Category: Munsee

I’m pretty sure everyone who works wishes they had more free time. And that would definitely be amazing for a little while. But believe it or not, you would eventually get sick of that too. (Shocking, I know!)

You need more free time

I realize as our tremendous Iowa farmers are in the fields, free time seems like a total anomaly. According to a new study out of the University of Pennsylvania and UCLA and published on a website called Boing Boing, the right amount of free time to have is actually a sort of science as it’s oddly specific. You should have exactly the amount of time they suggest each day.

That amount is two-and-a-half hours a day. No less, but also no more. I guess we need to monitor our downtime with a stopwatch?

No more, no less because… why?

If you have less free time than that, it’ll have a negative impact on how satisfied you are with your life. But if you have more free time than that, you’ll eventually feel like you don’t have enough of a purpose and that will also have a negative effect on how satisfied you are with your life.

Here is a challenge, though. During your free time, try putting your smartphone down, and try doing something away from screens. THAT seems like the real challenge. And I’m not saying I’d do well with it either! Also, you wouldn’t be able to read articles like this one so… maybe use your screen time for a bit of that R&R time? Just a bit.

Midwest Home for Sale has Spooky Salesman

Want to sell a home that’s… um, a fixer-upper? “hire” a spooky salesman who matches the mood! Check out a fun-loving realtor that’s done just that!

Fun Facts About All of the 99 Counties in Iowa

Iowa has 99…

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MUNCIE, Ind. — Zoning has been cleared for development of a 180-acre “sustainable living and farm center” that would feature a hotel, a conference center, a restaurant, a brewery, an amphitheater and golf venue among other amenities at the northeast corner of Ind. 332 and Interstate 69.

A closed gas station sits a the front of the site today.

Developer of the project is Munsee Farms Holdings, LLC, which has connections with Munsee Meats in Muncie and Constant Canopy Farms in Gaston, through Jonathan Lamb and Jason Mauck, who are officers in those enterprises. Lamb is an economist and an owner in the companies. Lamb and Mauck practice regenerative agriculture at Constant Canopy.

Lamb, who also ran in the GOP primary for the 6th Congressional District seat in 2020, said the sustainable farm center is still in its early stages of development with no date set for construction. The rezoning application says Munsee Farm Holdings recently acquired multiple adjacent parcels of land at the site with the “intention of developing an East Central Indiana Regenerative Farming Institute.” 

The development, which is near Yorktown town limits, would promote agritourism and sustainable living.

“The carbon negative agricultural technology hub will demonstrate, train and issue certificates in sustainable, regenerative farming practices, renewable energy and livestock management,” according to the application.

More: Munsee Meats looks to disrupt the system as pandemic wreaks havoc on meat industry

Plans call for the development to feature recreation along with education.

“…The proposal calls for a hotel with an event venue, restaurant, welcome center with with gift shop, a small market, brewery, and gathering place for community outreach.” the document states. “However, what sets this development apart is the inclusion of livestock, for food and energy production and agrivoltaic farming. Agrivoltaic farming is a relatively new concept; in simplest terms it takes solar panels and raises them off the ground to create an…

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Danielle Campbell – Copy Editor

The story given to me about my family was my great-grandfather moved to Connecticut for a better life than the one he had on a Native American reservation. Which one? I am not sure. I know my grandfather’s lineage is Black, White and Native American. I was told his father wanted better for his children than the life of depression you can so readily find on the reservations in America. People we have forgotten and stolen everything from. My ancestors, somewhere down the line.   

I have always connected with the original people of this land and wanted to put their faces forward, but in general, I am all for culture to be celebrated, period. I am torn when cultures are clashing for recognition on certain days when we all deserve to be celebrated. There is no competition in my eyes when we all are supposed to be recognized. America is a melting pot.  

Personally, as a history minor, I have a love of culture which goes deeper than just those I know. I am an African-American woman with roots in multiple countries. I am a lover of people and want us all to celebrate and understand each other. With that said, I think the difficult history behind Columbus Day and the recent recognition by President Joe Biden is important to unpack.   

According to Native Land Digital, New Haven is Quinnipiac, Paugussett, and Wappinger land. It is deeply important to me to have people know those who have been forgotten and erased. We have so much we owe to Native Americans.   

President Biden’s recognition of Columbus Day as Indigenous People’s Day is necessary but hurtful. In the days where we are silencing these people on their lands, can we say we are celebrating them by simply giving them a day of recognition?  

America owes Native…

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Why OBX Conservationists bought the Khoury Oak

By Sandy Semans Ross | Outer Banks Voice on October 18, 2021

The Khoury tree (Photo credit: Sandy Semans Ross)

The story of this ancient tree has deep roots

When the Outer Banks Conservationists purchased an undeveloped lot at 1050 US 64 on Roanoke Island in 2012, many scratched their heads and wondered why.

