Earning my wings

"Squirrel chaser", "Rabbit chaser" that's what they're calling me, and I'm damn proud. Many of the people I work with have found out that I want to be a Law Enforcement Officer for DNR, and the name calling is the result. It's all in fun, but either way, like I said, I'm damn proud.
I've only been working this job 5 weeks and I can tell that I'm in for a bumpy ride. I have yet to have any formal training and that worries me slightly. Luckily I have a roommate that has been in the business for a while and he has been teaching me some basic tactics on patting someone down and cuffing someone. They all seem like really easy concepts to grasp until you add resistance. Resistance changes everything.
I have a few stories that I would like to share. None of them are feats of amazing strength or extremely crazy happenings, but they are my first experiences in the field of law enforcement and I feel like I have been learning at least some. There will be no addresses or names shared, just situations.

My first week was fairly uneventful. Which, to me, was great. My second week I had to end a dispute between a boyfriend and girlfriend where the male had her phone and wouldn't give it back. They were arguing in the parking lot and creating a lot of noise. I calmly asked him to give back the phone. He did so and left. It was pretty simple.
Later that night I came walked up on a group of men literally throwing another male out of the house. They had him by the arms and legs and tossed him into the grass. As I walked up on them the one that was thrown started yelling POLICIA! POLICIA!" and I could tell immediately that he was intoxicated. He could barely stand. The other men went back inside as I began to question the subject. First asking for his ID. He kept trying to hand me his cell phone and saying "Verizon Wireless." It was then that I realized that this man was far from intoxicated. He was smashed. I got on the radio and asked for assistance and dispatch decided to send me IMPD. When they arrived, they tried to get the same information out of him that I did. They were a little more successful, but not much seeing as I'm pretty sure he gave them a fake name, but he did screw himself over when he told us his birthday because it meant he was only 19. He was taken in on public intoxication and minor consumption of alcohol. The residents of the house told us that they had no idea who he was. He just knocked on their door and tried to force his way in, so they threw them out.
The next week followed with a couple of vehicles vandalized. I had one vehicle broken in to and stole some DVDs and a DVD player, but nothing else. The owner was pretty lucky because there was a lot in the vehicle, including her purse and they only took the two items.
One day as I arrived on shift IMPD was already on property. I was told by an officer the events that transpired. There are two females that live on opposite sides of the complex, but they both have the same boyfriend. (Here's where it gets good) The girl that he's been with longer found out, drove to the other side of the complex, found his car in front of the other female's building and proceeded, while he was in the vehicle, to ram his car with her's about 4 or 5 times. She was taken to jail on 4 felony counts and he was taken to the hospital. The other female was not injured.
The final story brings us back to the arguing couple that I interfered with earlier. I got a call from dispatch telling me that there was a 911 call at an apartment. There was no description of the call so I proceeded with caution. The female came to the door, tears in her eyes, and told me that her, now ex-boyfriend, has already left. He had tossed a red liquid on the door and as it leaked under the door she opened the door to investigate. As she opened the door he charged in and immediately went after her. She quickly dialed 911. He heard the operator on the phone and decided to flip her glass-top coffee table and then ran out the door. The table was shattered all over the floor. I kept a tight patrol around her building for the rest of the night. Even parking outside her building and keeping watch when it began raining.
Protect and serve, that's what I do. I may not be a police officer, but I still take my job just as serious. I am often the first to respond to a situation and the last to leave. You might think I take my job too seriously, but the way I see it, this is building my experience to a future career in law enforcement. I love my job and I hope that just my presence is enough to prevent someone from being harmed.

Good night everyone. I wish you a pleasant tomorrow, and a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and every other cultural holiday celebrated this time of year. If I don't write before it comes around have a happy New Year as well. And as 2010 rolls in always remember to watch your step.