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Follow a day in the life of Aayana, its the sugarbushing moon of 2055, purple dead nettle is in full bloom, excitement is in the air, and Aayana is invited to explore "The Great Unfolding"
Hi, I'm Coulee - welcome to the Something Else universe. In this podcast you will follow 3 Indigenous protagonists as your tour guides into the triumphs and struggles of contemporary Indigenous peoples. The something else universe was born from a yearning to create the sanctuary my own nervous system needed. It is a space where rage is celebrated, dreams are cultivated, rest is centered, and heroes are born. Just as its name suggests this podcast is unlike any other, it pulls elements and action from our world now and skillfully weaves them anew in this narrated Indigenous futurism landscape. It is my wish that this marks the beginning of a very long, very ancient journey together, listener and storyteller.
In a recent country wide poll on turtle island indigenous peoples were excluded from the stats, making them categorical “something else”. As Indigenous people the popular belief is that we live somewhere between marginalized and extinct. This podcast invites the listener deep into the space between the lines, outside the margins, it embraces... “other”.
The something else universe was created, written, voice acted, soundscaped, produced and edited by me, Kat "Coulee" Ross. Special thanks to the staff and volunteers at CFUV 101.9FM. Original score and music by Reil8 of @the_r.a.p_ Artwork generated by AI programs, Midjourney and DALL-E.
You're listening to "Something Else." An original podcast story created by me, Coulee. Audio adventures in indigenous futurism. This is episode one, the W.S.complex.
Nature sounds build in volume
A:"Ahhhhh"
N: Her eyes open slowly
Grandfather voice recording:"It's time to greet the day grandchild, ever unfolding flower. You carry the medicine of the moose and the power to evolve. You honor your grandmother's legacy
and continue to seek justice in this world. She is proud of you.....We are watching over you. Eternal bloom, Aiyanna.
N:Every time she hears this, she feels so at peace, and so at home, she collects herself in a seat on the warm earthen floor like she does every morning, and picks up her S.A.G.E.
N: S.A.G.E. for symbiont autonomic genetic examination is just one of the many wonders in this place. It will analyze her health as it does every morning to customize her herbs for the day.
N: Aiyanna brushes the smoke over her eyes, her chest and her body. The smoke fills her lungs.
A: "Exhale", "Howl"
Howl: (machine purring) "Who's your favourite room-bot?
A: Laughs
A: "You are my most favourite, and your my friend.
N: She smiles and pats Howl on the head
A: "Can you please add some of my grandmas hotsauce to the congee this morning? "PLEASE..."
N: Howl scoots off. Howl, an AI who's job title is room-bot, just like all the technological advancements in this place,
was designed by the brightest Indigenous programmers of our time. Her home of the past 5 years a condo in the W.S.Complex was the heart of innovation.
A place where scientific technology met with Indigenous technologies, reimagining the best of both worlds. If she had to pick her most favourite thing about her home,
it would be the companionship she has found in Howl. Whom she named after her favourite anime character, and whom she loves very much.
N: Aiyanna steps to face Insight. Insight is a smart mirror with a library of tasks and knowledge, fully equiped with health and wellness programs accross the world.
The mirror does a quick laser scan of her body and Howl reappears and precisely places 4 thin needles in the highlighted points.
A: (ooo I hardly even felt those ones, the thought of needles makes me queebly, mmmm breakfast, smells like dad, I miss him, I cant belive its been 2 years
since I've seen him, Ive been sooo busy with school)
Tummy: Growl
A: "Howl? Is it time to eat yet? Can I take these needles out yet?"
Alarm sounds
A: "I have to get going.."
N: She quickly pulls out the needles and disposes of them properly. She rushes to her wardrobe and throws on whatever Insight had chosen for the day.
Favourite song plays... (Spoke the r.a.p.)
A:(I lOOOVVE this song, it reminds me of dancing with mom, I'll get to see them around the holidays, I cant wait!)
Howl: "I think this is my best yet,..."
Howl : (teasingly) "princess.."
A: "shhh, No you dont Mr., you know I dont like that name, its prince... Aiyanna Harpy Prince"
The food waft captures her
A: (salivating) " mmmmmm, scarfs food down, this is soo good, indian pickles, beets, seeweed, mmmmmm"
A: (remember to chew your food, say thank you)
A: Thanks, (licking off finger tips)
N: She looks out the window.
