Dear friends and family,
Well, no gang fights this time, but I did hear about a seal fight…. Ya, I didn’t know what that was either. It’s when two guys fight in the showers. LOL. There’s lots of funny slang in here.
January 2021: The Education. Department closed for Christmas and was supposed to reopen Jan 4, but because our Covid numbers were spiking it didn’t. And since I’m the Education Department Clerk that meant I didn’t have to work until it reopened (which ended up being six weeks later). The break came with great timing.
As you might know, I’ve been into yoga for about ten/twelve years. I even took the B.K.S, Iyengar Yoga Institute Teacher Training, and taught. But late in the game, as I progressed in my own practice, I unearthed an old spinal injury - baked into some pretty stubborn tension. Bodies are amazing though, because they just work around things like that. The drawback in that muscle imbalances form, and over time cause problems of their own - like pain from the muscles pulling on joints.
Three years ago I was right in the thick of unpacking this when I spent a week using a laptop, sitting hunched over in a caravan (it was the only place I could work). Boom. That old injury freaked out. The next six months were filled with insane pain. Which was right before I turned myself into the F.B.I. and came here. Which meant no professional help once I got here, and way too much lying on a bunk.
Nevertheless, the pain has mostly subsided. But I’m left with a mixture of that old injury and how my body freaked out and settled recently. I tried doing yoga to fix it but it was painful to do on the concrete floor. And what I was able to do wasn’t working. So, I turned to any type of physical-therapy exercise I could get my hands on. It helped me regain some strength, but its also difficult to do on the concrete. Very frustrating. BUT, then I got a leg up. At the end of December I was in my cell doing some exercises one a cardboard box when this little tattoo-filled gangster walked by: “I’ve got something you want,” he nodded. “I’ll be right back.” One minute later he returned with a light-blue, rolled-up yoga mat. You can’t get yoga mats here. Waaaaaaaat? Well, he says he got it from a guy who came off death row, where they are allowed. And I can have it for three soda pops. Sold!
At first I was afraid to use it but the staff have seen it and seem OK with it for now, even though it could be confiscated at any time. So, I’ve been making hay while the sun shines. January and half of February consisted of (besides daily chores etc ) a physical therapy workout in the morning, ping-pong after lunch, and then yoga in the afternoon.
For all that work, I do feel like I should be looking better than I do (fighting that middle-age man bod - yikes!), but I’ve made some progress with my injury. Hallelujah! The yoga mat - which is even a good quality one - has made all the difference. What a God send. Gratitude.
You might also remember that my mom and I started Pilates. At the moment we’re still mastering the warm ups and making sure we’re getting the basics right. BUT, the Pilates core principle of drawing your navel to your spine - an instruction I didn’t seem to pay enough attention to in yoga - has been pivotal in how my yoga is helping me now. I’m looking forward to getting further into Pilates during this year.
February 2021: First, Oregon is pretty liberal and one of a few states that put prisons into the first round of Covid vaccines. I got my first Moderna shot on February 9. Apparently guys become total babies when they get sick and it was just like that. Waaaaaat! Jokes. But yea, it was. Sore, achy, headache, chills. But it was gone two days later and ibuprofen made a big difference. I’m comin’ to get ya Covid.
Next, on Feb 22 our six-week Covid break ended and I went back to work. I also got a new boss. So far she’s been really nice to work with. She’s been making nice tweaks to the system and likes to hear input. I’m so happy with my job here. In fact, the longer I’m here - given the options - the more I realize what a great job it is. And how fortunate I was to find myself in the right place at the right time to get it. Mucho gratitude.
Lastly, I’ve had some really good dinners this year. Since Covid started, to help with social distancing, we’ve been allowed to take food back to our cells if we want (we can buy Tupperware bowls from the commissary). One day I did. When I got back I added some hot sauce to it, a little water, and put it in the sink. Then I jammed the hot water button with a shampoo bottle and left it running for about forty-five minutes.
Yummy! Way better than it was before. So I’ve done it almost every day since. I normally choose the vegetarian tray to do it: beans, some rice, some veg. - broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, bell peppers, or green beans depending - and then my sauce. I also add jalapeño peppers sometimes. And if I add the really-hot hot sauce, then I eat it with unsalted peanuts and its like Thai food. Best food I’ve had in ages.
And that’s about it for now. Oh, I forgot to mention that my brother bought me a book on Ping-Pong. Haha, loved it. A couple guys and I have been smashing it. Sometimes it misses the net and lands on the table! So fun (when I win hehe).
So yea, my year has started off pretty well. I hope you are doing well too. I’d love to
hear from you! And thanks for checking in here. My next post will be the second of those three essays I mentioned before. This one is a satire, and may or may not be funny.
Love you,
Barrett
Check out my next bog: A Satire: Binary 101
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