DukeEngage | Duke Center for Civic Engagement

The date is Wednesday, August 6th, 2008. I’m writing this blog post from my grandparents’ house in Louisville, Kentucky, 359 miles from my hometown and 707 miles from New Orleans. I left the Big Easy last Saturday, stayed with Sushma overnight in Atlanta, and drove the rest of the way home on Sunday before leaving for Louisville on Tuesday. I already miss New Orleans like crazy.

Over the past few days, I’ve been asked two questions over and over: “How was your trip?” and “What did you learn?” To answer the former, I usually give a generic answer: I tell them the food’s great, the music even better, and I had a good internship experience. I hate giving that answer because I feel like it’s an injustice to the amazing experience I’ve had over the past two months.

Here’s my real answer: I feel like a part of me is missing now that I’ve left New Orleans. I miss energetic brass performances by Rebirth and Soul Rebels, improvisational jazz by the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, and the unpolished but incredible talent of dozens of rising stars at open mic nights. I miss the intimacy of Snug Harbor, the liveliness of Blue Nile, and the individuality of Bacchanal. I miss playing ultimate frisbee with college kids from all over the country, walking along Magazine Street on a lazy weekend afternoon, and running through Audubon Park and along the Mississippi River in 96 degree heat.

I miss the taste of fried shrimp topped with remoulade on a po’ boy, spicy jambalaya served with Creole gumbo, and sweet potato pancakes from Slim Goodies. I miss pub quiz at Finn McCool’s, happy hour at Superior Grill, and smooth shisha from Hookah Café. I miss my bright and mentor-like coworkers, the interesting entrepreneurs I interviewed, and the supportive group of Duke students I lived with. I miss meeting guest speakers and learning about the challenges New Orleans faces; I miss feeling like an insider trying to develop solutions to those challenges.

I miss a lot of things, but most of all I miss feeling alive and productive. Rarely did I have an extended period of downtime when I didn’t know what to do with myself. There were opportunities to go out and explore New Orleans every night, and when I didn’t feel like leaving the dorm, there were always other Duke Engagers to talk to and get to know better. Even on nights when we just sat in the same suite, writing our individual blogs in silence, the atmosphere was enough to keep me from feeling lonely.

Strangely enough, I’m feeling that loneliness now after returning home. It’s not that I didn’t miss my parents and friends back home – I’m extremely happy to see them. It’s just that I feel like there was no conclusion to my New Orleans experience, no way to wrap it up and feel satisfied. My internship improved in the last few weeks I was there, and I started to get really close with some of the Duke students, then bam! Experience over.

Even my connection to the Duke friends I’ve made will have to be put on hold: in less than 3 weeks, I’ll fly to Berlin, where I’m studying abroad for the fall semester. As excited as I am for Berlin, I feel a tinge of sadness fearing that the relations I formed with New Orleans and the people within it will slowly diminish into just a memory. My parents tell me that New Orleans will always be a part of me. I believe that, but it doesn’t make it any easier to leave behind.

That brings us to question number two – what did I learn; what will I take with me? I learned how to work in a group during my Idea Village internship, making mistakes throughout the summer that hopefully I can rectify in future jobs. The Village People also inspired me to pursue my ambitions and laugh at complacency. There’s a great video of a commencement speech on this subject by Steve Jobs that Daryn showed me. My career possibilities are wide open, but the one thing I’m sure about is I will refuse to remain in a career where I don’t look forward to going to work, even if that means not having a career at all and jumping around from job to job.

I also learned a lot about myself. I have a better understanding of my character strengths and weaknesses (thanks for the psychoanalysis, Rosanna), and I know what areas I want to work on in the future. I know my leadership style and how to best lead on a personal and professional level. I was also single for the first time in a very long while, which led to interesting results that I will not elaborate on, but I feel like I have a clearer vision of where I want to go with that in the future (sorry for the ambiguity, but this is a public blog).

One more thing I learned about myself – I love New Orleans. People at work always asked me if I would return to work in the city after graduation. While I still can’t give a definite “yes” because there’s much more of the world to explore, I know that I won’t be satisfied with just an occasional Mardi Gras trip back to NOLA. I mentioned earlier that I fear that my experience will one day be simply a memory, but while it’s impossible to recreate the same Duke Engage experience, it’s certainly not impossible to stay connected to the city. What form this takes is yet to be determined, but it’s safe to say my relationship with New Orleans is by no means over.

