A theft in the Community.-3

Part one HERE

Part two HERE

I have been unable to contact anyone from the second Vancouver Seed Bank (Now Vancity Seeds) who is allowed to comment on the events described by Rebecca in the second part of this article. 

Therefore I will not be bringing you a balanced story.

They have not responded to three phone calls, one facebook message, and an email. 

They have my FULL legal name, phone number, and this web address; I contacted them prior the publishing of both the previous articles in this series. 

The final time I spoke to someone from the VSB the only complaint he had about the article was that “[I] posted someone’s full name online”. I found it interesting that this was his only comment despite the second part of the article reading like material from a smear campaign.

I won’t be contacting Vancity seeds in the future, nor will I be entering their doors.


To quote my favorite fictional writer "There's one hole in every revolution, large or small. And it's one word long— PEOPLE."

Vancouver Seed Bank

872 Hastings Street East
Vancouver, BC V6A 1R6, Canada
(778) 329-1930
http://www.vancouverseedbank.ca

VanCity Seeds
316 Hastings Street West
Vancouver, BC V6B 1K6, Canada
(604) 628-4342

http://vancityseeds.com/

Repost-Rules of the New Amsterdam Cafe

/I know this is a repost but I wrote this article before this blog and I'm moving off the site I had it on originally/ 

A visitor to Vancouver walks down an unfamiliar street in an unknown neighborhood; the air is warm, the coffee shops plentiful, and the people happy. All in all a normal Canadian day filled with happiness and maple syrup. In the midst of normalcy one thing is off. The wind shifts and suddenly a thick smell wafts through the air, filling it with all the density and permanence of a cement truck.

Intrigued our visitor walks towards the source. Passing a darkened entrance the smell leaps out and attacks them, dragging them towards the entrance.  Quickly looking in they see many strange things: old men, young men, women of all ages, dragons, glasswork, wraps, and lighters. Assaulted by this vision and unsure in a foreign country they back out, unwilling to enter this strange and unfamiliar environment, to buy the ticket, to take the ride.

It is this very scenario that confronts me on a weekly basis, all too often I see some visitor to our fair land confounded and confused by the pseudo-hypocritical nature of a legitimate tax-generating venue dedicated not to the culture or paraphernalia of the marijuana prohibition, but to the consumption of the drug. Because of this uncertainty many people who visit Vancouver miss out on the full experience of taking a trip to the premier herb friendly café in North America. 

Located at 301 west Hastings Street and surrounded by the infamous pot block The New Amsterdam Café is one of the few smoke friendly establishments currently operating. Since the destruction of their sister shop Blunt Brothers the New Amsterdam Café has developed a deep connection to the counter culture movement that has resided in Vancouver since far beyond the memory of this writer.

If you want enjoy the New Amsterdam in the way it was meant to be enjoyed all you have to do is follow some very basic rule. A drawback to the nature of the Café is that it is in essence a thorn in the side of the BC government. Most of these rules are in place not to protect the patrons from each other, or to protect the establishment from the patrons, but to safeguard against the closure of the Café. 

Rule one.

Do not ask where to buy cannabis.

Read this rule, know this rule, love this rule. Under no circumstances talk about buying marijuana inside of the café. Don’t ask the customers, don’t ask the staff, and don’t try and sell anything, you will be asked to leave. This is an easy rule to follow but one that eludes many people. I think some of them believe that the rule is just there for show, to placate the police and ensure that the doors open every day, while others just think that the rule doesn’t apply to them. Whatever the case; follow this rule! The staff will appreciate it.

When it comes down to it why would you need to ask? A river of green flows through BC, you just need you reach out and touch it.

Rule two.

BYOB.

For some people bring your own bud hardly needs to be stated as a rule. The use of cannabis as a social drug has lead to a large and vibrant community of people who are more then willing to share their stash, it is the other kind of smoker this addresses, the “Broke” friend, the guy from out of town, and the guy whose dealer got busted. All characters you will meet in the café who will attempt to separate you from your stash. Never become one of these individuals, share and share alike, and remember to always load for bear.

