Postmodernism

‘*Mandalas have been used as an aid to contemplation and meditation by various cultures all over the world for over five thousand years. The word ‘mandala’ comes from the Sanskrit word for ‘sacred or magic circle’ and represents symbolic drawing inside a circle.’* Georgina Fode Join Art Therapist and Theosophist Nina Mazurek on the first Thursday of each month for an hour of hands-on mandala work - a Melbourne Theosophical tradition first established by Georgina Fode. Within a safely held and respectful space, each attendee will be guided to create an oil crayon mandala at their own pace, in response to a chosen topic and preceded by a ‘remember who you are’ meditation. Each class will be a nurturing opportunity to explore our inner yearnings for wholeness and containment, that may help to propel self-healing and enable further understanding of the self. Drawing ability is not necessary. People with all levels of drawing skills, including those who think they can not draw at all, will benefit and progress through this work, producing mandalas with deep personal meaning; reflections of their inner journeys’ progress. Accept your mandala with love – as a gift from your unconscious. **Nina Mazurek** is an experienced presenter and workshop facilitator who has been offering beautiful creative healing services at the Melbourne Theosophical Society for over 20 years. The MTS is committed to providing events that align with and further The three objects of The Theosophical Society: * To form a nucleus of the universal brotherhood of humanity, without distinction of race, creed, sex, caste or colour. * To encourage the study of comparative religion, philosophy and science. * To investigate unexplained laws of nature and the powers latent in the human being. However this being stated, the MTS does not endorse any health, spiritual, science-related, philosophical or theological /other assertions or claims made by any facilitator we host.art

🌟 **Unlock Your Full Potential with CPA Toastmasters!** 🌟 Are you ready to become a more confident speaker and a stronger leader? CPA Toastmasters is here to help you *grow* both personally and professionally! Whether you're looking to improve your public speaking skills, enhance your leadership abilities, or build self-confidence, Toastmasters provides a supportive and encouraging environment for you to thrive. 🚀 **Why CPA Toastmasters?** * **Improve Public Speaking**: Learn how to communicate clearly and confidently in front of any audience. * **Build Leadership Skills**: Develop the tools and techniques to become a stronger leader in your personal and professional life. * **Friendly, Supportive Community**: Join a group of like-minded individuals who are all working toward their personal growth and success. * **Real-Time Feedback**: Get constructive feedback in every meeting to help you continually improve. * **CPD Hours**: As our member, you are eligible to claim CPD hours under CPA for attending our meetings! 📈 **What to Expect at a Toastmasters Meeting:** * **Prepared Speeches**: Deliver speeches on topics you’re passionate about (Members only) * **Impromptu Speaking**: Practice thinking on your feet with quick, fun exercises. * **Constructive Feedback**: Receive valuable tips to help you improve, delivered in a positive, encouraging way. * **Leadership Roles**: Take turns leading the meeting, which helps you refine your organizational and leadership abilities. Come visit us in our next meeting and learn how our club can support your public speaking journey!

Presented By Wendy Dixon of the Sydney Blavatsky Lodge **ONLINE COURSE:** Introduction to Theosophy runs yearly for 10 months from 5th February to 19th November on the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Thursday of the month. Our core text is Theosophy: An Introductory Study Course, 4th Edition by John Algeo. It can be downloaded for free from the URL: [https://theosophy.world/sites/default/files/studyguides/[theosophyintro.pdf](http://theosophyintro.pdf)](https://theosophy.world/sites/default/files/studyguides/[theosophyintro.pdf](http://theosophyintro.pdf)) Additional material is provided with slides that are shared after each class via Mailchimp emails. The sessions are all run with questions answered throughout. While it is preferable to attend the whole year, participants are welcome to join at any time - everything is run in monthly modules. **PROGRAM** **February:** What is Theosophy - Fundamental Concepts of Theosophy **March:** Ancient Wisdom in the Modern World/Universal Brotherhood - History of TS/Brotherhood and the Path **April:** Human Beings and Our Bodies (Etheric, Astral, Mental, Causal) **May:** Life after Death - Withdrawal from the Bodies and Devachan **June:** Reincarnation **July:** Karma **August:** The Power of Thought/The Question of Evil - Understanding how we continue to create the world around us **September:** The Plan and Purpose of Life Part One - Evolution, 3 waves of Evolution, Individualisation **October:** The Plan and Purpose of Life Part Two - Human Evolution, Seven Rays **November:** The Rise and Fall of Civilisations - Root Races **COURSE LINK** Please click on this link to join: [https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88329727054](https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88329727054) Meeting ID: 883 2972 7054 Passcode: 840346 Admission by Donation: A suggested donation of $5 or more per session assists Blavatsky Lodge to offer online Theosophical courses. Please donate via PayPal here: [https://tinyurl.com/lodgeonlinecourses](https://tinyurl.com/lodgeonlinecourses) or email [info@tssydney.org.au](mailto:info@tssydney.org.au) for other payment options.

