After 3 to 4 hours of hard work Divya and I break for lunch. We are joined by David, Liza, Shelby and Chris, some of our friends from the DukeEngage program. Our conversations quickly carry us through the time we’ve allotted ourselves for our break. The time after our break is generally devoted to a meeting between Divya, Collin (The other excellent intern), and myself. It is here were we discuss our project and work towards solutions for the difficulties that we’ve been experiencing. These meetings will take us to the end of the day when we get to bike home.

Despite the route being the same in morning and evening, I always feel that the ride back takes much more time. I think that this is because Divya and I always engage in some very thought-provoking discussion on the way home, which causes me to slow down in order to better contemplate our conversations. I believe I have a better understanding of both the world around me and myself after these afternoon bike rides, which is something that I am very grateful for. But, alas, we arrive at University Tower and our conversation must wait to be continued the following day.

It generally takes me a half of an hour or so for me to get the energy to get up and go out and do something after I get home from work. I relax with an episode on Netflix before I head to the gym. The gym is a good opportunity for me to clear my head; either through lifting weights or playing squash I can exhaust myself enough so that I can concentrate on whatever I do for the rest of the night without being too jittery.

Once I, again, arrive at the Golden Toaster (University Towers), I sit down and think on the plethora of options before me that I can use to occupy my time before I go to bed. Tonight the group has settled on a game of Settlers of Catan. Now I could probably go on to write a whole blog about this game; this challenging, addicting, torturous game. But I’m going to stop myself short and just say that it is a lot of fun and an excellent way to build a healthy group dynamic. A large part of the game is resource management so the most skilled players are the ones who make the most out of the cards they’ve been given. Resource distribution will come up in conversations about Detroit as well so I think of the city whenever I am playing Catan. After we’ve finished, I begin to start winding down for the night. I will read for a half an hour or so before moving on to write about what I’ve done during the day.

It was my father who suggested the idea of journaling to me before I came to Detroit. Although I was apprehensive, initially, I am certainly glad that I chose to follow his advice. Writing for those couple minutes every night has greatly enhanced my ability to remember my experiences in addition to allowing me to sort through my day and begin to plan for the following one. Journaling has also helped me realize how unique every single day is. There has been no “typical day” for me this summer, every day has been uniquely different; whether the day is spent with my coworkers at DFC, my DukeEngage cohort with whom I hope to remain lifelong friends, or just a day in the very much alive city of Detroit itself. My alarm goes off and I wake up with a sense of excitement at the unexpected. And I prepare to face the unknown in the Motor City. I couldn’t be happier. 

My alarm clock goes off at 7:00 am sharp. It is used more as a safety measure than a necessity, for my biological clock has already adjusted to that of a retired grandma: I am always in bed by 10:30 pm and wake up around 6:30 am. I would fiddle with my phone on my bed for a few minutes, reply to the messages that my friends sent me last night, and then slowly get up and get ready for the day.

 

Breakfast is always cereal, for during a target run, I splurged on two huge boxes of cheerios and realized the following morning that there was no way I am to finish them given the time left. Since my computer is always sitting on the dining table, breakfast time has automatically became my morning news time, so I would just scroll through New York Times while enjoying my cereal. After clearing out the dishes, I would then go on Duke Sakai to check out the weekly assignments for my online summer writing course. It is a class designed to teach social media writing through recording our internship experience. Although the course has been very informative, the course load exceeded my expectation and I can’t help but also attribute to this course for being my incentive to get up early every single morning.

 

The agreed meeting time for me and my co-worker, Bryce, to walk to work has always been 8:45. However, ever since one morning when I waited downstairs for him until 9:05 only to realize that he was still in bed, I have hardly been on time. Once in the office, Green Garage, we would start off our day with a cup of fresh brewed coffee from the kitchen. Since the beginning of our video interview project with DFA mentors, we would open up Adobe Premiere as soon as we sit down at our desk and start importing and editing the videos. After an hour in the office, it’s about time for our first interview in the day and Katherine, the best program coordinator one can ever find, is already waiting outside in her car, ready to accompany us to various production site. Meeting and talking to the food entrepreneurs is always the highlight of the day. They would tell us about their organization, their reason for being at Detroit, and their work as mentors. Sometimes, the hospitable mentors would leave us with a few treats, which are always welcomed and very appreciated.

