University Students

Ready to think clearer, reason better, and express with clarity? Join us for a practical wholesome philosophy practice where we learn essential thinking skills through hands-on group practice. Leave academics and theory at the door— this is a skills-building adventure for everyday life! ✨ This event's focus: **Decision-Making Frameworks** 🎯 a part of the Wholesome Philosophy series — that help you build a complete thinking toolkit. **See below** **Why should you sign up?** ✅ Practical toolkit you can use immediately ✅ Small group practice ✅ Private, quiet venue for focus ✅ Standalone session - Previous parts help, but not required **What is Wholesome Philosophy?** Practical philosophy for everyday life - helping you build useful skills for thinking clearer and communicating better in work, relationships, and daily conversations. You'll learn through pair work, and group practice. spread across **different sessions:** * **Clear Thinking & Better Arguments** — How to reason * **Develop Thinking Habits** — Spotting biases and fallacies * **The Art of Dialogue** — Having productive disagreements * **Constructing Your Position** — Building solid viewpoints * **Decision-Making Frameworks** — Choosing wisely under uncertainty * **Self-Examination & Growth** — Questioning your own beliefs Each session works standalone — attend one, some, or all. ***Want to join all?*** Speak to the facilitator about discounted pricing for the full series ✅ **Who is it for?** * You want to think clearer and communicate better * You feel frustrated when your point doesn't land * You want to spot weak reasoning (including your own) * You enjoy learning through practice, not just theory * You crave thoughtful conversation with curious people * You want practical tools you can use tomorrow No philosophy background needed — just show up ready to practice. **What's in it for you?** * Make your points stick (without fighting) * Think more clearly about any topic even complex ones * Have disagreements that don't turn into arguments * Understand the world better * Connect with curious, thoughtful people ✨ * Gain confidence in your reasoning abilities **How does it work?** * Facilitated practice session (2 hours) with structured exercises ⏱ * Small group discussions (4-6 people) * Pair work for hands-on practice * Individual reflection moments * Whole group sharing (optional, not required) Everything is timed and guided — you'll know exactly what to do at each stage **What to expect** Collaborative discovery, without competitive learning. Practicing together, without performing for each other. What happens in the room stays in the room. * **Depth**: Beyond small talk, but it's not therapy — we're developing thinking skills * **Safety**: Wholesome Agreement principles apply — respect, curiosity, no judgment * **Practical**: You'll leave with tools, not just concepts — things you can actually use the next day ️ * **Participation**: These are practice sessions — your active participation creates the learning environment **Ready to upgrade your thinking skills?** Join us for a Wholesome Philosophy practice session and walk away with various thinking tools — it's for anyone who wants to navigate life with a sharper, kinder mind. We really hope to see you there! **About Deeper Connections** We have a mission at Deeper Connections to improve the quality of people's lives through conversation. All our events are centred around the concept of connecting deeply, because we believe we all deserve to be seen, felt and understood for who we really are. To have the 'deeper conversation' approach when relating with others can change our lives and can change the world. **Our Values** * **Respect:** Treat everyone with kindness and consideration. ❤️ * **Open-mindedness:** Be open to different perspectives and ideas. * **Active Participation:** Share your thoughts and engage in meaningful discussions. ️ **Staying in touch** Interested in finding out about all the events sooner than on Meetup or staying in touch beyond the events, you can join our WhatsApp channel and community using [Deeper Connections WhatsApp Channel](https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vb6CBAdIN9ijrEYdv33z) [Deeper Connections WhatsApp Community](https://chat.whatsapp.com/EqGsmF3021RKTwBpGcuR80)

**FREE FOR MEMBERS OR SIGN UP WHEN YOU ARRIVE** Hello music enthusiast, We're excited to invite you to our Songwriting Class held right here in the heart of musical Camden every Saturday at 2 p.m! Whether you're a budding songwriter or just looking to explore your creative side, this class is designed **for people under 30s and all skill levels.** Come be a part of our community!!! No matter your background or experience, all are welcome. Let's turn your musical ideas into real songs! If you want to know more information, text or call Thomas: 07310801741

