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Leisure Time

Interview with Hugh, Jennifer and Johnny

JM: What types of facilities were available to help pass the time?
Hugh: NA/AA programs, pastors would visit, TV, books from the bookcart.
Jennifer: For me there wasnt any except church becuase i was PC butfor others there is computer classes, AA, GED, Yoga, church and you can watch TV. They offer these things to you but you dont have to go. they are mainley offered to Genral Population and the Honor farm. so its rare if you PC and get to go to one of those things.
Johnny: We were allowed use of the outdoor exercise areas several times a week while in Unit B and at least once per day while in the dorm-style unit. They provided a small rubber ball (blue in color) that we could use to play catch or handball with. Some of the inmates would do push-ups and sit-ups or jog around the perimeter of the exercise yard. There were no other facilities that I was allowed to use that were there to help pass the time, as far as I can remember, asid from the communal areas, where a TV was almost always on.

JM: Did you have regular access to the entertainment or was competition fierce? Give details.
Hugh: Changing the TV channel had to be a group decision.
Jennifer: When i was in iso i didnt have regular acess to entertainment. Your in a cell for 23-hours a day with 1-hour out to shour or walk the yard. When i was in GP i saw the TV the whole time we just watched what was on we didnt argue with it. sometimeds the officers would bring in dvds to watch.
Johnny: There was competetiton when the men would play handball and it was pretty fierce. Those who were good at handball would play regularly; the weaker players often did not get to play at all. I generally did not play but I did manage to get in a few games. The inmates were sometimes allowed to choose what channel the TV was set to, and there was sometimes some confrontation between inmates about this, but it never resulted in any fights.

JM: Did you have a hard time staying in shape while in jail?
Hugh: Yes, I would say so.
Jennifer: Um well sorta but no its hard to excersise in a small room with 3-4 people in it but that hour out you can run a bit or walk excercise but you have to be pretty motivated to. people gain weight due to medication and depression.
Johnny: I had a hard time staying in shape: yes. I did not want to exercise when we were let out into the yard. I would sometimes do push-ups and sit-ups in my jail cell (in Unit B). The lack of time spent in the exercise yard (sometimes no more than 2 or so hours a week) led to a lack of desire to exercise.

JM: How often did you get to go outside? What did you do outside if you were allowed to? If you were not allowed to go outside what could you do for exercise?
Hugh: Minimum requirement is 3 hours a week. If we were behaving we could go out a lot.
Jennifer: We were allowed out for an hour everyday and if not you can do situps pushups whatever you can think of i guess. There was one machine.
Johnny: In the dorm-style unit, we were given daily access to the outside (exercise yard, which was triangular in shape and no wider than perhpas 50 feet). In Unit B, we were only allowed sporadic access to the exercise yard. If not allowed to gout outside, all that I could do was do push-ups and sit-ups in my cell, usually late at night.

JM: Did the jail offer church services? If so, what were they like and when were they held?
Hugh: Pastors would visit, they would walk around to see if you wanted them to pray with you.
Jennifer: They did they were held sunday, wednessday and fridays. I got them once a week. They were really good and inspirational honestly you get a better messege from church services in jail then you do out.
Johnny: The jail had a pastor - I believe he was a pastor but I am not positive about that - come in and meet with inmates. He was there no more than 1 time per week, to my knowledge. He and the inmates would meet in the communal areas usually in the afteroon; I believe he would come on random days and not on a regular schedule. He and the inmates would usually meet for perhaps 45 mintues and then he would depart. Liek I said, he came on random days. I did not see him come all that often, as far as I can recall.

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