Learning to Balance

October 14, 2010
Learning to Balance

By Ingram Hansmann

Carla Hemminger            

Juggling several things at once is something Carla Hemminger, a junior at Ogilvie Public School, has become very accustomed to this year. “We have a four day school week, and it makes life very hectic”, says Hemminger, who is also enrolled in PSEO at Anoka-Ramsey Community College, where she is taking Music Marketing and Reporting for the Media, both online classes. “Although I love school, this year has not started out so well.” Hemminger says she enjoys her college Music Class, more then writing news stories, because, “Its difficult to adjust to the AP style, and writing in third person.”

 In addition to attending high school and college, Hemminger also plays high school varsity volleyball, an activity that she enjoys doing in part because it helps her, “just relax and have fun, and forget about the stress.” A summer spent battling sleep insomnia has left her with a new appreciation for sleep, saying, “now that I can actually sleep, I love it very much!”

Hemminger also has a passion for all animals she says, “especially horses and dogs”, and says spends any free time she has riding horse with her best friend, Kassandra, who is also attending Anoka-Ramsey. Hemminger is the younger of two children. Her mother, Yvonne, is a head-housekeeper at an AmericInn. Her father, Mike, worked for Denny Hecker, and is currently unemployed.

 After graduating high school next year, Hemminger plans on attending a Christian college and becoming a  LPN, or Licensed Practical Nurse.

            

Interview #1 transcript

Where do you live and go to school? Do you like school? And if so, why? 

  I live in Ogilvie, Minnesota and I attend Ogilvie Public School. We have a 
four day school week, and it makes life very hectic. Although I love 
school, this year has not started out so well. Trying to juggle high school 
, part time online PSEO, playing volleyball for both junior varsity and 
varsity, and chores at home is not an easy task. I am taking two online 
courses, Music Marketing and Reporting for the Media. I do enjoy my music 
class, but so far I’m not enjoying writing news stories. Writing usually 
comes easy for me, and when it doesn’t I tend to get annoyed and 
frustrated. It’s difficult to adjust to the AP style, and writing in 
third person.

Where are you in life right now? Where would you like to be? How will you 
get there? 

  Like I said before, I am a junior in high school. After I graduate next 
year, I would like to attend a Christian college and become a Licensed 
Practical Nurse. 

What are some hobbies you enjoy? Why do you like these certain ones? 

  I enjoy playing volleyball. Both of my best friends play, and so practice 
is a way we can talk, converse, and just relax, have fun, and forget about 
the stress. I also love sleeping, as sad as that sounds. All summer I’ve 
battled sleep insomnia, so now that I can actually sleep, I love it very 
much!

What is your passion in life, what do you love to do over anything else?  

  I have a passion for all animals, especially horses and dogs. I have a best 
friend named Kassandra, who also attends Anoka Ramsey, and we spend most of 
our free time riding our horses. If we ever have free-time that is! 

  Is this what you want to do as a career? How do you plan on getting there?
This is not what I want to do as a career. 

A little bit about your family. Do you have any siblings? Are you the 
oldest, youngest, or in between? 

  I have a very small family; My mum, Yvonne and my dad, Mike. My mum works 
at the AmericInn as a head-housekeeper. My dad is un-employed, as he worked 
for Denny Hecker. D:
I’m the baby of the family, I have a brother named Brandon, and he is 24 
years old.

Story 3

Media Writing

Story 3

Ingram Hansmann

10/7/10

Marsha L. Taylor, a 37 year old resident and cycling enthusiast, was the victim of a hit and run, sustaining severe injuries, including six broken ribs, a broken pelvis, and a mild concussion. Taylor, who has participated in both weekend rides and some races, said, “I was riding down 72nd St. almost to Southland Boulevard when a car hit me from behind and sent me flying off my bike.” Afterward, taylor said could remember nothing until she was in the hospital. 

Taylor begin bicycling in college, and this year rode in the annual Governors Bicycle Tour, and in a tour across the United States this fall, riding 3,500 miles altogether. She had only been back in town for about two weeks when the incident occurred. 

Recovery for Taylor took several months, during which she spent time at both a hospital and a rehabilitation clinic. In addition to broken bones, she also suffered internal injuries due to the incident, including a perforated liver and damaged gall bladder, both of which caused her skin to turn a bright orange. Said Taylor, “When my mother saw me she said I looked like a Halloween pumpkin. I had to go back to the hospital because of those complications.” 

Though injured physically, this painful brush with death has not dampened Taylor’s love for riding. Taylor is still determined to ride, saying “i’d be out there right now, but it’s hard to ride a bike when you have to use crutches.” According to Taylor, bicycling is safe, as long as you take the right precautions. These, Taylor said, include wearing protective clothing and a helmet. The last being more important, as Taylor put it. “I never ride unless I have my helmet. It probably saved my life.”