A:(hmm looks kinda glum...it will be sunny by noon I bet)
A: "The best cure for a rainy morning is my dads cuppa joe!"
N: She goes into her kitchenette. And she makes herself a coffee just like her dad used to.
2nd Alarm sounds
Howl: "Your going to to be late again Aiyanna"
N: She rushes out the door with her coffee in hand. In the hallway she almost bumps into Apache the local neighborhood kid.
A: "OOOoof, Hey, how's it going little dude?"
N: He doesnt hear or notice her
N: She jets down the escalator which opens into the beautiful medicine garden. She makes sure to walk past the Sweetgrass and takes a big sniff.
A:SNIFF, "AHHHh"
A: (my shoelace is untied)
N: She sits to tie her lace, when the sweetgrass begins to speak
Sweetgrass: "Good morning, I am the hair of our mother earth. Each strand connected both to this and the spiritual plane.
A: "Finish" (she interupts the story)
N: The recording stops.
N:Everything about this community is interactive, down to a blade of sweet grass or a rock. Local elders and knowledge keepers worked with the programmers
to ensure that their rich traditions live on, the garden is rife with story, including how the Church reparations came to be.
N: But Aiyanna doesnt have the time this morning. She's going to be late. And even though her school is a few minutes away and she has been here almost 5 years,
still tardiness is an issue, but she's working on it!
A: "Excuse me"
N: She rushes to grab her e-cycle, past the buildings sign. The W. S. Complex and zooms down Hoskin Avenue.
A: (I dont know why my grandparents are skeptical of this place, it is amazing... "Ive never felt alone here once, its beautiful here and even the plants talk to you!"
Just like in grandmas old stories. I think it's the right step. in the right direction.)
N: After the benediction act of 2037, passed into law due to a combination of public pressure, indigenous class actions, and the passing of the 2035 Papal bull "Bellum Scelestus"
Meant all church owned land/property was to be given back to the Indigenous people as reparation. Her home the W.S.Complex, and the 1st of its kind in being fully developed
by Indigenous creators, used to be a church in downtown Toronto. Today, all former Church property in the country was home to and a thriving epicenter of urban indigenous excellence.
A:"3 minutes, Ive got this!"
Change scene
N: 9:01am, just in time.
N: The Coates Polytechnic Institute a bussling buzz, the hive of student life located in the historic Kensington Market.
At the top of her class, Aiyanna will complete her Masters in Myco-biologic technologies by the years end.
She weaves her way thru the crowd careful not to spill and arrives at her lab coffee in hand.
A: Sips coffee slowly "Oooo hot"
Rebecca:"That isn't good for you, you know? Youre late"
N: She doesn't bother.She inhales the coffee deeply, as she is filled with memories of her dad.
A: Inhales deeply
N: The lab is sterile white, full of beakers, Erlenmeyer flasks, and sharp corners. But.. unlike other biology labs, this lab develops myco-symbiotic technologies and with
brilliant minds like Aiyanna's is a leader in its feild. Global warming has had a devastating effect on the worlds trees, with most forests now only a pile of ash.
The team has been busy for months developing a myco-graft meant to fireproof tree's. It looks like the test is just about to start.
Rebecca:"You need your coat and eyewear Aiyanna'
A: "Thank you Rebecca"
N: Aiyanna smiles, quickly throwing them on as she jostiles up next to her pal Frank. Frank's another indigenous student. He's a bit older than Aiyanna, and next to Howl,
is her closest friend. He's always teasing Aiyanna and making her laugh.
Frank: "tsk...on Indian time"
N:Frank whispers to Aiyanna
Frank: laughs
A: laughs
Rebecca: "SHHH"
N: The 1st test is the control, with a "fire-retardent" GMO sapling. One of the students lights a flame placed at the saplings truck, and after several moments exposure to the
flame, the whole tree ignites.
A: "sigh"
N: Seeing the tree ablaze, stirs up feelings for Aiyanna. Her elders always taught her that trees are our relatives.
Rebecca: "Frank, can you begin the 2nd test?"
N: Frank and the team have been engineering this all season. This sapling has been grafted with a mycelium symbiote to protect itself from fire.