The nonprofit invests in area cultural sites, such as the Currituck Lighthouse and Island Farm. A lot with just trees on it didn’t seem to fit the mission of the organization.

To understand the reasoning behind the purchase one has to go back all the way to 1960 after Hurricane Donna made history by touching every state from Florida to Maine. Then take a deep dive into the memories of three children who visited the Elizabethan Gardens after Hurricane Donna. The Gardens were formally opened by the Garden Clubs of North Carolina just a month before the devastating storm.

“I was only eight,” recalls Manteo resident John Wilson, one of the founders of the Conservationists. “My neighbors were the Midgettes—and Nancy and Robert were my friends.”

That day, the three of them took a trip to the Elizabethan Gardens and the Lost Colony to look at the damage from Hurricane Donna. Robert’s father was Louis Midgette, the supervisor of the Gardens. Wilson said he vividly remembers the horticulturist working on the old living oak tree at the Gardens that day and it being said that – under the right conditions – live oaks could live up to 1,200 years. The first four hundred years were for growth, the second were for enjoying life, and the last four hundred were for slowly dying. Nancy and Robert also remember the conversation.

“I remember watching the tree…

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The full moon has been shrouded in folklore and mystique for millennia, inspiring everything from religious festivals to horror films and outlandish doomsday conspiracy theories.

Each lunar cycle lasts just over 29.5 days, which means that the full moon usually falls on a slightly different date each month and sometimes more than once (known as a “blue moon”).

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Hunter’s moon: Why full moon name meanings entered pop culture, even though there’s zero science behind them

Here’s the full calendar of full moons falling in 2021, along with all you need to know about the origins of different moon names and phenomena such as the “Supermoon” and “Blood Moon”.

When are the full moons in 2021?

Here are all the full moon dates for 2021:

• 28 January
• 27 February
• 28 March
• 27 April
• 26 May
• 24 June
• 24 July
• 22 August
• 21 September
• 20 October
• 19 November
• 19 December

Full moons have been shrouded in folklore and mystique for millennia (Photo: AFP/Getty Images)

What are the full moon names?

The majority of pre-modern calendars used the moon as the basis for the names of their months, a convention ended by the introduction of the solar Julian and Gregorian calendars.

In modern times, new names for the full moons – and their purported meanings – have infiltrated pop culture, generally attributed to Native American tribes.

There is no standardised Native American…

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Mountainside treatment center participates in Release Recovery scholarship fund

CANAAN, Conn. — During National Substance Abuse Prevention Month, Mountainside treatment center is partnering with Release Recovery Foundation to provide scholarships to women battling substance use disorders. The aim of these scholarships is to offer life-saving inpatient treatment services to individuals struggling with alcohol and drug addiction who are not able to afford medical and clinical care otherwise.

Release Recovery Foundation, co-founded by “Bachelorette Season 16” winner Zac Clark and Justin Gurland, is a nonprofit dedicated to ensuring all who are ready and willing to seek professional treatment are able, despite the financial barriers they may face.

Women face additional barriers, both emotional and societal, when seeking treatment. Childcare challenges, the high cultural standards placed on women as caregivers, and the stigma of addiction can all contribute to a perfect storm in which women feel they cannot leave home to address their disorder. This Release Recovery Foundation Scholarship was created to help women overcome these obstacles and embrace their own healing.

“Everyone has been impacted by COVID-19, but shortly after the pandemic began, we saw a noticeable decrease in women enrolling in detox and residential treatment,” said Andre Basso, CEO at Mountainside. “No one should have to sacrifice their own healing, for financial reasons or otherwise.”

For many women without an alcohol use disorder, COVID-19 stressors have intensified their drinking during the pandemic. A September 2020 study by RAND Corporation showed that heavy alcohol consumption among female drinkers increased 41 percent from 2019 to 2020. Couple this with the 30 percent surge in drug overdose deaths last year, and widespread support has never been more urgently needed.

The Release Recovery Scholarship will cover inpatient stays in Mountainside’s Detox and Residential programs. The treatment center will…

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League of Women Voters of Brookline, Diana McClure  |  Wicked Local

What is now known as Brookline was once part of the Algonquian territory. First settled by European colonists in 1638, it was part of an outlying section of the colonial settlement of Boston, known as the hamlet of Muddy River. Incorporated as a separate town on November 13, 1705, it has remained a town for 316 years. 

Cities and towns are creatures of the state; the only distinction between the two is the form of government. Towns always have a Select Board (three or five members) and a Town Meeting (open or representative). Cities always have a city council, varying greatly in size, with either an elected mayor or an appointed manager, or some hybrid – e.g., Cambridge has an appointed City Manager with a “weak” mayor appointed by the City Council, with some political authority and discretion. 

Prior to the Home Rule authority granted to cities and towns by the state legislature in 1966, cities and towns received their right to organize from the state and had to act only in ways granted by the General Court (Legislature), or as implied by powers conveyed. Home rule in general provides much more governing autonomy for cities or towns and allows communities to enact charters (through a charter commission process), without state approval. 

