Hey Garden(ers),
We have so many brilliant writers in Garden, and thanks to one of our amazing facilitators, Louis, The Storytellers' Anthology group creates a space for writers to dive deeper into their craft and get intentional feedback. This week, I got to share space with him and learn a bit more about the methodology and framework that came into crafting this purposeful space. Check out the interview with Louis here!
Quick community note: The Assata reading group is being postponed. We will have a new start date for you soon!
⏰ Our events are generally listed in PST/PDT. Need help converting to your time zone? We recommend using World Time Buddy!
🍉 Are you ready for MO MO MO??? Join Double-E every other Friday, starting (next session Feb 6th at 6pm PST), to watch “MO”, the award-winning comedy series about a Palestinian asylum seeker hustling to make ends meet in Houston, Texas. RSVP to attend
📣 New Member Orientation: New to Garden, or simply still have some tech and/or culture questions about the space? Follow J Mase to the Knowledge Nursery on Saturday January 31st at 12pm PST for an Orientation on Garden and the Gather.Town 1.0 platform! RSVP!
🎭 Places, theater nerds! At Do You Hear the Garden Sing? (Musical Theater Night) we'll be watching musical theatre movies, pro-shots (and some bootlegs) every other week. This is a bi-weekly space to nerd-out about musical theater, enjoy some tunes and perhaps even share some hateful takes ;) For our first movie, we'll be watching tick, tick... BOOM! The biographical musical about the mind behind Rent, Jonathan Larson. Come join for the first curtain call on Saturday January 31st at 5pm PST! RSVP
💔 Saturday February 14th at 5pm PST We will be bringing the internationally acclaimed tour Cupid Ain't @#$%!: An Anti-Valentine's Day Poetry Movement to Garden! Part heartbreak, political rants, bitter love poems and YOU, this poetry event will have various featured artists and an open mic portion. Come ready for the haiku slam if you'd like to be dubbed the Anti-Valentine's Day Slam Champion! Day Passes for Non-Garden Members will be available. RSVP
🫁 Want to increase your lung capacity? Come to Breathing in the Knowledge Nursery! Every weekday at 9am PT. RSVP here!
💃🏾 Co-Twerking is on Tuesdays at 3pm PT with Caroline! RSVP to get notified!
📔 Quiet-ish Reading Club / Connect (QRC) 💜💛📚 meets Tuesdays at 6pm PT! 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. Like to be kept up-to-date on QRC meet-ups in Garden? Fill out this interest form. RSVP here
🎥 Name That Movie (Night!) is Wednesday at 5:30pm PT! This week's movie night is the 2025 rendition of a centuries old Sci-Fi book turned movie about a scientist's creation come to life. Think you know what it is? Come thru and find out! RSVP via the visit page.
🪷 Stretch it out as Caroline leads us in a weekly afternoon Yoga sesh Fridays at 3pm PT 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.
🫂 The next session of Chronic Illness and Long Covid Support Group will be Thursday January 29th from 5:30pm-7:30pm PT 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!
🗡️Join us Friday January 30th at 5pm PT for Garden's Among Us Game nights! Join for fun, strategy, and a little bit of betrayal 🗡️ Complete your tasks (yes, even after you are killed!), look around to see who is acting suspicious and see if you can spot the Impostor before it’s too late. Whether you're a seasoned crewmate or a sneaky saboteur, all skill levels are welcome to join! RSVP here!
✍🏽 Are you an aspiring writer? Come join The Storytellers' Anthology returns to every other Saturday, Jan 31st 1pm PT, hosted by Louis. This group is created for writers who want feedback and constructive criticism on their unpublished literary works, especially for those looking to publish their piece, but just need an extra pair of eyes and encouragement. All genres are welcomed and encouraged. RSVP to attend here.
😷 Hang out, chill and play games with Black folks who take COVID precautions at Bonfire in Garden! The next Bonfire will be Saturday February 21st at 5pm PT RSVP here. (Black folks only.)
🍿 Monday, February 2nd at 5pm PT, BJ will be hosting Black Movie Night, a bi-weekly movie (and show) night to highlight movies (and shows) made by, for, and about Black people. The media will generally be entertainment focused, but will also include nights where the intention is education. (Black Folks only.) RSVP! Feb 2nd's movie will be The Wiz 🥿
🏳️⚧️ At our first Trans Meetup, the group was unanimous in deciding that Trans Meetup will be a monthly occurrence. Every fourth Sunday in Garden, at 2pm PT will be a day that Trans folks have made! The next meetup will be 2/22! Join us by RSVP'ing here.
☕ Sunday February 1st at 1pm PT, Garden will be hosting its next Social Hour series. Each Social Hour will feature a 15-30 min rant// talk// presentation// performance from a Garden member on a subject of their choosing as well as time for folks to meet other members in a casual hang out space with games and activities. Want a place to share your random idea, your new poetic works, to present something special, get feedback or even host at a Garden Social Hour? The format is flexible as needed, and can be a space to practice facilitation skills for those wanting a friendly place to try something new. Want to share your topic at the next, or a future Social Hour? Send us your proposals here! RSVP to attend here. February's Social Hour will feature Boba giving Among Us tips for those who love games of deception!
💻 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 Trans Justice Funding Project's 2026 cycle 1 grants are open for proposals! If you have a Trans-led project and/or organization, apply by Feb 15th!
📚 Over the next few months, join Haymarket and the W.E.B. Du Bois Movement School for Abolition & Reconstruction for a hybrid, weekly course focused on selections from Frantz Fanon’s four major English-language publications. Feb 4-Apr 29 5:30PM-7:00 PM EST
💌 As Gata transitions out of her admin role, to honor the work she has put into supporting Garden, please share your notes, your love, your care for her directly here.
🥐 If for whatever reason, you are in the US and find yourself, or someone you care about, to be food insecure, here are three sites to find food banks where you/they are: Food Finder, FindHelp and Feeding America. If these are not resources you personally need, please share with your folks.
🍉 Centering Palestine has a zoom every Tuesday at 5pm PT, 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 PT.
📢 As a follow-up to the Anti-Blackness sessions GenDoc facilitated with us a few months ago, she has graciously provided this Notes on Anti-Blackness write-up which shares some key takeaways about how Anti-Blackness shows up in BIPOC spaces and what non-Black folks can be doing to support dismantling that.
🌻 We are continuing 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
🎉Want to host your birthday, or the birthday of a friend in Garden? Check out our Birthday Guide and email us!
💌 Don't forget, we can design and host non-Garden virtual events too.
Until next our avatars meet,
🪄Al &🪻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!