Volume 1, Issue 47 | Growing Pains

The Land Before Time

                May 6, 2025

            Volume 1, Issue 47 | Growing Pains

            Norton, Livvy, and I have never led a community before. We’ve been in friend groups, but this slowly growing mix of people with different interests and levels of connection has very much been an experiment. Watching this ecosystem unfold has felt like a gift, and we’ve been so grateful to be a part of it. And usually it’s nothing but fun.
But we’ve had a week here at The Company. If you’re a member, we might have shared some. If you’re not, I want you to know how great and kind and loving and supportive and generous these people are. The whole concept behind this place, and the reason for our name, is that it’s a place where we hope to find some company, and we’ve felt so grateful for the company we’ve had alongside us this week.
To quote Livvy paraphrasing me paraphrasing someone I heard on a podcast once: “we prefer the problems of community to the problems of isolation.” It’s been a tough and a good week, and both of those things because of the company.
—Ivan
Happenings
This week:
Survival Scouts Monthly Meeting: Tuesday, May 6
Hosted by Lexi, Survival Scouts is our newest club, where we imagine and prepare for possible futures, together.
It’s a combination of doomsday prepping, off-grid training, and anti-capitalist homesteading. On the docket: food canning, gun safety, basic cybersecurity, rainwater collection, how to pack a go-bag when you have pets, knot-tying, clothes repair, food foraging, self-defense, and more.
By the time I send this out, this will probably have already passed, but I’m feeling optimistic.
Be prepared →
Weekly Wednesday Worknight, Wednesday, May 7
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, or free for Company and Moonlight members.
Work together →
Future Weeks:
Glint: Last, Tuesday, May 13
True, personal stories, told live, without notes. Pretty much exactly like The Moth. except without the competition, on Tuesdays instead of Fridays, and everyone knows each other (or is about to). Our next theme is “Last“, and we’ve got a few storyteller slots left.
Do you have a story of final things? Of things going on? Or enduring, or perishing? Whatever your interpretation, we want to hear it.
Featuring Chris, Ivan, Josh, Gabriela, Mark, Allyson, Brynn, and maybe you?
$10, or free for tellers and members.
Last one to get a ticket suffers trivial misfortune →
Anniversary Party, Thursday, May 15
We’re hosting a very casual, very BYO party to celebrate The Company turning one. It’ll be here, at The Company, at 6:30. If you’re a member, find more details in The Discord. If you’re not, but are interested in coming by for the rare, non-structured event, reply to this email and we’ll send you details when we have them.
—
Also coming up: In The Making (May 22), Mary Ann’s Book Club: Belong (May 26).
Nostalgia
Do you remember getting locked out? That you waited on the porch until a wasp shooed you away?
The Moonlight Report, with our successes and failures and learnings?
Or that tragically staggered lunch? How close we came to being a giant group, but there was so much going on? There was so much going on—you remember that much, right? All of the thinking and feeling and admin work we had to do?
Do you remember that you asked “Do you ever want to not be rude but then you feel like you’re dying?”, and it seemed to describe much more than your recent coughing fits? How we talked about faces and yearbooks and high school?
The walk? Meeting the hat shop owner at the vending machines? That we later wondered if she sold sombreros?
Do you remember worknight? The successful star? How startled Andrew was by the time clock on his way out?
The network troubleshooting session that overlapped with the knife sharpening workshop? How shocked everyone was to see Elijah’s knife cutting through paper?
How we couldn’t stay, but we returned, so grateful to find the two of you still here?
That after so many rounds, you checked the time and said “Oh gosh I’m still here!”
The smaller First Friday Feast, at the start of Livvy’s impossible weeks?
The PowerPoint Party setup? The party itself? The first one with a representative from the Miami chapter of The Fan Club?
That we learned about medical misconceptions and Bad Bunny and steel and emo music and accidents and a really bad grandpa and roller derby?
How we were angry about cheese, and delighted by notes, and melancholic about time? That we left seeking the thrill of what a tree star must taste like?
Bureaucratic Minutiae
We’ve procured and prepped more time card holders.
We’ve removed an underused electric drum set from storage.
Jessica has claimed the empty desk! 🎉
