It was only a year ago that the couple, together for 10 years this month, took occupancy of the space. It took them three months to set up the space to open the cafe and community space. “We wanted to be here for the long term” says Lenavat. This time period is described by both as hell. “With the construction boom on it was difficult to get tradespeople in, and everything took longer and cost more than expected. It was hard waiting, paying rent and not being able to open.” explains Moore.

A year of preparation and business planning went in before they even found the location. Lenavat, a Canadian, sponsored Moore, an American, to immigrate to Canada. “We didn’t know anyone in Vancouver when we first got here.” says Moore. The couple have come a long way since then. Moore and Lenavat surveyed local folks, and in the process built considerable support for the cafe’s concept of community building and organizing. “As soon as we opened our calendar started to fill up with meetings and crazy projects. We had people tell us ‘I had this idea for a long time for this thing I wanted to do and I never had a place to do it’. ” says Moore. “We haven’t had to look for people, they’ve come to us and if we had they’d be the ones we’d want here. This tells us this cafe was something wanted and needed.”

The name Rhizome refers to a root system that some plants like lilies, orchids, ginger and bamboo use to spread themselves about. A rhizome root system runs parallel to the surface of the ground and the plants send shoots up from the nodes in the rhizome, creating what looks like many separate plants. These seemingly unrelated individuals are actually all connected, through a system that’s not immediately visible to the eye. The name summarizes the philosophy of the cafe, which is held as a place for progressive community groups to meet and hold classes, events, forums and film screenings. They also host performances and show the work of local artists.

They’re not kidding about their calendar being full. In February alone they had 13 different events, plus two art installations, in addition to all the groups meeting privately in the meeting space. One event caught my eye – called ‘Board Games are So Gay!’ it is billed as a queer friendly board games night, which I’m told was a huge success that is likely to be repeated, with fun music from a dj, board games and even twister.

The food is made with fresh ingredients hand selected by Lenavat each day, and includes several vegan and vegetarian options. When asked which menu item is their favourite or specialty, the couple couldn’t pick. Each recipe is attached to a friend or favourite place, and besides, they eat three meals a day at the cafe.

So what’s it like running a cafe as a couple? Says Lenavat “Our relationship in the last 10 years, we go for challenges and that’s what keeps us together.”

More info on the Rhizome is available at www.rhizomecafe.ca

Sophia Kelly, Editor - www.lesbianquarterly.com

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Hi Lesbians,

The Rhizome cafe is lesbian owned and provides amazing community building along with delicious food on Broadway street near Fraser in Vancouver. Help keep this great business going by having lunch there or attending one of their awesome events. I eat there a lot and really enjoy the atmosphere and community. My favourite regular events are the Board Games are So Gay, the Disco Baby! and the Women’s History Talks. They also have a meeting room for your community org to have a board meeting, talk or other event that can be booked. During the day especially it’s a good place for a meeting.

~LQ Editor

October 2009 at Rhizome Café * Arts Venue * Community Space 317 East Broadway, Vancouver

Dear friends of Rhizome-

Lots of events are coming up this month, and we’re excited to tell you about them.  But first, a fewAnnouncements

Rhizome’s third anniversary party is fast approaching, and we hope you’ll join us!  See the October 3^rd listing below for details.  In addition to coming to the party, there are a few other things you can do to help us celebrate.  All of these contributions will help keep Rhizome going strong into the future as a community space that supports social justice work, provides a forum for marginalized voices, and connects us all to each other.

1)    There’s still time to sign up to do a 60-second performance at the anniversary party.  Poetry, singing, skits, interpretive dance, videos…anything goes, as long as it lasts no longer than 1 minute and is related to the theme of rhizomes.  Email lisa(at)rhizomecafe(dot)ca if you’d like to perform.
2)    Our silent auction is going on now (bidding ends at 10pm on October 3) and includes an amazing array of items donated by members of our Rhizome community.  Thank you to all who have so generously donated their time, creativity and talents!  New items are being added throughout, but at the time of this mailing the auction includes:

• Original artwork (by Claudia Segovia, Vanessa Lowe, Sam Bradd, Lenka S., Pat Beaton, Laiwan, and Krisztina Kun)

• Integrative Energy Healing Treatment (by Denise Woodley, Ripple Wellness)

• A Transgender Day of Remembrance proclamation (donated by Tami Starlight)

• Handmade rhizome-themed notecards (by Dalia Vukmirovich)

• 2 kinesiology sessions (by Amy Ruth)

• Preparation of one simple will (by Tim Louis and co.)

