4th of July

Happy Independence Day!

I woke up early this morning, as I usually do, and I am having coffee, clearing my head, and updating my website and blog, etc.

We went to visit Matt yesterday, he's in the Oregon State Correctional Institute (read: prison) for various crimes, including drugs. I have to say that it is pretty unpleasant visiting there. To top it off, Matt is in "the hole" meaning he is in Disciplinary Segregation. He was in a minimum security place for awhile, had a job, and was doing great. Visiting was easy for us and him.

Then, he was caught with tobacco, which is not allowed in prisons in Oregon, and was sent to another medium security prison. About a month or so ago, he was moved to OSCI, where he is now.

Being "in the hole" means that he is segregated from the rest of the population, which is probably a good thing. When we visit him, he is placed into a 4 x 4 room, locked in, and hand cuffed and ankle cuffed. We have to talk with him via telephone through a 18 inch x 24 inch glass window. The window is divided into small panes with flat metal bars between the panes, so we can't even get an unobstructed view of him

Matt has grown a beard while he's been in the hole, it's the first one I've ever seen on him. It looks pretty good; he's always had a very thick head and face of hair.

All in all, Matt seems to be doing pretty good under the circumstances. It must be pretty tough being in prison, I know it's really bad just visiting there. Some pretty messed up people and their families. It is our continual prayer that Matt will recover from this downward spiral, and get his life back on track.

Well, it's a beautiful morning out. I'm going to wait until about 9:00 am, mow the lawn, take a nap afterwards, and then go to my sister's house for dinner and celebration later.