Children's Book Illustrators

Join Neurospicy Columbus at the Stauff's for coffee and then a stroll through the Book Loft nearby! This will be a friendly chat for like minded individuals with Autism and/or ADHD (or somewhere on the Neurodiverse Spectra).

A quiet writing and sharing space, Queer Quills features some prompts, supplies and friendly faces to help get some inspiration or feedback for your writing. Hope to see you there!

Bienvenue! Columbus French Conversation group invites you to our Saturday morning French conversation club. Expect a casual and welcoming atmosphere in which to learn french! I will bring my laptop so we can look up new vocabulary as needed! The venue is a beautiful French restaurant so you can really get into the zone :)

We'll meet at The Capital One Café, 167 Easton Town Center, Space A-103. This is in the main mall where the Microsoft store used to be, on your left if you're standing at the bottom of the AMC Theater escalator. Join us on Saturday for an hour of uninterrupted wordmaking! • What we'll do Join us for an hour of writing! We’ve discovered that it’s strikingly helpful to write with other writers. See if it’s true for you at 10AM on Saturday mornings. Be it a book, blog, script, essay, dissertation, resume, melody, poem or just plain work stuff, you are invited to write it with us. No one will see what you've written or give you unsolicited advice. Instead of just thinking about writing, come and get some real writing done. SCHEDULE: 10:00 - SESSION 1: quick intros. 10:10 - timer starts: write for 1 hour. 11:10 - chat / take off / keep writing. OPTIONAL SOCIALIZING happens at 11A-11:30ish. Writing is very solitary. Connecting (and sometimes even commiserating) with other writers is a cool thing. BEING LATE IS OKAY: just show up and get settled, then check-in with me after the session. (I’ll be the person with the Shut Up & Write! sign.) If you were on time, please be willing to make room for the friendly latecomer. Happy writing and I look forward to seeing you! • What to bring Whatever you need to be able to write! Bring earbuds/earplugs if you want to block noise or the occasional conversation by other patrons. Electrical outlets are limited, so charge your devices before whenever possible. See you at The Café on Saturday!

Friday Night French Conversation Hour Bonjour tout le monde! (English Below) Je vous propose une soirée, ce vendredi qui vient, à l'hôtel Junto à Columbus. 19hr. 13 Vendredi 2026. C'est très bien située avec de l'espace extérieur et intérieur, un feu, un café (cafe se ferme à 19h; arrivez tot si ca vous interesse), un resto, et un bar. Le parking est payé est juste en face au musée des sciences COSI. Il y'en a aussi dans les rues mais un peu plus loin. Vous n'êtes pas obligé d'acheter quelque chose, car l'ensemble de l'espace c'est vraiment un grand lobby et de l'hôtel, mais c'est cool. J'ai parlé avec le management et ils sont ravis de nous accueillir, mais il n'y a pas de place particulière réservé pour nous. Ce sera à partir de 19h jusqu'à ? Moi, je suis Brandon. J'aimerais que ce soit un évènement mensuel et si l'espace ne vous convient pas, on peut discuter d'autres options. Je vais porter une casquette bleue et blanche qui dit "Québec." Venez nombreux! A tres bientot \-\-\-\- Hello everyone! It’s been a long time since we’ve had a Friday night French meetup. I suggest that we meet at the Junto Hotel in Columbus this coming Friday, 13 February 2026 at 7PM. There’s a great spot with both outdoor and indoor areas, a café (which closes at 7 p.m., come a bit early if that interests you), a restaurant, and a bar. Parking is paid and is located right across from the science museum called COSI. There is additional free and paid street parking around at varying distances. It’s a bit expensive, but you don’t have to buy anything since the area is really just a large hotel lobby. It's nice though. I spoke with management, and they’re happy to welcome us, though there’s no specific space reserved just for us. It’ll start at 7 p.m. and go until whenever. I’d like this to become a monthly event, and if this space doesn’t suit us well, we can discuss other options. Speaking and understanding French well is ideal but there may be learners there as well. I’m Brandon. I’ll be wearing a blue and white cap that says “Québec.” Come find us.

