᎴᎢ.
6. ᏱᎰᏩᏃ ᎯᎠ ᏄᏇᏎᎢ, ᎬᏂᏳᏉ, ᎯᎠ ᏴᏫ ᎤᏂᏠᏱᏉ ᎠᏂᏬᏂᏍᎬᎢ; ᎠᎴ ᎯᎠ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎤᎾᎴᏅᎭ ᎾᎾᏛᏁᎭ; ᎠᎴ ᎥᏝ ᎿᏉ ᎪᎱᏍᏗ ᎬᏩᏂᏲᏍᏙᏓᏁᏗ ᏱᎨᏐᏍᏗ, ᎾᏍᎩ ᎫᎾᏓ-ᏅᏖᎸ ᎢᏳᎾᏛᏁᏗᏱ.
7. Ꭷ, ᎢᏓᏠᎠᎯ, ᎠᎴ ᏣᎿᎫᏓᎴᏅᏛ ᏫᏂᎨᏛᏂᏏ ᎠᏂᏬᏂᏍᎬᎢ,ᎾᏍᎩ ᎫᎾᏙᏝᎢᏗᏱ ᏂᎨᏒᎾ ᏓᎾᏝᏃ-ᎮᏍᎬᎢ.
8. ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᏱᎰᏩ ᏚᏗᎦᎴᏰ ᏒᎶᎯ ᏥᎬᎾᏛ ᎾᎿᎤᎾᏓᎴᏁᎢ; ᎠᎴ ᎤᏂᏛᏝᎪᎢ ᎠᏂᏚᎲᏍᎬᎢ.
9. ᎾᏍᎩ ᎢᏳᏍᏗ ᏓᏓᎶᏂ ᏚᏙᏒᎢ; ᏅᏗᎦᏝᏍᏙ-ᏗᏍᎨ ᏱᎰᏩ ᎾᎿ ᏧᏓᎴᏅᏛ ᏂᏚᏩᏁᎸ ᎡᎳᏂᎬ ᏓᏂᏬᏂᏍᎬᎢ; ᎠᎴ ᎾᎿ ᎤᏭᏓᎴᏅ ᏱᎰᏩ ᏚᏗᎦᎴᏴ ᏒᎶᎯ ᏂᎬᎾᏛᎢ.
Transliteration
1. Ale svlanigv saquoquo geso aniwonisgv, ale utloyiquo gese aninegvi.
2. Hiano nutlastanei, nasgi anaisv dikalvgv nvdayunanigidv, uwedalv uniwadvtanei nahna gadohi sana dudovi; ale nahna dunanelatsvi.
3. Hiano nidunadaweselei, ka, didvdanvhi didotlvna, ale osdv didideyvda. Didvdanvhino nvs duniyelv-sei, watelageno tlawedu uniyesei.
4. Hiano nuniwesei, ka, ididuhvga, ale, inv igati idasowega, ale nasgi usgotla galvladi wigano- tlotsvha; ale digadosdodi idotlvna, svlohiyeno nigvnadv yidatlogaleyogi.
5. Yihowano utloanile ugatanile gaduhv ale inv igati unasoyvi, nasgi yvwi guneda gunasoyolei.
6. Yihowano hia nuquesei, gvniyuquo, hia yvwi unitloyiquo aniwonisgvi; ale hia nasgi unalenvha nanadvneha; ale vtla hnaquo gohusdi gvwaniyosdodanedi yigesosdi, nasgi gunada-nvtelv iyunadvnediyi.
7. ka, idatloahi, ale tsahnagudalenvdv winigedvnisi aniwonisgvi,nasgi gunadotlaidiyi nigesvna danatlano-hesgvi.
8. nasgino yihowa dudigaleye svlohi tsigvnadv nahnaunadalenei; ale unidvtlagoi aniduhvsgvi.
9. nasgi iyusdi dadaloni dudosvi; nvdigatlasdo-disge yihowa nahna tsudalenvdv niduwanelv elanigv daniwonisgvi; ale nahna uwudalenv yihowa dudigaleyv svlohi nigvnadvi.
The Cherokee syllabary certainly revolutionized the way the Cherokee nation communicated. They were suddenly able to document their people's history in a more orderly fashion, instead of relying solely on word of mouth
http://www.cherokee.org/Extras/Downloads/syllabary.html
http://www.omniglot.com/writing/cherokee.htm
http://www.omniglot.com/babel/cherokee.htm
A syllabary is similar to an alphabet. We know there are several different alphabets, such as the Greek, Hebrew, Arabic, and Russian alphabets. However, some languages have syllabaries, for instance Japanese. A syllabary, instead of just letters, consists of symbols that usually represent a consonant and a vowel (as we have “K” to represent the k sound, Japanese has different symbols for “ka”, “ki”, “ku”, “ke”, “ko” か、き、く、け、こ, in two different syllabaries). The Cherokee syllabary (ᏣᎳᎩ / Tsalagi) works the same way. Here is a chart of the symbols.