Atniel has helped us troubleshoot some of our WiFi coverage issues and we have a fix scheduled.
At Worknight: Madison wrote a mother’s day card, Ivan completed a task for his mom and communicated about yearbook, Lexi made a decision, Alex read three sections, Andrews migrated away from an old email, Jacob did a daily flashcard review, Allyson de-commissioned her LLC, and Ben L. researched Wordpress.
At PowerPoint Party No. 26: Emily revealed the secret of the U.S. cheese caves, Adam cleared up some medical misconceptions, Melissa shared some heartfelt and very funny notes, Gabriela told us about Puerto Rico through the lens of Bad Bunny, Elijah explained steel, Chris took us through a brief history of emo music, Lauren described an infamous medical event, Nicole complained about Grandpa Joe, Elliot made us feel really sad and grateful, Beth gave an overview of roller derby, Jessica prompted us to wonder at the marvel of being alive at all, and Lee helped us see The Land Before Time in a delicious new light.
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
Beth made so many lovely hand-made signs and Marcia returned one that flew away.
The Moonlight Report for Lunation #1265.
Drewwwwww!!!! Also Ian looks like he’s just opened a box of gold.
Doesn’t Mike look like a cop?
As is tradition, we take photos of people when we’re accidentally matching! Photo by Michelle.
Worknight goal-setting.
Worknight goal-completing. Andrew earning his first star.
We’re averaging well over a hundred visitors in any given month so we’ve bought more time card holders, and here Norton is carefully and importantly removing the logos from them.
Elijah’s Knife Sharpening Workshop very successfully sharpened some very dull knives.
Elijah brought one of his already-sharp knives and people had a lot of fun cutting through paper. If your knives don’t cut through paper, we highly recommend sharpening them.
Afterwards.
Nat (left) is really good friends with Michelle (right), but lives very far away. Through Michelle, though, Nat has become a huge fan of The Company. This past week, Nat flew all the way out here to check things out and come to some of our events.
Here’s Nat again.
Before the show. Jim, for a brief moment, considering event photography, while Livvy preps for the show.
We definitely now know about them and they’re very upsetting.
Adam’s second presentation at The Company! We now know he’s really good at drawing pictures and blood.
“I know it is not right to tell stories so that makes me a storyteller” is definitely the right takeaway here.
The audience this month. Nat is hiding behind the pillar here.
I have listened to Bad Bunny, and I understand Spanish, but I didn’t understand what Bad Bunny was really talking about until this presentation.
Oh yeah and this is what Nat looks like when she isn’t blurry or obscured.
Elijah did a live demonstration of the strength of steel. I was fiddling with a spotlight during the climax of the show so I missed the moment, but I heard the sound of it breaking.
These were such gorgeous slides, and as someone who grew up very out of the loop, this was such a helpful history lesson.
I need to ask Lauren where she found a comic-book version of these events.
As someone who grew up very out of the loop, this was such a helpful history lesson.
Beautiful images and beautiful words.
There is talk about a field trip to see some roller derby sometime soon.
Jessica gave one of the most overviewing of overviews—a helpful perspective reset.
As someone who grew up very out of the loop, this was such a helpful history lesson.
Livvy and I know Evan (left) from back when we lived in Boston. He once invited us to an event called Drink, Talk, Learn, which partially inspired us to eventually start hosting our far-less-inebriating PowerPoint Parties. After we moved out here, Evan introduced us to Greg (stretching) and Lee (previously presenting), who themselves had moved from Boston to Colorado, because they, like us, hosted silly events, like wasTED (think about it). We’ve been friends with them ever since. And now Evan lives here too! If you like PowerPoint Parties, thank Evan the next time you see him.
—
This issue of Paperwork was written by Ivan and shot by Ivan and Michelle. Photo selection and editing by Ivan, Livvy, and Michelle. Editorial support was provided by Livvy, Norton, and Michelle. 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, Madison, Melissa, Elijah, Michelle, Jim, Jacob, Mark, Sabrina, Beth, Dani, Chris, Brynn, Will, Marcia, Rebeca, Sarah, Mary Ann T., Alex, Jessica P., Jessica S., Ashley, Mike, and Ben T..
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.
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