This Song is Dedicated to BA (You know who you are)
Please enjoy all of the music and how it relates to this blog.
The 1980s were a wonderful and very dark and trying period for me. I fell in love. I got married. I had two beautiful baby girls. It was the dawning of the era of Punk, Goth, Slam-Dancing, Piercing, and --of course -- Society's acceptance of Cocaine.I Got heavily into cocaine and became an alcoholic and drug abuser. My then wife and I became a part of the entire subculture. We both used cocaine--her, not to the extent of me. I don’t think she ever knew quite how bad I had gotten involved in the whole cocaine scene. Without going into details...we both paid a very heavy price for our lifestyles. We were both to blame for our actions and both took responsibility for the outcome. I paid an extremely heavy price and although we are both to blame for what happened, I truly feel sorry for her and regret that I was never able to tell her that I am sorry that everything happened the way it did. I really loved her and will always have a very special place in my heart for her. I hope you enjoy the play list below of the music, which we listened to at the time.
July 14, 1985
Folsom Prison Warden Joe Campoy, whose appointment by Gov. George Deukmejian stirred controversy, took sick leave and considered resigning his $59,500-a-year job because of health problems. In March 1984, the state Senate narrowly confirmed Campoy's appointment amid charges that he tolerated sexual harassment of female guards. Campoy had been under continued pressure from critics in the Legislature who noted that Folsom had been hit by a rash of violence including 134 stabbings as of June 1985. Several guards at Folsom also have come under investigation for allegedly falsifying reports and conspiring to commit perjury. This place took me back to medieval times. Granite, filth, and violence everywhere. It’s hard to believe a place like this can still exist in the USA. Viloence, Viloence, and more Violence.
The Good-O’l boy system. Campoy began his career as a Folsom guard 39 years ago. Cheryl Campoy is now a spokeswoman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. “It’s a Family Affair”
Next Stop DVI Tracy, CA
Quote from SacB: “DVI was called "Gladiator School" by the inmates. Prisoners there honed their fighting skills, and learned the business of drug dealing. They also learned how to maim or murder with handmade weapons.”
I won't even comment on this period of my life; with the exception of saying the last part of my term was a turnaround in both custody and an inner awakening. I know there are those of you out there that are saying, "OK, here it comes; another convict found God'. You are wrong! I had a streak of luck at the end of my term. Seems I had learned an invaluable trade while I was at DVI and they need this skill because of the new prison expansion program of the 1990s. I was transferred to California Mens Colony, which at the time was the only facility with the machinery for the expansion.
The Infamous CMC
After being at CMC for 6 months a change happened. I was sitting with this guy on the yard and he was telling me his thoughts on life and Karma. What he was saying made perfect sense to me so I descided then and there to change my life. First I started to help other inmates with education. I started putting others before myself. Then I stopped hating. I buried all of my hate in one clean sweep. To my surprise, good things started happening to me. My life continued to get better and better.(No! My name is not Earl.) I actually met a beautiful woman and got married while I was still incarcerated. Then tragity hit, with only a couple of years left on my sentence my wife developed a fast moving cancer and died before I could get out. I was devistated. But, I stayed strong, stuck to my new found beliefs, kept moving in the right direction, and kept doing the right things. After many years I was a free man at last. "What am I going to do at 40+ years old..."
At Home I at once realized there was no future for me in America.
So I looked to the internet for help and I met the most wonderful and beautiful woman from Ukraine.
While she was in the former Soviet Republic and I was stuck here in the USA on parole we corresponded via Instant Message, Email, and video conference, which was all very new -- not only to me but to the world --at the time. We did this for nearly three year. Needless to say, in spinte of the use of the interent, telephone bills were huge! A month after our first correspondence I told her my life story and I also told her that I could not leave the USA for three years while I was on parole. I promised her that I would be in Ukraine the very first month that I was off of parole; I honored my promise. I am very fortunate that she waited for me.
Once in Ukraine I saw that it was as beautiful as she was. Also while there, I realized that it had so much more freedoms than Americans can only dream of. I spent 6 weeks with her on my first visit and then I made a series of shorter visits.
I knew from our very first meeting that this was the woman of my dreams and that I was going to marry her. Within a year after my visit we were married and she was here in the USA with me.
We still plan to retire in Ukraine. Changing my life was the best move I ever made. We have a wonderful life together. However, my heart still aches because I was not able to say that I am sorry for the way our lives together turned out to my first wife. I regreat not being able to wish her all of the best that this life has to offer her. And -- above all -- I will always be an empty feeling and a pain in my heart for my three children...Eddy, Shelly, and Cheri