A couple of blog posts ago, I wrote a little bit about my internship at The Idea Village. I’ve worked on a variety of projects this summer, but one of them included the creation of an Idea Village merchandise line. The idea was to create a sustainable revenue source for The Idea Village to reduce dependence on private donations and city and state grants, at the same time promoting our mantra: “Trust Your Crazy Ideas.” We ended up making t-shirts, bracelets, and notepads; I’ll post the link when we launch our online store.  (By the way, donors who give $300 or more get the amazing sign pictured above!)

Anyway, two Thursdays ago we finally launched our merchandise line by holding a kickoff party, complete with a rum bar, sax player, and local painter who captured the night in a painting to be auctioned off. The party was a success – we almost broke even just on the opening night.

The party was originally planned to end at 8, but I ended up selling merchandise until 9:30. Especially after coming in early that day to finish making bracelets and get ready for our party, by 9:30 I was ready for a release. To celebrate, several of my co-workers and I went out to a Garden District bar called The Bulldog. It was really cool spending some time in an informal setting with the people I’m used to only seeing around the office. The people in my office are all incredibly smart and intellectually curious, so it was no surprise when small talk over a few pitchers of beer turned into an intense but insightful conversation about religion. I loved it.

Around midnight or so, my co-workers dropped me off back at Loyola. I met up with my Duke Engage buddies, and we decided to go out to this college bar called Bruno’s. Bruno’s isn’t the classiest place I’ve ever been, but it does have pool tables, darts, and a shuffleboard (at which I happen to be a natural and am undefeated), and with good company it’s not a bad place to be.

After Bruno’s, we headed back to Loyola for some good conversation. After 7-8 weeks of spending a lot of my time with other Duke Engage students, I’ve gotten to know some of them really well; despite a little internal conflict, I’m happy to have made some good friends on this trip.

Before we knew it, it was past 4 AM and we were still up. Madison had just turned 21 a few days beforehand, and we created a list of 21 “tasks” for her to do, one of which included staying up late for breakfast at Slim Goodies. The diner opens at 6, so at that point we decided to man up for a couple more hours and go for it. We went for a walk through Audubon Park, and then enjoyed quite possibly the best breakfast of my trip so far.

I’d like to believe that this night embodied my organization’s mantra: “Trust Your Crazy Ideas.” Slim Goodies at 6 AM may just seem dumb, but there are a number of reasons which made the experience worthwhile. For starters, it’s a great bonding experience. I would not be willing to suffer through a sleep-deprived Friday for just anyone, and going through with the crazy idea solidified our bond.

Second, and more importantly, having an unconventional night makes me feel alive. I have my whole life ahead of me to work, and a job in consulting could mean 60 hour weeks – and i-banking’s far worse. If I do end up selling my soul one day for a Wall Street job, I at least want to take advantage of my youth.

My typical cycle is wake up at 8, work from 9-5, run/play Frisbee/lift weights from 5:30-7:30, eat dinner, and find some good music before bed around 1. While even after eight weeks I still love nights like this, I feel stifled after too many days in a row of any routine and it’s exciting to throw in a slightly crazy night every once in awhile. Besides, there’s nothing a quadruple espresso can’t fix in the morning.

Continuing with the “Trust Your Crazy Ideas” theme, here’s another seemingly crazy idea: rebuilding New Orleans. Many people believe New Orleans’s location makes it a poor idea to begin with and suggest not wasting money rebuilding when another hurricane could easily come along and wipe it back out. In fact, the first result from the google search “rebuilding New Orleans” is an article making the case for not rebuilding : http://www.slate.com/id/2125810/

Admittedly, before coming here I was on the fence about the costs and benefits of rebuilding. However, I think the author of this article, as well as myself back in May, were thinking too much from an outsider’s viewpoint. Quoth the author:

"New Orleans puts the "D" into dysfunctional. Only a sadist would insist on resurrecting this concentration of poverty, crime, and deplorable schools. Yet that's what New Orleans' cheerleaders—both natives and beignet-eating tourists—are advocating. They predict that once they drain the water and scrub the city clean, they'll restore New Orleans to its former 'glory.'"

Two things: one, this argument is weak because it seems to suggest that the people plagued by “poverty, crime, and deplorable schools” will suddenly find a better future simply by relocating. Maybe we should just burn down all the ghettos in major U.S. cities and then everyone can live in peace and prosperity. Two, the visionary leaders at the forefront of the movement to rebuild New Orleans don’t see it as simply “rebuilding” the city to its former self, but improving the city and addressing some of the issues the former New Orleans faced.

