vol. 2, no. 14 | Loaners
Sometime Friday afternoon, between taking a photo of Jim and arriving at our house, my camera—the Sony with which most of the Paperwork photos have been taken—stopped recognizing batteries. The SD card was fine, so this week’s issue has the expected photos, but I puzzled for a bit about the possibility of a quick fix, and then puzzled for another bit about what to do if the fix was not quick.
I envisioned a future where, for possibly weeks, Paperwork was a text-only operation. No photos to take, no photos to select, no photos to edit, no photos to caption, no photos to upload, and then upload again, and then upload again. The total time to file Paperwork would drop dramatically.
We would lose proof that you rode an electric scooter around, that you played with a sticky hand, that you were overjoyed to see your childhood CD player receive a glowing a review from the most qualified expert, that you sat in a long line of friends at a lecture, that you told stories, or covered your face as a story was told about you, that you set up the room, ate lunch, improved the space, and laughed about data entry.
But also. The total time to file Paperwork would drop dramatically.
My camera is currently on a multi-day journey to a repair facility in Connecticut, where it likely will take weeks to be processed and fixed. And by this morning, I had three people offer to lend me their own, similar Sonys during the absence of my own.
So the work and the pleasure of memory goes on.
—Ivan
Happenings
This week:
Cancelled: Weekly Wednesday Worknight, Wednesday, August 20
We’re doing a very rare Worknight cancellation on account of some internal company matters. Definitely don’t pop in this this Wednesday! We’ll be back to our regularly scheduled infinitely recurring schedule next week.
Offsite: Make & Tell, Thursday, August 21
Make & Tell is a seasonal event series hosted by The Made Shop, and it’s the event that inspired our In the Making series. We’ve paused In the Making for the summer because Make & Tell is back! And we so heartily encourage you to go. It is where we first met Justin (who convinced us to start The Company), and where, a summer later, we met Michelle (who convinced us The Company was worth it). There are also quite a few people that we didn’t meet, but who heard about us there, and who we’ve since had the pleasure to meet (including our new friend Liz!).
$23.18
Offsite: Orbis Garden Party, Saturday, August 23
Our dear friend and Company member Mark leads a nonprofit called Orbis that provides co-living, personal growth, and community engagement opportunities for young leaders. To help welcome their newest fellows, and to introduce the larger community to Orbis, they’re hosting a garden party, where you’ll have the chance to meet the new fellows and check out the lovely Orbis mansion. Some of us got to see it a few weeks back and it’s such a cool space. Join us and show your support!
$12.51–$44.52 (pay what you can)
Next week:
Mary Ann’s Book Club: Station Eleven, Monday, August 25
This month we’ll be reading Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel. Described as “a gripping post-apocalyptic novel that weaves together survival, art, and human resilience in the wake of a devastating pandemic. You'll be drawn to its beautifully written, nonlinear narrative that explores the power of storytelling, connection, and hope even in the darkest times. (Also a limited series on HBO!)”
I personally loved the limited series, and I’m very excited to have finally started reading the book. I think it’s a very refreshing counter to more prevalent visions of the post-apocalypse.
Alex finished it in a week, and about it said:
“Favorite fiction I've read in memory. Fastest possibly I've ever read a book. Wow.”
You’ve got about a week left, so good thing it’s a fast read.
Snacks and drinks will be provided to fuel our conversation.
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Also coming up: PowerPoint Party No. 30 (September 6), Mild Salsa Class (September 7), Cuppa Clothing Swap (September 14).
Nostalgia
Do you remember the Punch Brunch? How unexpectedly raucous it was? How we live-filed bugs (real and invented) and feature requests? How around us Sabrina tidied and cleaned and ran a side mission while we entered data and disambiguated? How we puzzled over the names of people somehow none of us had yet met?
Or the oddly full Monday morning? The repair of the trapdoor? How Norton stood on it and said “Myself, I feel very safe.”?
Or do you remember that Glint on the theme of ‘Right’? All the stories about schooldays and jobs and friends? That we were so euphoric afterward? How once again we lingered for a long time?
We talked about future presentations, about pirates, about spontaneity and whale purses, and plans to meet up, but what did you talk about in your own clusters?
Do you remember the Wednesday of the last Mixed Taste? Or the Worknight with Amber and Mika? How that was night we started to call her Case? And her live tech review of Michelle’s new old CD player—how specific and lucky of a moment it seemed?
Or the Thursday lunch with Sophia and Dan joining? How it was far too hot for recess, so we did recess inside, with the aid of a sticky hand?
The quiet Friday lunch? How we remembered the pandemic, and wondered about how things would play out for us today if there were to be a Georgia flu?
The hanging of the sign? The failure of the camera?
Or the long-awaited Japanese tea ceremony? The washing of the hands and the ladle, the kimono pockets, the saying that would have you See also YOLO? Do you remember that we wandered the gardens after? How that day we kept running into each other and stopping to chat? How that month we kept running into each other and stopping to chat? How that year we kept running into each other and stopping to chat?
Bureaucratic Minutiae
At the inaugural Punch Brunch...
Jessica P., Alex, Livvy, Jessica S., and Norton entered over 1,000 punches across over 85 cards!
Ivan, through handwriting analysis and cross-referencing of other records, disambiguated several people. (Editor’s note: the nerve of some of you, with super common names not adding even the slightest hint of a last name initial!)
Several bugs were filed, then fixed. Norton maintains that Daylight Saving Time should be abolished.
Ergonomic and disambiguation features were requested and later deployed.
Sabrina installed a new toilet seat for us! You have her to thank when, the next time you take a seat, you encounter a pristinely smooth surface, and, when you are done, the lid closes gently.
Jim has made the trap door unscary! Norton is absolutely unconcerned about his personal safety now.
Jim has also (securely) hung a metal sign above the doorways to the bathroom. Thanks Jim (and dad) for the gift!
At Glint, Marcia told a story about exemplary conduct, Beth described comedians in cars giving compliments (credit to Will for that description), Fer reflected on the right way to support a friend, Joe explored the story of becoming a writer, Livvy described a spiritual standoff, Jessica P. wondered what became of that kid, Allyson pondered Trevr’s poor choices, Madeleine relived a fever dream, and Ivan talked about wanting to right a wrong.
At Worknight: Alex jogged 2 miles and did 3 Spanish lessons; Allyson worked on a communication plan; Mike worked on a plan that included examples, methods, and a shot list; Norton worked on Puncho-o-tron updates; Amber signed up for a vendor system, sent a scary email, and filed a tax form support ticket; Mika filled 10 sketchbook pages; and Livvy worked on styling the Time Sync admin view.
Finally, a reminder that The Company is a member-supported gathering place, and if you know any of us, you’re welcome to pop in any time for free (outside of events). If you know that one of us is here and you’d like to come by, reach out and we can let you in.
Photos
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This issue of Paperwork was written by Ivan, and shot by Ivan, Beth, Norton, and Dan. Photo selection and editing by Ivan and Livvy. Editorial support was provided by Livvy and Norton. This issue, and The Company itself, was made possible by the support of our members, Halie, Drew, Justin, Mason, Lexi, José, Mary Ann B., Trevr, Allyson, Lizzie, Melissa, Elijah, Michelle, Jim, Jaime, Jacob, Mark, Sabrina, Beth, Dani, Chris, Will, Rebeca, Sarah, Mary Ann T., Alex, Jessica P., Jessica S., Mike, Ben, and Sam.
Do you know anyone in the Denver area who might be looking for creative community? Feel free to forward this email along to them. Everyone loves Paperwork.
😘