In my mind, I was going to organize all of my posts in chronological order. That makes sense, right? But you know what? Things do not always make sense. Life is not always organized, nor does it usually go as planned. So, why on earth would my blog? Its not going to. I apologize if that is not your style, but I want to focus on substance rather than just following a guideline. So, were going to go ahead and skip my 2 months of jail and go right into the good stuff. P R I S O N
At 3am I get called to "Pack it up, you're on the next prison run!" --- now let me tell you, this is one of the strangest feelings. You are overwhelmed with so many emotions, anxiousness, fear, excitement, etc. Anyone who has ever been to prison tells you that it is 10x better than the county jail. So, you kind of have something to look forward to. Not only that, but you can begin this chapter and hopefully close it as quickly as possible! In the State of Florida you are allowed to bring: 1 bottle of shampoo, 1 bottle of conditioner, 2 deodorants, 2 bars of soap, 1 tube of toothpaste, 1 bottle of lotion, 1 toothbrush, and 1 hair brush. All of your products must be unopened because they don't want anyone trying to smuggle anything. If you know you are going to prison, it is in your best interest to keep these unopened products on you at all times, because you never know when you will be on the prison run. You are not allowed to know because it is considered a "breach of security". They don't want your crazy friends/family trying to hijack the prison bus. Anyways, so all of your tasty treats cannot come with you. I chose to give the remainder of mine to a few girls I became close with.
You have approximately 10 minutes to "pack it up". Then all of the people on this list are transportd to another area of the jail. We were given brand new white t shirts and navy blue shorts to wear. We had to quickly change out of our orange jumpsuits and into our new clothing. I kept my original undershirt, so I could have two when I went to prison. So, we are all being rushed to dress out as quickly as possible---------just to be told to sit down and wait for our transportation. Department of Corrections. Always in a big hurry to W A I T! After a good 3 hours we are told to raise to our feet as we are all hand cuffed behind our backs. Now mind you, we still are carrying our trash bags full of hygiene. Yes, they were kind enough to give us our own individual black trash bags. To my surprise, we did not load into a bus, but a "Dog Catcher Van", as on of the girls called it. It was a white van that is split in half by a wall and has a bench on each side. So pretty much you are facing this wall with people on the other side of the wall. There are little holes that if you squint your eyes you are able to see the other people. The bench is hard as hell and your thighs are touching the person on both sides of you. Its a very claustrophobic area. Not only are you praying to arrive in one piece, but you are praying the person next to you doesn't get sick! Ugh, can you imagine?
After about 5 hours of banging my head on the metal wall, poor quality jokes, and the reoccurring "Damn, we're really going to prison bro!" comment, we finally reached our destination. Or so I thought. The van slows down, goes over too many bumps, and I continue to rub against the person next to me sighing a "Sorry!". The van comes to a halt and I hear the sound of keys and the door being unlocked. The doors fly open and the sunlight rushes in, nearly blinding all of us. "C'mon C'mon! Let's go! Out of the van. We ain't go all day. We tryin' to go to lunch, hurry up and get the hell out!"......Oh, I guess we were interrupting their lunch break? Here I am trying to survey the barbed wire fences and big white buildings. Imagining what my new residence is going to be like. When one of the ladies from the van says, "Oh baby, this isn't it. We just gettin' checked in. Girl, we still got another bus ride and about 4 more hours!".....Now, I'm really confused, but that lady has been to prison like 3 times, so I am going to trust what she says. We get inside a room with about 40 other women, all wearing different county jail outfits. Apparently we were the last to arrive and they had been waiting on us. The room had school desks lined up and we were told to sit down with our belongings. Row by row the women got up and were told to take off each individual piece of clothing. One by one, they were told to remove a piece of clothing and shake it out. Then they had to lift their arms (so the officers could see they were not concealing anything under their armpits), spread their fingers, life their boobs, open their mouths, finger their gum line, stick out their tongue and lift it up, turn around, raise their feet and wiggle their toes-------then the best part. Grab their lady parts, bend and cough three times! Yes. We really have to do that. I can honestly say that is the most mortifying thing I have ever had to do.....and I've had to do it so many different times. And it was NEVER something I became used to. It never got easier. After I was completely violated by an entire room of strangers, my trash bag was ram-sacked and the officer chose what was allowed to be kept and what would be kept in her trash can. At this point I didn't even have it in me to question it. I just wanted to put my clothes back on and curl up into a ball and fade away.
However, I did not get that option. I was shoved onto a big white prison bus and told I was to sit all the way in the front away from all of the other prisoners. I was sentenced as a "youthful offender" and it was their job to keep me separated from the general population. So, I could completely strip down with the, but I wasn't allowed to sit next to them on a bus? What sense did that make? Oh wait. Nothing in this system makes any sense! I was handed a brown paper bag with two sugar cookies and two bologna sandwiches. I hate bologna and the cookies had a really strange after taste that did not sit right with me. Somehow I managed to pass my bag to one of the ladies who nearly inhaled hers. The bus ride wasn't as bad as the van. We had real windows and fresh air. I no longer feared anyone would get motion sickness and throw up on me. I was in the front by myself in wht looked like a cage It was literally separated from everyone else. A cage inside of a cage. Tht's when the bus slowed down and it came into view. The place that I would spend the next four years of my life. It looked extremely similar to a concentration camp with the rectangular buildings, barbed wire, and fields. This was my next chapter and I wasn't so sure how ready I was to turn the page.....
