A series of pictures and factoids for Create's NaJoPoMo Challenge.

In a moiuntain greenery,

Where God paints the scenery…

See that sign? That's an eyesore. That outfit looks kind of foreign to me. It probably pulls the tourists in, though. Cherokee, North Carolina, popula38, is a study in contraditions.

On the one hand, there's an excellent museum documenting the Cherokee heritage. The town, located in the Great Smoky Mountains, is the headquarters of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, official name. The Eastern Band own the land within and around the Qualla Boundary. It's not a reservation, it's a land trust. Here in this beautiful landscape, a people's way of life is preserved.

On the other hand, there are the tourists and the gamblers – about four million of them a year. Because the US government exempts Indian tribes from gambling restrictions, casino chains do deals with tribes. They run the casino, the community reaps the profits. Fair enough. Besides, games of chance are an old Indian tradition. They didn't have gambling addictions, because they never used to own anything they couldn't easily do without.

Before there were casinos, people had a hard time making a living. Some of them stooped to ;chiefing' – putting on Sioux headdresses and such, and sitting around by the side of the road. Tourists would pay to take pictures. The Cherokee would just chuckle and accept the money.

Nowadays, we at least have the outdoor museum to spread better information about the old-time people. The site interpreters, who are Cherokee, will explain the crafts and tell the stories. They'll show outsiders how the folk in the mountains used to keep a cabin just for social needs. If anybody had extra, they'd leave it there. If anybody had a need, they were welcome to stop by and pick up a blanket, or a sack of cornflour, or whatever.

Maybe somebody should suggest this as a practice. I wonder what an economist would call that?

Anyway, they're still chuckling at the tourists up there. And the Oconaluftee River still flows through some lovely scenery. Painted by God, I think.