1) I did 150 sit-ups & 150 push-ups for one day (Wednesday). I thought that I could push myself harder, so upped them to 200 per day on Thursday. It was easier than what I thought it would be and I could probably up them to 250-300 if or when I choose to do so. The hardest part is taking up the floor of our unit to do push-ups while my cell-mates are trying to carry on with their day.
2) My friend Mark went to the ICU on 3/31/25 and got back to the unit on 4/5/25. It sounds like he was building up fluid in the lining between his chest cavity & lungs – squeezing his lungs and making it hard to breathe. They drained the liquid and sent him back. On the 8th, he could not breathe at work & they sent him back to the hospital with the same diagnosis. Why they didn’t drain it then, I do not know, but they sent him back to prison. It is now Friday and he is really having trouble breathing – they said they will take him to the hospital on Monday for another procedure.
3) My one cellmate Tony, has been having issues with his blood pressure medicine. He has passed out 10+ times in the past 2-3 weeks. They finally put him in a wheelchair so that he doesn’t keep falling down. I remember someone saying not to get sick in prison – Mark & Tony’s situations really bring that message home!
4) My other cellmate, T2, will be going home in two weeks. Aaron should be going to RDAP (Residential Drug & Alcohol Program) in late May. Wolf will be going home at the end of June. As a result, we expect some turnover in our 6-man room over the next 3 months or so. I think that a guy we know will be moving down from another floor to take T2’s spot. I know that when Aaron or Wolf go, I will be moving from a top bunk to a bottom bunk.
5) I started my Spanish 2 class – it is held on Thursdays from 6-8 pm. I already learned quite a bit and will spend the weekend making up different sentence combinations to get a good grasp on our first lesson. Learning Spanish is one of my main prison goals, so having a class helps with that immensely.
6) I finished two book reports today and this journal. I will finish another book report early next week when I finish reading “The Scarlet Letter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne.
7) I don’t think a new administrator has been appointed to the BOP yet. Trying to find out more information on that, but it is hard without internet access. I heard someone is being appointed the middle of next week. I doubt that it will have an impact on those of us far down the totem pole, but it is interesting that the BOP has been running since January 20th without someone at the helm.
In summary, I am working towards the following goals:
1) Continuing to read the 85+ books on my original list I brought with me to prison. The list has since grown to 120 books in total as some got added after I heard about them & thought they were worthy of adding to the list. I have completed about 45 book reports (I tend not to do them if it is a fictional novel).
2) Continuing to exercise. I am now up to 200 push-ups & sit-ups per day – up from about 20 my first few days in prison. I have also lowered my body fat, but have not really dropped much weight. I tend to stay around 180 (it is hard to find a consistently accurate scale).
3) Focusing more effort on learning Spanish. Taking a class helps and now that I am in a class, I will spend more time and effort on this.