Lieutenant Governor Mitch Landrieu gave a speech last Friday on this topic, claiming that the question of whether or not to rebuild New Orleans is a no-brainer. Landrieu spoke on the opportunity to improve New Orleans (which I will not detail here because it’s far beyond the scope of this blog post) and the economic benefits of using the Port of New Orleans, but he also brought up a point that seems obvious but a lot of people might not think about – for a few hundred thousand people, New Orleans is home.

New Orleans has a unique culture that can’t be found anywhere else, but even beyond that, on an individual level the city means so much more than just a cool place to live with good music and food. Southerners in general have deep ties to their hometowns, and New Orleans is no exception. Families here tend to be huge, with aunts and grandpas and second cousins all living in the same area. Asking these people to relocate for good and abandon their history and ties to the city would put a huge burden on them, and you can bet that very few would comply. Hell, call it stupid but some of them were too stubborn to evacuate their homes when Katrina hit.

The point is that the option of not rebuilding New Orleans does not exist. Moving forward, we need to focus on ways to reduce crime, improve education, and of course strengthen the levy system, but it’s ignorant to suggest we just give it up as a lost cause. New Orleans may be a crazy idea, but it’s one that’s here to stay.

For all my dedicated fans out there, I apologize for not blogging this past Sunday. I have been writing quite a bit actually, but so far it has been more of a personal journal than something suitable for a blog post.

The problem with blogging is that I cannot be completely candid. I can certainly write honestly about many of my experiences, such as my adventures to Snug Harbor, but I’m giving a limited perspective on my New Orleans experience.

I’m not just talking about late night escapades to Bourbon Street, either. In fact, I haven’t been to Bourbon Street since my parents visited and probably won’t go back. I’m talking about the trials and tribulations of Duke Engage: conflicts at my internship, annoyance and a feeling of being “trapped” with other Duke students, nights spent taking care of others, and nights spent being taken care of.

These issues provide for a very valuable learning experience that I would love to share with select individuals, but a public blog is not the place to do so. Hence, I’ve decided to spend my time writing a personal reflection this week before resuming to normal blogging next Sunday.

However, if anyone is interested in hearing more about such personal issues, feel free to contact me at lucas.chapin@gmail.com and I would be glad to share, especially for prospective Duke Engagers looking for advice.

Negativity aside, my ego is too large to avoid giving you a snapshot of what’s to come:

That’s right Mom & Dad, I’m dropping out of college to begin my modeling career.  Details to follow next post.

Asheville is a hippie town, no doubt about it. Every Friday there’s a “drum circle” downtown in which anyone who wants to can bring a drum and jam. Women wearing long skirts and tank tops and men in colorful t-shirts dance around, and by dance I mean flail arms and legs around freely, frequently but not always to the beat of the music. Think blank verse manifested in dance. Nearby homeless men play checkers against passing locals walking their dogs, and beyond that you’ll find an abundance of coffee shops, locally-owned restaurants, and music venues that attract mostly bluegrass and alternative country acts.

New Orleans is quite a bit different. Both cities are known for great live music, but the banjos and fiddles of Asheville are nothing like the saxophones and pianos of New Orleans. Even the drum might as well be a completely different instrument when comparing a snare drum used for jazz to a bongo used in the drum circle. New Orleans comes alive at night with many clubs and a culture that encourages drinking, not helped by the strippers and absinthe bars on Bourbon Street. By contrast, Asheville’s beautiful mountains make it an outdoorsy place by day, while nightlife might involve meeting friends at a coffee shop or an Irish style pub with a chill atmosphere. Probably the hardest difference to adjust to is the scarcity of sweet tea down here.

Despite these differences, this week I’ve found little bits of Asheville-esque culture scattered around New Orleans, and I don’t just mean the occasional cross-dressers seen in both cities. To start with, on Tuesday I found a little coffee shop called Neutral Grounds that’s actually very close to Loyola. When I walked in the door, I was immediately assaulted by incense, not necessarily a bad thing since the incense serves to masks some more questionable smells. There are very few chairs available but many sofas and floor cushions. Live music every night provides entertainment, though a stocked bookcase and a variety of board games ensures there’s always something to do. The clientele ranges from teenagers with skinny jeans and band shirts to older lesbian couples with pierced lips; even the barista wears black and white striped knee socks under a black skirt. Strangest of all was the décor, including multi-colored lights, hanging beads in the doorway, and bizarre decorations on the wall. This place could have easily thrived in downtown Asheville.