**All events conditional on 5 RSVPs total minimum** **Current affairs/articles discussion (1hr approx)** \- 3\-4 articles and a set of talking points from the article to structure discussions \- Attendees divide into small groups and choose the theme that interests them or discuss collectively as one group\, depending on numbers At the end of the meetup, we all come together and each share one thought from someone else that they found interesting. \-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\-\- **ATTENDEES MORE THAN WELCOME TO BRING THEIR OWN ARTICLES BUT PRIOR MODERATION IS REQUIRED** **Political compass:** https://www.politicalcompass.org/test/en?page=1 Familiarize with this quiz on a series of economic, social and moral positions, some of these will be used to spark group debate

Salut à tous ! Le *Propos sur la nature* d’Alain, 272 pages, est un recueil d’essais brefs dans lesquels Alain observe la nature comme un lieu d’exercice de la pensée plutôt que comme un simple décor. À partir de phénomènes ordinaires — le vent, la pluie, les saisons, les paysages — il développe une philosophie du regard, attentive, lucide et volontairement débarrassée de lyrisme facile. Écrits dans une langue claire et précise, ces *Propos* invitent le lecteur à résister aux illusions, à se méfier des sentiments trop spontanés et à reconquérir sa liberté intérieure par l’observation et le jugement. La nature y devient un terrain d’apprentissage moral et intellectuel : elle n’enseigne rien par elle-même, mais oblige l’esprit à penser juste. Où l’acheter : [https://www.librairie-gallimard.com/livre/9782070302789-propos-sur-la-nature-alain/](https://www.librairie-gallimard.com/livre/9782070302789-propos-sur-la-nature-alain/) Bonne lecture ! Intéressé à la lecture en espagnol, en anglais ou à la littérature persane ? : [-](http://-www.meetup.com/gaia-libros)[www.meetup.com/gaia-books](www.meetup.com/gaia-books) [-www.meetup.com/gaia-livres](http://-www.meetup.com/gaia-livres) -[www.meetup.com/persian-culture](www.meetup.com/persian-culture) -Instagram: @persian_culture_