Usually, a municipal government is defined by a single charter, some 25 to 50 pages long, laying out all the roles and responsibilities of the city or town. 

Brookline, though, does not have a single legislative act constituting a charter. The town operates with a combination of default state laws relating to local government organization, adoption of optional state laws, and enactment of our own home rule bills requiring adoption by the state legislature. Keeping track of 316 years of state laws and going through the home rule process can be…

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Located along the southwest shores of the Michigami, at the intersection of the Milwaukee, Kinnikinnick and Menominee river sits the city of Milwaukee. The area that was once known to various nations is now currently a part of Marquette’s campus. Marquette’s new adopted Land and Water Acknowledgment aims to recognize that history.

“We are mindful that our campus and Milwaukee are the homelands and waters of the Menominee, Potawatomi, Ho-Chunk, Fox, Mascouten, Sauk and Ojibwe nations, who have known these lands and waters as relatives for millennia and whose descendants alongside many other tribal nation members remain our hosts,” University President Michael Lovell said when announcing the acknowledgement’s adoption. 

The news of the adoption of the Land and Water Acknowledgement was received positively by some of the Indigenous students on campus. Clare Camblin, a junior in the College of Communication and member of the Osage Nation Eagle Clan, was one of those students.

“I texted my grandparents right away, it felt so good. I was very excited that they did that,” Camblin said. 

The acknowledgment was officially adopted Oct. 7 and is available in both written and oral versions. It was developed with Indigenous student leadership, including the Native American Student Association and faculty advisors. 

Some of the goals of the land and water acknowledgement are pay respect to elders of the past as well as continuing to develop good relations with sovereign Indigenous nations. Acknowledgements like these help to strengthen relationships between communities and develop a “condition of hospitality” for Indigenous students and community members.

Marquette’s council on Native American affairs was also involved in the development process. In addition to Lovell, the Land and Water Acknowledgement was approved by Provost and Executive Vice President of Academic Affairs Kimo Ah Yun.

“They pretty much told me they wouldn’t be opposed…

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The white-faced, gray marsupials with almost human-like hands and prehensile tails are Virginia North American opossums, so named by English colonist John Smith of the Jamestown colony in 1610. It is the only marsupial native to the Highland Lakes and North America. It is not, despite popular belief, a possum, which is only found in Australia. In fact, the Australian possum, also a marsupial, was named after the North American variety, whose moniker comes from the Algonquian word apasum, meaning white animal or white face. Possums without the “o” do not have white faces.

And, no, the “o” is not silent. The correct pronunciation is uh-pa-sum, although not many put the “uh” in front anymore.

Opossums have been around for millions of years, evolving from the age of the dinosaur. They are sometimes referred to as living fossils because they have retained many of the same features from the earliest-known marsupials. Their large, strong jaws and teeth as well as the female’s marsupial pouch are a few of their more primitive features.

Male opossums are known as jacks, the females jills, and the young joeys. Jills give birth only 12 or so days after fertilization. The young are only half-baked at this point and far from being fully developed. The newborn, hairless, and blind joeys have only front legs and a mouth and are about the size of a honeybee. They crawl directly into the marsupium, or pouch, and remain firmly attached to the mother’s milk supply for eight more weeks of development. Even after that, they remain in the pouch for another month or more. The young also ride on the mother’s back during this time, watching and learning in preparation for life on their own.

Opossums are opportunistic omnivores: They eat anything. Adaptable and excellent survivors, they are…

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Capt. Joe Berry, right, and longtime mate William K. “Billy” Brown, show off a wahoo in this 1955 photo from the Aycock Brown Papers. Photo: Courtesy of the Outer Banks History Center, State Archives of North Carolina

Editor’s note: Some outdated racial terms that today are considered insensitive or offensive are used in this story, not out of disrespect but solely because of their appearance on official records.

Growing up, she was urged to not speak of her Indigenous roots.

“In our family, we were told not to talk about it,” recalled Marilyn Berry Morrison, chief of the Roanoke-Hatteras Tribe of the Algonquian Indians of North Carolina.

This fear, which “has been embedded” from generation to generation, is often still found among local Roanoke-Hatteras descendants today.

“We have active tribal members who don’t want to put in their paperwork to make them an official tribal member,” Morrison said.

Centuries of fear of forcible removals, government-sanctioned land-stealing and even government-sanctioned murder took its toll.

“Many years ago, if you claimed to be Indian or Native American, you were killed, OK? So that fear has trickled on down through generations,” Morrison explained. “Even having President Theodore Roosevelt say that ‘a good Indian is a dead Indian’… it really had a tremendous impact on being called Native American. And that is who we are.”

She has become an outspoken advocate of the tribe and believes others will follow suit.

“I believe in time we’ll get rid of that (fear) once they accept who they are…

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