“Horwitz… ROLL IT UP! You’re moving.”
So, “roll it up” means to get all of your belongings into a mesh bag, fold your sheet and blanket and roll up your mattress pad because you’re moving to a different area of the campus. In my case, I am moving from quarantine in E Unit to my new home in K Unit. I also learn that I was never supposed to be in quarantine due to the fact that I am fully vaccinated but let’s just ignore that little fact.
The walk from E Unit to K Unit is just across the “North Yard” and takes about 10-12 minutes carrying my belongings (awkwardly). The North Yard is not yet open due to still being in partial Covid Lockdown but more on that later. K Unit is set up in dorm style living on the second floor of the building. On the bottom floor is the laundry so that will be convenient when I learn how laundry works. You walk up the flight of stairs to find the “lobby” that houses the officer’s office on the right side, 4 phones along the walls and the TV room on the left side. Through a door, past the phones, you find the living quarters. The main room consists of 4 rows of bunk beds 13 rows deep. The unit houses 100 guys… first thought, I’m going to need to find ear plugs. I moved into the Unit with 6 others guys and we are told to wait in the lobby until the officer assigns us our bunk. We wait about 30 minutes while the other “residents” take turns walking by the door to check out the new dudes that are about to move in. The officer assigns me to bunk K02-006 which means the second row, 6th bunk bed, top bunk. I walk down the row and meet my new roommates… nice guys and they help me get my bed setup and walk me around the unit to tell me the bathroom, shower and TV room protocols. Living in this environment can only be described as if you were plucked out of your actual life and dropped onto a new planet with new laws, new social norms… new everything. Learning how to live all over again.
The first thing that is explained to me is the concept of “controlled moves”. This is when we are allowed to leave our unit and go where ever we need to go throughout the campus. Normally, once Covid protocol clears and the campus opens back up, we are allowed to move freely around the campus 10 minutes before every hour starting at 6am. Meaning we can leave our unit at 5:50am… have 10 minutes to get where ever we need to go and then must stay there until 6:50am when we can move again either back to our unit or somewhere else. This process goes until 8:20pm… at which time we must return to our units for 9pm count. But, campus is not fully open yet so we are limited to moves at 12pm… able to return at 1:15pm or stuck where ever we are until 3pm. Then back to units for 4pm count and able to move again at 5:15pm until 8:30pm. Not too bad but definitely looking forward to everything being open and the ability to move every hour.
Next up, chow hall and laundry. Chow hall is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Breakfast gets called at 6:15am, lunch at 10:30am and dinner at 4:15pm. Every unit gets released individually to avoid overcrowding. We wait in a line for anywhere from 5 minutes to 25 minutes… handed a tray of the day’s surprise cuisine and sent to a designated (by inmates) section to quickly eat our food and get up before the next wave comes in and needs a seat. Thankfully, I have always eaten fast so no sweat. Laundry. Each unit does laundry on a specific day and a cart is rolled into the unit the night before for everyone to place their dirty laundry bags into and it will be taken and returned the following day. Pro tip – tie your laundry bag EXTREMELY tight because all the bags are washed together in a massive washing machine so if your bag opens… bye bye clothes. Laundry is also where you supposedly get a pillow… I have asked… no pillows. Don’t sweat the small stuff.
Now, to the holy grail of Terminal Island… the “South Yard”. The south yard is where all the action takes place. It’s on the southern most point of the campus, completely surrounded by the ocean and houses the weight room (called the weight pile… think muscle beach in Venice), softball field, soccer field, basketball court, sand volleyball, ping pong table, indoor recreation facility that has pool tables, art studios and recreation equipment room to rent anything you may need to workout (yoga mats, ab wheels, medicine balls, etc) and a good size track (6 laps = 1 mile). Once the campus completely opens, we will be able to access the south yard every hour but right now we can only come here during our controlled move times aka 12pm – 3pm and 5:15pm – 8:30pm. This area is my sanctuary… working out, walking the track with the sun on my face allows me to feel close to my boys, family and friends… I’m feeling the same sun and looking at the same moon that all of them are and it provides so much peace for me. Embrace and appreciate the things that make you smile in here (and out there)…no matter how small they may seem.
And to wrap up the day… lights out at 10:30 pm. It’s a bit like falling asleep in the zoo with all the animals in one room. I will reiterate… I need earplugs… and a pillow.
Nighty night.