• 2 hours of housecleaning (by Deb Ashcraft)

• A set of 3 handmade bowls (by Amanda Walker)

• A 2-hour blogging tutorial (by Karianne Blank)

• 2 pairs of handmade velour pants (by Niki Westman)

• A 3-hour soapstone carving workshop (by Michelle Sylliboy)

• An 8-session drawing class (by Bernadine Fox)

• Handmade earrings (by Kyla Bourgh)

• A women’s history walking tour (by Jolene Cumming)

• A 1-hour drum set lesson (by Lisa Lambert)

• 6-8 classes of Cuban salsa lessons (by Michael Gabriel Rosen, Mas Movement)

• Computer repair (by Martin Suchanek)

• And a handmade puppet named Ghostie (by Diana Jeffries, Flexible Theatre), begging for you to bid on it and escort it out on hallowe’en.

3)    There’s still time to contribute something to the silent auction.  Email lisa(at)rhizomecafe(dot)ca if you’d like to contribute.

In other news, our new expanded hours are listed at the end of this message.  We now open at 11am on Tuesdays, and close at 9pm on Sundays.

Please remember that we’re open for lunch, dinner, snacks, drinks and delicious weekend brunch.  [A side note: someone who regularly attends events here told us yesterday, "It just sunk in, after three years, that in addition to events I should also come here for lunch!"  Hence this reminder.]  Also, our Community Meeting Room is available for use by your community group.  Let us know if you’d like to use it.  Our contact information is listed at the end of this message.

Please note that we’ll be closed for Thanksgiving on Sunday, October 11.

We’re now on Facebook.  Join our group by searching for Rhizome Café.

Thanks for all you do to support this space!  We hope you’ll join us for some important and wonderful events this month.  Here’s what’s coming up:

Art on Our Walls

Prints of Resistance, by Angela Sterritt

On display through November

Remarkable Women: Honouring Women from our Vancouver Communities

On display October 6-27, 2009

The Arts and Culture Office of the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation, Jolene Cumming, Tania Willard and Kamala Todd have developed a women’s history project that includes a set of 14 posters identifying 14 women from different areas, backgrounds, socio-economic and cultural groups who have formed part of Vancouver’s history.  The poster project will be on exhibit in our meeting room.  Join us on October 20 (see below for details) for an informal chat with Jolene Cumming.

Events

I Could Have Been a Spelling Bee Champ!

Thursday, October 1, registration at 6:30, bee at 7:00pm

Join us for Round 5 of this fundraiser for Towards Aboriginal Health and Healing.  Come spell your way to the top, or bring your spare change to support your favourite speller.  A trophy and prizes will be awarded to the top spellers!  Lucky audience members will win door prizes donated by local bookstores!  F-U-N for all, and a chance to support crucial community services.

$5-20 sliding scale, but no one turned away for lack of funds

Never Forget: Mexico, October 2, 1968 and the Social Movements of the 60s

Friday, October 2, 7:00pm

Building Bridges and New Noise present an evening to remember the October 2, 1968 massacre in Tlatelolco, Mexico; the wave of social movements in 1960s; and to talk about current times.

Free

Rhizome’s Third Anniversary Celebration

Saturday, October 3, 7:00pm to midnight

Join us for an evening of celebration including: tasty things to eat; Coast Salish welcome by Kat Norris; the world premiere performance of the Rhizome Café Bottle Orchestra; 60-second performances by Rhizome community members; presentation of the Third Annual Golden Root Awards; dancing to the tunes of DJ Su Comandante; bidding on our silent auction; an opportunity to socialize with friends, neighbours and co-conspirators; and more.  Please come to our party so we can thank you!  You’ve helped us create a community hub that supports social justice work and connects us all with each other.