Taylor is a manger at a local McDonalds, and has lived here for 15 years. She still attends rehabilitation for her injuries three times a week.  

Obituary

Ingram Taylor Hansmann, a teacher and avid sports card collector died at Regions Hospital yesterday, at the age of 40.

         Hansmann taught English at Centennial High for almost twenty years, and was not only a favorite of the students, but was also greatly respected and admired by his peers.

His love of teaching was matched by his passion for collecting sports cards, a hobby he began when he was a young man.

The burial will take place at Calvary Cemetery next Monday, at 1 p.m. He will be buried with his collection of sports cards and other memorabilia.

          Survived by his parents, four brothers and a sister, Hansmann will be greatly missed. 

Financial Disagreement Ends

A disagreement between county Sheriff Gus Dicesari and several county commissioners came to an end Thursday, when the county commission voted 5-2 against Dicesari’s request for new equipment and personnel. The Sheriff’s request for new police cruisers and additional sheriffs deputies was voted down by five commission members, including commission president Anne Chenn. 

Sheriff Dicesari accused the commissioners of “shortchanging” his department, claiming they were putting the lives of the people in the county at risk. Disagreeing with him, commissioner Chenn said the county did not have the money to afford new cruisers or the hiring of additional deputies. Commissioners Anita Shenuski and Raymond Grauman stood in support of Dicesari, blaming the lack of funds on the 5,000 migrant workers in the county. Both Shenuski and Grauman said that the immigrants take jobs away from decent people and will work for next to nothing. Commissioner Chenn defended the immigrants, calling them honest, hardworking people who contribute to the local economy and pay their taxes. She called  both commissioners hypocrites for blaming the money shortage on them, citing the cause of this years money shortage to be increased healthcare costs for employees, as well as $30 million the county had to spend building a new prison to help alleviate overcrowding. 

Sheriff Dicesari said he needed the eight new police cruisers to replace older vehicles, each with over 150,000 miles on them. According to Dicesari, these older cars were too expensive to keep driving, and that, “Something bad is going to happen”. He said in the 27 years that he has been sheriff, this was the first time the county had failed to allocate money for the sheriffs department to buy equipment. In response, Chenn told  him they simply did not have the $580,000, and that the department would have to get by this year without. She suggest the deputies not drive their cruisers home, saying this would help the cars last longer. To which sheriff Dicesari made claim that the police cars helped deter crime in the neighborhoods they were parked in. 

News story 1

             What could only be described as a tragedy occurred this morning along interstate 790. Two tractor-trailers collided; causing a chain reaction along the interstate that resulted in several more crashes. Though a preliminary investigation has been done, the Cambridge Police Department has not finished their investigation of the incident, which occurred around 6:45 this morning. Sgt. Albert Wei confirmed a total of four tractor-trailers as well as 14 other vehicles were involved in this terrible accident.

            One tractor-trailer contained highly flammable diesel fuel, which Sgt. Wei said was very lucky not to have rolled over and caught fire in the accident. Though the truck’s cab was damaged when a car collided with it, the driver was not hurt, and he managed to bring the trailer to a stop along the side of the road. Two people were killed, and 20 injured, four of them seriously. According to Fire Chief Tony Sullivan, firefighters were forced to cut the roofs off of three of the cars in order to free the people trapped within. Every one of the Fire Department’s five ambulances was needed, along with four other ambulances from neighboring departments. Also on scene, the “Life Flight” helicopter from Memorial Hospital, which flew the two most severely, injured victims to the trauma center in Statesville, 50 miles away.

            Sullivan said the scene more closely resembled a war zone then an accident, with bodies littered along the road, other’s sitting covered in blood next to their cars, with emergency workers running from one person to another as they tried to help the injured victims. The wailing of sirens from emergency vehicles added to the effect. Chief Sullivan said in his 18 and half years with the department, he’d never seen anything as bad as this, a chilling testimony to a tragic event. According to Sgt. Wei the police had trouble-matching people to their cars, adding to the confusion.

            Wei reported the accident happened in the northbound lanes, causing both north and southbound lanes to close. They remained closed at 10 am, when this story published. Traffic normally on interstate 790 was redirected to interstate 690, on the other side of town. This shuffling of traffic caused interstate 690 to be backed up for over three hours. 

Introduction-Ingram Hansmann

Hello all, Ingram Hansmann here. I am a 20 year old student, working full time on the side. My goal is to become a psychologist, but that is a ways off. My two favorite pastimes are writing, and sports, so writing about sports would be a dream come true for me. I can't say this will change my career course, but I hope to learn a lot about the world of journalism this semester. Looking forward to learning alongside all of you.

-Ingram