[Whispering] Okay so there’s me, obviously, and you of course already know Livvy—my best friend and wife of almost eleven years. We brought the vegan mashed potatoes and the really garlicky dressing. On her right are Jessica and Alex—we call her Jessica P. to disambiguate her from the other Jessica—Jessica S.—who’s sitting right over there [subtle head tilt]. Jessica P. and Alex came through Norton’s creative coding meetup. Just Alex actually, but he came back and brought Jessica P. (they’re together). They brought the beef barley stew and the baked mac and cheese. Joe and Lauren—Lauren S.—similar disambiguation thing (I’ll point out Lauren T. in a second)—they (also together) came through their friend Emily, who brought them to a PowerPoint Party once, who heard about it from a friend of hers, who heard about it from Justin, I think (you’ll meet Justin someday, maybe). They brought the vegan gravy, the vegan stuffing, the dressing, and the focaccia. Next to them is Jessica S., who knows about us because of Dan [pointing discretely], and I think first showed up to one of Dan’s yoga classes that he hosted here called “Yoga With Dan”. She brought the salad. And that’s Lizzie. We met her with Justin at a Creative Mornings, and she came over that same day to see the space. She brought the pumpkin dessert. Mark—Mark!—Mark we also met through Justin, though we had actually met before (it’s a funny story)—but yeah, he met Justin at some event and then like a month or so later just walked into The Company one afternoon, and Justin didn’t remember him at first. He brought the bet-lehwa (I’m probably mispronouncing that)—it’s the Egyptian version of baklava. It’s better than regular baklava. Okay, and then there’s Dan! Dan likes enthusiasm! We actually know Dan from before The Company—I met him at a conference he was presenting at. He didn’t bring a dish but just because he didn’t know if he could make it until the last minute. The giant next to him is Eric. Eric we know because Norton—who you will for sure meet eventually—he runs The Company with Livvy and me—Norton and I were gym buddies for a while, and for a few months we would overlap with Eric at the gym in our building, though we never said a word to each other, until Eric one day felt pity for us and our completely ineffective training program and took us under his wings. Eric brought fruit. In the pink hair, that’s Beth. We met Beth at the same Creative Mornings where we met Lizzie! She was pitching her coffee cart and looking for a space, and so we talked to her and now she runs Cuppa from here—that’s her coffee cart over there. She brought that cinnamon cream cheesy snack with the apples we were having earlier, and also the cauliflower and pumpkin gratin with the toasted sage. Next to her is Lauren T., who found out about us through Elliot and Sam (who are sitting to her right). She’s in a book club with Sam. Lauren T. brought the jello pretzel salad. And then yeah, Sam and Elliot (together), who were at the same Creative Mornings where we met Lizzie and Beth, but who we actually met way later at an event hosted here by yet another person we met through Justin. They brought the sweet potato casserole, the green bean casserole, and the sourdough dinner rolls. And then there’s Rebeca! She came to The Company on a first date, to a PowerPoint Party, and kept coming back! She made the cranberry sauce, the sweet corn tamales, the sweet potato pumpkin pie, and brought the rosé, the sparkling apple juice, and the non-alcoholic prosecco, and she also organized this entire thing—these are even her own dishes and silverware. And then, lastly, right there on your left, that’s Drew! Besides Dan and Eric, Drew is the only other person at this table that we knew before starting The Company. When people ask how we know each other, he says “mutual enemies.” Drew’s got a special diet, so he brought food for himself. I think he said it’s soup he’s going to be eating. I’m curious to know what precise volume of soup.

And, yeah—that’s everyone! There’s a bunch of other people you’ll meet, if you keep coming back—this just happens to be the assortment of us who didn’t have other plans for Thanksgiving. Oh, and if you come back for a big event we’re usually wearing name tags, so you don’t have to remember all of this.

—Ivan

Happenings

This week:

Weekly Wednesday Worknight, Wednesday, December 3

The Company is about combining creative work with good friendships. Make an appointment with your side project this (or any) Wednesday at a Worknight, where we oscillate between enforced, focused, quiet time and optional chatty social time.

$5, free for Company and Moonlight members

Work together →

PowerPoint Party No. 33, Saturday, December 6

Twelve people giving 7-minute presentations about whatever they’re currently into. At past parties, people have presented about architecture, divorce, utensils, and hyper-local history. It’s a wide mix.

It’s a nerdy and sincere crowd that cares a lot, and we’ve met some of our favorite people at these.

