DITL: John Wray ’03, owner of Green Paws Chicago, logs a 58-mile day

April 9, 2012

I am sometimes asked, as a business owner, how I spend my days. I thought it might be interesting (to me) to actually write down everything I do in a day. There is no such thing as a typical day. Some days I watch several episodes of the Wonder Years and answer the occasional email. Other days are like today. A day like today is not the norm, but it is not unique either.

Weather on this day: 40s, raining off and on, winds roughly 20 mph

8-8:30 a.m. Rise and shine, eat breakfast (cereal, banana), check emails. A perk of working from home is the non-commute allows me to sleep in.
8:30-8:40 a.m. A client emails (subject: AHHHHH!) letting me know she forgot to walk her dog this morning, can anyone come walk him asap? Whoops! Too early and last-minute to see if any walkers can do it.
8:40-8:58 a.m. Bike to Chicago and Orleans
8:58-9:25 a.m. Walk Butch the poodle
9:20 a.m. Call client whom I’m meeting downtown, ask if it’s ok to meet a bit earlier since I was in the area.
9:25-9:40 a.m. Bike to Lake and Columbus, a hotel, to pick up keys from a client for an overnight this weekend.
9:40-9:47 a.m. Meet with client, owner of 2 Dobermans (Hank and Mayor) and a Yorkie (Izzie). She instructs me to stay dry. It is the funniest joke of the day to that point.
9:47-9:54 a.m. Bike to Clark and Lake, almost run over my friend Brij while going the wrong way down multiple one-way streets.
9:54-9:59 a.m. Walk with Brij to Clark and Kinzie. Discuss Chicago Bears and Angry Birds.
9:59-10:11 a.m. Bike to Webster and Lincoln to pick up keys from a walker
10:15-10:25 a.m. Bike to Clybourn and Sheffield to drop off keys to a different walker
10:25-10:40 a.m. Bike home to Western and Armitage
10:40-11:40 a.m. Eat late morning snack (blueberry/raspberry muffin), answer emails, eat lunch (grilled turkey salad)
11:40-11:55 a.m. Bike to Wellington and Southport
11:55-12:20 p.m. Walk Sexy the Schipperke
12:20-12:35 p.m. Bike to Lawrence and Sheridan
12:35-1:00 p.m. Walk Lion the Portuguese water dog
1:00-1:10 p.m. Bike to Broadway and Belmont
1:10-1:35 p.m. Walk Walter the terrier
1:35 p.m. Get a call from walker who has just had a bike accident. He’s fine, but he’s running late and needs me to cover a walk. No problem.
1:35-1:59 p.m. Bike to Fullerton and St. Louis
1:59-2:24 p.m. Walk Sammy the Puggle
2:24-2:55 p.m. Bike to Clark and Foster
2:55-3:20 p.m. Walk Ina the fat Boxer
3:20-3:30 p.m. Bike to Rockwell and Lawrence to pick up keys from walker.
3:30-3:35 p.m. Bike to Rockwell and Montrose. Can’t find keys that I just picked up. Assume I dropped them where I picked them up.
3:35-3:45 p.m. Bike back to Rockwell and Lawrence, can’t find keys, discover keys in my pocket. Curse. Bike back to Rockwell and Montrose.
3:45-4:10 p.m. Walk Garlic the pit bull
4:10-4:30 p.m. Bike home to Western and Armitage
4:30-5:15 p.m. Eat dinner (grilled cheese w/ turkey and tomatoes), set up schedule for the following day, email schedule to walkers.
5:15-5:30 p.m. Bike to Halsted and Division
5:30-6:15 p.m. Meet with new client, owner of Nelson the golden and Columbus the springer spaniel. When I ask owner if there is any sort of training she’d like me to work with the dogs on, she advises: Curb Columbus’ imperialism. Noted.
6:15-6:47 p.m. Bike to Foster and Damen
6:47-7:12 p.m. Walk Rich the pit bull. Rich has tipped over the garbage and spread it around the apartment. Pick up garbage.
7:12-7:17 p.m. Bike to Foster and Clark
7:17-7:42 p.m. Walk Ina the fat boxer again. Feed her. Owner comes home as I’m leaving. Nice to finally meet you, we love Ina. Justin got in a bike accident. No he’s fine, thank you for asking.
7:42-7:50 p.m. Bike to coffee shop on Clark and Wilson
7:50-8:40 p.m. COCOA BREAK! Answer personal emails, play Angry Birds. Eavesdrop on a first date happening a couple tables away. They’re not right for each other.
8:40-8:45 p.m. Bike to Sheridan and Buena
8:45-9:10 p.m. Walk Madison and Tulip, the terrified and blind Cocker Spaniels.
9:10-9:35 p.m. Bike home to Western and Armitage.
9:35-10 p.m. Answer work emails, eat late night snack (granola bar and yogurt).