Rule three

No tobacco

No one likes this product being smoked in the café, it violates some very reasonable laws and infringes on the enjoyment of herb by the other patrons. Many of the medical users who congregate also find the cigarette smoke irritating on a personal level (who knew someone with cancer would object to a spliff?).  This includes blunts so wait until the hotel room to wrap it up.

Rule four

Respect.

It sounds like such a little thing but in this day and age it has to be mentioned. Treat the staff well, treat the customers well, and your day will go a lot smother.

Rule Five

Socialize.

I cannot emphasize this enough; the atmosphere of the café is unique for obvious reasons. Sitting, smoking, and talking are the sole endorsed activities in such an atmosphere.  In taking the time to communicate with your fellow smokers, you can really get a feel for the flow of life in Vancouver and the diverse and interesting people that populate it. 

There it is, five rules to enjoy the café. Follow these and anyone from anywhere can stride with equal ease into the café and mingle with the vast assortment of humanity gathered under the rising cloud of thick yellow smoke.

New amsterdam Cafe, 

301 West Hastings Street, 

Vancouver, BC V6B 1H6, Canada‎ 

(604) 682-8955‎  

2009 Cannabis Cup Winers

Cannabis Cup 

1. Super Lemon Haze - Green House - http://www.cannabis-seeds-bank.co.uk/greenhouse-seeds/greenhouse-seeds-feminized/green-house-seeds-super-lemon-haze-feminized/prod_701.html
2. Vanilla Kush - Barney's
3. Head Bang - The Green Place

Indica Cup

1. Starbud - Hortilab - http://www.thcfarmer.com/forums/f35/hortilab-starbud-14654/
2. OG18 - Reserva Privada
3. Kush D - AllStar Genetics

Sativa Cup

1. Hilton - Harvestmen Seed co.
2. Super Lemon Haze - Green House
3. Bc Bud Depot - BC Bud Depot

Neder Hash

1. Royal Jelly - Barney's
2. Greenhouse Ice - Green House
3. Grey Crystal - Grey Area

Import Hash

1. Rif Cream - Greenhouse
2. Triple Zero - Barney's
3. Azilla - Amnesia

Product Cup

1. Vapor Swing - ???
2. Incredibowl i420 - Incredibowl Industries
3. Strain Hunters DVD - Green House

Best Booth

1. Greenhouse Seed co
2. Barney Farm
3. Big Buddha Seeds

Glass Cup

1. RooR Excalibur - http://www.everyonedoesit.com/blog/index.php/2009/12/02/roor-excalibur-bong-htcc-2009-glass-winner/
2. Eject A Bong
3. Incredibowl i420 - Incredibowl Industries

[edit]

GEAR bong review

Images: http://tinyurl.com/yk4ptcy (Different color, same bong)

I recently ran into a few people I used to work with. It was a rainy night and I was going to the New Amsterdam to sit for a few minutes before heading home. Right in front of the doors a few cooks I knew and hadn’t seen in a dog’s age were waiting for somebody else. Quickly we exchanged greetings and went inside the New Amsterdam. Inside, one member of the group enthusiastically gave me the details of the new Bong he had been waiting to buy, while another browsed the mini-vaporizers. As soon as he bought the his bong we went upstairs to the vapor lounge and tested it out.

The model we smoked from was one of the best bongs I have ever used.  Produced by Gear the 21 inch model is glossy black and features a clear viewing window mounted above main chamber.  The ash catcher mounted on the bowl is very well made;   it has a flat face to prevent rolling when removed from the bong. The bowl is a glass on glass design, it has perforated and removable down stem. The chamber of the bong has an ice catcher mounted directly above it; the chamber itself used a wide-bottomed laboratory style design, very stable and hard to knock over. The smoke produced from the bong was of the highest quality; smooth, potent and efficient. Very fun to use and I’m sure I will be purchasing one very soon.

WEED REVIEW

Given name: Juicy Fruit (This was confirmed by two veteran customers at the New Amsterdam).

Cost: $10 a gram.

Buds: Light greenish-yellow, small pistils, very well trimmed. Dense but elongated to suggest a sativa.   

Dried enough for a very good joint and a smooth and herbal smoke.

Trichomes: light white, frosting the buds, not too sticky though.

Smell: Light and sweet with a trace of fruit.

