Waking up to news of the tragic New Orleans terrorist attack overwhelmed me with sadness; only to be further enhanced by the deadly Cybertruck explosion in Las Vegas. I had to refocus the start to the New Year on positivity and hope without letting tragedy control the mood. Uneventfully a…
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Week 110: Happy Christmastime!
Yup, it’s Christmastime (again) – my third Christmas in prison, which is surreal to even think about. Inmates are an odd species. On Christmas Eve, we had a large entertainment event: two bands, four rappers, and two comedians performed for about 2 hours…none of the content dealt with Christmas themes….
Month 25: DOdGE This
Imagine a time during the interim of President George W. Bush’s second term…the year 2006. Phew, a lot has happened in our country since 18 years ago. Executively, President Barack Obama served two terms, then President Trump, then President Biden, a now President Trump. Throughout all these administrative changes, the…
Week 108: A Goose Is Bigger
No updates regarding the closure of FPC Morgantown have been shared with us. We are expected to be ready to move within a few hours’ notice, which is a welcomed change. At first, I was a bit anxious about where I would be relocated, but I cannot do anything about…
Week 107: FPC Morgantown Is CLOSING
Yesterday morning, the director of the Board of Prisons, Collette Peters, made a surprise visit to Morgantown to publicly announce the closure (or what is formally known as “deactivation”) of stand-alone prison camps, which includes Federal Prison Camp (FPC) Morgantown, Pensacola, and Montgomery. Preparations for this announcement were kept highly…
Week 106: I’ll Have Thirds – Happy Thanksgiving
Having been in Morgantown for two years, the upcoming holidays will be my third time celebrating them from the clink, which began with Thanksgiving on Thursday. While I blogged last week about the lapsing quality of the food being served, the Thanksgiving dinner was outstanding. Both white and dark turkey…
Week 105: Not For Human Consumption
When I arrived at FPC Morgantown two years ago, the almost home-cooked meals impressed me. Food quality, taste, and portions defied my prison expectations. Alas, budgetary restrictions relinquished the exceptional standards for meals. Now, the mess hall lives up to its reputation. Over the past year, the quality of food…
Year 2: The Terrible Twos
Just recently, I read a purely fictional whodunit book by Benjamin Stevenson, Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone, which is not my typical read. One quote interestingly reflects on prison: “Prison is a good perspective, it feels like everything stays still while the world spins around you.” Often, I…
Week 102: Case of the Mysterious Folder
In mid-September, a fellow inmate approached me to ask if I would be able to help him with his job. He was in a bind; he confided that he was transferring to another prison to be closer to home. Since the transfer was pending, he asked for my strict confidence…
Week 101: Band Camp
Over the past few weeks, the prison band, Another Day Down, has been practicing for an upcoming concert and graduation ceremony that we played on Friday. The graduation went really well. He played No Woman No Cry (Bob Marley), Southern Cross (Crosby, Stills, & Nash), Brown Eyed Girl, and Wagon…