Compiled by LAURENDONOVAN

Bismarck Tribune

In Bowman, the long arm of the law is wearing a sling at the moment.

Officer Chuck Headley is on duty despite his injury, and the main aspect of his work that's suffering is not apprehending miscreants, but how to type up reports one-handed.

Headley will wear the sling for another few weeks.

His injury happened in the line of duty and literally at the hands of another would-be officer.

Headley, an experienced officer from Nebraska, was among eight experienced officers in Bismarck for two weeks of training to become certified in North Dakota criminal and traffic law.

The eight were imbedded in a larger class of 35 in a basic law academy class.

While most of it was book work, there was physical instruction in self defense.

Headley was paired with another officer, a man he described as "a big boy, a deputy from Fargo. He'd been in the 82nd Airborne and served in Iraq."

In the instruction, Headley was armed with a knife and the other officer was instructed to disarm him. The "big boy" bent Headley's arm and then added a flip that put Headley over on his shoulder.

"It hurt, but I figured it was just a pulled muscle or a bad bruise," Headley said. He decided to seek medical attention, and an X-ray revealed his arm was broken up high near his shoulder.

He decided to finish the course, even though he worried how well he'd comprehend the material with the pain pills he had to take.

He did just fine and is now fully certified.

"I haven't missed a day of work," he said.

- Bowman County Pioneer

Not-so-bad day

When Wishek Star reporter Wanda Meidinger told her boss, Tony Bender, about her bad day, he used the incident in his weekly newspaper column, "That's Life."

As he described it, Meidinger was unhappily sidelined in Bismarck one evening, when she stopped at the repair shop to pick up the computer she'd dropped off that morning, only to find it hadn't been touched and wouldn't be until the night shift came on.

"It was frustrating," Bender wrote. "You know how it is. 'Just stop back tomorrow,' some clerk will advise, as if everyone lives 10 minutes from the mall. But you can't. Stopping back tomorrow means half of another day is shot, at minimum."

Meidinger headed to Wal-Mart for a few errands and found herself in line with a man she described as a "distinguished cowboy type," and both of them behind a mom who was at the checkout with her three young kids, ages 2 to 8.

They watched as the clerk announced the total to the mom, who stammered, "I ¦ I'm sorry. I don't have enough."

Bender wrote, "You've been there. You've seen this. You look away. Suddenly, the magazines and breath mints and batteries at the counter become just about the most interesting thing you've seen all day."

The mom looked at her necessities and told the clerk, "I guess I can take off the kids' coats."

The clerk efficiently and mercifully completed the transaction and the woman exited the store.

As she left with her kids, the cowboy stepped up. "Ring up those coats," he said. "I'll pay for them. Send someone out there to catch her ¦ and don't tell her who paid for the coats."

He paid cash, about $80, and a clerk sprinted out the door with them.

"Wanda (Meidinger) had tears in her eyes as she told me the story. I didn't. It was just a story about a bad day.

"Poor Wanda had to drive into the darkness, with the thought of that poor woman weighing on her mind. And the cowboy was out 80 bucks.

"But I suppose some bad days are better than others," Bender said.

- Wishek Star

Some like 'em hot

Judy Meyer closed up her seasonal drive-in in Crosby and found herself serving food in an unexpected location.

CGG Veritas, a company with a crew of 75 that's conducting a four-month, major seismic survey in Divide County, called on her to help get the men fed every day.

The company is using the former Bushel 42 pasta plant as its headquarters. Meyer shows up before dawn to set up a food line for workers to select grab-and-go items, ranging from fruit and vegetable bags, to juice and cinnamon rolls.

Many of the workers are Hispanic, and Meyer quickly learned they appreciate a hot burrito, filled with meat, beans, cheese and other ingredients. She makes about 100 each day, wraps them in foil and keeps them warming in a roaster.

"Muy caliente!" one says to her as he grabs his favorite burrito.

If anything, the guys only complain that the burritos aren't spicy enough.

She hopes to make lefse for the workers one of these days.

"We've even got Jose saying, 'Uff da!'" Meyer said with a laugh.

The early morning food service is much appreciated and Meyer said she enjoys getting to know the workers and their food preferences, like Ruben, who she says likes jalapenos so much, he'll eat them by the cupful.

"If I didn't have (Meyer), I don't know what I'd do," crew manager Dean McDade said.

- The Journal