N: Frank is nervous, he takes a big breathe "Breathe" and lights a flame placed at the trunk of the sapling. To their astonishment, the sapling immediatly begins to transform,
as its branches and leaves appear to retract into the truck of the tree, and are quickly replaced by a hard almost plastic appearing shell.
The flame continues to burn, until it burns out completely, the sapling is left standing, safe and fire free.
Team: "Cheers"
Change scene (At Pow wow cafe)
Frank:"My treat this time"
A: "ooooo, can I have a sweetgrass ice tea please?"
Frank: "Can I get two tea's and a half dozen frybread?"
Cafe sounds; chit chat/ coffee macine/ ice in glass/ music playing
Server: "Order up"
N:The waitress places a fresh basket of frybread on the counter
Frank: "Are you sure you dont want one?"
N: Frank offers Aiyannas a frybread peice
Frank: "My cousin says that glyphosate allergies can be cured, you know?", "he says they just gotta engineer a pest repelling indian,.. but they wont
cuz then the whites would all buzz off to then" lol
A: "Laughs, spits out tea"
Both laugh real hard like
Change scene
N: After lunch they both go back and finish their work day.
At 5, Aiyanna flys back down Hoskin, zips back up to her floor, and walks into her condo
A:"AHHHHH"
N: The aroma of clary sage, bergamont and vanilla tobacco fill her lungs. Instantly welcoming and comforting her. She loves her home.
she just feels the day sliding off of her. Being here she feels so safe and cared for. She can smell Howl finishing supper.
sound of plate being served, nom nom
A: Stretch sound "Yawn", "Thank you Howl, "Sip" green beans and mapo tofu are my favourite" "sip"
N:She says as she sips her hot tea
A:"Im really sleepy now, time for bed"
N: Bedtime is a ritual Aiyanna treasures, the earthen floor is always warm and soft and cozy. The floor itself is grounded deep into the earth so that
everynight natures electrons soothe and heal. She curls up with her fuzzy blanket. The smell of lavendar enters the room and soft binirial beats
surround her. A projection of the desert sunset illuminates her room, as her eyes begin to close..
Sounds build in volume
(the crickets rustle, the birds begin to get louder and louder)
A: "Good morning"
Prayer gently fades away
N:Today is the day..Aiyanna springs up and delcares..
A: "Howl, Im determined not to be late this morning!"
N: Insight has already chosen several outfit options for her this morning. Aiyanna unlatches a wall and slides it down the room, it is filled with her clothing
she begins searching for the items, a dark forest green shirt and a tweed pencil skirt.
A: "Ahah, found them, record time"
N: She starts to dress but decides on the skater skirt instead. She finishes the whole look off with a braid, she kisses Howl on the head and hurrys along.
She's going to be on time today. She rushes down the escalator and into the courtyard.
This time Apache's doing some tricks on his airboard.
Airboard trick sounds
A: "Nioce!"
Alarm sounds
A: (I got to go, I think im going make it this time)
N: But..just as she grabs her bike, the courtyard Aunty saunters over for a chat
Trish: "Oooo, I love your hair in a braid, you should wear it like that more often"
A: "Thanks" (hurridly)
Trish: "You know my mom used to dress like that you know, these styles always come back around you know. tsk"
"Did you hear the news? They found another one, just yesturday. A tech down in those old tunnels found it, over out by the old fort past the bay"
"You're studying somethin like that eh?" "My nephew's wife's uncle found one too, years back now, I heard theres nothing like it"
A:"I had an early night, this is the first im hearing about it, yeah I study biology Aunty but this is out of our world,
It has yet to be identified in origin, even after all this time? Wild eh?"
N: Trish doesnt hear her, she's distracted, there is a new neighbor just moved in, and shes already making her way toward her
Trish: "Yes, yes, have a good day my girl"
N: Aiyanna jumps on her bike. She's whizzing along so proud of herself for making it on time.
Alarm 2 sounds
N:8:55, She arrives 5 minutes early to Franks big smile.
Frank: (high five sound) "Holy, you musta said a prayer to the ancestors last night, early even"
N: Just before they walk into the building and go inside, Rebecca stops them at the door.
A: (now what? Im early)
Rebecca:" Well be taking the shuttle bus on field exercise today. It will be here in five minutes"
Frank: "Where are we going?"
