Hey Garden(ers),
Did you know that summer solstice marks the official start of astronomical summer and the longest day of the year? This happens when the Earth's poles is tilted toward the sun at its most extreme angle, and due to Earth's tilt, this happens twice a year. In the Northern Hemisphere, the summer solstice falls in June (while the Southern Hemisphere experiences the winter solstice), and in the Southern Hemisphere, it falls in December (while the Northern Hemisphere experiences the winter solstice).
Summer solstice is celebrated by many cultures around the world with numerous traditions, holidays and festivals and we are happy to join in the celebration by sharing virtual spaces with you all!
All protest comes with risk. Check out this risk assessment guide to determine how best you can take action or show up for your friends and loved ones who are taking action. Here is information for folks who are new protesting, and if you see ICE, check out this guide to ensure you are spreading information and not panic.
🫂 The next session of Chronic Illness and Long Covid Support Group will be this Thursday June 19th from 5:30pm-7:30pm PST with Chanelle! Navigating everything that comes with chronic illness can be difficult - from managing symptoms to experiencing grief over missing your pre-illness life. This is a peer support space where we can share our feelings about living with any chronic/long-term illness, including long COVID, during an ongoing pandemic. RSVP here!
☀️ Our 24hr Summer Solstice festival, happening this upcoming weekend June 21st/22nd! Want to invite a BIPOC friend that isn't already a Garden member? The registration for Summer Solstice Day Passes (for Non-Garden Members) is here! Find our schedule and RSVP here! 🪩 Get ready for solstice partying! Caroline is putting together a dance playlist on Spotify. Can you help? You can add a total of 6 tracks: 2 of your favorite summer songs, 2 songs with your intentions or vibes for this summer, 2 of whatever you like!
😷 Hang out, chill and play games with Black folks who take COVID precautions at Bonfire in Garden is every 3rd Saturday! The next Bonfire will be Connecting Across the African Diaspora, led by B.C at Summer Solstice on June 21st at 4:30 pm PST. RSVP here.
🎥 Deanne and Nathan are streaming another Cantonese elder queer film, All Shall Be Well 從今以後. Join them Friday June 27th at 6:30pm PDT/9:30pm EDT/11:30am AEST. Synopsis: Angie and Pat have been together for over four decades but after Pat's unexpected death, Angie finds herself at the mercy of Pat's family as she struggles to retain her dignity and the home that both had shared for over thirty years. Runtime: 93 mins - we will have a break halfway. CW: death
🫁 Want to increase your lung capacity? Come to Breathing in the Knowledge Nursery! Every weekday at 9am PST. RSVP here!
🥣 Grab your favorite cereal for dinner and watch anime & cartoons with us at Monday Night Cereal! Join us every other Monday at 5pm PST. Tonight we're watching Yu-Gi-Oh- the second season. Your move!
📔 Quiet-ish Reading Club / Connect (QRC) 💜💛📚 meets Tuesdays at 6pm PST! QRC - Garden Edition is where we chill together in mostly quiet company of 45 min reading blocks. Bring your own: book, audiobook, article, magazine, comic book, training manuals, graphic novel, paperwork/forms, poetry, etc. anything you’d like to or need to read. Most of the time will be us practicing sustained silent reading (SSR) in cozy, quiet company together. We will take occasional breaks to chat and socialize - mics optional. Learn more about QRC - Garden Edition. Like to be kept up-to-date on QRC meet-ups in Garden? Fill out this interest form. RSVP here
💃🏾 Join Caroline for Co-Twerking on Tuesdays at 3pm PST! We will follow video(s) with a warm-up and cool down sequence, with dancing in between. This is meant to be an aerobic exercise, so bring water and items that will provide you comfort while dancing your butt off! Video suggestions welcome. Duration: ~30 minutes. RSVP here.
🎥 Name That Movie (Night!) is Wednesday at 5:30pm PST! This week's movie is the 2025 installment of a horror movie about family legacies and what it means to cheat death. Think you know what it is? Come thru and find out! RSVP via the visit page.
🪷 Stretch it out as Caroline leads us in another weekly afternoon Yoga sesh Fridays at 3pm PST by streaming a yoga video from YouTube and following along. Videos will be between 25-45 minutes long between easy to moderate pace. Drop ins are always welcome! RSVP via the calendar on the visit page.
🦾 Self Defense Discussion Series with Caroline will be Sundays at 8am PT. Each group includes reading, discussion and (potential) movement on self-defense principles! In these politically challenging times, it is especially important for our collective liberation and self-care to learn self-defense. RSVP via the visit page!
💒 The Queers are back at the Ultimatum, a Netflix dating show centered around couples and their marriage ultimatums. Gather around and grab your popcorn, we will watch the first two episodes of this season on Thursday June 26th at 5pm PST. RSVP here!
🎨 Skyriver will be guiding us into Imagination & Creative Space, an open space and time to work on creative projects, and crafts every other Saturday. The next session is Saturday June 28th at 12pm PST. Finish an old project, start a new skill, follow the offered prompt or do your own thing. Joy is resistance. Imagination is the path to liberation. RSVP here!
