I am Native North American of Tuscarora and Algonquin German/English heritage. I am from Canada but my father's tribe (Tuscarora) went from New York State to live in North Carolina and then returned to New York State. Personal history, culture and roots is an important aspect of my life and it sort of defines how I view this world.
Why is there no category for "Gnostisism" doesn't anyone believe that we can find our creator unlesss we go through some other person or institution??
I'm always thinking about music. I've always tried to learn new things each day. I've been a paratrooper in the U.S. Army and and I'm a Viet Nam veteran. I've been a hunter/trapper/prospecter and a miner in the north of Canada.
Did my time in school and got an undergraduate degree (B.A.) in Poli-Sci with a couple of years in Law School. Now I work as a Policy Advisor on Land Rights issues in the area of aboriginal rights. Still, working on getting my Carpenter's License and going to college for that as part of my apprenticeship program. I like to build homes for people to live in and to enjoy.
At present, I'm taking time to re-learn things about traditional medicine and to build birch-bark canoes which is one of the things my tribe was famous for and needs to be re-vitalized. I strongly believe that our traditional rights do not reside in books or the minds of non-native lawyers (or even native lawyers) Our rights exist because we exercise them in our daily lives, simpliciter.
My music influences are eclectic (whose ain't?) I'd like to give props to every musician that I've listened to, but that would be impossible. So I started listening to Hank Williams and Johnny Ca$h when I was quite young and my uncle taught me my first licks and chords on guitar. Then I learned to play keyboards on a Hammond B3 and played church music and some R&B. Then I got back to the guitar and began playing in high school to attract &hearts girls &hearts ... mostly. These days I play Rhythm, lead and Bass; in that order.
My key influences coming up were all from the MoTown and soul music. Then Rock and Roll, especially the recycled blues and R&B that was brought back to our attention by our British mates. Eric Clapton, The Stones, Spencer Davis Group, Yardbirds, Georgie Fame and The Animals, Neil Young (I know I'm forgetting lots here, so let's say any group that Jeff Beck ever played in),The Small Faces and Faces - Syd Barrett's "Pink Floyd". Special regards for my old drinking girlfriend from Montreal Big Mama Thorton, who wrote "You Ain't Nothing But A Hound-Dog" and never made "no money from it" (I really miss getting royally pissed-drunk with her and hearing her say: "Clo' de Door! Oh Clo'de Door!").
Parliament/Funkadelics, Isley Brothers, Curtis Mayfield, Al Green, Santos and Johnny, Redbone, Los Lobos,Santana, Malo, Link Wray, MC5, Velvet Underground, The Style Council-The Jam, Black Flag, The Damned, The Clash, Stiff Little Fingers, Lynrd Skynrd, The Allman Brothers, The Grateful Dead, Jonathan Richman and The Modern Lovers, Depeche Mode ... Ah the list just goes on and on.