We are here now, Jail
things. (The use if the term *Things* after select nouns, has been quite
fascinating of late). For those who
think a jail is one of those words I try to use to hide the meanings of others,
it is not. So Jail/ Prison in this case is not Tahiti, it is not the Timam
local, it is not porn, it is not Super Mambo, it is not the mental turmoil that
we under go through, it is not that private addiction that we face, no. I mean
the jail where criminals are kept. Jail, jela, prison, penitentiary, guardroom,
cell, kibuyu, rumande, etc… This is with all the security that
comes with it. Where people found guilty of minor crimes are held or those awaiting
legal judgment. This institution is designed to securely hold people convicted
of various crimes. Now, in these places, we have a variety of criminals. From the
chicken thief to the one convicted of robbery with violence.
Do not get lost
yet, I am giving a general overview of prisons. I am yet to get to my case. As you
would expect, those who have committed the most grievous of offenses spend
longer than those who have committed less heinous offenses. This can be to such
an extent as life sentences. For one to be a criminal. They have to be “successfully”
accused of violating a criminal law. However, for one to be in prison, they
need not necessarily be “Successfully” accused of violating a criminal law. You
got what I mean there, right? We have innocents here as well. This is whereby punishments
for crimes are established and ensures the proper regulation of investigations
and the prosecution of those accused. It is also important to mention that the
term “Penitentiary” is also the same as prison to some extent. The only catch
with this ‘sweet’ term, is that back in the day, somewhere in the 1700s, the
bigwigs back then believed that prisoners would become remorseful (another term
for remorseful is “penitent”) if they
could study the bible in solitary confinement and thus help them reform their
behavior. Therefore, it is generally agreed that the role of prisons throughout
the world is to punish criminals by restricting their freedom.
Jail or Prison? The jail is a facility used to
confine adults who have short-term sentences, as well as housing individuals
awaiting trial. Prisons house long-term offenders. Now, Cb here is in Jail. My
offence, I said I am yet to mention it, or never. You have seen the movies and
most of what is here is there, or probably the other way round. Some of what is
there is here. I expected things from novels and movies. Things that never
happened here, for instance, there were no mug shots, there was no pressurized naked
bath on entry, there are no communal baths, there are no lines for food, there
was no clothes exchange, I am not in a DOC labeled overall and there are no
wardens with canes and stun guns, standing all over. However, there are armed ‘guards’
outside the perimeter ready to shoot incase of any stunts on our part. The kind
of jail I am in is somehow of a special kind. I cannot tell it all as it is
otherwise I will be transferred to a real one like Kamiti, before my time. There
are several complexes of independent jails, complete with two cells each, a
laundry and lavatory section and grounds the size of two lawn tennis courts,
complete with a high wall with an electric fence and the razor sharp barbed
wire. There are several of these in this establishment and each can only house
at most eight inmates at a go. I do not know if you get what I mean?
Think of it as a gated community, only that it is
a jail-gated community. Now for bungalows or alternative, we have the jailhouses.
Several of these are what make up this jail community. I will not be disclosing
its exact location though. However, you would not even realize it exists. The difference
between this establishment and the others is that it is officially unofficial. It
is an establishment for people who work in highly regarded places, secret
assignments, and foreign criminal on transit and thus the inmates cannot be in
other establishments to avoid constant
hustling from people in various positions in governments, security systems and
other classified institutions.
Inmates here are well sorted, as I realized. It is
classy in a way. Maybe that is because I am so positive about my experience in
this place. Shower time is a personal affair; you are alone in your own time. Most
of the time is spent reading. On my part that is. My new family likes passing
time with poker. I have never been confident with my poker skills, but I know,
I am good. No gambling is involved though. We receive newspapers on specific
days and we have the choice of picking which papers we want to read. I have a special
liking to the free issues inside the dailies. Politics via the media is
alarmist, and these publishing houses have found puppets in readers to deviate
them in the way of the bigger manipulators of our society.( A reason I do not
do conventional news) I am not a fan of politics. Maybe someday in the future
but I can hold a sane conversation when one arises. I also have several novels
on my kindle and digital editions of various magazines on my devices. These keep
me busy. What else, there are no gays. So forget about “… pick! The soap
brother, the soap…” crap that happens in the movies. Actually when I started
saying that the inmates were well sorted, I meant they are comfortable. I later
realized that the whole condom verbal drama on admission was a ploy to tease
and depress me. Inmates who need their significant others to come “sort them”
out get the privilege over the weekends or public holidays depending on who is
on duty and how good you are with “local arrangements” and “talking nicely” to
the wardens. There are no dry spells here. So far, I have not needed any of
that. I am well distracted.
The food. It is awesome. Breakfast of bread,
coffee (Dormans, first grade with milk) and eggs is served around 7 am. I know
you all know Kahawa No 1. That is the kind of coffee we have. Only that now the
brand is Dormans. Lunch at midday is an awesome rice, buttered mashed potatoes,
beans stew separate and beef stew separate and soup. We also have a fruit every
day. Balanced all the way. Dinner is served at 5ish in the evening. The only
disadvantage is we get hungry early I the night. Therefore, we sourced another
dish where we serve food for “Lunch” the term we gave for 11 – midnight meal we
have before we retire for a night’s sleep. This meal is ugali, beef and cabbage
made the right way. We do not queue as they do in those movie penitentiaries. As
I said, this is a special kind of place and so each jailhouse has a max of eight
inmates. We are like a family, a big brother house of sorts. So come mealtimes,
we are allowed to serve ourselves, but under the supervision of the wardens. I
forgot to mention that we also get coffee in the evening as well. Do you know
how much hot beverage you have in a day? My cup is 500ml. That is a liter of
this stuff by bedtime. Snacking is allowed since we have visitations or we can
send the wardens to buy grub for us. So in between these meals, I have been
having biscuits, cookies, crisps, and all these other things that I have not
been having in my ordinary time. That was one of the realizations while in
here, my life out there was so controlled, but under the control in these walls
I have the freedom to be who I am and enjoy the finer things in life that I
usually restrict myself. To an extent, it’s a big shame on my part. That was a
snack too.
So you see, I am in Jail, but I am not in “jail”. That
is why; I am not for lamenting over my perceived hardship in this place as well
as all the “His life has come to an end”
mentality that most want to instill in me. As long as my positive mental
attitude is concerned, it is enough to fuel me for the entirety of my sentence here.
When I am bored of writing, reading, or chatting, I skip rope and do some few mild
cardio related exercises. I gotta keep fit, you know, life is still out there
waiting for me…
KRISCALF EXPOSED
Hi. Same Old Drama, Different Day. This blog is about me and others, nature, life, blah blah and why everything I like is great even the hurting - still great. If you disagree with anything you find on this page, Well. . . You are probably right..
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