High: Very cerebral, takes about 10 to 15 minutes to really take effect even with a bong. This weed is slightly disabling and a little psychedelic but not too heavy.

All together this is a very nice smoke and should be savored if found. It can take almost any smoker down a peg. This bud has had a euphoric and trippy effect on some newer smokers. 

British LSD experiment

Very interesting video I came across. 


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-rWnQphPdQ

A Theft in the Community?-2

Part one HERE

In a telephone interview with Rebecca Ambrose, the owner of the first Vancouver Seed Bank, I was given her take on the events that she said led to a storefront-protest.

According to Rebecca, owner of the VSB since its opening in may 07’, after hours on the 19^th of October the ex-manager, Kaara Heywood, used her key to enter the 872 Hastings location of the VSB, proceeding to take approximately $15,000 worth of seeds from their stock.  Kara has admitted, says Rebecca, to the theft of the seeds in front of both her and an unnamed moderator but has not announced any intent to return the seeds or to pay for them.

When I asked about a possible motivation for the alleged robbery, Rebecca said, “Kaara was unsatisfied with some of my business decisions” and “was looking for a way to have the final say on things.“ Rebecca also told me that she had offered Kara advice on opening her own business;and that Kaara was uninterested.  The Vancouver seed bank hired Karra in October of 2007; her title on the 19th of October was Manager.

I questioned Rebecca as to whether the police had been contacted. Rebecca stated that while everything she has on site is legal, she is unwilling to contact the police and still has hopes for settling this incident as an individual outside of the courts. Asked about the possibility of a lawsuit, Rebecca told me that was not an option at this time.

The second Vancouver was built in the former location of 420 Convenience over the summer and opened to the public on July 15 this year. Rebecca states that the locks on the second VSB were changed

on the 20^th, the day after the seeds were removed, preventing her from entering the building. According to Rebecca over $22,000 was spent to renovate the retail site. It is important to note that while the lease to the second VSB is in Kaara’s name, Rebecca and her business paid for all renovations & rent up to The 15th of October. Rebecca also went on record saying that Kaara was never an official partner in the VSB, and has no claim to the VSB name.

The protest I witnessed was, according to Rebecca, her last ditch attempt to force a reasonable conclusion to this chain of events.

When I phoned the 316 Hastings address to confirm these facts or gather new ones, a voice answered the phone “Van City Seeds”, apparently the new name of that location. The voice on the phone, Ryan, identified himself as the manger, and told me that Kaara was in Amsterdam and would not return until the first of December.  In the brief conversation that followed Ryan told me in no uncertain terms that he was unable to comment on the matter until Kaara’s return. 

With an unresolved dispute in air it will be interesting to see the reaction of the community to this event and who will be declared the guilty party as time wears on. I will continue to cover this event and will hopefully hear bring you more details and a properly balanced report as new information becomes available to me.  The next portion of this article will be posted as soon as I can am able to make contact with a representative of Van City Seeds to record their side of this story; hopefully they will be able to diffuse some of potentially damaging claims made by Rebecca Ambrose in this article. 


Van CIty Seeds
316 Hastings Street West
Vancouver, BC V6B 1K6, Canada
(604) 628-4342

Vancouver Seed Bank
872 Hastings Street East
Vancouver, BC V6A 1R6, Canada
(778) 329-1930
http://www.vancouverseedbank.ca

A theft in the community?

Recently on one of my trips to the New Amsterdam, I decided to stop across the way at the Vancouver Seed Bank to enjoy a more relaxed smoking space before diving into the swirl of smoke and speech that is our beloved café on a weekend.

Turning the corner a pair of women drew my eye. Stationed in front of the door to the VSB and dressed for the biting cold of a Vancouver November, both held a small stack of leaflets in their hands. Not connecting them to my destination (this is after all Vancouver, we have more protesters then we do grow-ops) I preceded towards the door. With a flyer thrust forward the line greeted me “These guys are selling stolen seeds.” The other woman added “Yah, please don’t buy from these guys.” Not wanting to detour into a conversation on my day off I smiled, pocketed a pamphlet and went inside what was then in my mind, the Vancouver Seed Bank...

