Category : Blogs

Sub Category : Motivation

February 1986.... 

After spending almost a year in Indian River County Jail, Carl was about to embark on a new chapter of his life. With both his hands and legs shackled and attached to a chain wrapped around his waist, he found himself sitting in a prison transport van along with a few other inmates. The destination - Union Correctional Institution aka The Rock; a Level 7 Maximum Security Prison well known as the notorious prison that gave a deep meaning to the phrase "hard time". It was a place where chain gangs and troublemakers were disciplined with beatings and measly meals of bread and water. It was a dangerous and deadening place where homosexual rape and drug use were common, and arguments were settled with homemade weapons. A place where the worst of the worst; the violent career criminals serving sentences of 25 years and longer were housed. That was a hell of a lot to take in for a mild tempered kid like Carl who had just turned 19 in December. He had heard all kinds of horrific stories about The Rock from some of the guys when he was in County and now that he was on his way to the most feared place in the State of Florida, he was scared shitless. Still, he kept himself in check and did his best to put up a brave front especially when he remembered a statement made by a guy he met in Country Jail by the name of John Player. 

"Newly arrived prisoners who seem weak are often "turned"; made into sex slaves to serve as a stronger inmate's sexual partner." 

That statement alone was enough to give him the creeps. 

When the van came to a halt and he and the other guys were led out of the van, he got his very first look of the infamous prison. It was huge; 3-storeys high with dull paint peeling walls that were like three feet thick. Carl felt intimidated by the size of the prison and by the stories and history it held. As they stepped out of the van, joined to each other by the chain around their waist, he could feel curious eyes watching them, sizing them up. Again, John Player's statement rang in his head. He stood up straight; pulled his shoulders back, pushed his chest forward and held his head high. He tried to make himself look bigger than his 5 feet 5 inches stature, which he hoped would make him look like a tough guy. As the guards led them through the receiving entrance of the prison, he could hear snickers, remarks, cat calls and even some wolf whistles among the crowd of curious spectators. 

"Hey sweetheart, you're so purrty. I'll be your big daddy, purrty baby," came a sneering voice in the crowd, followed by more wolf whistles and loud laughter. 

Carl kept his eyes straight forward, praying hard he didn't appear to look like a weak prey to men who have been holed up in the joint for God knows how long. Horny men with pent up sexual tension who were eager to find ways to sexually release can be real brutal animals and they are definitely not the kind of men he would want to mess with. An uneasy feeling enveloped him almost immediately. He wasn't planning on becoming anyone's sex toy. 

They were brought to the transit dorm for processing and orientation where they were also given the prison garb to wear. Putting on the blue pants, white T-shirt and blue shirt, another reality sank in. He was now really one of them; another reject of the society, another face in the crowd and just a number in the system. Who he was before didn't matter there. Who he is now doesn't matter there either. Nobody knew him there. No friends to turn to, no family to lean on, nobody in his corner. He felt like the new kid on the playground; alone, lonely and an outcast. Only, this wasn't a playground. This was a place of predators and prey, the strong and the weak, the powerful and the powerless. Nobody there knew that he was a joker, an entertaining storyteller or even a good and reliable friend. Nobody cared or gave a damn. 

In the transit dorm, they were met by the prison warden and some senior guards where they were given the "rules", the do's and don't's and a clearer picture of how the system worked in there. They were told that as the newcomers they would be staying in the transit dorm for the first few days for them to "settle in" before they were transfered to the regular dormitories. 

"Settle in"...? Carl wanted to laugh at the irony of that. How could anyone "settle in" in prison? Was it even possible? "How the hell am I going to survive in here? Will I be able to survive?" Question after question popped up in his head as he busied himself "settling in" after the briefing. 

Later that night after count time and lights out, he lay in bed deep in his thoughts. He thought of his mother and pictured her crying over him. He thought of his father and pictured him doing his best to comfort his mother. He thought of his little sisters, Becky and Dixie who were too young to understand what was going on and were probably confused by his sudden absence in their life. He was suddenly filled with deep sorrow and regret. He then thought of Vicky.... where is she? Did she manage to get back to her father's house in Sebastian Hills? Is she alright? The thought of her upset him even more. His last thought before he drifted off to sleep was of Stevie. How is he? Is Stevie as petrified as he was? 

Getting adapted to a new surrounding can be quite difficult for some as adjustments need to be made and the transition usually takes a little bit of time. But when you are forced into a situation you never dreamed you'd be in, like in Carl's case, how does one adjust and adapt to that? Would he even want to adapt to such environment?