We can certainly see on this chart that it was invented due to the fact that there are many Roman letters in the syllabary, even though they don't necessarily correspond to the Roman sound. However, some of the symbols are unique without a doubt! I can say from experience that this system of writing is definitely not the most difficult. In fact, I feel that this would be easy to learn. Perhaps that is how so many Cherokee people were able to learn it quickly, making Sequoyah's innovative writing system such a success.
According to Omniglot website, Sequoyah's descendants claim that he was the last surviving member of his tribe's scribe clan and the Cherokee syllabary was invented by persons unknown at a much earlier date. By 1820 thousands of Cherokees had learned the syllabary. By 1830, 90% were literate in their own language. Books, religious texts, almanacs and newspapers were all published using the syllabary, which was widely used for over 100 years.
Today the syllabary is still used. Efforts are being made to bring back both the Cherokee language and the Cherokee syllabary. Cherokee courses are even offered at a number of schools, colleges and universities.
Also on Omniglot, I found this text:
The Tower of Babel (Genesis 11: 1-9)
ᏣᎳᎩ / Tsalagi (Cherokee)
1. ᎠᎴ ᏒᎳᏂᎬ ᏌᏉᏉ ᎨᏐ ᎠᏂᏬᏂᏍᎬ, ᎠᎴ ᎤᏠᏱᏉ ᎨᏎ ᎠᏂᏁᎬᎢ.
2. ᎯᎠᏃ ᏄᏝᏍᏔᏁᎢ, ᎾᏍᎩ ᎠᎾᎢᏒ ᏗᎧᎸᎬ ᏅᏓᏳᎾᏂᎩᏛ, ᎤᏪᏓᎸ ᎤᏂᏩᏛᏔᏁᎢ ᎾᎿ ᎦᏙᎯ ᏌᎾ ᏚᏙᎥᎢ; ᎠᎴ ᎾᎿ ᏚᎾᏁᎳᏨᎢ.
3. ᎯᎠᏃ ᏂᏚᎾᏓᏪᏎᎴᎢ, Ꭷ, ᏗᏛᏓᏅᎯ ᏗᏙᏢᎾ, ᎠᎴ ᎣᏍᏛ ᏗᏗᏕᏴᏓ. ᏗᏛᏓᏅᎯᏃ ᏅᏍ ᏚᏂᏰᎸ-ᏎᎢ, ᏩᏖᎳᎨᏃ ᏝᏪᏚ ᎤᏂᏰᏎᎢ.
4. ᎯᎠᏃ ᏄᏂᏪᏎᎢ, Ꭷ, ᎢᏗᏚᎲᎦ, ᎠᎴ, ᎢᏅ ᎢᎦᏘ ᎢᏓᏐᏪᎦ, ᎠᎴ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎤᏍᎪᏝ ᎦᎸᎳᏗ ᏫᎦᏃ- ᏠᏨᎭ; ᎠᎴ ᏗᎦᏙᏍᏙᏗ ᎢᏙᏢᎾ, ᏒᎶᎯᏰᏃ ᏂᎬᎾᏛ ᏱᏓᏠᎦᎴᏲᎩ.
5. ᏱᎰᏩᏃ ᎤᏠᎠᏂᎴ ᎤᎦᏔᏂᎴ ᎦᏚᎲ ᎠᎴ ᎢᏅ ᎢᎦᏘ ᎤᎾᏐᏴᎢ, ᎾᏍᎩ ᏴᏫ ᎫᏁᏓ ᎫᎾᏐᏲᎴᎢ.
6. ᏱᎰᏩᏃ ᎯᎠ ᏄᏇᏎᎢ, ᎬᏂᏳᏉ, ᎯᎠ ᏴᏫ ᎤᏂᏠᏱᏉ ᎠᏂᏬᏂᏍᎬᎢ; ᎠᎴ ᎯᎠ ᎾᏍᎩ ᎤᎾᎴᏅᎭ ᎾᎾᏛᏁᎭ; ᎠᎴ ᎥᏝ ᎿᏉ ᎪᎱᏍᏗ ᎬᏩᏂᏲᏍᏙᏓᏁᏗ ᏱᎨᏐᏍᏗ, ᎾᏍᎩ ᎫᎾᏓ-ᏅᏖᎸ ᎢᏳᎾᏛᏁᏗᏱ.
7. Ꭷ, ᎢᏓᏠᎠᎯ, ᎠᎴ ᏣᎿᎫᏓᎴᏅᏛ ᏫᏂᎨᏛᏂᏏ ᎠᏂᏬᏂᏍᎬᎢ,ᎾᏍᎩ ᎫᎾᏙᏝᎢᏗᏱ ᏂᎨᏒᎾ ᏓᎾᏝᏃ-ᎮᏍᎬᎢ.