**Overcome Your Fear of Public Speaking with Southbank Toastmasters!** Ready to transform nerves into confidence? Join us for a fun, interactive workshop to: ✨ Conquer your fear of speaking 💡 Learn pro tips from experienced mentors 📈 Boost your business and career through powerful communication Whether you're a newbie or a seasoned speaker, this is your chance to grow, connect, and shine! 🌟 Don’t miss out—step up to the mic and join us! 🎤

Hi Radiant Ladies, Looking for a relaxed, feel-good lunch with wonderful women? This one’s for you! 💓 Every month, a lovely little group of us gathers at the Rosstown Hotel in Carnegie for good food, great laughs, and the kind of easy conversation that makes you leave feeling uplifted. The menu has something for everyone — modern Aussie pub fare with gluten-free, vegetarian, and seniors options, so nobody misses out! This is one of our most intimate and friendly events — small enough that you’ll actually get to know everyone at the table. Whether you’re brand new to Radiant Women or a familiar face, you will be warmly welcomed with open arms. 🤗 These monthly lunches are a hidden gem — come and discover why the ladies who come keep coming back! Julie 🌸💓

**Discover Confidence, Communication & Community – Join Aintree Toastmasters Club!** Be part of this opportunity to establish the new club at Aintree as we grow the communication skills and confidence of this thriving community. Are you looking to build confidence, improve your communication skills, and connect with others in your local community? Our club is designed to help people: * Develop strong communication and public speaking skills * Build confidence in everyday conversations and presentations * Grow leadership abilities * Learn in a supportive, friendly environment **Learn how you can help teach communication skills to future generations.** **Be part of something new!** This is your opportunity to become a **charter member** and help shape a club from the very beginning. Come along, have fun, and see how this club can help you grow — one step at a time. For more information, visit our website [aintree.toastmastersclubs.org](https://aintree.toastmastersclubs.org/) **Location** Aintree SES Training Rooms 4A Fields St, Aintree VIC 3336 **Meetings are held on the 1st and 3rd Thursday each month from 7pm.**

​Once a month, we gather to explore ourselves, our relationships, and the stories we carry through psychodrama, sociometry, and group experience. ​ 每个月一次，我们聚在一起，透过心理剧、社会计量，通过团体来探索自己、探索关系。 ​​ Sometimes we explore important relationships—those we are living with now, those we have lost, and those that continue to shape us. Sometimes we begin with a seemingly ordinary moment or a surreal image and discover how deeply it connects to our lives. ​ 有时，我们会谈到复杂的人家关系；那些正在经历的，已经过去的； 有时，我们会谈到选择、改变与成长。 有时，我们会从一个微不足道的瞬间出发，去寻找它与我们生命的相连。 ​​ Whether you are interested in personal growth, understanding yourself more deeply, exploring relationships, or simply meeting people who are willing to engage in genuine conversation, there is a place for you here. ​ 无论你希望探索一些内心更深层的东西，还是单纯想认识一些愿意真诚交流的人，这里都为你留有一个位置。 ​ ​No Performance, No psychology background or psychodrama experience is required. ​ 你不需要表演，不需要有心理学背景，也不需要有心理剧经验。 ​ ​We simply invite you to step out of the busyness of everyday life, spend some time with yourself, connect with others, and see life from a different perspective. ​ ​我们只是邀请你，在忙碌的生活之外，留一点时间给自己，给自己一个从不同角度看待自己，看待生活的机会。 ​ This is a free community event, generously supported by Psychodrama Australia. Registration is a must https://www.chewellbeing.com/melbourne-offline ​ 免费体验 \| 请填写报名表或直接微信报名CHEWELLBEING1\)。谢绝任何Walk\-in https://www.chewellbeing.com/melbourne-offline