 

Lunch is rushed and squeezed in between the interviews, but we get back to Green Garage at around 3pm and that leaves us with two more hours of editing. Headphones in, the two hours usually go by in silence. Someone occasionally speaks up for feedback and advice, but five o’clock always hits faster than it feels.

 

After work, I like to hit the gym for a thirty minutes run, but that sometimes gets put off because of laziness or hunger. The quality of dinner also depends on my mood. In a cooking mood, I would prepare myself a feast, and I would keep on cooking even afterwards, freezing the food so they can be thawed and microwaved in the future. Other nights, I would be satisfied with some cereal (because I have an excess of it) or cheese and cracker.

 

The girls love movies, so a movie night is very common. However, I am always the one who opts out because of the looming deadlines for writing assignments. I would just be in my room, listening to the dialogues from movies, the crunching sound of popcorn, and wishing I could be in the living room, commenting on how hot the actors are with the rest of the crew.

 

This is what a typical day looks like here in Detroit for me. It is still hard to believe that seven weeks have flied by as I shuffled between University Towers and Green Garage, but I can say with full confidence that these seven weeks have made this summer my best summer.

 

A Day in the Life of Ryan Hoecker, Detroit Amateur

6:45 AM*: Wake up to the voice of a complete stranger, thanks to our newfound social alarm app “Wakie” that instantly connects “wakies” to “sleepies” in real time. [*This time only applies to the days in which my alarm is actually effective enough to get me out of bed and to the gym before work—a rarity.]

7:15 AM: Actually roll out of bed after turning off my sixth alarm. Sorry Ben.

7:18 AM: Start brewing my first cup of coffee for the day.

7:20 AM: Look ridiculously groggily stretching in the common room of our apartment while waiting for the coffee.

7:22 AM: Jam to music and drink coffee while walking the half-mile to the Wayne State gym.

7:30-8:40 AM: Run. Lift. Awkwardly stand guard near the machines while resting in between sets.

8:45 AM: Pass the other DukeEngagers on their way to work, which starts an hour earlier than Build.

8:50 AM: Hope I haven’t been locked out of our apartment. Ironically my key is less than twenty feet away…just stuck in the middle of a door frame in which there is a well-placed hole just that’s of sight, yet still within reach. I was lucky enough to find that sweet spot pretty early on in the summer.

8:50 AM*: If still in bed, wake up.

9:00 AM: Leisurely cool down and jump in the shower.

9:15 AM: Realize I am running late for the umpteenth time and begin to throw all of my clothes and lunch in my backpack.

9:32 AM: Stumble out the door with an apple and jog down the hall to the elevator.

9:35 AM: Meet Liz in the lobby and make a sarcastic remark that I hope offsets the fact that I’m late.

9:35-10:00 AM: Bike three miles to Mexicantown, where Build is located. Practice riding with no hands.

10:10 AM: Make coffee round two for everyone.

10:15 AM: Read daily email news briefings from NY Times, theSkimm, and Morning Brew.

10:30-11:30 AM: Research local and national coworking spaces, looking at membership structures, building layouts, and funding models.

11:35 AM: Try to convince Liz that coffee is in fact better than tea.

12:00- 1:00 PM: Compile research information onto a Google Doc.

1:00-1:45 PM: Talk about studying abroad with Liz while eating lunch, which usually consists of a salad that I made the night before with fresh veggies from Eastern Market.

2:00-3:00 PM: Bike to a local coworking space with Liz to meet with a manager. Discuss start-ups costs, alumni incorporation techniques, and funding sources.

3:10- 4:00 PM: Bike to a coffee shop with Liz for the remainder of the day. Debrief from the meeting and enter our notes into a Google Spreadsheet. Third cup of coffee.

4:05 PM: Post in the guy’s group message “Catan” to get a feel for who’s up for a game later that night. Of course there’s unanimous consent.

4:10-5:00 PM: Finish up research and map out some weekly goals with Liz.

5:00- 5:25 PM: Bike back to University Towers.

6:00 PM: Microwave two veggie burgers and some canned vegetables for dinner.

6:05- 7:00 PM: Eat and watch Friends on Netflix while I wait for the others to get back from the gym.

7:10-7:45 PM: Attempt to read while I smell the delicious aroma of whatever dish Chef Bryce has chosen to cook for dinner.