Want to present? We’ve got a waiting list (but your chances are good!). Want to just show up and meet interesting people and learn about what’s fascinating them lately? That’s great too. Bring a friend, or come alone and make a friend.

$10, free for members and presenters

Make a point of coming →

Future Weeks:

Salsa Social, Thursday, December 11

It’s been a year of learning salsa for many of us at The Company, and to celebrate, Mark is throwing a Salsa Social! For those who want it, Mark will be leading a review of the mild and medium salsa moves we’ve learned so far, and for those who don’t, you can just dance the time away.

Put one foot in front of the other →

Offsite: Orbis Holiday Discover Party, Saturday, December 13

Orbis parties, and parties hosted at Orbis, have been reliably great events. Solving murders, celebrating beginnings, cutting and pasting, being honest in disguise—each time in that grandiose setting has felt so cinematic.

Up next, the Fellows are hosting a disco holiday party, and you can be so sure I’m going back there.

Get groovy →

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Also coming up: Glint: Frenzy (December 16), Ishmael Book Club: 10–13 (December 18)

Nostalgia

Do you remember the early morning Wicked for Good outing? How it turned out to be so helpful that we had had The Wizard of Oz watch party the day before?

How we played more basketball that week?

The lunchtime visit of Lizzie? The appreciation of the Lauren T.’s cookies?

How Rebeca came the day before Thanksgiving to start setting up? That, needing space in the fridge, we finally worked on clearing it out? That we all had lunch together, except for Jessica S., until she realized it was a photo-op? That Rebeca transformed the space? How Alex asked us to wonder about how the space transformed us?

That we had a nice visit with the Justice of the Peace?

That Rebeca came to her very first recess, and partook in the tradition of holding court?

Do you remember Worknight, how it was small, but just big enough? How we met Anselm, and thought a lot about the bathroom? That Case casually emailed the CEO of Time Timer to ask about having them make a larger version of their physical product for us?

How the evening ended strangely?

And do you remember Thanksgiving, in our second year? How we prepped, and listened to music, and played card games, and video games, and danced around? That Livvy and Lizzie got mixed up again and again? That Marcia and Gianna came by to greet and console?

How we talked about hugging, and talking about hugging? That we warmed up the food? That we got in a long line, as if we were saying hello or goodbye or congratulations to someone? How we went around and answered the question of what we were proud of? How so much of it was so sweet, and about this place?

How you told us that your therapist doesn’t even ask about your social life anymore?

That we ate and ate and ate some more, and that we watched and cheered as Drew consumed over a liter of soup?

That afterward some of us went for a walk, while some of us did dishes, and that the walk turned into night recess? That Joe and Lizzie and then Livvy held court?

How our numbers dwindled?

That we played the color game? How there were too many greens? How we thought of different things when we heard “manilla”? How, with the meal officially concluded, it became Christmastime, and we started to hear about all that Mariah Carey wanted?

That we called Norton, and sent a video message to Lexi? That we were introduced to Beth’s Thanksgiving movie tradition, and felt so uncomfortable and moved? That we cleaned up quickly and quietly while talking about types and timelines for falling in love?

And do you remember the day after? That we recounted our favorite dishes to Ryan? How we reset the entire room during the daytime, to avoid making noise at night?

Bureaucratic Minutiae

• At Worknight: Jessica S. ate dinner and drafted a script; Case ate dinner, made a plan for miniatures, and worked on a Vimeo download script; Ivan completed drawing 10 light letters; Livvy planned bathroom cleaning; and Anselm (though mostly Claude) made a dive detail.

• New bathroom cleaning supplies have been ordered, a new procedure is impending.

• Livvy and Alex cleaned out the fridge. Food was destroyed. Storage containers have been posted to the Discord, briefly live on the shelf under the microwave, and will be disappeared within a week if unclaimed.

• 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 was shot by Ivan and Lizzie. Photo selection and editing by Ivan and Livvy. Editorial support was provided by Livvy. This issue, and The Company itself, was made possible by the support of our members, Halie, Drew J., Justin, Mason, José, Mary Ann, Trevr, Allyson, Lizzie, Elijah, Michelle, Jim, Jaime, Jacob, Mark, Sabrina, Beth, Dani, Chris, Will, Marcia, Rebeca, Sarah, Alex, Jessica P., Jessica S., Mike, Ben, Sam, Liz, Christof, Ryan, Lauren, and Leah.

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.

😘