✨ **Wicks & Sips: A Candle-Making Experience** ✨ Join us for an afternoon of creativity, connection, and calm. **Wicks & Sips** offers a beautifully curated candle-making experience designed for every woman who deserves a moment to unwind. 🕯️ **Two Experiences. One Elegant Vibe.** **Creative Experience** Create a custom, single-wick fragrant candle while enjoying light appetizers and cocktail-inspired mocktails in a relaxed, welcoming atmosphere. **Elevated Experience** *(limited availability)* Step into a more refined experience featuring designer-inspired decorative candle vessels, premium colors and fragrances, and guided instruction to bring your candle vision to life. Enjoy curated appetizers, desserts, cocktails, and cosmopolitan-inspired sips—plus a keepsake takeaway bag to remember the moment. [Purchase Tickets](https://www.thepastry-boutique.com/event-details/wicks-and-sips-a-candle-making-event-1)

Private Group. Closed to the Public Knowing ourselves and understanding our abilities is the first step toward wielding our gifts with control and accuracy. In subsequent classes we will verify and hone our talents with activities and discussion. These are hands-on workshops and participation is expected. The goal of our series will be to develop expertise in areas of particular interest such as mediumship, channeling, divination, healing and, etc.. Our ultimate directions will be determined by class members as we evolve. I look forward to sharing and discovering with you. - Cynthia

This month we’ll be reading Long Live Evil by Sarah Rees Brennan

We'll meet at The Capital One Café, 167 Easton Town Center, Space A-103. This is in the main mall where the Microsoft store used to be, on your left if you're standing at the bottom of the AMC Theater escalator. Join us on Sunday for an hour of uninterrupted wordmaking! • What we'll do Join us for an hour of writing! We’ve discovered that it’s strikingly helpful to write with other writers. See if it’s true for you at noon on Sundays. Be it a book, blog, script, essay, dissertation, resume, melody, poem or just plain work stuff, you are invited to write it with us. No one will see what you've written or give you unsolicited advice. Instead of just thinking about writing, come and get some real writing done. SCHEDULE: 12:00 - quick intros. 12:10 - timer starts: write for 1 hour. 1:10 - chat / take off / keep writing. OPTIONAL SOCIALIZING happens at 1-1:30ish. Writing is very solitary. Connecting (and sometimes even commiserating) with other writers is a cool thing. BEING LATE IS OKAY: just show up and get settled, then check-in with me after the session. If you were on time, please be willing to make room for the friendly latecomer. Happy writing and I look forward to seeing you! • What to bring Whatever you need to be able to write! Bring earbuds/earplugs if you want to block noise or the occasional conversation by other patrons. Electrical outlets are limited, so charge your devices before whenever possible. See you at The Café on Sunday!

Our monthly meeting will be Sunday Feb 15th 1-4 PM This will be held at 4049 Garrett W Dr, Columbus, 43214 This is off of Olentangy River Rd, north of Riverside Hospital. This is the home of one of our members. Everyone is welcome - beginner to expert. This is a casual folding session. People will teach a few models.

Sleep in on Sundays. When you've had your fill of pajama-time, roll out and have some tasty brunch with your fellow Humanists!

Dale Gnidovec, Curator of the Orton Hall Museum of Geology at The Ohio State University, will be presenting a program he has wanted to share with us for a long time: Plate Tectonics. His description of his program: Continents on the move - Nothing in Earth history makes sense without moving continents - it tells us why mountains, volcanoes, minerals, and fossils are where they are. This talk examines the evidence for continental drift, why it was disbelieved, and explains how the more-encompassing theory of plate tectonics was developed and eventually proven. Dale is an energetic, incredibly knowledgeable, and very entertaining speaker and this will be another wonderful program by Dale. Hope to see you there! Food and drinks will be provided at the event. Feel free to show up a little bit early to hang out and talk. Going forward our meetings will be hybrid. You can meet us in-person or attend online Join Zoom Meeting [https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87836564953?pwd=4Mi57ElZkDIFlb1fnlNwOJ0NiOK4tP.1](https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87836564953?pwd=4Mi57ElZkDIFlb1fnlNwOJ0NiOK4tP.1) Meeting ID: 878 3656 4953 Passcode: 760812 One tap mobile +19292056099,,87836564953#,,,,\*760812# US (New York) +13017158592,,87836564953#,,,,\*760812# US (Washington DC) The formal presentation will start at noon