$1-$100 sliding scale, all helps Rhizome keep on going.

Rhizome Free Store:  Adults’ Clothing

Sunday, October 4, 5:00-8:00pm

Share what you have!  Get what you need!  This is the second in a series of Free Store events at Rhizome.  Each month we’ll have a different theme, and will share our resources with each other.  This month, we’ll be sharing adults’ clothing.  If you have clothes you don’t want, bring them!  If you need something, come choose some new (to you) items.  Items must be clean and in good condition.  Anything left over at the end of the evening will be donated to the Battered Women’s Support Services stores.

Free

Board Games are So Gay

Friday, October 9, 7:00pm

We’re back with another round of queer-friendly board games!  Bring your favourite games or use ours.  Our house DJs will keep the tunes coming.

By donation, no one turned away.

Sister Spit: The Next Generation

Saturday, October 10, doors at 7:00, show at 8:00pm

Sister Spit, the legendary, raucous, rowdy performance gang from San Francisco, lands in Vancouver with a vanload of queertastic, female-centric brilliance! Don’t miss this multimedia literary explosion of zinesters, fashion plates, novelists, performance artists, poets and fancy scribblers. Featuring queer luminary Michelle Tea, hilarious literary force Beth Lisick, trans-licious performance artist Ben McCoy, graphic novelist extraordinaire Ariel Schrag, powerhouse poet Kirya Traber, photographer/myth-explorer Sara Seinberg, and world-traveling novelist Rhiannon Argo.

$12-$15 sliding scale

Closed for Thanksgiving

Sunday, October 11

Mas Movement Salsa Party for Queer Folks and Allies

Friday, October 16, 7:30pm

Whether you’ve only dreamed of Salsa or are already a pro, you are welcome here!  From 7:30 to 8:15 we’ll hang out, listen to some music, eat, and drink. At 8:15 we’ll learn some moves from Michael Gabriel Rosen of Más Movement. From 9:30 onward we´ll party to the sweet rhythms of Salsa, Merengue and Reggaeton. No partner necessary.

$5-$10 sliding scale, but no one turned away for lack of funds

Café for Chiapas & Report-back on Zapatista Corn Growing in Local Gardens

Sunday, October 18, 5:00-8:00pm

In the spirit of indigenous resistance and solidarity, local gardeners have been growing corn from seeds provided by autonomous Zapatista communities in southern Mexico.  Come see images of the corn and its harvest, and learn about how growing this corn in the Lower Mainland is an act of solidarity, resistance, hope and re-connection with our roots and our food. Defendamos Nuestra Tierra (Defend Our Land) Artesanias presents this report-back, and will also have Zapatista coffee and handmade creations for sale, including leather handbags and wallets, blouses, handbags, shawls, skirts, pants, cushion covers, earrings, and more.  Come hang out with old and new friends, and support Zapatista communities’ autonomy in education, justice, health, and local government.

Free

In our Meeting Room:  Celebrate Women’s History Month

Tuesday, October 20, 6:00-7:00pm

“Remarkable Women: Honouring women from our Vancouver Communities” Join historical interpreter Jolene Cumming from the Herstory Cafe for a casual discussion on the life and times of the 14 women featured on the poster series on exhibit at the Rhizome October 6-27. The women are from different areas, backgrounds, socio-economic and cultural groups and played significant roles in Vancouver’s history.

Free

Eyewitness Reports from Palestine:  The Ongoing Reality of Siege and Occupation

Thursday, October 22, 7:00pm

Local Palestine solidarity activists Joanna Zilsel and Greg Starr speak about and show photos of their recent trips to Gaza and the West Bank.  Presented by Jews for a Just Peace.

Free

Anti-Olympics Resistance

Friday, October 23, 6:30pm

No One is Illegal presents an evening of creative resistance to the 2010 Olympic Games.  From traditional Indigenous territories to urban ghettos, from migrant workers to low-income families, thousands are being evicted or pushed out.  Once displaced, many become cannon-fodder as precarious labour. Come join us in expressing our dissent with mega-corporate industries like the Olympics and the Tar Sands, and in raising our voices in creative expression against the 2010 Games!

