Blog Post #8, Story 5

Fashion For Awareness

Rebecca Bowers, manager of a small business shop called Crystal House, arranges an annual fashion show. This public event took place on Saturday, October 15^th in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Following the fashion show was a raffle. Every twenty dollars spent bought a raffle ticket. Customers could also buy tickets without buying merchandise. The raffle drawing was for a Harvey’s brand breast cancer “Get Checked” handbag.

Bowers purchased the handbag, along with a stock of several other Harvey’s bags; 39 percent of the proceeds for the $194 dollar bag went to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.

Bowers said the show draws a lot of business during a very slow time of the year. She added that the show helped to boost sales and drew a crowd to a business mall where small business owners have been seeing a decline in sales over the last few years.

Stephanie Fassett, one of the women employed at Crystal House and a model for the fashion show, said, “We’ve done three shows so far. We started them in the fall of 2010. The last one we did was to raise money for multiple sclerosis. Rebecca actually rode in the MS bike-a-thon.”

The women who work at the shop doubled as the fashion show models. The show featured women of all ages and sizes wearing an array of clothing, ranging from casual to dress clothes.

After the fashion show, the models greeted anyone who visited the store. There was fall-themed food and drink available to everyone, including hot coffee and cider, chocolate covered fruit, red velvet cupcakes, and sandwiches made of cinnamon bread and ham.

October is a busy month for Crystal House, with many sales and events that are open to the public.  These events include a patio sale weekend in which several of the neighboring small businesses partake, which features a petting zoo and clearance-priced merchandise. Crystal House is located at 445 99^th Ave. N.W. in Coon Rapids, near Showplace Theater and Sammy’s Pizza.

Blog Post #5 - Story 3

Always Wear A Helmet

Marsha L. Taylor, 37, of Coon Rapids is an avid bicyclist. She is recovering from injuries she received when she was hit by a car while riding her bicycle.

She was initially diagnosed with a mild concussion, a broken neck, six broken ribs, a broken arm, and a broken pelvis. Because of Taylor’s broken neck, also called a “hangman’s fracture,” doctors believe it a miracle that she wasn’t paralyzed.

At the rehabilitation facility, doctors discovered further complications. Her intestines were perforated and her liver and gall bladder were injured, causing jaundice. “When my mother saw me, she said I looked like a Halloween pumpkin,” said Taylor.

Taylor started bicycling after graduating college. She said that cycling was a way of filling time and keeping fit. She got involved in cycling groups and some races, including the annual Governor’s Bicycle Tour across the state this year. She also rode in a tour across the U.S. in the fall, tallying more than 3,500 miles this year.

Despite the accident, Taylor’s attitude about cycling has not changed; she still likes to ride. If necessary precautions are taken, such as wearing protective clothing and a helmet, bicycling is safe. “I never ride unless I have my helmet. It probably saved my life this time,” stated Taylor.

Blog Post #4 - My Obituary

     Nicole A. Dahlstrom, an author with a passion for fiction, died of age this Thursday at her home in Seattle. She was 100 years old.

     She died by the side of her husband of 76 years, Jacob, who said, “she passed with a smile on her face. She lived a full life as a vivacious person with an appetite for humor. Her warm, open personality made her loved by many and she will be missed.”

     Dahlstrom moved to Seattle at age 23 with her husband to pursue an education in Journalism at the University of Washington. She is survived by her husband, Jacob, and her son and daughter, Paul and Grace, all of Seattle.

     The family will receive visitors from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday at the Mercy Funeral Home, 4367 Hummingbird Lane. Burial will follow immediately at the Lake View cemetery. 

Blog Post #3 (Story #2)

County Commissioners Vote Against Sheriff’s Request

Sheriff Gus DiCesari of Anoka County had a heated discussion with the county commissioners on Thursday over equipment and personnel. The sheriff told commissioners that he needs money to purchase eight new police cruisers to replace old cruisers with over 150,000 miles on them. He said, “it is getting too costly to maintain older vehicles and they spend too much time in the repair shop. You commissioners eliminated the equipment budgets for my department this year and now I can’t buy anything. This is the first time in my 27 years as sheriff that the county hasn’t allocated money to the sheriff’s department to buy equipment. My deputies can’t keep driving these old vehicles. Something bad is going to happen.” He also mentioned that he wants to hire five new deputies.

The cars and salaries of five new deputies for a year total $580,000; Commission President Anne Chenn told DiCesari that he’ll have to make do without the money this year. DiCesari said, “you’re putting the lives of the people of this county in jeopardy.” Chenn suggested that deputies not drive their cruisers home each day as they do now to preserve mileage and to make more cars available at the station.

Commissioners estimate that there are 5,000 migrant families now in the county. Two of the county commissioners agreed with the sheriff, with the belief that they should spend more money on the sheriff’s department and law enforcement than programs for migrant workers who come to the county for work. Chenn disagreed and said that the county ran short of money this year because of health care for employees and higher fuel costs. The county also spent $30 million to build a new prison to alleviate overcrowding, taking from the total county budget of $127 million. After the debate, the commissioners voted 5-2 against the sheriff’s request for a budget to allow for new cruisers and more deputies.

Blog Post #2: Story #1

Two killed, 20 Injured in Car Accident

     Two people were killed today and 20 were injured in a multiple vehicle accident on Interstate 790 at 6:45 a.m. Four of the injured have life threatening wounds. The accident began when two tractor-trailers collided, and ended with four tractor-trailers and 14 cars, reports Sgt. Albert Wei of the police department. “One of the tractor-trailers was a tanker hauling diesel fuel; it was very lucky that it didn’t roll over and dump any fuel or catch fire,” Wei said.

     All five fire department ambulances responded to the accident, as well as ambulances from four neighboring fire departments. The Memorial Hospital Life Flight helicopter flew two of most injured people to the trauma center in Statesville, 50 miles away. The fire chief, Tony Sullivan, said his firefighters cut the roofs off 3 cars to free the people inside. The scene looked like a war zone, said Sullivan, with bodies in the road, people covered in blood, and emergency workers scurrying to help the injured as sirens wailed in the distance.

     Wei states that the police department is continuing the investigation into the accident; the police officers on the scene were having trouble figuring out who drove which vehicles, and who were the passengers. The accident closed the entire highway, causing major traffic for three hours during rush hour on Interstate 690. No reports of when I-790 will open have been given at this time.

Numero Uno!

Hello! My name is Nicole Zur. I'm a full time college student, a part time worker, and an avid novice blogger and writer. This is the second blog page I've created, at the request of my Media Writing professor.  Until recently I was pursuing a degree for a Ph.D. in Pharmacy. After months of thinking and discussing, I've decided to chase after a field that holds much more interest to me (writing!).

I love to read and write as often and as much as possible. In my few years of experience, I've learned much about the art of being a writer, and over these years it has held my interest. There are many of us out there who enjoy writing. Some of us are unbelievably experienced, but there are many, like me, who are just getting started. I hope to gain a brainload of feedback, editing, and experience with this blog. I know that to become a good writer is a long process. I don't doubt that I will flounder from time to time, probably in ways that I do not expect or could not imagine. I hope that you can bear with me on this learning curve and gain valuable insight into the world of professional writing.

To all readers, I want to say thank you for your interest in what I have to say, and I will be grateful for any feedback, criticisms or conversations.