"Trailer Park"

As we sat around the table last night, one of the C/O’s stopped by. This is the third time this particular C/O has stopped by to talk with us. He is relatively new to the camp and is here on a temporary basis. I had asked him if he was going to stay here permanently, and he answered with an emphatic “No!” As we talked further, I came to find out he wants to go to another camp up north. According to him, that camp is not a “trailer park.” The reference of “trailer park” was directed at the camp here because all of the buildings are modular’s. I never thought of the camp as a “trailer park” until he made this comment. It is, indeed, fitting since even the arrangement of the modular buildings is very reminiscent of a trailer park. Even though it really is a trailer park, I do like the setup of the camp, and I certainly enjoy the two-man rooms. We had an interesting conversation with the C/O who seems to be a regular guy. I haven’t had much, if any, interaction with C/O’s mostly by design because I am keeping my nose clean at all times, and my interaction has been “ Yes, sir/ma’am and no ma’am/sir. This has worked very well for the past 13 months and continues to work every day.

The night came to an end last night, and once again, the evening flew by. The 5-1/2 hours between when I get back from the grade to when I go to sleep are the fastest part of my day. Each night consists of showering, eating dinner, writing, talking, and reading (mostly in that order). The time does certainly go by. Last night, I had the opportunity to speak with my mother as she had just returned from Jamaica. Everyone had a wonderful time, and my children were “great” in every respect. It sounded like a very nice place, and the entire family enjoyed themselves. My mother also informed me of some good news. My wife is receiving my 401K from my former employer after all. My mother didn’t know why all of a sudden my wife will be receiving the fund, but this is certainly great news and should alleviate some of my wife’s financial anxieties. This is the first of a few other items that need to be rectified in the coming months. I had no doubt that the 401K would be given to my wife. It just took a little longer than expected. Once again, everything does work out for the very best.

I turned in at my usual time and had a very vivid/deep dream. This dream was lifelike, and when I woke up from it, I had to check my surroundings. In the dream, I was in a house (presumably mine and my wife’s house) with my wife and family. Weird things were happening which I really can’t explain. I could feel my wife and children all throughout the dream, which made it lifelike. I haven’t had one of these dreams in a very long time, and it appears my subconscious is picking up. I don’t seem to get enough deep sleep for these types of dreams, but last night, I had to be in a very deep sleep since the dream seemed so very real.

I woke up at my usual time, and now I make sure one of the guys in another dorm is awake before I start my exercising. There are a handful of guys who exercise (all except for one lift weights), and each day that I run I run right by the weightlifting area. I know most of the guys, and one of them had asked me a few weeks ago if I would make sure he was awake each morning. I don’t mind being a human alarm clock because, as I have mentioned, these are very good guys here, and I want to help out when I can. This also helps me to get up because now I am not only accountable to myself but to another person as well. As it turns out, this person has been awake each day I went into his room.

The early morning hours are so serene. Just like on Monday, the first 25 minutes of my run was in the dark. I got to the half-way point of my run, which is the 45-minute mark, and was very surprised. I had run for 45 minutes but it felt more like 20 minutes. I have stopped training for speed because it is very difficult for me to incorporate speed into the hill running. I know I am not covering the miles I would normally cover if I ran on a flat surface. The hills do make me run much slower, and it is more taxing on the fronts (quadriceps) of my legs. It does seem as if I have slowed down considerably, but my endurance level has increased significantly as was witnessed today with my thinking I only run 20 minutes when, in fact, I had run 45 minutes. It was a very good run and, once again, a great way to start my day.

Breakfast this morning was extremely filling, and it seems my friend, who helps to order the food, is certainly adding to my caloric intake. He has become my adopted “Jewish grandmother!” He is always urging me to eat more, and this morning it worked as I consumed too many pancakes and too much oatmeal. I believe I did him proud, and as he says, “Please eat more because as I watch you run, I get hungry!” I do burn a few calories with my running workouts, and one of the reasons for my workout is so I can eat more. On days I don’t work out (only Sundays as of late) I seem to eat much less. I am not concerned with gaining weight, and as one of my friends said at the table, “We don’t want Paul (me) to turn into an Ethiopian!” I certainly wasn’t looking for attention, but I have gotten it when it comes to my eating and exercising.

The workday arrived, and we went to a completely different place for the third day in a row. We didn’t venture far from the camp (only 30 minutes away). We went into a nearby town. Our task was to clean up an abandoned park. I had no idea of the last time this park was inhabited as everything was overgrown. I quickly grabbed the trust weed trimmer and weed whacked away. Unfortunately, the only area in need of weed trimming was the parking lot as the rest of the area will be serviced by a tractor. I was finished weed whacking by lunchtime, so I had to pick up a manual tool. I went with the soft rake and raked the parking area. This task is one of those which could last for weeks because there is so 16 guys with chainsaws, weed trimmers, Macleod’s, rakes, pole saws (long saws for branch trimming) and other assorted tools can do. Much of the day was spent with the chainsaw crews cutting up trees into firewood. These were rather large trees which had been downed years ago as they were very dried out. I don’t know the plans for this area, but it does have a lot of potential if the community is willing to spend money. There is plenty of room for a baseball and soccer field along with a playground. Hopefully, something good comes of this area, and our crew provided a great start.

It was back to camp and my afternoon ritual. After my shower, I realized the counselor was here. Normally, the counselor arrives on Thursdays, so this was unexpected. I did need to see her to ask about my parole plans. I waited in line for a while (30 minutes) and finally got to see the counselor. I have realized, since arriving into this system over one year ago, that I must NOT take anything for granted. For whatever reason, my last year seems to have been plagued with delays from the county jail all the way to here. The last thing I want is a delay on my parole, which is my release date. I have already suffered an internal delay on by release date which was pushed back three days later than expected. I approached the counselor and asked her if she had my parole plans. She replied, “We signed parole plans already.” This was news to be because I was not aware of this. It took me a few minutes to convince her that I have NOT signed any parole plans. She then thought that it must be an oversight, and when she returns in two weeks, she “should” have my parole paperwork. The counselor seemed more upset about this than me. I have become accustomed to this, and maybe, I have been conditioned since I was not upset. I was a little put off, but I do know everything will work out perfectly. We also talked about the possibility of transferring parole to another state. I mentioned two states, Nevada and New Jersey, to her. She said Nevada was not a problem but she didn’t know about New Jersey. I never mentioned the restitution issue because I didn’t want to confuse her. I do know the parole process will work out for the very best, and I will be back with my family very soon.

The quick meeting with the counselor was over, and it was on to dinner. I made my “Jewish grandmother” very proud by accepting a second slice of apple pie. A big broad smile came across his face, and he said, “You made me very proud!” Dinner was once again very filling with more than enough Spanish rice and refried beans. I even had leftovers that I placed in my bowl. This food thing is really working out very well.