## In this talk, hear how contemporary artists and storytellers, Arsalan Akhavan and Nazli Tabatabai-Khatambakhsh, are reconceptualising the Iranian epic *Shahnameh* for contemporary audiences. *Shahnameh*, or *The Book of King*s, is an epic poem recounting the history of ancient Persia, completed at the start of the 11th century by one of the greatest Persian poets of all time, Ferdowsi. Considered the national epic of Iran and one of the most important Persian texts, *Shahnameh* is made up of more than 50,000 beautifully composed couplets recounting the heroes, quests and mythical creatures central to Persian culture. First, join Hollywood producer and cultural storyteller Arsalan Akhavan on a personal journey of discovering the Persian *Book of Kings* and reimagining its epic stories for a new generation through digital media. Next, multi-award-winning writer, artist and scholar Nazli Tabatabai-Khatambakhsh will talk about her project *The Book of Queens*, a song cycle in collaboration with composer Emily Hazrati about the queens, women and magical creatures found in *The Book of Kings*, and how she has, from Ferdowsi's ink well, re-written the characters and stories of this historical epic poem through a contemporary feminist lens. The talk will conclude with a Q&A with Arsalan and Nazli. Speakers **Arsalan Akhavan** After learning of his family’s unique connection to a masterpiece edition of the *Shahnameh*, Arsalan’s life changed forever. He traded sunny California for rainy Britain to launch Rug Entertainment, a multimedia company dedicated to making Persian stories both accessible and engaging for English-speaking audiences. Arsalan’s roots in entertainment trace back to the 1950s, when his grandfather, Mostafa Akhavan, founded Cinema Moulin Rouge, Iran’s first major film studio bridging Hollywood, Cannes, and Tehran. Arslan’s recent projects include *Healing History*, an immersive art history exhibition; *The Good Iranian*, a one-man show performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe (dir. Sepy Baghaei); *Shahnameh Quest*, a storytelling podcast; and *Billion Dollar Masterpiece*, a documentary short about the *Shahnameh* of Shah Tahmasb. He previously served as Director of Scripted TV Development at Lesli Linka Glatter’s Backyard Pictures with Universal Television and worked in the TV Packaging department at Creative Artists Agency (CAA). Arsalan has also spoken on the *Shahnameh* at Cambridge University and the House of Lords. He holds a BFA in Drama from NYU Tisch School of the Arts. For more information about Arsalan, please visit the [Rug Entertainment website](https://www.rugentertainment.com/about). **Nazli Tabatabai-Khatambakhsh** Nazli Tabatabai-Khatambakhsh BSc. Hons, MLitt, MA, SFHEA is a multi-award-winning international leader and collaborator working across artistic disciplines and contexts in opera, theatre, dance, visual arts, film and performance poetry. Her credits include Royal Ballet and Opera, Welsh National Opera, Birmingham Opera, Britten Pears and Aldeburgh Festival, Oxford Song, Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Atmosphere Festival, Tete a Tete, National Theatre of Scotland, Traverse Theatre, Bush Theatre and City Theater Tehran. At the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, she is Professor of Dramatic Writing on the MA in Opera Making & Writing, and she is the inaugural practice-based Post Graduate Researcher in Libretto. She is the inaugural Associate Artist at the Oxford School of Drama and is an External Examiner for the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. Her work as a coach, mentor and facilitator spans Clore Leadership, IETM and Edinburgh Performing Arts Development. For the International Society of Performing Arts (ISPA), based in New York, of which she is an Arts Council England Grad Fellow, she serves as a member of the Governance Committee. Her ever-evolving portfolio of new work and reinterpretations of existing work is infused by her country of birth, Iran, and is interwoven by the cultures she reconnects with locally across the UK and internationally across continents. For more information about Nazli, you can check out you can check out her [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/nomadicnazli/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/Nazli_Tabatabai) profiles. This is a free event but you need to reserve a spot. Reservation details: [https://www.lauderdalehouse.org.uk/whats-on/shahnameh-reunited](https://www.lauderdalehouse.org.uk/whats-on/shahnameh-reunited) Are you interested in reading fiction and non-fiction in French Spanish, and English? [www.meetup.com/gaia-books](https://www.meetup.com/gaia-books) [-www.meetup.com/gaia-libros](http://-www.meetup.com/gaia-libros) [-www.meetup.com/gaia-livres](http://-www.meetup.com/gaia-livres) -Instagram: @persian_culture_ -Persian Culture Whatsapp group: [https://chat.whatsapp.com/EZk35ZbJZ6W6wwyHyuxoS2](https://chat.whatsapp.com/EZk35ZbJZ6W6wwyHyuxoS2)

Come and join us for a coffee/tea and chat as we discuss what’s hype and what’s real as well as how analytics helps us fight human trafficking. All Food and drink must be paid for as you consume it. A minimum of a drink must be orders can be water soft drink or coffe/tea etc excellent cocktails available.

Want to improve your English? 😊 No matter your level, we’re starting a new conversation group where you can practice, build confidence, and make new friends. Everyone’s welcome—come join us! Every Sunday at 2:30pm - 5min walking from Liverpool Street Station Any questions, contact Voni 07310448654

Do you want to relax and socialize in a quiet bar while playing some video games together? Do you dislike loud and smelly places like pubs? Have you been cooped up by yourself for too long and wants a change of pace? This is the event for you. Get ready to level up your social life at our exclusive Social Night! Join us for a fun-filled evening of friendly competition, great company, and good vibes at XP Tavern. Whether you're a seasoned PC gamer, a console enthusiast, or just love to unwind with some video games, this is the perfect chance to meet new people who share your passion for pixels and high scores. If you don't want to play any games, you can still enjoy the vibe, socialize at the bar and watch the others play. Two console gaming booths will be booked and we can share it together. There are also gaming PCs to enjoy. How many people are attending? The venue has a capacity limit of 50 guests, and due to the popularity of our events and the unique ambiance of the location, we anticipate this event will reach full capacity quickly. On the day of the event, you will experience a relaxing atmosphere with a hospitable and encouraging community. If you want to socialize and get drinks, the event is free. If you want to participate and play the games, you gotta pay £10.

