11 things to do ‘in Detroit’ this week

Need something to do with your hands? Bake with bakers, write with writers and grow with growers this week at virtual workshops hosted by Detroiters.

Also in this week’s events guide from Detour Detroit: stellar explosions, grief, yoga and a few more things to do to stretch your mind (or just keep it occupied for a bit).

Planning a virtual event, or have a tip for how we should be spending our time right now while at home? Starting a crafting club on Instagram or know an essential org. that needs volunteers? Email events@detourdetroiter.com to get it featured in the Get Busy guide. 

😔 Connect to cope: One of the strangest and most heart-wrenching sides of life during a pandemic is how it’s broken our normal traditions and routines around grief. Therapist Aja Burks of Transformative Mind Counseling will be sharing some advice for grieving loved ones while social distancing, Monday, April 13, 2 p.m. The city (@storiesfromdet) is hosting the chat on IG Live.

🧘 Wake and uplift: Kerrie Trahan hosts Healing Hatha Yoga classes live on Sidewalk Detroit’s Facebook page daily this week at 8 a.m. Start your day with some balance, no matter your level — with breathing and meditation as well as poses.

🌱 Start your own seeds: Ollie of Detroit’s Villekulla Flora demos how to start seeds on Instagram Live, Monday, April 13, 6 p.m. Check out the full list of recommended supplies — with quarantine-friendly suggestions for substitutions, good-enough supplies and working with what you have. (Thanks to Frances Barber for the tip.)

🌌 Just keep growing and learning: Nerd out on a little thing called LIFE with some nifty virtual sessions through the Michigan State University Science Festival and MSU Extension, meant to connect you with science in your everyday life. Whether you want to gaze up at the sky or down in the dirt, you can understand a little more about what you’re looking at. A few of this week’s offerings: 

🔹 Science after dark chat on the evolution of stars (and stellar explosions) with Dr. Elias Aydi via Facebook, Monday, April 13, 7 p.m.

🔹 Cabin Fever Conversation on container gardening via Zoom with Rebecca Finneran, Friday, April 17, 10 a.m.

🔹 Saturday Morning Science talk for all ages on plants and gravity via Facebook, Saturday, April 18, 11 a.m.

💸 Save your startup: Take a lunch break and tune into a Q&A hosted by Bamboo Detroit with entrepreneur Steve Blank to get some tips, then make a plan of action to keep your startup afloat during a crisis. Find it on Crowdcast, Monday, April 13, noon.

🍪 Make your own treats: The Yalla Eat tours usually sample and explain Dearborn’s culinary delights across restaurants and bakeries… but don’t dwell on those dishes. Instead, learn a little in your own kitchen, with a cooking demonstration from Amanda Saab. She’s teaching chocolate halawa cookies on the Arab American National Museum’s IG Live, Tuesday, April 14, 5:30 p.m.

🗺️ Be transported: Sidewalk Detroit is also hosting a quarantine artist residency with Billy Mark (poet, installation artist, more), who will take you to “Other Geographies” every evening this week on Facebook and Instagram Live. At 6 p.m. Monday, the series kicks off with his reflections from Detroit in quarantine.

📚 Get sucked into a story: Nothing better than (online) storytime. Detroit City Councilwoman Raquel Castañeda-López, state Sen. Stephanie Chang and U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib host a Facebook, Zoom and call-in story hour with some of their favorite children’s books, on Friday, April 17, 9 a.m., and following Friday mornings while we’re stuck at home.

🎤 Share some verse: Poetry is best shared — even virtually. For National Poetry Month, tune in to an open mic hosted by poet Yasmine Rukia and the Arab American National Museum on Saturday, April 18, 8 p.m. You can also sign up to read your own work.

✍️ Or stay on the page: Hang out virtually with writer Melinda Clynes to get your questions answered at the Detroit Writing Room’s Coaches & Cocktails happy hour. Just the push you need to write your quarantine essay/novel/play? $5 cover charge and BYO cocktail to the Zoom chat, Thursday, April 16, 5 p.m.

💯 Quiz yourself: Join 100 or so local friends to test your random knowledge alone but together at ComePlayDetroit’s trivia nights, Wednesdays and Sundays at 8 and 8:30 p.m. The setup is your first test: you need two screens and access through Zoom and Crowd.live. Kay, it’s not that complicated — instructions here. And yes, there are gift card prizes!