8. ᎾᏍᎩᏃ ᏱᎰᏩ ᏚᏗᎦᎴᏰ ᏒᎶᎯ ᏥᎬᎾᏛ ᎾᎿᎤᎾᏓᎴᏁᎢ; ᎠᎴ ᎤᏂᏛᏝᎪᎢ ᎠᏂᏚᎲᏍᎬᎢ.
9. ᎾᏍᎩ ᎢᏳᏍᏗ ᏓᏓᎶᏂ ᏚᏙᏒᎢ; ᏅᏗᎦᏝᏍᏙ-ᏗᏍᎨ ᏱᎰᏩ ᎾᎿ ᏧᏓᎴᏅᏛ ᏂᏚᏩᏁᎸ ᎡᎳᏂᎬ ᏓᏂᏬᏂᏍᎬᎢ; ᎠᎴ ᎾᎿ ᎤᏭᏓᎴᏅ ᏱᎰᏩ ᏚᏗᎦᎴᏴ ᏒᎶᎯ ᏂᎬᎾᏛᎢ.
Transliteration
1. Ale svlanigv saquoquo geso aniwonisgv, ale utloyiquo gese aninegvi.
2. Hiano nutlastanei, nasgi anaisv dikalvgv nvdayunanigidv, uwedalv uniwadvtanei nahna gadohi sana dudovi; ale nahna dunanelatsvi.
3. Hiano nidunadaweselei, ka, didvdanvhi didotlvna, ale osdv didideyvda. Didvdanvhino nvs duniyelv-sei, watelageno tlawedu uniyesei.
4. Hiano nuniwesei, ka, ididuhvga, ale, inv igati idasowega, ale nasgi usgotla galvladi wigano- tlotsvha; ale digadosdodi idotlvna, svlohiyeno nigvnadv yidatlogaleyogi.
5. Yihowano utloanile ugatanile gaduhv ale inv igati unasoyvi, nasgi yvwi guneda gunasoyolei.
6. Yihowano hia nuquesei, gvniyuquo, hia yvwi unitloyiquo aniwonisgvi; ale hia nasgi unalenvha nanadvneha; ale vtla hnaquo gohusdi gvwaniyosdodanedi yigesosdi, nasgi gunada-nvtelv iyunadvnediyi.
7. ka, idatloahi, ale tsahnagudalenvdv winigedvnisi aniwonisgvi,nasgi gunadotlaidiyi nigesvna danatlano-hesgvi.
8. nasgino yihowa dudigaleye svlohi tsigvnadv nahnaunadalenei; ale unidvtlagoi aniduhvsgvi.
9. nasgi iyusdi dadaloni dudosvi; nvdigatlasdo-disge yihowa nahna tsudalenvdv niduwanelv elanigv daniwonisgvi; ale nahna uwudalenv yihowa dudigaleyv svlohi nigvnadvi.
The Cherokee syllabary certainly revolutionized the way the Cherokee nation communicated. They were suddenly able to document their people's history in a more orderly fashion, instead of relying solely on word of mouth
http://www.cherokee.org/Extras/Downloads/syllabary.html
http://www.omniglot.com/writing/cherokee.htm
http://www.omniglot.com/babel/cherokee.htm
Friday, January 21, 2011
A Hidden America?
Diane Sawyer Reports on America's Children Living in Poverty in Appalachia in her report called “A Hidden America: Children of the Mountains”. Although most of what she reports may be true, it is definitely not a solid representation of all the children of the mountains.
Reporters followed four children: Erica, Shawn, Courtney, and Jeremy. Courtney lives with a lot of relatives in Kentucky and has to keep her clothes in a suitcase under her bed. Her mom has a drug problem and is trying to recuperate and get her GED by walking 2 hours to her class and 2 hours back, a 16 mile round trip! Shawn has to sleep in his truck to avoid all the thievery and dangers, but wishes to be the first in his family to earn his high school diploma and maybe even college. Jeremy had to give up his dreams when his girlfriend got pregnant; he had to accept a job working 3.5 miles underground in the coal mines.
Diane Sawyer also touches on the “heroes” of the region such as doctors and dentists reaching out to help “these people”. One of them is a doctor from India, Anant Chandel, who reports that, “it's hard to believe but yes… people are poorer in this part of the country than where I was in India." One dentist even used his own money to convert his truck to a mobile dentist office, which cost $150,000. Then Sawyer gives the statistics for “toothlessness” for central Appalachia, which is the highest in the country.
I remember watching all this one night because I wanted to know what all she had to say about it (I even recorded it on my DVD Recorder and still have the copy). I recall that she mentioned that she was from this area in Appalachia, but I strongly feel that if she really was or if she had strong feelings, not for, but with Appalachia, she would not have been so quick to create an image for Appalachia that I felt to be like a hideous, forsaken place for its citizens. Sure the statistics may be true but only for the area which she was reporting; the story could make anyone have an image that all of Appalachia is such a disastrous place!
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