Welcome back ramblers, rovers, loungers and loafers! Once again, it's time to drift. We're picking up where we left off (well, a little west of there) last month to continue our long-term unguided navigation around the whole of London. We'll stay south of the river this time and keep pushing westwards into the heartland of glorious South London, starting from Greenwich and ending up, most likely, somewhere in Lambeth, via Peckham. These are some of the liveliest, most interesting parts of the metropolis so an extended exploration is a long time coming for us! Since this is a *dérive*, I won't say much more than that. Meet out in front of Greenwich station, serviced by the DLR (Docklands Light Railway) as well as Thameslink (which cost the same as the Tube and run from big stations such as Farringdon and King's Cross) and Southwestern rail services. Check planned TfL disruptions here - there are some disruptions to certain routes on the DLR for March 15th, but Greenwich station will be fine and our day should be all clear for most everybody: https://content.tfl.gov.uk/planned-track-closures.pdf A little background on our City Drifting project here: **Now just wait a minute. What the hell is a drift ([dérive](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D%C3%A9rive))?** A drift is any unplanned journey through the urban landscape in which participants practice a form of radical mindfulness, collectively exploring new ways of relating mentally, ideologically and materially to the "ordinary" urban environment we all think we know so well. First theorised publicly by Situationist thinker, artist and provocateur Guy Debord in his 1956 essay *[Theory of the Dérive](https://libcom.org/article/theory-derive-guy-debord)*, drifting is a sort of *critique of ideology* done by walking, looking, and feeling. **The urban environment of London is not a neutral space:** it is packed with surveillance equipment, anti-homeless architecture, consumerist [Gruen transfers,](https://www.smartcapitalmind.com/what-is-the-gruen-transfer.htm) crowd management systems and security perimeters, among a thousand other subtle and not-so-subtle methods of population control. Moreover, our everyday relationship to the city and its pathways is conditioned deeply by our habits of movement and our habitual perceptions: our commute to work, to school, our nips down to the shops, etc. **All these routines create what Marxists call a *reified* relationship with the urban environment: through over-familiarity it becomes something seemingly natural, "just there", ordinary, unchangeable - boring.** This boredom and familiarity kills the radical imagination, without which we're fucked. To be able to start to imagine how society could be transformed, we also need to imagine how spaces, buildings, their use, their whole purpose (and who these serve) could themselves be transformed. A necessary step in this process, according to Debord and the Situationists, is the drift. Like the 19th-century gentleman *[flâneur](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fl%C3%A2neur),* by wandering the city with an attitude of "fresh eyes", we can shake loose our ingrained sense of what London and its streets are like. **As a collective, we will work to "estrange our senses" and see the streets, buildings and people differently, as if we were encountering them for the first time.** That is to say: these aren't just random walks around London - with the right frame of mind, they will be opportunities to turn the world upside down, if only for a moment! But don't take it from me - as Debord observed: *"In a dérive one or more persons during a certain period **drop their relations, their work and leisure activities, and all their other usual motives for movement and action, and let themselves be drawn by the attractions of the terrain and the encounters they find there.** Chance is a less important factor in this activity than one might think: from a dérive point of view cities have [psychogeographical](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychogeography) contours, with constant currents, fixed points and vortexes that strongly discourage entry into or exit from certain zones."* See you on the streets comrades, and remember, as [Raoul Vaneigem](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raoul_Vaneigem) once wrote: *"All space is occupied by the enemy. We are living under a permanent curfew. Not just the cops — the geometry".*

