The review

I remember in my mid to late twenties, working as a cashier in a grocery store. I had so many wonderful conversations with customers. I couldn't even begin to remember how many conversations I have had that were geared around how fast time goes by. Countless people would say... "if you think time is going fast now just wait until you hit 30"! I learned after 30 that they weren't kidding!! Of course once your in your 30 the saying becomes... If you think time is going fast now just wait until you hit 40! Once again not to long after turning 40 I discovered that they really knew what they were talking about. Forty to forty-five has been a blur, which in some moments has been a good thing. What I have also found is if your waiting for a parole review to take place at some point in a particular month... time, becomes very slooow!!! I was beginning to wonder if the day would ever get here. Well today was the day. I missed Aaron's first call. I hate when I can't hear my phone!! The wait becomes even longer wondering how long he will wait before he calls back. Do you have any idea how long twenty minutes can seem even though it's not any longer than any other 20 minutes of any other day. HA HA how do you like how long I have drawn this out? Does it seem like "forever"? OK back to being serious. The verdict is parole upon completion of a substance abuse program. This mean he will not be home in December. At some point in December he will be visited by somebody on the board and they will let him know where he will go. Now here's the kicker. If they tell Aaron he will go for 3 months he'll go and will be out in March. If they tell him he will go for 6 months he will refuse the program, lose any "good time" he has accrued and be out in March. No, that is not a typo It's March either way. As I see it right now there is a serious flaw in this program. Aaron applied for the SAP program last October. He has never been called up for it and now with only 5 months left they want him in a program that has the potential to be a year long program. I personally do not see any inmate no matter how serious they are about maintaining their sobriety staying in a jail setting any longer than they have to. So March it is. It's very confusing to feel disappointment and relief at the same time, disappointment because he won't be home for Christmas again this year but relief because it's five more months free from the stresses that accompany being a POA. Let the countdown begin. I bet it flies by!!

Still waiting for a decision

Aaron's parole hearing is this month. No word yet. I am starting to get excited about the possibility of Aaron coming home, and hoping that we don't end up disappointed instead.

Possibly not much longer?

In about a month Aaron will find out if he makes parole. If he makes parole he will be home in December. If parole is denied he will be eligible for release with the HIP program in February. Now here is where it gets tricky and confusing, if he is told he will be paroled upon completion of the SAP program then the game changes. As I understand it right now.... Aaron plans to refuse the SAP program at this point as it will keep him in jail longer than what his actual time left to serve and also means he will not be out in Feb on the HIP program. Although I really would like for him to complete the SAP program I can understand why he would refuse it now. Considering he applied for the SAP program a year ago and still has not made it into the program. He has completed several other drug programs while he has been in jail. He has forwarded all of his certificates of completion to the parole board to make sure they are aware that he has taken every other opportunity that has been offered. He is currently in the STEEP ( I think that is what he said) program. Right now he is learning CPR. There are also job opportunities at the end of this program. Of course we all know the real test will be how well Aaron can handle sobriety once out in the real world again. I'm trying to have faith that he will be able to do this. Hopefully the faith will build from the right actions from Aaron. Right now I don't have much faith that it will happen. No sense in getting my hopes up? 

Our new hobby

So I got a wild hair up my arse and decided I would like to go canoeing and camping. We have always camped. We still camp with a tent but ( in my opinion) we take to many comforts from home with us. It should not take two vehicles plus the boat to get all of the supplies for a two night stay to our destination. I want to take minimal supplies so canoeing to our destination has made that possible. 

The beginning of our trip.

We managed to turn it over. one of the coolers came open and we had to chase water bottles down the river. I told him shouldn't bring that lantern!

Our island retreat

I can't wait to go again!! We had a blast!! I will have to admit that the next time we go we will have a slighter larger tent, an air mattress and a battery operated pump for the mattress. We tried without the air mattress and learned that it is not a comfort from home we will give up again.

An update of sorts

Still visiting Aaron every week, our visits are good for the most part and I still enjoying seeing him weekly. He is now convinced he will be out of jail by Christmas because he was told by somebody that he should get some time served for completing rehab, blah, blah, blah. I'm not holding my breath on this because I personally don't consider his participation for 3 months at a homeless shelter as rehab. He has written the judge asking to be giving this time off of his sentence. Whatever!! 

I'm going to have to go back and check my posts to see when I mentioned Aaron starting a new substance abuse program in jail. This program is a 12 step program. Sunday Aaron said they have completed the steps and he should be getting a certificate of completion soon. I'm wondering exactly what is involved in completion of the 12 steps. I didn't know they could be completed so quickly, or so it seems to me it was quick, I really need to check for that post. Is there a difference between completing and actually "working" the 12 steps? If he's been "working" the 12 steps then where the hell is my apology??? I think I really need to learn to let that one go but it's hard when you feel you genuinely deserve one.