Distracted by the protesting pair I had failed to notice the conditions inside the café. Bare, empty, devoid of customers; never the busiest of locations my second favorite smoking spot had become a ghost town, occupied only by one man with his back to the door and a lone employee behind a desk.  Buying my usual I sat and rolled and watched the room. The man at the desk was statuesque, sitting still, and staring with a depressed intensity out the door at the women standing guard on his doorstep.  Noticing my stare he turned to face me, coldness in his eyes. Caught in my journalistic exercise I offered a quick comment to shield myself. “That must really kill your day eh?” “Yes, its just so childish” he returned. With the situation defused and feeling the negative vibe I finished my work and quickly left.

Across the street the in the New Amsterdam I took the time to read the flyer I had shoved into my coat pocket. Imagine my surprise when I found the flyer originated not from the kind of small fringe group I was expecting, but from the mother location of the Vancouver Seed Bank, situated further up Hastings.  Confused by this divide in the Vansterdam community I attempted to gain some perspective on the issue. My first step was to contact the principle parties involved....

Part two HERE

Portland Medicinal Cafe

Yesterday saw the opening of Portland’s first medical marijuana cafe. Located at 700 NE Dekum St, Rumpspankers will serve the medical user of Portland and provide a public venue for them to congregate and medicate. Unfortunately for visitors to the state you must be a part of the Oregon Medical Marijuana plan to be allowed in the café. The initial entry fee was $25, which got you access to the café for one month as well as an all day pass for the grand opening.

The café will be run and owned by Oregon NORML who intend to make an establishment centered around community and socialization. The opening of this café could be seen a highly visible symbol of the Obama administration’s stance on the medicinal usage of cannabis. Combined with the AMA's recent change in policy on marijuana's classification as a Schedule I narcotic and we begin to see a change in the long held public belief that marijuana is a cultural poison. To quote Obama “If the high didn't solve whatever it was that was getting you down, it could at least help you laugh at the world's ongoing folly and see through all the hypocrisy and bullshit and cheap moralism.” 

This is a sign of positive change in a long standing policy. I look forward to watching Oregon NORML as they develop this cafe and take it into the future and the future of marijuana policy in the states. 

A look at the Rules of the New Amsterdam.

Moved to here     

The great broadway fire of '09

As I was standing on the millennium line this morning rushing to get to class one word spread from ear to mouth at a viral pace. Fire, fire, fire! Even before I left the train I knew the basics, fire, broadway, traffic, and tragic are the four keywords focused on by my fellow transit-tory citizens. Now at class, with the teacher a half hour late for a completely related reason, I have the time to scan the airwaves and get the facts as they stand. 

At four in the morning a fire started on broadway and main, Four businesses were destroyed in the blaze that followed. The initial fire was believed to have originated in the Kishu Japanese restaurant where it spread quickly, consuming four other buildings: Zocalo, Lugz, an accounting office, and Slickety Jim’s Chat 'N Chew.  

While it took until 9AM for the 30+ firemen to extinguish the majority of the fire, the effects on traffic lasted well past the dousing of the last ember. Many people I talked to today found the traffic on broadway to be "unbearable". 

A far greater tragedy then the fire was the loss of Slickety Jim’s. An eatery with ties to the community stretching back well over a decade. Even at my school, far from Main and Broadway people are feeling the lose of a much loved restaurant.

It will be interesting to see what direction the media will take with this event in relation to the 2010 winter games. An increased call for the maintenance of fire standards in older buildings may be in the works.

In keeping with Vancouver's reputation as a city that cares a benefit concert has already been arranged for the people directly affected by the city's loss. 

AK-747s, Quiet Kids, The Orpheans - THIS FRIDAY!!! @ Bridge and Tunnel 110 E. Hastings St. Vancouver  

Doors open at 8:30pm Bands start at 9:30/Tickets: $7  at the door.

Enjoy Vancouver and I'll see you there.  

I Live in vancouver and I love it. The food, the culture, the music, the art; they all intermingle in a recipe unique to this little rainforest on the east coast.  The people who live in this place and the sense of being that envelops my city is a constant companion in these troubled times. It might not be true, and it might not be right, but it exists and nothing on either side of the border can change that.