Ingenuity

One of the most amazing things about being locked up is the discovery of the ingenuity of the inmates. Obviously, inmates have limited resources and have to make do with whatever they can scrounge up – by beg, borrowing, or in most cases, stealing – items from the prison.

Take razor blades for instance. Virginia has a very strict “shave policy” in force that requires inmates to be clean shaven with the exception of mustaches. Disposable “Bic knock off” double-bladed razors are sold on commissary for 30¢ a piece. Guys have learned to break the razor head and remove the double blades. The blades are very thin and weak, but they get the job done. Imagine using a small disposable razor blade for cutting peppers and onions (taken from the chow hall), fruit (likewise snuck out of chow), pickles, cheese, meats, plus cutting articles out of magazines (or the occasional photo of a naked or near so woman). The strange thing is inmates are not allowed to have any type of file, scissors, you name it, but we can buy up to 6 razors each commissary.


Then there’s the guy Chunk met shortly after his arrival here named “Bobcat”. Bobcat was a mechanical genius. He could repair any broken item you had – electronics were his specialty. He never allowed anyone to watch him work (a major rule in prison – when you have a solid “hustle” you keep the skill details closely guarded or you’ll end up with competition (in later entries, L Rod will explain how he’s managed to operate a law firm for the inmates in here).


Virginia has specific rules prohibiting the exchange of any goods or services so Bobcat never asked to be paid for repairing something. He simply told you to “just show me some love” which was his way of telling you to determine the appropriate fee. If you went cheap on your commissary payment, you were off his “customer list”. A generous contribution and you were moved to the front of the line and extra time was taken on your repair


One thing you learn early on in your stay in prison is which guys have the skills or knowledge you need to help you survive your stay. You find out the guys who’ll do laundry, the real lawyers (and jailhouse ones as well), guys who can repair items, and guys who will make calls back to your family. Just like in those famous prison movies like “The Longest Yard” and “The Shawshank Redemption” you soon learn which inmates you can go to who can get things done.


The amazing thing about prison life is you soon realized that there are guys locked up who – if given access to the right chemicals could find a cure for cancer (or make a bomb). There are accomplished artists – self taught; artists who make tattoo guns out of adaptors or directly plug wire into a light socket. There is a thriving underground beehive of commercial enterprise going on each day here (some definitely illegal, like drugs, gambling and worse) and most of it makes life a little more bearable.