And now for the brother update

He is out of jail. I don't know all of the details except for....drum roll please!!.... the "girlfriend" he is charged with assaulting bailed him out!!! She's an RN, works hard for her money and yet was stupid enough to put $2500 up to get him out. I'm taking bets on her thinking she can be the one to change him!! PUHLEASE!!!!! 

And life in general

Going back and reading this post I see I sound pretty pissed off. I'm not really, just very tired. The last few weeks have been hell. It started with finding one of my sugar gliders ill. During his recovery one of my cats managed to get a hold of his tail through the cage. He is now missing almost 2 inches on his tail. He is recovering very nicely but it has been discovered that he is blind. This blindness probably caused the illness to begin with because he couldn't find his food. It is also the reason he wasn't alert to the cat being by the cage. Poor little guy!! During his recovery and while he adapts I am getting up several times a night (they are nocturnal animals) to make sure he eats and then to make sure he gets his "naps" in also. My kids as newborns weren't this much work!!

On June 17th a body was pulled from the river. Several days later the body was identified and it was my cousin. My cousin had been homeless for many years. This was by choice. To my knowledge, he is not and addict or an alcoholic but did have some kind of mental illness. He had several family members he could have stayed with but he just didn't want to. He liked being alone. He had just gotten out of the county jail on June 9th. He did 2 years for burglary but ask anybody that knew him and they would tell you the same thing, winter was coming, he's getting older (54), no excuses but it is the most likely reason, he wouldn't burden family. On June 13th, he had been at the home of his foster sister (his mother raised her). He had dinner at her house and played chess with one of her kids. She has numerous children in her house, some biological, some adopted through foster care and some are foster kids. She has always taken in high risk children. On June 29th, two 16 year olds, an 18 year old, and a 19 year old were arrested for his murder. The four kids that were arrested are her kids. One biological, 2 adopted and one was placed in her home about a month prior to this night. They called my cousin, Uncle. It makes no sense. They stole his atm card and bought $30 worth of snacks and drinks at a gas station. One of the 16 year olds has now been let go but may still be charged at a later date. The cops were told by the mother that one of the kids had placed his hands around her neck and looked at one of the other kids and asked if they ever wondered what it would be like to choke a person until they took their last breath. My cousin was beaten and then choked to death. He was then tied up and put into the river. He didn't defend himself other than to put his hands up to his face while he was being beaten. He would't hurt a fly, he was a very gentle man. We used to talk on the phone on a regular basis until the mental illness took over and he took to the streets. We hadn't talked in over 20 years but he always kept in contact with his mother and brothers. What a tragic world we live in.

I didn't "hear" him

The brother that is. It was years ago, I guess my lack of understanding anything addiction related at that time may be the cause. Or maybe I came up with my own theory about what he meant. It's both actually. Many years ago during a phone conversation, brother was in jail once again and I was the only one still accepting his calls, he told me he broke a window at the jail with his head. Hopefully you don't know this but all of the windows at a jail are not your ordinary window glass. You or I would probably end up in the hospital with a brain injury before the glass broke. I asked why he would do something like that. His reply.... I was trying to get these voices in my head to stop. You hear voices was all I could ask at that point. His reply was something like, yeah, the ones that make me do this stuff. I don't remember where the conversation went from there. I don't remember it continuing on about voices. I have never forgotten that part of the conversation. I always chalked it up to his "inner self". You know the good versus bad in all of us. Our conscious! I let it go. I brought this conversation up when talking to other brothers girlfriend. I was informed that he was most certainly hearing voices. He was diagnosed schizophrenic while in jail. I was so shocked that I didn't even ask how long it had been since he was diagnosed. She told me he had called her after he was put on meds and told her he had never felt so good. At that moment I started feeling like I had let him down. Looking back I truly believe he was asking me for help by telling me. I blew it off. This will definitely change how I will question anything that I am told now. I will question more. I will make sure I am understanding what is being told to me. I am still learning.