Rebecca:" Theres been another event, down an old waterway tunnel"
A:(trish told me the great unfolding was happening here, has there even been one in a city this big before?)
N:The great unfolding, an unexplained supernatural phenomenon, with localized events or "blooms" appearing all around the world.
Till now to Aiyanna it's existence has only been an urban legend, one she's stories about it since she was a child. In truth it kinda
scares her a little. She decides to tease Frank
A:"I hear people disappear in it?"
(She says teasingly to Frank)
Frank: "Nice try youngin, I cant believe we get to see one, they say its a colour you cant even describe"
N: People have been studying them for years and they don't really know anything about them.
All they really know is that the first one appeared in 2035 almost 20 years ago.
A: "I heard it looks like a space flower"
A:(I cant believe there sending a bunch of students, why are my palms sweating, this is everything I've wanted since I was a little girl, am I nervous?
Why am I nervous, all I really know is the stories the elders share in secret, and those stories make me uncomfortable. They say it's a gift from the creator
for our people, it picks a warrior and gives them special abilities. My kookum told me that it keeps itself hidden from white folks, cuz they want to
take the powers for their own, I wonder what kind of power a person would get? What kind would I get, oooo I can feel my neck hair standing on edge)
change scene, bus ride
(Bus sounds)
N:Frank and Aiyanna sit together in nervous silence as their classmates discuss there own theories
Student 1:"The great unfolding, sweet..I hope we can harvest something to study for the lab"
Student 2:"I wonder if its fire-retardant?"
Student 1: "Fire, its pretty much a light wave, so it cant catch fire!"
The buss stops
(buss sounds)
N:They get down to the site and it's all cordoned off from the public.There's tape, gates and all kinds of people in full hazmat suits.
Which, of course the students have to get into as well over at their student tent.
Rebecca: "Over here everyone, suit up"
N:The expidition into the tunnels began before Aiyanna had her gloves on, she rushes to catch up, just in time for the lead instructor to say
Instructor: "Grab some samples, and chart your readings'
N: Before skirting off deep into the tunnels
A:(not even a good luck, or be safe?, here we go i guess...)
N: They follow eachother into the dark, murky tunnels. The eerie sounds of the city humming overhead, echoes of water running and dripping
Its very dark, Aiyanna can hardly see Frank in front of her, she can hardly make out anything at all..and suddenly a warm bright light appears.
The light is pulsing and growing, Aiyanna feels drawn towards it, suddenly she can smell sweetgrass and coffee? She puts her hand out to feel the wall
it feels like dew inside her glove
A:(Thats strange, nothing should be getting inside?)
Frank:"Come on Aiyanna"
N: Frank just stepped inside, she takes a deep breathe and steps into the great unfolding for the first time.
suspenseful music
Original Universe creation, composition, and production by Coulee Ross. Original theme and score by reil 8. These podcasts in the "Something Else" universe were brought to you by CFUV, support indigenous art. I can be contacted via Instagram @the_r.a.p_ director's notes come next. Thank you for listening
Didn't that feel nice? I really hope that it did. It was my hope in creating this episode that I could provide some reprieve for myself and for other listeners who might just feel exhausted by all of the sad and negative things that exist in the world. And so this was meant to be that little ray of sunshine and Aayana, as a character herself is really meant to represent that. I really tried to bring into reality, a generation that not only is resilient and recovered from colonisation, but I tried to imagine a generation that had never been impacted by it in the first place. And so we really see a character that is carefree and loving, and has just a deep love and sense of connection and these things that I truly hope for myself and for all of my kin out there in the world. And so, yes, another breath of fresh air before I really dig into it. This director's notes will be quicker than some of the others. But there are some little hidden things that I wanted to talk about, like the title, if anyone had any guesses for the W.s.complex? It's definitely a little ode to the white saviour complex and potentially how these reparations and this well intentioned phenomenon can often play itself out. So I don't know if that's a little bit of foreboding for some stories in the future, or how the W.s. and things for Aayana are going to continue to unfold, but you'll have to stay tuned for more content to see. And then there were like little other things like the "Bellum scelestus" I don't speak Latin, but the best that I could research was that it directly translated to war criminal. And so definitely, that is how I feel about the atrocities committed here in North America against indigenous peoples, by, you know, several organisations, including the church. Did want to briefly mention here that that these are stories and ideas, but they could very well be a reality. And so if there are church going, folks that are listening to this podcast and are inspired at some point in