$0-10, no one turned away

DTES Power of Women Storytelling Evening

Saturday, October 24, 6:30pm

The Power of Women (POW) Group is a group at the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre dedicated to educating and raising awareness on social issues.  POW is made up of women from all walks of life who are living in extreme poverty.  Many are single mothers or have had children apprehended due to poverty.  Many have chronic health issues, have drug or alcohol addictions, and have experienced abuse.  Many are indigenous women affected by a history of colonization and racism.  These are women who are victims, but are also survivors.  They are oppressed but they are powerful.  They are frequently researched, but it is rare that their own voices are heard.  We hope you will join them on this evening to hear what they have to say about their experiences, struggles, and aspirations.

$0-$10, no one turned away

Disco, Baby!

Sunday, October 25, 4:30 to 7:00pm

Bring the kids for some disco dancing fun!  dj little d will be mixing the old school and the new.

By donation

Going against the Grain: 38 Years of Feminist Work, Joy and Struggle

Thursday, October 29, 7:00pm

Vancouver Status of Women invites you to join them for their AGM (at 7pm), to learn more about VSW’s exciting new programs, partnerships and initiatives, and then to enjoy live performances (from 7:30 onward) from local artists.

Free

Book Launch: Not A Conspiracy Theory: How Business Propaganda Jeopardizes Democracy,

Friday, October 30, 5:00-7:30pm

This book, by Donald Gutstein, is about one of the most important unreported stories of recent years. Conservative businessmen and their foundations have spent hundreds of millions of dollars to support so-called independent think tanks and advocacy organizations that argue for smaller government, deregulation and fewer social programs. This money has bought undue influence in reshaping our society and future. Simon Fraser University researcher Donald Gutstein will discuss the book and sign copies.  Presented by Key Porter Books, SFU School of Communication, and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.

Free

Board Games are Sooo Gay…Let’s Play Again!

Friday, October 30, 8:00pm

We’re back (for a second time in October) with another round of queer-friendly board games!  Bring your favourite games or use ours.  Our house DJs will keep the tunes coming.

By donation, no one turned away.

A Cozy Place to Hang out on Hallowe’en

Saturday, October 31, at night

Whether you want to get away from it all or come show off your costume, this will be a warm and cozy place to spend your hallowe’en evening.  Bring the kids by for treats!

Day of the Dead Celebration:  Pray for the Dead and Fight for the Living!

Sunday, November 1, 5:00-8:00pm

Join us for one of our most favourite annual Rhizome traditions.  We’ll celebrate the lives and legacies of those who have gone before us, and create a traditional Mexican Day of the Dead altar to commemorate our dead.  Bring photos of your loved ones and others who have inspired you, as well as offerings of flowers, candles, fruits, bread, etc.  We will create papel picado (paper cuttings) collectively. There will be Guatemalan hot chocolate, Zapatista handcrafts and coffee for sale, and more. Organized by Latina women together with their companeras at Rhizome.

Free (Donations welcome for materials)

Thanks!  See you soon!

Rhizome

Café * Arts Venue * Community Space

Where we are:

317 East Broadway

Vancouver, BC, Coast Salish Territory

For more information:

604-872-3166

www.rhizomecafe.ca

rhizome@rhizomecafe.ca

Our regular hours:

Tuesdays:       11am to 10pm  **NOTE: New opening time.

Wednesdays: 11am to 10pm

Thursdays:      11am to 10pm

Fridays:           11am to midnight

Saturdays:       10am to midnight (brunch from 10 to 3)

Sundays:         10am to 9pm (brunch from 10 to 3)  ***NOTE: New closing time.

We’re closed on Mondays.

A note on our name:

In the botanical sense, a rhizome is a root system that some plants (like lilies and orchids and ginger and bamboo) use to spread themselves about.  While the roots of most plants point generally downward, the rhizome is a horizontal root system that runs parallel to the surface of the ground.  The plant sends shoots up from nodes in the rhizome, creating what look like many separate plants.  These seemingly unrelated individuals are actually all connected, through a system that’s not immediately visible to the eye.