Stay tuned for more of my adventures from prison!
Sincerely,
Allison
At 3am I get called to "Pack it up, you're on the next prison run!" --- now let me tell you, this is one of the strangest feelings. You are overwhelmed with so many emotions, anxiousness, fear, excitement, etc. Anyone who has ever been to prison tells you that it is 10x better than the county jail. So, you kind of have something to look forward to. Not only that, but you can begin this chapter and hopefully close it as quickly as possible! In the State of Florida you are allowed to bring: 1 bottle of shampoo, 1 bottle of conditioner, 2 deodorants, 2 bars of soap, 1 tube of toothpaste, 1 bottle of lotion, 1 toothbrush, and 1 hair brush. All of your products must be unopened because they don't want anyone trying to smuggle anything. If you know you are going to prison, it is in your best interest to keep these unopened products on you at all times, because you never know when you will be on the prison run. You are not allowed to know because it is considered a "breach of security". They don't want your crazy friends/family trying to hijack the prison bus. Anyways, so all of your tasty treats cannot come with you. I chose to give the remainder of mine to a few girls I became close with.
You have approximately 10 minutes to "pack it up". Then all of the people on this list are transportd to another area of the jail. We were given brand new white t shirts and navy blue shorts to wear. We had to quickly change out of our orange jumpsuits and into our new clothing. I kept my original undershirt, so I could have two when I went to prison. So, we are all being rushed to dress out as quickly as possible---------just to be told to sit down and wait for our transportation. Department of Corrections. Always in a big hurry to W A I T! After a good 3 hours we are told to raise to our feet as we are all hand cuffed behind our backs. Now mind you, we still are carrying our trash bags full of hygiene. Yes, they were kind enough to give us our own individual black trash bags. To my surprise, we did not load into a bus, but a "Dog Catcher Van", as on of the girls called it. It was a white van that is split in half by a wall and has a bench on each side. So pretty much you are facing this wall with people on the other side of the wall. There are little holes that if you squint your eyes you are able to see the other people. The bench is hard as hell and your thighs are touching the person on both sides of you. Its a very claustrophobic area. Not only are you praying to arrive in one piece, but you are praying the person next to you doesn't get sick! Ugh, can you imagine?
After about 5 hours of banging my head on the metal wall, poor quality jokes, and the reoccurring "Damn, we're really going to prison bro!" comment, we finally reached our destination. Or so I thought. The van slows down, goes over too many bumps, and I continue to rub against the person next to me sighing a "Sorry!". The van comes to a halt and I hear the sound of keys and the door being unlocked. The doors fly open and the sunlight rushes in, nearly blinding all of us. "C'mon C'mon! Let's go! Out of the van. We ain't go all day. We tryin' to go to lunch, hurry up and get the hell out!"......Oh, I guess we were interrupting their lunch break? Here I am trying to survey the barbed wire fences and big white buildings. Imagining what my new residence is going to be like. When one of the ladies from the van says, "Oh baby, this isn't it. We just gettin' checked in. Girl, we still got another bus ride and about 4 more hours!".....Now, I'm really confused, but that lady has been to prison like 3 times, so I am going to trust what she says. We get inside a room with about 40 other women, all wearing different county jail outfits. Apparently we were the last to arrive and they had been waiting on us. The room had school desks lined up and we were told to sit down with our belongings. Row by row the women got up and were told to take off each individual piece of clothing. One by one, they were told to remove a piece of clothing and shake it out. Then they had to lift their arms (so the officers could see they were not concealing anything under their armpits), spread their fingers, life their boobs, open their mouths, finger their gum line, stick out their tongue and lift it up, turn around, raise their feet and wiggle their toes-------then the best part. Grab their lady parts, bend and cough three times! Yes. We really have to do that. I can honestly say that is the most mortifying thing I have ever had to do.....and I've had to do it so many different times. And it was NEVER something I became used to. It never got easier. After I was completely violated by an entire room of strangers, my trash bag was ram-sacked and the officer chose what was allowed to be kept and what would be kept in her trash can. At this point I didn't even have it in me to question it. I just wanted to put my clothes back on and curl up into a ball and fade away.
However, I did not get that option. I was shoved onto a big white prison bus and told I was to sit all the way in the front away from all of the other prisoners. I was sentenced as a "youthful offender" and it was their job to keep me separated from the general population. So, I could completely strip down with the, but I wasn't allowed to sit next to them on a bus? What sense did that make? Oh wait. Nothing in this system makes any sense! I was handed a brown paper bag with two sugar cookies and two bologna sandwiches. I hate bologna and the cookies had a really strange after taste that did not sit right with me. Somehow I managed to pass my bag to one of the ladies who nearly inhaled hers. The bus ride wasn't as bad as the van. We had real windows and fresh air. I no longer feared anyone would get motion sickness and throw up on me. I was in the front by myself in wht looked like a cage It was literally separated from everyone else. A cage inside of a cage. Tht's when the bus slowed down and it came into view. The place that I would spend the next four years of my life. It looked extremely similar to a concentration camp with the rectangular buildings, barbed wire, and fields. This was my next chapter and I wasn't so sure how ready I was to turn the page.....
Stay tuned for more of my adventures from prison!
Sincerely,
Allison
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