\Are you a cop?"" one guy asked me, and I'm not really sure if he was kidding. I assured him I was not and was then welcomed to the group and invited to stay for dinner.
He was one of about five others standing in the kitchen—simultaneously picking at and preparing that night's meal—when I introduced myself as a reporter and asked permission to return at a later date to spend a day observing life in the Lothlorien co-op, 244 W. LakeLawn Place. As far as I could tell, there was not one person acting as head chef, rather everyone was contributing to the future meal. The result was an unusual, but tasty, concoction that included a dish of chopped beets and walnuts among other creative veggie combinations.
This unusual mixture of independently added ingredients was representative of the inner workings of Lothlorien—every member separately adding their individualism to the jumbled, but sturdy mixture.
Although the co-op is not far from where I live, I felt as if I were miles from home. I perpetually found myself wondering how it was possible that a life so different from the one I had been leading could exist practically under my nose without me ever knowing it.
It is difficult to pinpoint the exact grounds that make Lothlorien so unique. Perhaps it is the lack of Ugg boots or brand-name clothing. It could possibly be the immensely laid-back attitude that allows members to sit around the dining room table and continue chatting long after they have finished eating. Or maybe it is the communal diary, resting on the kitchen table and containing an assortment of entries from professions of political frustration to theories on group masturbation. But it is probably the dedication the members put into Lothlorien to assure that their co-op—with no form of structured government—functions smoothly that sets them apart from any other community.
Founded in 1973, the walls of the four-story house painted with solid colors varying from room to room, are adorned with cloth banners emblazoned with statements such as, ""Lothlorien womyn believe in our strength,"" or as one above the dining room table announces, ""Home is where the art is.""
A substantial number of plants inhabit the Lothlorien house and are placed in various spots in almost every room and along the stairwells' windowsills. When I asked why there were so many, I was told they were present because they help the residents breathe.
Lothlorien member Glyphia Xo said the general concept of a co-op is ""the cost of living is lower because you're subsidizing the cost by your labor.""
Moreover, a co-op is an autonomous group of people living in one building who share the responsibilities of cooking, cleaning and purchasing supplies to keep their community up and running. Often times, members share similar political beliefs and a passion for social activeness.
Although Lothlorien has elected positions such as bulk food buyer, maintenance coordinator and accounts payable treasurer, they do not delegate individual chores but rather rely on their members to recognize when things need to get done and do them. Any issues or group decisions are discussed at their weekly house meeting.
To become a member, potential residents are required to attend three dinners at the co-op, after which the group will decide whether or not the potential member can move in at the house meeting.
Lothlorien prides itself on promoting feminist values, lesbian, gay and bisexual rights and environmental consciousness.
But according to members Kevin Klepper and Olive Oyama, Lothlorien members share more than just what they publicly advertise as their political views.
""Government in general is not the way to go here,"" Klepper said.
Oyama agreed, stating that politics ""leaning toward socialism and anarchism"" and an enthusiasm for food are two elements that most Lothlorien members have in common.
In fact, food at Lothlorien holds political consequence as well as serving as a socialization centerpiece. Even though the house currently only harbors about five vegetarians, the house meals are not allowed to contain any meat. The members are permitted to cook meat individually but are restricted by certain preparation guidelines in order to meet the vegetarians' needs.
Most of the produce is purchased locally as a declaration of support for regional growers.
But just because the produce is local does not mean the people are. Lothlorien houses people from all over the country. Diversity is welcome with differing hometowns, ages, economics and schooling (only about 50 percent of members are currently enrolled in school), yet there are often clashes between residents whose opinions derive from entirely different perspectives. House member Xylon Doulas pointed out that most of the culture clashes have occurred between people of different classes rather than different geographies.
Xo explained, ""I think it's mainly because different classes of people view money and finances in different ways.""
But the multiple perspectives infiltrating the house transcend financial issues.
""Even though we're all speaking English, we're not speaking the same language,"" said Xo ""that can cause issues too, because if you don't understand what someone is saying, it's easy to misinterpret ...We have a lot of conversations defining what things mean.""
Age is another diverse element of the house with both adult and children residents. Many members claimed to enjoy reaping the benefits of a liberal age policy, agreeing people of different generations can learn quite a bit from one another.
""People are very disconnected from different generations. We're all separated,"" Xo said. She explained having older and younger members in the house helps bridge this gap.
Furthermore, Doulas said having young children in the house often positively assists their social development. He pointed out many children enter the house shy and timid and leave the house much more confident and outgoing.
""It always changes them,"" he said, explaining afterwards, they're ""not afraid of strangers.""
Regardless of age, economics, hometown or any other variation, ""Living in a co-op is just what you make it and just what your community makes it,"" said resident Alex Huntrods.
And according to other members, what the Lothlorien community makes is educational in terms of the diverse viewpoints and knowledge each person brings to the house.
""There are all kinds of knowledge being passed around [and] people are learning constantly from each other,"" Doulas said.
Klepper agreed, ""When you live with people, you gain a much greater appreciation for their perspective.""
According to Xo, most members' perspectives derive from at least ""some part of the ideology [consisting of] the values of feminism, environmentalism, egalitarianism and being open to people of different sexual orientations,"" she said. ""We do now and then get people that are interested just because of the low cost, but they hang out with us and don't really want to live with all these people that have all these crazy ideas.""
Crazy? Maybe. But not because of their open-mindedness. More so because amid a city dominated by state government and university bureaucracy, a tiny community has managed to free themselves from all of it within the walls of the co-op they call home.