✨Need something else to do on a Friday night? Skip the noise and join Deeda for Salon Night Part 2: A cozy, creative evening of makeup play, self-care, and connection. 💄 They’ll be sharing *cute*, COVID-safe, mask-friendly looks and good vibes. 😷✨ Salon Night starts Friday July 4th at 5:30pm PST. RSVP here!
🐣 Are you a parent looking to connect with other parents? Parents Group will be meeting this Sunday July 6th at 11am PST! RSVP here!
🎥 In the spirit of "Nothing about us without us" the For Us By Us film club is an opportunity for Black members of Garden to watch and discuss films made by Black film makers from around the world. Join Skyriver every first Sunday of the month. The next date is July 6th at 2pm PST. From comedy to documentary, horror to romance, indie to mainstream we'll share the many facets of Black storytelling. RSVP here!
❤️🔥For those of you excited to release your rage, or watching the mayhem, we still want more applicants for Mo's Garden’s Roast Wanted: A Night of Roasting! 👺 The roast has been moved to July 6th to give more time for folks to percolate! Wanna roast your homophobic relative? The concept of time? Politicians who keep fucking up your life? A celebrity you have petty beef with? COVID deniers? Pitch a topic that you can complain about for 15 min or less by June 22nd at 11:59pm PST!
🎨 Craft & Yap 🦜 will take place Sunday, July 20 at 11am PST. Come hang out and make stuff! Whether you’re journaling, stitching, collaging, or just vibing, this is a space for creativity and connection. Bring a project or come to get inspired and maybe learn something new. All crafts, all Gardeners welcome! Hosted by Deeda. RSVP!
💻 Do you work from home and sometimes feel a little too isolated from others? Come Co-Work with us in Garden! We are a 24/7 drop in space for folks to join to co-work silently, listen to music, play a game or chat amongst each other in the chat box.
🎥 The open-call program “International Creator Residency Program” aims to invite distinguished and highly motivated creators in the fields of visual art, film, design, and architecture from all over the world and offer them with opportunities to work in Tokyo. They provide financial support to allow creators to develop and present new works and ideas. The result of the residency will be presented at the OPEN STUDIO and/or the Result Presentation at TOKAS Hongo. What you get: Living space (single room), airfare, living expenses (per diem), and fee for creative work/project. Apply by June 25th.
🧑🏾⚖️ The Impact Fund pursues an active and diverse docket of impact civil rights cases. Cases range from employment gender discrimination in promotion to challenging accessibility barriers on behalf of individuals with disabilities. Impact Fund rapid response grants are intended to provide urgent financial assistance of up to $10,000 for sudden out-of-pocket litigation expenses for public interest impact lawsuits related to economic, environmental, racial, and social justice. Apply here.
🌿 Garden Members are invited to participate in Practice Progress's 5th Anniversary UNtensive which is in partnership with ARCOS Dance and Garden. June 20th-22nd! This 3 day virtual gathering is for movers, teachers, artists, organizers and anyone seeking accessible creative community to liberate time. This year’s theme of Making T I M E, is an invitation to refuse urgent reactivity and turn towards the brilliance of ancestors and contemporaries whose resistance work has already mapped the course. Register here!
🌈 Accessible Virtual Pride 2025, a collaboration between Calling Up Justice, One Free Community & MouthWater will be taking place July 4th-6th on Zoom and GatherTown! Volunteer to help make the magic happen, or register as an audience member here!
🪩 Bring your dancing shoes LA folks! Air Orgy LA: A COVID Safer Dance Party is back on Saturday August 23rd at 4:30PM PT. There will be DJ sets, speed friending, Yall Masking? Photobooth and more! Accessibility: Outdoor location, wheelchair accessible, high filtration mask required at all times, pre-testing and trace testing required. RSVP required, please read the policies and procedures document before RSVP-ing. For questions, ask Gata or email airorgyla@gmail.com.
📖 Garden Desk Decorating Contest 🏆: Show off your Creativity & possibly win a $25 prize! All Garden members with desks and build permissions (excluding admins) are allowed to enter this contest. Everyone attending the Summer Solstice on June 21st and June 22nd will be allowed to vote for their favorite desk.
📅 Date: Have your desk decorated by June 20th.
🎯 Theme: Summer 🌻 decorate your desk thinking of what summer represents for you!
🏆 Prizes: The two desks with the most amount of votes by the end of June 22nd will receive a $25 prize!
🎉 Winners will be announced in the newsletter!
Check out our building agreements blog here
🍉 Centering Palestine has a zoom every Tuesday at 5pm PST, along with other resources to show up for Palestine available here.
😷 World Health Network has a weekly call to organize community members against mask bans every Friday at 12pm PST.
🌻 We are looking to open Garden up to more community orgs who would like to share space with us here. If you are part of an org that may benefit from office/event space here, please email info@meetatgarden.com
💌 Don't forget, we can design and host non-Garden virtual events too.
Until next our avatars meet,
🪄Al, 😻Gata & 🪻J Mase
PS: Have a one-time-event or a recurring event and need a place to host? Email us at info@meetatgarden.com!
Garden is a free 24/7 space, but it does cost money for us to maintain it on Gather.Town. If you'd like to donate to this work, consider throwing some money in the pot here. To send donations directly through our 501c3 fiscal sponsor, email us!