**Join us on a visit to the [Samurai Exhibition at the British Museum](https://www.britishmuseum.org/exhibitions/samurai) in London.** Discover the reality behind a millennium of myth at this exhibition on the legendary Japanese warriors, from the battlefields of medieval Japan to the global pop culture of today. **MEET DETAILS:** **2:30 pm: MEET IN COURT CAFES @ the British Museum** Join us for a coffee in the Court Cafés, which are located on the ground floor of the Museum's Great Court. **3:00 pm \~ ENTER THE EXHIBITION** **4:30 pm \~ Late: PUB SOCIAL** We'll head to Penderel’s Oak pub for a social chit chat over drinks. Address: 283–288 High Holborn, Holborn, Camden, WC1V 7HP **TICKETS:** **Book your ticket** **[here](https://ticketing.britishmuseum.org/samurai/21154)**[ ](https://ticketing.britishmuseum.org/samurai/21154)and select the 3:00 pm time slot (or around that time). Tickets are £25 or 50% off for Art Pass holders. [https://www.artfund.org/national-art-pass](https://www.artfund.org/national-art-pass) **GETTING THERE:** **Address:** British Museum, Great Russell St, London WC1B 3DG **Tube:** The four tube stations closest to the Museum are: * Tottenham Court Road: 5-minute walk * Holborn: 7-minute walk * Russell Square: 7-minute walk * Goodge Street: 8-minute walk **Bus:** The following bus routes pass within walking distance of the Museum. * New Oxford Street: 1, 8, 19, 25, 38, 55, 98, 242 * Tottenham Court Road (northbound) / Gower Street (southbound): 14, 24, 29, 73, 134, 390 * Southampton Row: 59, 68, X68, 91, 168, 188 **EVENT WHATSAPP GROUP:** **If you are on the 'Going' list only,** please join the event WhatsApp group to help you find the group on the day. **The link will be published a few days before the event.** Please let a host know if your WhatsApp name is different from your Meetup name, otherwise we'll assume you're a spammer! **If you are on the waitlist**, please join the WhatsApp group ONLY if/once space frees up and you are moved to the 'going' list. *Joining this WhatsApp group will make your phone number visible to other members in the group.* **GROUP RULES, PLEASE NOTE:** LoMAZ events are run by volunteers. We limit event numbers as we prefer a smaller, friendlier group. **If you can no longer attend, please change your RSVP as soon as possible.** We remove members from the LoMAZ Meetup group who: * RSVP as ‘Going' but then do not show up (without changing their RSVP) three times in a row. * RSVP as ‘Going' but then change their RSVP to 'No' five times in a row. * Turn up at an event without being on the 'Going' list (i.e. members who have not signed up or are on the waitlist). **Thank you for your interest in the group & being part of LoMAZ.** Image credit: Eric Pouhier, CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

