Day: July 27, 2022

So, I’m guessing you were wondering when I would get back to my story. Well, after my crazy cellie was relocated I ended up with 2 more after her prior to my transfer to Cambridge Springs. The funny thing is, the next one was transferred to my cell because her cellie was acting crazy too. This girl, whom folks dubbed “penguin” because she actually resembled The Penguin in the Batman movies. (When you’re in jail/prison, you tend to end up with some sort of nickname). This girl actually tried to go after a Sargent and an officer with her razor. They unloaded a can of pepper spray when she wouldn’t comply to their requests to back down. So, my cellie was more than happy to have someone sane to live with. The insanity just continued throughout my time in classification. There was one girl whose name was Angel that was anything but one. Not only did she grab an unsuspecting girl by the back of her head and drag her down 4 steps and going to the hole, but she also came back and started hitting a friend of mine with the phone receiver for no reason. They eventually took her, and she didn’t come back. That’s what happens when you can’t play well with others. The one day we heard all this commotion out on the block. It was shower time, so we didn’t know what was going on. When you would go for a shower, you could wear either your nightgown or your clothes. You changed in the shower area or if you wore your nightgown you then changed back on your cell. You took all of your toiletries with you along with your towel, etc. Well, this crazy girl comes walking out with only her towel wrapped around herself. In front of EVERYONE. I hear the male guard come over the speaker, “I know I’m not seeing what I think I’m seeing!”. She claimed to have put all her clothing in the laundry. We are issued 3 pants, 3 t-shirts, 3 tops, and a night outfit, along with under clothes. You need to plan accordingly, or hand wash a lot of your items. For some, this was their first lesson in “adulting”. Aside from the once in a while crazy antics of those living around you, life is like “Ground Hogs Day” on the inside. Each morning starts at 6am with count. You must stand up, feet on the floor, lights on and be counted. After you are counted you can go back to sleep unless you have an appointment or other obligation. If you take meds that you aren’t allowed to keep with you in your cell (psych meds for example) then you need to get ready for medline. The call for breakfast is usually next, you can choose to go or not. There are 4 counts throughout the day, with the final one being before bedtime. Your life seems to revolve around those counts, and mealtimes. It’s your choice if you go to any of the meals. A lot of people don’t, because they chose to make something for themselves off of items, they bought off commissary. If they do go, sometimes it’s to get items needed to add to those recipes they are going to make. (This happens more in general population than in classification) You can go to the dayroom during specific times. There, you can talk to your friends, play cards, color, play games, etc. There are also specific yard times, where you can go to the yard to get some fresh air. In classification there isn’t much to do as far as activities outside of the block. You either went to dayroom, yard, or church. Otherwise, you were in your cell entertaining yourself with no tv, crappy books from the shelf (unless family sends you some) and talking to your cellie. You can buy a cheap transistor radio for $13. It’s worth it so you have something to listen to and pass the time. I also, did a lot of coloring, which was nice to then write letters home to on the back of them. I was in classification from August 31, 2019-December 24, 2019. It wasn’t the Christmas I was expecting that was for sure!