There is something uniquely disorienting about Tati's comedy: jokes that arrive without fanfare, gags that unfold in the periphery while you're looking somewhere else, a world governed by its own imperturbable logic. This evening we screen two films that together form the most sustained and affectionate critique of postwar modernisation in cinema — *Les Vacances de M. Hulot* (1953) and *Mon Oncle* (1958). In *Mr. Hulot's Holiday*, the comedy is still porous and warm, rooted in the rhythms of a seaside resort where nothing quite goes to plan and nobody seems to mind. Hulot himself moves through the world like a benign disturbance — a figure of courtly anachronism whose very presence generates chaos. By *Mon Oncle*, the stakes have shifted: Hulot is now set against the sleek, automated world of the Arpel household, a monument to the convenience of a life thoroughly organised. The film's geometry is almost architectural in its precision — the old neighbourhood and the new suburb held in quiet but devastating contrast. What do Tati's long takes, his carefully engineered soundscapes, and his refusal to centre the joke actually ask of us as spectators? How does he make modernisation legible as comedy without ever quite letting us feel superior to it? Come ready to discuss the films' formal strategies, their relationship to French social transformation, and what it means that Hulot — perpetually bewildered, permanently out of step — is the figure we keep returning to.

**Location:** Brighton Library - Booked Private Meeting Room **Spots:** 8 maximum *This is the first one. Come help us figure out what it becomes.* The Founders Council is a weekly gathering for women in Melbourne's south-east who are building something — a business, a side project, a creative practice, an idea that keeps coming back. It is not just a networking event. It is not a workshop. It is a council — a small room of women who show up weekly (or help out the one-off joiners to the group) to give and receive honest input from people who are in the same season of building but might be doing it alone. You will meet other girls who are building something too, let's help each other out with whatever each of us is working on. Share your inputs and ideas. Because I believe we have so many skills and pieces of knowledge that can help the person next to you. This can be your accountability group come when you can, touch base and keep yourself accountable with what you planned to build. **Session 01 will run like this:** We will start with a quick round of names and what everyone is working on — thirty seconds each. Then the council opens. Anyone who wants to bring something gets fifteen minutes — a problem, a decision, a pitch to test, something they need honest eyes on. (You can also treat this as your accountability group where in your 15 minutes you can share what your plan is for this week. Then come again next week to check in and plan the next week) The group responds. Not with prescriptive advice. With real honest reactions from people who get it. We close with each person naming one thing they are doing before next week. That is it. That is the accountability. Then the last thirty minutes are open — coffee, conversation, the kind of talk that only happens when the room is right. **You do not have to share anything.** Come and contribute to the group. Listen. Give your perspective on someone else's problem. That seat is just as valuable as any other. **Who belongs here:** Women aged roughly 20 to 40 in Melbourne's south-east who are actively building something. Early stage, side hustle, just an idea — all welcome. The only thing that connects everyone in the room is that you are building and you want to be around others who are doing the same. **What to bring:** Yourself. Coffee. Optionally — one thing you are working on or stuck on that you would like the group's eyes on. **Spots are limited to 8.** Small by design. The council only works when the room is small enough for everyone to have the time to share and get the response. *This is a weekly event. Come once or come every week — no commitment required. The door is always open.* Started by Veronika — Bayside local, building an app for couples, and someone who started this group because she needed it and could not find it.

**Atheists' Pub Evening.** Please join with us at the pub for drinks, informal conversation and fun. If you can't make it by 6pm, don't worry - we'll be there for a good 3 hours or more (sometimes to midnight), so turn up whenever you can make it. Children are welcome. From 6:00 pm on the first Friday of every month. For information contact: Andrew - 0438 043 050 or John - 0411 143 744

**To Be Announced** But it will be a good one! **VIDEO** Coming soon ... **Discussion Outline** Stay tuned ...

This is July meeting, not June. We read Lech Blaine’s memoir, Australian Gospel, the true story of his stoic parents who were stalked by the mentally ill biological parents of Lech’s foster siblings.

Welcome! **HOW TO FIND US** When you enter 234 Collins, go down the escalator to the basement where Dymocks is (you can't miss it, there's books and people everywhere. You'll see the cafe next to the cashier. Once inside the cafe, you'll see the stairs (see pic). Come up the stairs and join us. Feel free to pick any available table. **ITINERARY** 11am: Meet at Dymocks Cafe (upper level) inside Dymocks Bookstore, 234 Collins St. Choose your seat. Order a drink to support the cafe. (They have a range of sweet and savoury snacks.) Enjoy your book. 12.15pm: Let's chat about what we read, what we loved, and why. 1pm: End of event. [OPTIONAL EXTRA] For those who are not too tired, we can go for lunch together after the event. **COST:** There is an organizer fee of $5 for this event. You can bring cash on the day or PayID me at 0403 413 056 (Serena Low). **GETTING THERE:** The closest train stations are Town Hall (4 min) and Flinders St (6 min).