Now let me introduce my nephew. He is the son of my youngest brother, I'll refer to him as D. My best description of D is a kid that never stood a chance. I have said that phrase many times now. My best explanation for that phrase comes from this.... I know Aaron's addiction and trouble is not my fault. It didn't come from bad parenting or letting him have to much freedom or not enough freedom. Growing up Aaron had the chance to do good things with his life. With D everything has been stacked against him. Parental, environmental, you name it. I know not all kids in his type of situation do bad things or become addicts but I believe the majority of kids in these types of situations will continue in the path they know. D has been in trouble several times, from burglary to calling in a bomb threat to his school. He was underage so it was all handled in juvenile court. He has been in boot camp several times. He was doing wonderful and had a great outlook while there. He now faces charges of criminal trespass, theft by unlawful taking (anhydrous), and possession of anhydrous with intent to manufacture meth. The last two being felonies. D just turned 18 in April. He is now sitting in jail. There will be no boot camp this time. He is an adult. Now, why to I believe he never had a chance? My baby brother was only 14 when D was born. D lived with his mother and her parents for awhile. Mom pretty much didn't want him. Brother eventually got custody, I think D was around 4 or 5. They lived with brothers mother at that time. As brother got a little older (more mature?) he began working construction. Those jobs would take him around the country, getting paid cash. Brother left D with his grandmother. Brother will even tell you that that was not a good decision, as grandmother let him do as he pleased. Brother also had an on again off again relationship with S. They have been together this way for probably 15 years now, but even when things were good between them, D remained with his grandmother most of the time. Brother and S have 2 kids together, they are 5 and 6. So a couple of months ago I see D and we were talking. We were talking about him having been in some trouble and being on probation. He told me about his PO doing a home visit and while they are sitting in the kitchen talking PO makes a comment about smelling pot. D says yeah, that's probably my grandmother. She seriously couldn't control herself even while a probation officer was in her house. The thing that gets me the most.... PO did nothing about it. D was underage, how can this PO not do anything? I could go on and on about D's upbringing but I think you get the gist of it. Oh and did I mention brother is an alcoholic and also loves his pot?

Aaron continues to do well. Still working in the jail garden. HE has now spent 2 birthdays in jail. As long as he stays out of trouble he should be home for his 23rd. I told him that I would kick his ass if he spent another birthday there. His reply was you can bet I'll be home!!!

The brother.... again!!

Four months and three days! That is how long he managed to stay out of jail this time around. I thought he was doing pretty good. He was living with a woman around his age, versus a pretty young immature girl like usual. Although I hadn't gotten to spend a lot of time with her she seemed to have your head on straight. She is an RN at a mental hospital. I  know she drinks but couldn't tell you how much. He was out of the town where all of the "bad" friends are. Last Saturday they had gone to the younger brothers house to celebrate a birthday. Both of their girlfriends are really good friends. I don't know all of the details. But his charges are.... Fleeing/evading 1st degree, assault 4th degree, burglary 2nd degree, disorderly conduct 1st degree, resisting arrest, and terroristic threatening 3rd degree. They brought in dogs to find him. His mug shot clearly shows he hasn't giving up the drugs. He looks evil. Some of these charges are felonies. I won't be surprised if they hit him with persistent felony offender status. Kentucky has the 3 strike rule but they seem to pick and choose when it is used. He had 3 strikes a long time ago. At 40 I was really hoping he was ready to change his life. Maybe next time!

1 year done.

As of last Saturday, Aaron has been in jail for 1 year. It doesn't seem like it's been a year already, how time is flying by. Aaron said it didn't seem like it had been a year either. He still has at least 8 months to go and that is only if he makes parole, if denied he still has another year.
For the last few weeks Aaron has been telling us about 2 dogs that were being adopted by the jail from an animal rescue here in town. They finally arrived last week and Aaron seems to be enjoying handling one of them.
Aaron is the primary caretaker for Wilson. There is an article in the local paper with a picture of a few inmates with the dogs. Aaron is in this picture. He looks happy!! I'll link the story online if anybody is interested. I wish they had put the picture online also because the quality of the picture in print isn't very good.

Aaron is no longer determined to have himself moved to another jail. There seems to be quite a few positive changes in him over the last month. He is talking about how much he is learning in the work shop. They have been working on several brands of mowers and tractors. They have also planted the garden that will feed the inmates for many months. He was pissed off when he first found out he wouldn't be going back to the mowing crew but has changed his tune now.

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2012/apr/14/no-headline---gl_jail_dogs/
Can anybody tell me why I can never get the text for the link to work? Shouldn't it display the text I want versus the URL I put in? I know I have seen it work the right way on many pages.

Wilson

I was able to take this picture of Wilson on Sunday. He looks like he is taking his guarding job very seriously.


Our annual trip to Vegas is coming up. We leave Sunday and will come back the next Sunday. I am ready to get away. This year I will even call it a vacation instead of a business trip since the "business" part of this trip is only 2 days out of  8.