8:00 PM: Begin to set up the Settlers of Catan game board. All hopes are high.

8:10 PM: Place first Catan settlements and begin to devise a strategy for the ensuing game.

8:30 PM: Angrily comment on the fact that sixes are not being rolled nearly as many times as eights even though they should be statistically even.

8:50 PM: Place the robber on Chris for no good reason except for the fact that he just seems like someone who should probably be blocked.

8:55 PM: Brew coffee #4, this time decaf.

9:10 PM: Realize David is winning on his next turn because he starts to vigorously deny the fact that he’s anywhere near the lead.

9:15 PM: Sadly put up the board while mentally examining the reasons for tonight’s loss.

9:30-10:00 PM: Make tomorrow’s salad while listening to The Avett Brothers.

10:10 PM: Squish way too many people onto one couch for a group movie with the girls.

11:30 PM: Realize I’m way too tired to finish the movie and move to bed.

11:45 PM: Fall asleep with borderline too loud music playing from my phone and my wakie alarm set for the morning.

Though I've found myself falling into an inevitable routine in Detroit, my days are constantly filled with excitement, adventure, and laughter. There's always new sights to see, people to meet, and work to be done. On a typical workday, I snooze my alarm a couple of times before finally getting up to start my day. After getting ready and attempting to quickly eat breakfast, I' meet David, Shelby, Chris, Ben, and Divya downstairs to make the mile-long bike ride to work. 

When David and I arrive at TechTown, we lock up our bikes, grab some coffee, and put our lunches in the fridge. We then get to work on the day's tasks, which include editing our videos, scheduling interviews, and compiling feedback. On Tuesday and Friday mornings, we attend the DTX Launch Detroit summer accelerator program with eleven student teams from the state of Michigan. We hear them pitch their startups and new data from customer discovery interviews every Tuesday morning. It is always entertaining to hear them get criticized and critiqued by their tough coaches Viktor and Gerry. After that, we listen to a lesson on one key topic of entrepreneurship such as marketing, finance, pitching, or supply chain management. On Fridays, a panel of experts comes to talk to the students about the corresponding topic. This has been a great way to meet interesting people from the Detroit area and hear their unique stories.

At lunchtime, David and I head over to New Center Park where we meet up with Ben, Divya, Chris, and Shelby. We catch up on how our mornings are going and enjoy the sunshine before returning to work at TechTown. Back at work, we continue completing any tasks we have for the day until it's time to leave at 4:30.

My post-work activities vary greatly depending on the day of the week, weather, and my mood. I usually try to get out of the apartment and explore all Detroit has to offer. When we don't have enrichment activities or group dinners, I usually try to recruit people to go on bike rides with me. I've become quite fond of my little blue bike and will be sad to leave it in Detroit!

Detroit's summer climate is perfect for outdoor activities, and the riverfront area is absolutely gorgeous. Belle Isle, an island park only six miles away from our apartment, boasts spectacular views of the Detroit skyline and features a comfortable bike path around its perimeter. I've enjoyed visiting the island many times and taking advantage of the beautiful weather. On my bike rides, I've gotten to see some of Detroit's amazing architecture. St. Anne's Church, the second-oldest operating Catholic church in the nation, is just one of the many beautiful buildings in the city. 

Of course, I've also spent a lot of the time in my apartment, talking to my roommates, cooking, and catching up on the news. It has been so nice getting to know this amazing group of people and I know we will remain friends long after we leave Detroit. Whether we are out adventuring, or just sitting on the couch watching a movie and eating cookie dough, I've enjoyed every moment with them and am thankful for everything I have learned from them.

As my time in Detroit comes to an end, I am sad to leave this beautiful city but also excited to go home and spread the message that Detroit is not the scary, ruined place it is portrayed as. I'm also excited to use everything I've learned here in my academic and extracurricular work. And who knows- maybe I'll be back next summer.

On any given work day in Detroit, I’ll wake up at around 8 a.m. and go through a typical morning routine involving breakfast and hygiene.  At approximately 8:45, 6 of us (Shelby, Divya, Chris, Ben, Liza, and I) will hop on our bikes and head towards the Fisher building, a mile ride to our respective offices.  Liza and I will grab a cup of coffee and either head to our corner seats in the office or upstairs to the DTX Launch Detroit space on the second floor on Tuesdays and Fridays.