Be prepared for an entirely different type of sci-fi movie! Unofficially, the second movie in director Lars von Trier's "Depression Trilogy," 2011 Melancholia depicts the events that occur before a rogue planet is about to collide with the earth. Considered by many to be a masterpiece, the film was included in BFI's 2022 Sight and Sound Poll of the greatest movies of all time. It is available at the library as well as on Kanopy.

Columbus Code & Coffee is an inclusive, informal co-working session. People of all skill levels attend, and we love it that way. Many people (optionally) bring projects to work on, and many other people (optionally) socialize the entire time. It's entirely up to you! **What to Expect at the Intro Circle** \~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~\~ Near the beginning of the event (1:30 pm), we do a standup: * Organizer announcements, updates, and logistics Round 1 - (7 secs max): * Your name * What you're working on * What you can help others with Round 2: * Community events you wanna plug. If none, that's cool too. Round 3: * Job opportunities you're hiring for OR announce that you are looking for one. If none, that's cool. After the introduction circle, everything is self-organized! Feel free to work alone, pair up, attend one of our workshops/presentations, or mingle!

Let’s meet and discuss John Updike's Rabbit, Run, the first in his series of four novels following the life, hopes, and disappointments of former local basketball star, Harry "Rabbit" Angstrom, as he fitfully confronts and evades adulthood.

Dear Illinois Prairie PUG members, Thank you to everyone who attended PG DATA 2026! The conference is over, but our meetups are back, and more Postgres content is coming! Those of you who attended our May meetup are already familiar with our new (hopefully permanent) location. For others, please note that we will meet at **Chicago Innovations, 1 W. Monroe**. This time, we are trying a two-talk format. \- Zach Paden will present the talk **Declarative schema management with pgschema.** \- Anna Bailliekove will present the talk **PostGIS Quick Start** More details on talks and speakers coming soon! *Agenda* 5:20 - doors open 5:30 - pizza arrives 6:00 - 6:10 - Hettie D. Opening remarks 6:10- 6:40 - Zach. Declarative schema management with pgschema. 6:45 - 7:10 Anna: PostGIS Quick Start 7:10 - 7:50 - Open discussion and networking 7:50 - 8:00 - Cleanup time and closing **Speaker**: Zach Paden Zach Paden is a tech lead at Symetra with experience ranging from scrappy startups, consulting, to large regulated enterprises. His work spans data platform, analytics and application development where he’s seen more than his fair share of projects get bogged down or catch on fire due to their schema management practices. **Talk Title:** *Declarative schema management with pgschema* **Talk description** Lots of app devs struggle to understand the concept of versioning database migrations, and managing the history of these migrations can become difficult even with existing tools. Using pgschema you can write pure-sql decoratively and let pgschema derive a series of valid online migrations. **Speaker:** Anna Bailliekova Anna Bailliekova has been moving data around professionally for 15 years. Currently a staff engineer XeoMatrix, she focuses on helping organizations mature their data engineering practice, optimization problems, and geospatial data applications. **Talk title:** PostGIS Quick Start **Talk description** PostgreSQL provides rich support for geospatial computing; using transportation examples, we will take a brief tour of these features for those who want to but have been scared to try. *Notes about our new venue*. I am delighted to have an independent venue for the first time since I am hosting the meetups. I hope that this will be our permanent home. And as you all know, with more freedom comes more responsibilities. \- You will notice the change in the RSVP form\. \- We are thankful to our hosts and promise to be responsible\. \- We comply with the [PostgreSQL Code of Conduct](https://www.postgresql.org/about/policies/coc/). \- We do not want to waste food\, so please indicate your dietary preferences\. \- We will not close RSVPs on the morning of the meetup\, but please do your best to RSVP in advance so we can order the appropriate amount of food and drinks\. \- We want to start offering **on-site daycare**. If you indicate on your RSVP that you are planning to use daycare, we will contact you closer to the event with more information. This meetup will be hybrid - please don't forget to indicate whether you are attending in-person or virtually. Thank you, and I look forward to seeing you all at our new location! Hettie Dombrovskaya Illinois Prarier PUG Organizer

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!