TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2009
Writing From My Prison Cubicle
It's six p.m. and I'm writing from my assigned cubicle at Taft Federal Prison Camp. I'm going to bed shortly but first wanted to write my blog. I can hardly believe I'm now going to bed at 6 p.m. It's as if I'm an 80 year old man. Thank God I reside way in the back of the dorm where it's always quiet and dark.
Today I was writing in the large television room by 2:45 a.m.. A new inmate joined me at 4:30 a.m.. He woke early to prepare for his first commissary shopping. The first shopping day can be stressful (at least it was for me). Scores of inmates are standing in line, many of them pressing others to quickly load their items in plastic bags. I advise all new inmates to load items in your laundry bag. The plastic bags always break, I learned the hard way. Also ... don't gripe about the produce. Some shoppings are better than others. Don't be the guy who demands a new avocado because the one you bought needs another day to ripen. Make sure the commissary officer likes you.
At 8:30 a.m. I rode the stationary bike for an hour. I don't really care for the bike but it provides a necessary break from running. In the afternoon I took a nap, ate dinner at 3:45 p.m. (just like an 80-year-old man), and then mopped the floors. After that I prepared for the Entrepreneurial Compass class I co-teach on Mondays.
At 5:45 I brushed my teeth, flossed, then spent 10 minutes trying to get the floss out of my teeth. Through nine plus months at Taft, I've dedicated at least 10 hours wondering how the institution allows the sale of such cheap dental floss.
