Another Member Departing 9/29 - 9/30

I am such a wuss when it comes to the cold. Last night the weather turned cooler – not so much colder but cooler. Yet, I donned a beanie, sweatshirt, and wool gloves. I am like a little old woman who never seems to get warm! All I need to complete my wardrobe is a shawl. I may never leave my room in December or January. I even made a hot cup of steaming tea last night. My goodness, what is wrong with me?

I almost talked my self out of running today as I almost went over to the Harvard Wall. After breakfast was served, I started earlier than usual and ran for 2 hours. I covered 15 miles in this time period and had much more left in my tank. This was the longest I have run since arriving here 4 months ago. One of these Saturdays I intend to do 30 miles which would be a good training method for the marathons I want to run next year. The run was excellent and I felt great when I was done. The pain in my calf is gone and the pain in the upper part of my left foot is still there but not as prominent as it has been over the week.

After writing 5 letters this morning, I went over to a friend’s room who is a member of “The View” and is departing tomorrow. This is the first time someone I know relatively well will be paroling. I went over to his room because the day before a person paroles, he has a locker sale. It is more of a giveaway than a sale. No one wants to take certain items home with them such as food and clothing so these things are given away. I walked away with a new lunchbox filled with pens, paper, envelopes, Gatorade, brand new tee shirts and other clothing in great shape. I also cane away with a brand new beard trimmer, even though I don’t have a beard! Hmmn, maybe I’ll grow one now that I have a trimmer??

I have gotten close to this friend over the past month as we cleaned the bathrooms together. This was his first term and most likely his last. The circumstances which brought him to prison were tragic and yet another horrible example of what an addiction can do to a person. I will miss him but I am very happy he is going home tomorrow. Everyone here does have a release date which is a wonderful thing. My friend has served close to 20 months and it is time for his release. I am the next one in our “circle of four” to parole but in the meantime I will continue to enjoy one day at a time.