Twenty-Two Months

Last night was “Chicken Fajita Night” in celebration of Mexican Independence Day. I believe most everyone has heard of Cinco de Mayo on May 5th which also celebrates Mexican’s independence. However, September 16th marked another day in their independence and the menu last night reflected this. I guess the Spanish translation of September 16th is not as marketable as Cinco de Mayo. This I learned from a Mexican inmate who I work with in the kitchen.

I just want to give a little background on the dinner menu from last night even though it has nothing to do with what I am about to write. Dinner consisted of two flour tortillas, chicken fajita mixture, whole grain brown rice, corn, beans, lettuce, and cake. As is always the case, I traded my meat, beans, and cake with my Bunkie for corn and rice. Each of us were making our own fajita which took a little time. One of my favorites is the whole grain brown rice and I was looking forward to making my own fajita. However, by the time I made the first one, the CO’s were dismissing us from the dining hall back to the dorm. We are released in rows and I was sitting in the back so I had a few extra minutes to finish. I did realize I had to eat faster in order to consume all that was on my tray.

As I accelerated my eating, I no longer tasted any of the food. My main concern was making sure I could eat as much as possible. I do enjoy the taste of rice along with the corn, but there was no way I could enjoy any of it. By the time my row was called for dismissal, I had stuffed the second fajita into my mouth and I was able to eat (actually, inhale) everything on my tray. I don’t know what it is but some days we are able to eat the entire dinner without being rushed, but on most days it’s eat as fast as you can or you won’t get enough. Thank goodness, I only have to eat one meal in the dining hall. I am able to eat whatever I like from the menu and take as long as I need while working in the kitchen for breakfast. Lunch is given in a brown paper bag. Some days I don’t have lunch and other days I’ll make a peanut butter or tuna sandwich. I always eat this in my bunk because there really isn’t any other place to go. So dinners are the only meal I have to cope with while the clock is ticking. It is remarkable because most inmates have gone through this before and they are some of the fastest eaters I have ever seen. I don’t believe they chew their food; I think they just swallow!

Before I forget – I need to report more on the mail process. This week on the 14th, I received a letter which was postmarked on August 22nd. The letter had the correct address and proper routing instructions, but it still took almost 3 ½ weeks to reach me. And, it was from Southern California! Also, my mother had sent two letters on the same day – September 5th. One came last Monday on the 11th and the other letter was received four days later on the 15th. Again, both of these letters had the identical mailing address. This just makes me scratch my head. Well, at least I am receiving at least one piece of mail each day which I so appreciate.


I fell asleep at 8:30 last night because I didn’t take a nap. I woke up at 10:30 and fell quickly back to sleep and woke up again at midnight. At this point, I was wide awake and ready to go to work. I was a bit disappointed to see it was so early. I was able to fall back to sleep a little while later. I will say that falling asleep so early does make the nights go by much faster and even though I am not doing much after work, the days go by much faster.

Speaking of days going by fast, I requested my Estimated Parole Release Date (EPRD) earlier this week. This is the date – give or take a few days – when I will be released from my sentence and placed on parole. My EPRD date is July 17, 2008. This would be 22 months from today. I am not sure if saying I have 22 months is such a good thing because it seems a long way off. Of course, my release date can change depending on where my next destination is. I have written about Fire Camp many times before so I won’t belabor that again. This means I would serve two years and eleven days of my sentence. Again, there is a formula which determines the date and it involves county jail time and state prison time. This really isn’t too bad because I have spoken to a few inmates who spent significant time in the county jail while their case was in progress. This is not earned as time in the state prison which is 2 days credit for each day served. County jail is different because one gets one day credit for three days served. That’s prison mathematics.

Judging how fast these last two months have gone, I only have to go through eleven more sets of these. (my convoluted math) Yes, time will pass and I suspect it will continue to go faster. At the very least I do have an end date to this ordeal. Also, I was a bit hesitant to request my ERPD because when I was speaking with my attorney after the sentencing, I asked whether my four-year sentence meant I would serve two years and be eligible for parole. His response was not very comforting, he said, “It should be.” I was expecting a definite answer but judging by his voice and body movements, he really wasn’t sure. Now I do know it’s correct which is a load off my mind. Now I can start the countdown clock and if I do get released earlier that would be even better.

In the kitchen this morning, we were saying farewell to four of the workers. Today marked their last day before moving on to their next destination. One of the four would be considered the “main guy”. He has been there for a few months and pretty much has full run of the kitchen. He makes special meals for the mainline inmates and CO’s. He knows all the ins and outs of the kitchen which includes all the hiding places which brings me to the next point. After we had finished cooking (actually heating) the food, I noticed this particular inmate crawling under the ice machine. He pulled out two full plastic bags of various condiments and ten cinnamon rolls which were leftover from yesterday’s breakfast. I tried not to stare but I was amazed as to how many items he was pulling out from underneath the ice machine. I guess the old adage of “where there is a will, there is a way” applies because he certainly wanted these items for his last day. As I was watching him, I didn’t want him to notice me and I am fairly sure that he didn’t.

After he was finished, I turned my head for a second and he literally disappeared - he was gone in a flash. I was wondering what he was going to do with the cinnamon rolls because we couldn’t take them back with us because the last time they were taken back, the CO was reprimanded for that. Under no circumstances were we going to be allowed to carry the cinnamon rolls across. I go back to my previous saying – this inmate has the will to get these rolls back to the dorm. We all went through the checkpoint and there were no problems because no one had any rolls. After the checkpoint is where we receive our additional pay in the form of the sack lunch plus an additional one. Usually a CO gives out these lunches, but on the weekends sometimes an inmate who is part of the kitchen crew hands them out. Today, an inmate from the kitchen was handing out these lunches. Guess which one? Yup, the inmate who runs the kitchen and who pulled out all the cinnamon rolls. Hmmn, I wonder why? When I got back, I opened up the two bags and in one was an extra bag of fritos and an extra bag of chocolate chip cookies. In the other bag, was the regular lunch – peanut butter, jelly, bread, fritos, chocolate chip cookies and a bonus surprise! A Cinnamon Roll!! Where there is a will, there is certainly a way.

Finally, remember there are 28 of us who work in the kitchen and there were only 10 rolls. The inmate who did this was of another race than mine. I felt very privileged to be among the few who received this surprise. I had to thank him, but before I even had a chance, he came over to my bunk area and asked whether I received the surprise. I responded, “Yes” and thanked him very much. I guess I did something right to receive this and I will miss this inmate when he leaves tomorrow because the kitchen will not be the same.