I ran 10 miles in the morning, bringing my running tally to 1,964 miles over the past 222 days. Then I attended a TOAD meeting for our youth outreach program, and I’ve spent the rest of the day writing. When I wake tomorrow morning, I’ll feel good about being only one day away from kissing my wife. I miss Carole, because writing about these early years of my imprisonment remind me of how much she means to me, and how fortunate I am to have her love.

Despite not having medicine for these allergies, and still struggling with a bit of lightheadedness, I had a productive day. I began at 1:30 this morning, as I usually feel the least amount of dizziness in the very early morning. Since I was in bed at 5:10 yesterday afternoon, I had plenty of rest. I’ve learned to block out the noise and disturbance of dormitory living, for the most part. I do look forward to living in a residence that I share with my wife only, though after so many decades of imprisonment, I have trouble imagining such a life.

I wrote through page 212 of the manuscript. That was productive, as I had a particularly sensitive scene to describe, and I had to work through it for awhile. I’m hoping that Carole, my first reader, thinks the story comes through okay. This writing project certainly carries me through these long days I spend each week without her.

I just spoke to another prisoner who has been incarcerated about 20 years. We were confined together in a USP during the early 1990s, though we adjusted very differently then. He’s released in one month. Someday, I know release will come for me. I’ll be ready.

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