the future, that is something that we could address. Definitely as I continue to make content like this, setting up some kind of a land trust for churches to be physically returned to indigenous peoples would be something that could exist. And I would like if it exists, so stay tuned in the future or get in contact with me. Let's make these dreams a reality. Something a little more cheeky, is, as I was imagining what a carefree generation would look like. I was thinking about some contemporary issues that face us as a society and us as urban indigenous individuals, and certain individuals, such as a certain former teacher, or professor at the U of T and some of his more concerning platforms and beliefs that really stemmed from white supremacy and how these things are often given so much of a platform, and how that's very disappointing. And so choosing the name and the institution because the podcast takes place in Haudenosaunee land or Toronto, and we'll get into why. But so, The Coates Polytechnic, where Aayana attends is formerly the U of T. And I just, I called it The Coates Polytechnic after Ta-Nehisi Coates, the writer, the famous black writer who really tackles a lot of cultural issues in a very strong way that I admire and often tackles white supremacy themselves. And so I thought, wouldn't it be nice if we lived in a world that was past celebrating and looking up to an idolising these kinds of idols like Mr. Jordan Peterson, and if they instead celebrated and held up individuals like Mr. Coates, and so that's what I'm doing here in this podcast. And yeah, you might notice some little things like Aayana is turning 20. Because we're imagining the future where education is fast tracked, and I talk about the glyphosate allergy. And so things like that, like as we are living in a society, where we are more and more disconnected from the natural world, and natural rhythms are we going to be experiencing that within our bodies as sickness, like glyphosate allergies, as our bodies way to indicate to us that this is unnatural. And, of course, individuals who might have a sensitivity to gluten, like myself, will always miss Bannock and frybread, so dearly. So yeah, there was that in there. And then really simple things to like, I just wanted the listener to be kind of taken to through a couple simple days, and how it would really feel and maybe even be transported there themselves and get that reprieve, and that reset. But, you know, she is a future indigenous woman, but she's still maybe tackling some contemporary indigenous issues like tardiness not to, not to throw shade or, say that everybody who's indigenous is tardy, it's definitely something I struggle with. And so I wanted to just kind of bring those modern day things into, into the future in a playful way. And then also like just the whole environment in general, like, I really tried to imagine what an urban environment could look like, if it worked to foster or bring back indigenous ways. So like the morning greeting, the interactive, sweet grass. And lastly, this was really important to me, but as an indigenous person, really valuing intrinsically, the life of all things and seeing things not in a hierarchy, and more as kin, all living things in that way. And so I haven't heard it done in a story yet where it is imagined what a relationship between indigenous folk with this love for all things and imagining that AI itself is also valued as alive. And so the relationship between a living AI through that perspective and indigenous folks, and I tried to really cultivate that in the little glimpses of the relationship you see between howl, her little room bot and Aayana. And yeah, so I really just hope that everybody that was listening really enjoyed themselves, and it can maybe get some dialogue going around reparations. And before I take too much time and sign off here. The location was chosen for the newest occurrence of the great unfolding, as I was doing research into different land areas on North America as a whole, and found old stories on indigenous land, and kind of more creepy or spooky events that happened in old waterway tunnels that are underneath Toronto. And so I thought, Oh, that would be a really good place to yeah, to have this begin to take place again, especially if we consider things from an indigenous perspective around time and time not being perceived linearly, and being perceived cyclically, instead, and so this kind of idea of what was playing out then. And how it's playing out now and how that's all interconnected, and even the idea that this story in itself as it's a story and an imagining in itself, could be already playing out as I stole bits and pieces from our lived reality and I'm breathing life into them and imagining them in this other context in a way. Which is the second plug for church going folks and churches if you're listening, let's work towards this. Let's get an actual church donated back to indigenous peoples and set up a land trust through this podcast. Definitely stay tuned for more. I love creating these so much work goes into creating these little worlds and these little characters and these little nuances. And I hope you as listeners are loving them as much as as I loved giving creative birth to them. And with that, thank you for listening. Please share this with your friends and relatives.