**🏛️ WHAT'S PRACTICAL PHILOSOPHY ABOUT?** Practical Philosophy is a weekly meet-up that brings critical thinkers together for an opportunity to dive deep on a topic, practice communicating, and building a community. All with no ‘official’ philosophy knowledge required! 😎 Practical Philosophy is based on the idea that philosophy should be accessible to all, and not something reserved only for academics. Each week we choose a topic, and the goal is to use the conversation to develop our critical thinking and communication as we explore that topic. The goal is to help develop our Critical Thinking, Communication, and Community 🙌 📓 **HOW DOES IT WORK?** Each week, we pick one topic and discuss it. The topic for the week is shared, generally in the [Whatsapp group](https://chat.whatsapp.com/Ja2H9lXYtWX8RdCKHw6qNK), along with jump-off points to get the conversation going. When groups get bigger than 7-8 people, it’s important that we break into smaller groups. This way we are able to maintain a conversational flow as opposed to having our meetups feel like a discourse or lecture. **General Meeting Agenda** Each Practical Philosophy meet-up follows this general timeline: * 13:45-14:00 - People arrive and chat, get to know each other before the ‘official' start. * 14:00-14:05 - Meeting introduction, explanation of Practical Philosophy and the topic for the week, read the guidelines and the overview so attendees know what to expect in terms of timelines. * 14:05-14:45 - Break into small groups - introduce yourselves and general thoughts on the topic, open discussion afterwards. At this point the group can review the ‘jump-off’ questions as needed, but they are just there to help guide the conversation. It’s not obligatory to answer them. * 14:45 - We do a group conclusion of the things we discussed, and then we typically take a photo and go on our way :) If you don't want to be in the group photo, there's no pressure, it's just a way to close out the meeting. You are free to walk around Calthorpe's Community Gardens afterwards. **🧧PRICING?** Practical Philosophy Club is FREE to attend, and we operate on donations. Calthorpe Cabin costs £40 per hour to rent. If you'd like to donate to support the cost of the location, that helps keep our group self-sustaining. Donations are 100% voluntary, but your contribution is appreciated! QR codes to donate and a donation jar will be present. Calthorpe charges £4 per person for tea's and coffees and are paid by the individual should they wish to have them. **💛 WHAT PEOPLE SAY ABOUT PRACTICAL PHILOSOPHY** 🗣 “I feel like Philosophy Club helps someone build their own belief system through a series of perspectives while not promoting what’s right and wrong” - Ekam 🗣 “I got hooked from day 1 (the topic was authority) and felt it was the right place for me. I feel it is a place where people can go to learn and discuss new perspectives and increase critical thinking and community by interacting with people who might challenge your point of views but at the same time encourage you to have openness and mind flexibility.” - Daniel **🤓 FAQ** * ​What will we talk about? What's the topic? ​The topic for the week is shared every Sunday in the Whatsapp group. We try to add the topic to the comment section on this event page as well but if you don’t see it, the topic and the jump-off points will be in our [Whatsapp](https://chat.whatsapp.com/Ja2H9lXYtWX8RdCKHw6qNK). * Do I need to study or read anything to attend? No preparation is necessary. This isn’t a study of other thinkers. We want to know what YOU think about the topic, not what an old philosopher thought. If you have a perspective from a religion or a school of thought to share, throw it on the table and we’ll discuss it, but it's not required. * Is there a specific philosophy that Practical Philosophy is focused on? The goal of our meet-ups is to not have dogmatic discussions, and flex our critical thinking muscles. Because of this, we want to hear from every realm of thought, and don't study a particular school. * Is it mostly men that attend? Surprisingly, no! Although philosophy is seen as a Candelabra affair in a dark room with a bunch of guys, our Practical Philosophy meetups are generally 50/50 between genders, and we don’t meet in any dark rooms. * Can I come alone? Of course you can, we encourage it :) * Can I be late? Please don't be! We do have a 15 minute grace period where we allow people to funnel in while we hang out, but after that if you arrive too late, it disrupts the flow of the conversation. * Where do you meet? The location is posted in Meetup and our [Whatsapp](https://chat.whatsapp.com/Ja2H9lXYtWX8RdCKHw6qNK) group for this location. It is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED that you join the Whatsapp group! If you want to know what other cities have a Practical Philosophy Club, you can see our chapters on our [website](https://www.practicalphilosophy.club/practical-philosophy-locations/). 🤝**POLICY** To respect our members privacy, we ask that no one privately message a member without first getting explicit consent. (This looks like speaking in person and being asked to message privately.) Contacting or texting other participants without prior consent is not permitted and may result in removal from the group. Practical Philosophy reserves the right to enforce this policy at its discretion to maintain a safe and respectful environment. **PRACTICAL PHILOSOPHY - Making Philosophy Available To All.** ✨ Practical Philosophy hosts weekly, in-person meetups in 25+ countries, including Canada, Spain, Japan, Mexico and many more! 🗺️ \*\*\* Join our [Whatsapp group](https://chat.whatsapp.com/Ja2H9lXYtWX8RdCKHw6qNK) 👈 Follow us on [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/practicalphilosophyclub/?hl=en) 👈 Our [website](https://www.practicalphilosophy.club) 👈

