Yesterday, I said my “goodbyes” and made my way to Litchfield. On the way to my new home for the summer, my mom and dad took me through Willmar to check out West Central Tribune where I’ll be working, which only made me more anxious for the morning.
From Willmar, it was a straight shot to my new home in Litchfield. I was lucky enough to find a cheap place to stay only 25 miles away. It’s a historical house called Rosemary Home, which was originally donated as a home for student nurses. Now, any female students with unpaid internships are welcome to stay in the home for just $100. Thankfully, they are letting me stay even though my internship is paid.
After getting a quick tour of the house, I picked my room. The first single room at the top of the stairs — number 5. Fortunately, the room is fully furnished — all I had to bring was my clothes. I said my last “goodbye” to my parents and began unpacking the bit of clothes and other little things I brought with. Then, I set out on a walk to explore the little town of Litchfield. Besides the random yells from strangers driving by, the walk was nice and peaceful. I wondered downtown by all the little shops, which were all closed because it was Sunday, and went to the little park to swing for a bit before turning back around. A little over an hour had passed before I arrived back at the house to write my half marathon post for my other blog.
Soon after publishing my post, I laid my head down to sleep. It had been a long day and I was exhausted. Unfortunately, I had forgotten to bring my sheets and comforter, all I had with was my fuzzy monkey blanket and two pillows. I struggled to fall asleep as crazy thoughts about ghosts and haunted houses filled my mind. I must have been at least half asleep before I finally looked at the time on my phone: 3:50. Luckily, after rearranging myself about 10 more times, I was finally able to get a few good hours of sleep before waking up for the first day of my internship. Thankfully I already knew what I was going to wear — a floral dress and blazer — so I didn’t have to change outfits several times like usual.
When I arrived at work, the editor Kelly Boldan brought me to his office and showed me a map of the city and county. He pointed out all the important streets and areas, where I’ll eventually have to go for stories. Then, he gave me a tour of the building and introduced me to all the staff, which was the highlight of my day. I was so excited to meet all the reporters and editors, who were very friendly and helpful, and also see the printing press and old archives upstairs.
After the tour, I learned how to use a couple of programs and went out to lunch with Ashley White, the community content coordinator. Ashley was the summer intern reporter a few years ago, so she was able to answer a lot of my questions about the internship and the town in general.
The rest of the day was spent trying to set up my email and other programs.
It definitely wasn’t what I expected for my first day, but now that I think about it I guess I didn’t really know what to expect. I’m looking forward to learning more about Willmar, getting to know the staff better, writing a lot of stories and taking on Sonshine!
Sonshine is a christian music festival in Willmar that I’ve always wanted to attend. The event lasts four days and brings thousands of people together to camp out and rock out to christian music. Each year, West Central Tribune sends their reporter intern to cover the event, writing several articles throughout the week. Every year, the event seems to bring extreme weather conditions. The last couple years, it has either been really hot and humid or cold and wet. But no matter what the weather brings, people still come out for the fun.
The Sonshine Festival may be a highlight of my summer, but I’m excited for all the little adventures I’ll have and all the amazing people I’ll meet along the way.
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