On Tuesdays we hear the groups pitch and hear criticism, then have a lecture on a certain aspect of building a startup.  The curriculum ends at around 1 p.m. and if we don’t have any interviews scheduled we will grab lunch and finish the day downstairs.  On Fridays, we sit in on speaker sessions from Detroiters working in various capacities, like in venture capital or accounting.  After the morning session we try to get some interviews done with the teams, then head out for lunch and our weekly enrichment. On every other day, we’ll work together on our projects and often meet the Next Energy and Detroit Future City interns for lunch at New Center Park.

At around 4:30 we’ll bike back home and if we don’t have a group dinner or enrichment activity, I’ll either head to the gym or cook dinner for myself.  After finishing our respective routines, the boys gather together for the event of the night: Settlers of Catan, a wildly popular board game that has been published in 30 different languages since its 1995 inception from German game-master Klaus Teuber.  The game has become a nightly obsession among the boys’ apartment and although it sometimes strains relationships, coming together to play an intensely fun game truly forges an everlasting brotherhood that we will continue when we return to Duke.

8:30 AM: my alarm goes off; set a timer for 5 more minutes of sleep

8:42 AM: I’m awake but still in bed, looking at my phone. First is snapchat because I like the watch my friend Lauren’s snapchat story from her days in Japan. It would be 9:42 PM in Tokyo so I look at all her snaps from her day. Then I look on facebook, don’t know why. My newsfeed is always filled with random posts from people I never talk to in real life. I save instagram for last because it is the most exciting, looking at pictures from National Geographic.

8:46 AM: Realize its after 8:45am and that I really need to get out of bed. Say goodbye to everyone as they rush out the door, running to get to work by 9am. Then, I get the whole apratment to myself! I don’t have to share the bathroom or kitchen with anyone, and it’s glorious!

9:35 (or later) AM: Ryan strolls into the lobby with a banana and his coffee. Coffee first, punctuality second. This only stresses me out on Monday mornings when we have 10am team meetings.

10:30 AM: Changed out of our biking clothes and getting all settled in at work, Ryan makes more coffee. He makes enough for the office so he probably has favorite intern status. We usually eat a midmorning snack (aka half our lunch) at this point because we’re so hungry from biking.

12:45 PM: Start talking about how hungry we are again and how we’re taking a lunch break at 1pm.

1:00 PM: Have team bonding sessions over lunch watching an episode of a reality TV show my boss was in. It was about Gene Simmons traveling around to sign bands. He comes to Detroit to see a female rock group (lead singer, my boss April) only to find out it’s a mom band!

1:37 PM: After we eat lunch and Ryan has made me feel like a fat lard because all he eats is spinach-based, vegetable-filled salad Ryan listens to me complain, about how much I want chocolate or cookies or cookies that have chocolate in them.

2:22 PM: I get so tired of sitting and go to the only table in the office that’s tall enough for me to use while standing. Everybody, especially Ryan, judges me. Haters gon’ hate. I just keep on workng on our spreadsheets or business plan. SO. MANY. SPREADSHEETS. It’s a love-hate relationship.

3:14 PM: Time for another break where we talk about cycling around the country, future plans, and many other random topics. Most of the bosses have “left” for the day, but it doesn’t mean they stop working. The kids from the community center sometimes roll in at this time, and Ryan makes his millionth cup of coffee for the day. I start daydreaming about skiing or my next biking adventure before making the final push to concentrate on work for the day.

4:00 PM: Some afternoons we have calls or in-person visits with other  coworking spaces. We’ve been fortunate enough to be welcomed into the Detroit coworking community with open arms.

5:15 PM: Changd and back on our bikes for the 3+ mile ride home with a head wind.

Purposefully, I try to not fall into a routine for my evenings after work. Sometimes I’ll stop at a coffee shop or the grocery store on my way home. Sometimes I’ll go for a run or go to the gym. Sometimes we’ll have movie nights or go to Slow Roll. One day I stayed downtown after meeting with a coworking space and read in Campus Martius. Half the nights we end up watching movies and eating raw cookie dough. As the night winds down I like to work on my personal blog, look for jobs, and catch up with friends and family. The last part of my day is usually deep conversations with Divya, after everyone else has gone to bed.