**Hello runners and welcome back to LCC's Running Club! For our next weekend outing, we're trying something new with a nice, flat run on London's famous Grand Union Canal towpath, right through the heart of the city. This is a flat one, suitable for beginners and intermediate experience levels. We'll be looking at a roughly 45-60 minute run, covering around 4 kilometres with about half a kilometre of cool-down walking at the end.** Our route will take us from Paddington station, north along the towpath on past Regent's Park and down south again to finish as we approach King's Cross Station. All are welcome - we're running to build community, not break records, so no one will be left behind! I'll be bringing plenty of water along with me, so if you forget yours, fear not. Bathrooms facilities will be available at Paddington and King's Cross stations. Our standard bit of info about our running group and why it's good is provided below: \-\-\-\-\- Humans evolved to run and sprint; no wonder then that when we do it regularly (within moderation and with plenty of rest days), our brains as well as bodies thank us. Running has recently been shown to [improve neuroplasticity,](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6148340/) heal [brain damage](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6148340/) in affected individuals, and foster [better mental health](https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/the-truth-behind-runners-high-and-other-mental-benefits-of-running) including elevated mood at rest and enhanced task-switching ability. Doing all this in nature, as opposed to busy London roads dodging commuters and street cleaners, also helps deliver the well-known [benefits](https://mcpress.mayoclinic.org/mental-health/the-mental-health-benefits-of-nature-spending-time-outdoors-to-refresh-your-mind/) of time spent in nature to mood, anxiety levels, cognition and memory. All these things matter a great deal in an age where burnout and exhaustion are a constant presence either in our own lives or those of the people we care about [who you should totally invite along]. It matters especially for people trying to eke out a percentage of their time and mental capacity for transformative social and political organising: the better we feel, the more we'll be able to do. In a nutshell, running is great for you and you should do it. Trail running is even better. Best of all is doing all this with a supportive group of comrades, especially one which includes knowledgeable folks who can provide some structure to what can be a puzzling sport to get started with if building up to something, like a 10k or half marathon, is your goal. Part of our running group's programming will be building a series of events aimed at building people up, slowly but surely, towards specific goals, using progressive programmes similar to the [NHS's Couch to 5k](https://www.nhs.uk/better-health/get-active/get-running-with-couch-to-5k/) system. \-\-\-\-\- Take care and see you on the trails!

So this month's prompt is more general. I think we can all agree that we are living in "unique" times that require coping skills. I think that one role and/or purpose of philosophy is to help us deal with our daily lives and our "unique" times. So, let's share our feelings and thoughts about which philosopher/philosophy we turn to in order to deal with our crazy events. Who/what helps you stay focused in your daily life and helps you sleep at night. I find that Stoicism with a little philosophical pessimism mixed in goes a long way in helping me deal with what I see as very destructive, fearful and mean spirited public policies at both the state and federal levels. Hope to see you on March 28th!

Free at Bexley Library Adventures in Ecological Horticulture with Rebecca McMackin Wednesday, March 18 1:00pm - 2:30pm Gone are the days when a garden could be ornamental alone. We now recognize the impact that our land care practices have on the ecosystems around us, and can see the importance of encouraging biodiversity. Thankfully, we do not need to sacrifice beauty when we invite butterflies and songbirds into our gardens. Rebecca McMackin has cultivated gorgeous landscapes in the toughest environments possible: urban parks, school playgrounds, and the sidewalks of New York City. She will take lessons from her work at Brooklyn Bridge Park, the Brooklyn Museum, and decades of research to share how those of us who are fortunate enough to care for land, can do it beautifully and ecologically. Rebecca McMackin is an ecologically obsessed horticulturist and garden designer. She writes, lectures, and teaches on ecological landscape management and pollination ecology, as well as designs the rare public garden. She is currently Lead Horticulturist for the American Horticultural Society, an Associate with the Harvard Divinity School’s Thinking with Plants and Fungi Initiative, and Consulting Arboretum Curator for Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx, NY. Rebecca spent a decade as Director of Horticulture of Brooklyn Bridge Park, where she managed 85 acres of diverse parkland organically. Their research into cultivating urban biodiversity and ethical management strategies has influenced thousands of people and entire urban parks systems to adopt similar approaches. She has been published by and featured in the New York Times, Gardens Illustrated, on NPR and PBS. Her garden for the Brooklyn Museum recently won the PPA’s Award of Excellence and her TED Talk has been viewed over a million times. She holds M.Sc. from Columbia University and University of Victoria in landscape design and biology and recently completed the Loeb Fellowship at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. This program is presented in partnership with Rooted in Bexley and generously funded by the Bexley Community Foundation and Bexley Community Author Series Fund.