Other activities that reminded me of home this week include Ultimate Frisbee in Audubon Park, a hookah bar on Frenchmen Street, and an excellent brunch place called La Peniche that flies a gay pride flag outside its entrance. While I’m thrilled to be experiencing an unfamiliar culture, especially after 16 straight summers in Asheville, it’s nice to find some similarities to my much-loved hometown.

Recently I’ve realized that some of my concerns about not fully experiencing New Orleans apply to Asheville as well. If all goes well I’ll be in New York for an internship next summer, and likely I’ll live in New York or another major city after graduation. Although I’m sure I’ll continue to visit Asheville in the future to see my parents, I have very little time left to actually live there. After leaving New Orleans, I’ll have about three and a half weeks in Asheville before flying to Berlin for the semester, but that might be the longest period left of living in the home I know so well.

Living in New Orleans has taught me to appreciate a place that is very much a part of who I am. I want to travel and experience the world, but I also want to spend my remaining time in Asheville valuably with a new respect for the place I’ve called home for as long as I can remember.

I haven’t written much about my internship yet, so I figured it's time to dispel the notion that I'm just on a 2-month vacation. I work at The Idea Village, a nonprofit organization that provides support to local entrepreneurs. This support can come in many forms, including grant money, marketing advice, the drafting of a business plan, and much more. We are also working on a number of other related initiatives; if you’re interested you can check out the website. The large scope of The Idea Village is to reinvent New Orleans as a city of innovation and entrepreneurship.

One of my favorite parts of working at The Idea Village is the people. My supervisor’s name is Daryn, and he’s quite a character. I think his personality is best explained through examples – for instance, just the other week he came into work and informed us that 90% of his clothes were just stolen. That morning, he had a huge sheet full of clothes ready to take to the Laundromat. Upon reaching his car, he realized he had forgotten his keys, so he left his clothes out on the curb while he ran back inside to grab them. Only a moment later, he walked back out to find the sheet and all his clothes missing! The best part is that while Daryn’s telling this story, he’s laughing and smiling the whole time. Most people would be panicked or furious, but Daryn just throws his hands up and says “what can you do,” assuring us that his luck will come soon.

I could detail the rest of the vibrant group at The Idea Village, but I’ll refrain for now, especially considering that several read my blog.

Moving on, this week was one of the most enjoyable at work. For a long time now, I’ve been working on a business plan for IDEAcorps, a program which connects MBA student teams to entrepreneurs in New Orleans. The teams typically come down over Spring Break and are involved in an intense one-week program in which they work with an entrepreneur to develop a solution or strategy for improving the entrepreneur’s business. For Ms. Larkins, this meant grant money to purchase medical equipment for her proprietary school as well as a business plan and an interim CFO to provide a financial grounding for her lofty vision. For Ms. Norma, this meant innovative marketing efforts and grant money to purchase an awning, increasing the visibility and attractiveness of her sno-ball shop (think of the flavored icy treat), and extra refrigeration, increasing the efficiency of the sno-ball making process.

I had the pleasure of meeting these two fine ladies this week, discussing the IDEAcorps trips with them. The purpose is to find out which aspects of the trip worked and which could be improved upon. Of course The Idea Village can get some sense of this through student surveys and talking to the entrepreneurs during the trip, but it’s important to follow up to make sure the students’ work leads to sustainable progress. Carla and I will be meeting with other entrepreneurs for the whole month, compiling our findings and eventually making recommendations that will hopefully lead to improvements in the effectiveness of the IDEAcorps trips.

The great part about our new assignment is that it allows us to see first hand the benefits entrepreneurs gain from working with The Idea Village. Talking to Ms. Larkins and Ms. Norma, I could see that both were greatly appreciative of work done by student teams and both had put the help to good use. Ms. Larkins was able to purchase a student skills lab that’s critical to her business, which prepares mostly poor, underprivileged locals for technical careers in the medical field. Ms. Norma’s business increased significantly after the IDEAcorps trips and she’s looking to continue to expand.

While I’ve read articles before about entrepreneurs who have been helped by IDEAcorps teams, it’s much more moving talking face-to-face and seeing the emotion behind the stories. The work I’ve done for The Idea Village has been interesting at times and not-so-interesting at other times, but I’m optimistic that this new project will augment motivation for everything I do during the rest of my internship. Though my specific contributions are more difficult to measure, I’ll know that I’m helping an organization that does great things for the people of New Orleans.