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- The Joy List: April 21
The Joy List: April 21
Hi everyone,
Our New Yorker of the Week today is Johan. He’s 37, lives in NJ, and is interested in friendship and love. If you want to reach out, email [email protected].
Want to be featured next? You do. Just fill out this form.
Now, onto the fun stuff:
How would someone who loves you describe you?
Someone who loves me would describe me as gentle with a passion for community building and advocacy. They'd highlight my family values, minimalist lifestyle, my love for music and swing dancing, and my cautiously optimistic Mets fandom (we are going all the way!).
What sorts of things do you want to do with your friends?
I love exploring places by foot or bike which is best for discovering hidden gems. Music connects us through indie style concerts, jamming together, or hitting the dance floor to lindy hop. I also like slowing things down and sitting with a board game, videogame or puzzle while having the baseball game playing in the background. I value creating memories with friends who share my enthusiasm for both fun and purpose.
What's something that people might not guess about you?
I secretly dream of having a cat and dog in my home, so they become best friends, and I can dress them up in Mets gear (I’ve had each throughout my life but never together :0] )
Are you looking for love? Tell me about the type of person you're looking for!
He/him pronouns, straight orientation.
Yes! I'm seeking a partner who balances passion for community good with playfulness and wonder. I'm drawn to someone who cares about our planet, gets excited about their work or interests, and enjoys quality time together—from bike rides to cozy hibernation during cold months contemplating the cosmos. They'd value physical affection, be curious about trying new things, and appreciate both planned traditions and spontaneous adventures.
Anything else The Joy List community can help you with?
My nonprofit I helped co-found is currently hiring a part-time Executive Director – learn more at https://hudcostreets.org/careers. If you're involved with advocacy, fundraising, urban planning, sustainable transportation, or community building initiatives, I encourage you to apply! Also always looking for new swing dancing partners!
Have fun on your company’s dime
My new writing program, Make LinkedIn Weird, is something that you can use your learning and development stipend for!
Check out the one-pager for your company here, and the website here. I’d love to have you be part of it!
(And if you work for yourself, you’re welcome, too. Write it off on your taxes!)
Gatherings
Double check details before you go, and contact the organizers with questions! The Joy List does not run these events.
Tuesday, April 22: Psychedelic Art & Writing Workshop
Join us on Tuesday, April 22nd, for a night of creativity and community. Writer Julia Edelman will take you through guided meditation and journaling prompts to help you reflect and explore. Express yourself fully with these psychedelic-inspired prompts. After an hour of writing, participants will be able to create paintings based on what they've written and watch their words transform into pieces of art.
$48.47+ 7-9 PM + 222 E 46th St. Info here.
Tuesday, April 22: Centering Identity In Community Building + Seeking
Throughout this thoughtfully designed experience, we'll collectively explore the nuances of creating spaces that are simultaneously expansive and protective, welcoming and affirming. From the language we choose to the experiences we craft, every element presents an opportunity to deepen connection.
We're building more than just gatherings; we're cultivating vibrant communities where shared identities—whether you're queer, Black, a woman, disabled, an immigrant, or hold any meaningful facet of self—become the foundation for profound belonging. These are spaces where we feel truly seen, understood, and heard.
Free. 10 AM to 12 PM. Fabrik. Info here.
Wednesday, April 23: The Playdate: An (updated) Symposium on Love
After being ranked the worst city in the world for dating—NYC, we need to talk. What is happening!? Can we blame the cost of living and the nonstop hustle? Yes. AND - there’s got to be more to the equation. What is it about big-city life that sucks the fun out of dating? What self-fulfilling prophecies are we bringing to the table, and how do we reframe our experience of love and romance to bring some joy back into the field?
Join Think Olio, depth psychologist Dené Logan and relationship coach Jeremie Lotemo for a night of reflection, learning, and playful experimentation. Drawing from Jungian psychology, relational archetypes, and the experiences in the room, we’ll look at the deeper patterns shaping our dating lives, the unconscious scripts we might be following, and hopefully some realizations to help us break free. Whether you’re feeling stuck, skeptical, or just curious, this is a space to rethink the way we connect—less pressure, more possibility, and (finally) some actual fun.
$40. 7:15 to 9:30 PM. Lightning Society. Info here.
Wednesday, April 23: Pitched Through Friends
Everyone says they want to meet someone "through friends," and we help make it happen. Join us to see 6 singles get pitched to a live audience by real friends who want to help them find love. In an era when dating feels isolated and unaccountable, endorsements from friends give us hope. This show is a celebration of love and friendship in all of their forms, inspired by Tinder Disrupt!
$34.74. 7-9 PM. 21 A Clinton St. Info here.
Friday, April 25: The Art of Desire - A Gathering for Women Hosted by Alana Varel and Stephanie Redlener
Join us for an intimate women’s circle dedicated to exploring the power of desire. In this sacred space, we’ll reconnect with our deepest longings—both in body and soul—through guided reflection, embodied practices, and open-hearted sharing. Together, we’ll unravel the layers that hold us back, learning to embrace desire as a source of vitality, creativity, and authentic expression. Come as you are, leave feeling more alive, connected, and empowered to follow what sets your heart on fire.
$50. 7:45-9:15 PM. 12 West 27th Street, 2nd Floor. Info here.
Saturday, April 26: Deep Fun
Deep Fun is a highly-physical facilitated communal play (no, not sex) session, drawing loosely on my years of experience as an actor, performer, and educator and with my work at Bond Street Theatre, an NGO that initiates theater projects for peace-building in global post-conflict zones. For two hours, we will actively "research" the feeling of physical pleasure, wild abandon, playfulness, and collective effervescence as its own end through a series of four categories of play/game: Collective Play, Collective Competition, Duo Play, and Individual Play (we may not get to all of these categories, and that’s okay!).
"Playing" comes in the form of collective exercises, frivolous activities, cooperative games, on-your-feet group problem solving, singing simple songs with great gusto (maybe), and much running (and perhaps rolling) around. It's a fast-paced, high energy, game-packed play session intended to invite vulnerability and connection through a heightened state of presence, not only living the quote "You can learn more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation”, but also serving as a chance for exuberant self-exploration.
$20-$40, 6:30pm-8:30pm, The A.R.T. in Fort Greene, 138 S Oxford St, in the upstairs Great Room. Info here.
Saturday, April 26: Mend in Public Picnic with Slow-Poke Collective
Spread out on blankets, enjoy light snacks and refreshments, and stitch in community as we envision a more intentional world. Join us for Mend in Public day, an annual global initiative by Fashion Revolution that challenges the culture of disposable fashion through hands-on care and creativity. The Slow-Poke Collective is hosting a mending picnic — come with a work-in-progress or start something new. Materials, guidance, and good vibes will be provided.
$15. 2-5pm. Prospect Park, exact location TBD. Info here.