Calling all founders, CEOs, lawyers, doctors, and entrepreneurs to join our special *Founder Edition* of Sip & Read meetup event. Let's sip on fine wine and discuss our first book **The 5AM Club- Own Your Morning Elevate Your Life, by Robin Sharma**. We will pair this book with our favorite wine at **Wine on High** and engage in thought-provoking discussions on startup businesses and entrepreneurship, and network with like-minded individuals in a cozy book club setting. Come prepared to discuss this month's book. At the end of each book club meeting, we will take next book and venue suggestions from the participants for the next meeting. Whether you are a book lover, women entrepreneur, or a content creator, this event is perfect for sharing ideas and insights with other funders and founders in the entrepreneurial world. Don't miss out on this unique opportunity to connect, learn, and grow together. Sign up now to reserve your spot! *Fun fact! This meetup was established in 2015 and had over 1,000 members. I had to shut down operations while attending law school, but we're back!!*

**Our February novel is: Julia by Sandra Newman** **This month is a classic, dystopian, fiction, literary fiction, women’s fiction, and science fiction novel. The book is 394 pages in print and 14 hours and 20 minutes on audiobook.** **An imaginative, feminist, and brilliantly relevant-to-today retelling of Orwell’s 1984, from the point of view of Winston Smith’s lover, Julia, by critically acclaimed novelist Sandra Newman.** Julia Worthing is a mechanic, working in the Fiction Department at the Ministry of Truth. It’s 1984, and Britain (now called Airstrip One) has long been absorbed into the larger trans-Atlantic nation of Oceania. Oceania has been at war for as long as anyone can remember, and is ruled by an ultra-totalitarian Party, whose leader is a quasi-mythical figure called Big Brother. In short, everything about this world is as it is in Orwell’s 1984. All her life, Julia has known only Oceania, and, until she meets Winston Smith, she has never imagined anything else. She is an ideal citizen: cheerfully cynical, always ready with a bribe, piously repeating every political slogan while believing in nothing. She routinely breaks the rules, but also collaborates with the regime when necessary. Everyone likes Julia. Then one day she finds herself walking toward Winston Smith in a corridor and impulsively slips him a note, setting in motion the devastating, unforgettable events of the classic story. Julia takes us on a surprising journey through Orwell’s now-iconic dystopia, with twists that reveal unexpected sides not only to Julia, but to other familiar figures in the 1984 universe. This unique perspective lays bare our own world in haunting and provocative ways, just as the original did almost seventy-five years ago.

**I’m planning future book club meetups and would love your input. Please choose your top three from the list below—your picks will help decide what we read next!** **Book Options** *The Hong Kong Widow* – Kristen Loesch *American Spy* – Lauren Wilkinson *God of the Woods* – Liz Moore *Listen for the Lie* – Amy Tintera *The Swallows* – Lisa Lutz *The Drowning Kind* – Jennifer McMahon *The Eights* – Joanna Miller *The Quiet Librarian* – Allen Eskens Thanks so much for sharing your pick! Please **reply in the comments** with your top three. I can’t wait to see which books rise to the top and to discuss them together at our next meetups.

Join us for our February Book Club gathering where we will come together to discuss *A Master of Djinn* by P. Djèlí Clark in a safe and welcoming environment. Make new friends who share your passion for books and connect with fellow LGBTQ book enthusiasts.

The topic for February is "Transitions" Speak Easy: true stories, told live. The idea is simple: an audience, an open microphone, and great stories. Hilarious, gripping, poignant- it's up to you. Audiences are invited to come to listen or come to tell as folks from all corners of Columbus offer their stories live on stage! Held at Wild Goose Creative's warm, intimate space, this night of tales occurs on the 3rd Thursday of every month. Doors open at 6:30 pm, show starts at 7:00 pm. Please arrive early if you want to tell, as we generally only have room for a limited number of tellers, and the sign-up sheet has a tendency to fill up fast. Formed around the idea that people need stories--they're what hold and draw us together--SpeakEasy celebrates the strangeness and commonness of being human. And in a world of smartphones, Facebook, Twitter, and more . . . it gives people a real, breathing, in-person way to connect. The night is geared for true stories of all kinds, taking the best tales told around kitchen tables, in darkened pubs, on the street corner, and at late-night parties and giving them an audience. Speak Easy is also a great outlet for performers, writers, and artists looking to share their favorite stories and perfect their skills. We strongly encourage tellers to please tell the story rather than read it so we keep within the spirit of good storytelling and stay engaged with the audience. All are welcome. Hang around after the show for a drink and build community!