This 1967 film is widely regarded as one of the best American movies ever made. Now remembered almost as much for its Simon and Garfunkel music as its deadpan comedy and being the role that established Dustin Hoffman as the hottest actor in Hollywood. It became a cultural icon for capturing the spirit of 60s angst of a young man on the make, while garnering a batch of Oscar nominations. After watching the movie on your own, join us to relive (or experience!) those feelings at our discussion.

Come assist Van Buren Shelter (https://ymcacolumbus.org/locations/vanburen) staff in serving dinners and cleaning up on the 3rd Tuesday of each month. Dinner for the women is 5-6 pm and for the families is 6:15-7:15 pm. There is ample free parking available in the shelter's lot. The recommended area to park is in green in the image above. There will be a new entrance for the time being. We are asking all volunteers to enter through the Donation Dock door, the orange mark on the image above. This door is located between the Single Adults and Family Shelter. You will see 2 large garage doors with a large green trash compactor in the center. Please head to the closest garage door to the building wall, with a ramp leading up. There, you will see a door with a sign stating instructions on how to enter the building. Please ring the doorbell, and a staff member will come and escort you into the building. If a staff member takes longer than 5 minutes, please call the front desk at 614-689-2020. This is a new process for us, and we do not want to keep you waiting! We appreciate your patience as we navigate this temporary change. The shelter needs a volunteer count the day before the event so sign-up ends Monday at 4:50 PM. Afterwards some of us go to the Omnipresent Atheists Weekly Meetup in progress to have a bit to eat or drink (http://www.meetup.com/omnipresentatheists/). Volunteers must be 14 or older. Since we will be working around families, the YMCA does not permit volunteering by individuals with convictions for violent or sexual crimes. The YMCA reserves the right to run background checks on volunteers. For questions, comment on this page or contact: Andrew, awhit12@yahoo.com, (614)937-5802 (cell). Please let Andrew know if you volunteer anytime other than our COUNT events so that he can count your hours toward our service record.

Let’s meet and discuss this fun but moving collection of wildly creative short stories. (Photo credit: TimesNowNews.com)

Mental Health, how do you understand it? How can you improve it? How do you get rid of stress, anxiety and uncertainty? These emotions are buried deep in your reactive mind. Find out what the reactive mind is, and in the process find yourself. Have you ever suffered from a traumatic experience, a deep loss or been through a painful breakup? Has your ability to communicate suffered as a result? And after that, even though you "moved on" did you find that things were never quite the same? Have you ever looked at childhood photos, or reminisced your early life and wondered where that happiness and spark went? Are your emotions out of your own control? Have you ever felt, even if you aren’t aware of it, that possibly you are getting in your own way of your happiness and success? How does this affect your self-confidence? Find out what is at the root of all stress, anxiety, depression and self-doubt. Find out how and why you hold yourself back from achieving your goals and having the life you have dreamed of. As soon as you learn what is at the root of these unwanted conditions, you’ll see it is something you can DO something about. You will not be labeled or categorized at this MeetUp. This group is hosted by the Dianetics and Scientology Life Improvement Center of Central Ohio.

We thought of one of the interesting things that can be enjoyed at this time of the year. We will be meeting at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church for a "Fish Fry" in Marian Hall on Friday, March 27th at 5:00 PM. It might be fun for you to experience what has become a tradition on the Fridays before Easter. They will have fried fish or baked fish, French fries and Cole slaw, as well as beverages, all for $16.00 for adults. They will have other beverages and desserts available for sale, as well. We have never tried this, and sometimes there are quite a few people at these events so we hope that we will be able to find each other easily. I'll try to have signs outside Marian Hall that Identify our group. We hope to have you join us!