Scared Straight !!

One of the cool things about being a firefighter is that there are alot of things that you get to see behind-the-scenes, that you wouldn't otherwise. This was certainly the case last night...

Fourth Mondays are the night for the Officers Drill, and we usually go out to tour a location or facility in the community that represents some particular hazard to either the firefighters or the community, or both. Shopping malls, oil terminals, electrical generation stations... they offer a great opportunity to discuss beforehand what we will have to do if we must respond there. After all, those in charge should have a better understanding of the uncommon hazards we face, and so will not be so quick to throw people into harm's way without appreciating all the dangers.

Lemon Creek Correctional Center has such an innocuous name for a prison.

Out of sight, outta mind, for me until last night. Nestled in the trees at the edge of town, between Lemon Creek and the foot of Heintzlemann Ridge, where you can just see it from the Home Depot parking lot... if you pay attention.

I probably shouldn't get too specific about the arrangements and what goes on there, but suffice to say that there are lots of guards, lots of metal bars, razor wire, cameras, heavy sliding doors, locks, rules, and specific procedures for all kinds of activities. Turns out, Alaska has some 5000 inmates housed in the state, and they take great pride in their status of being the safest penal system in the country (in terms of guards being killed... which would be none in like 50 years).

I still felt really uneasy going in thru the front gate... I guess I have watched too much TV. It was not what I expected: it was worse. There are no gangs, no drugs, no tobacco, and little violence. There is no privacy. No weights in the yard. The guards are very proactive watching inmate behavior, and problems are anticipated and folks dealt with before they become an issue. There are no beatings, no firehose showers, no secret torture chambers... but if you violate the minor rules, you quickly lose what little perks are available. First time, no warnings...

Control is established by the unemotional, completely predictable and open process of granting priveleges solely based on behavior. If you don't work at the Prison Industry, you get to stay in the open dorms where you probably won't get any sleep. If you don't have a HS diploma, you are required to work on getting it... and if you don't, you find yourself in 'punitive segregation,' which means a small concrete room with a toilet, a sleeping pad, and your religious materials. If you follow the rules and work hard, an inmate can expect to be left alone in as respectful a manner as is possible, and can fill his or her days doing whatever makes the time pass for them.

There are few problems because everyone knows that if you don't play well with others, there is every expectation that your life will be made worse than it already was.

On a very positive note, there are some truly astonishingly talented artists at work... native carvings, scrimshaw, drawings and quilting. Some of it is available for sale at the admin office in front, at probably a quarter of the price of art sold downtown (and just as high quality).

Anyway, I have rambled. I learned two things:

I never want to fight a fire in the LCCC.

I never want to stay at the LCCC.

I think tours of prisons for adolescents is a great idea (OK, that's actually three things...).

Whatever problems you might have 'on the outside' cannot ever start to compare to what it is to live on the 'inside.' Have yourself a great, law-abiding day.

KL

Winter's Grip Slipping Quickly

I look forward, like most of us in Juneau, for the Spring.

It is no longer freezing when I get up and walk the dogs at 6:30... which is a very good thing.

I have managed to go out in the afternoon sun in a short sleeved shirt, only to remember when the chill returns as the sun starts to set behind the hills that I forgot to bring along a jacket.

And when the sun does come out, so does the entire city...

This weekend was a sunny surprise, when the weather guys called for rain (which never came). When the skies are blue, Juneau is one of the most beautiful places on the planet: a statement I have made here before, but remain convinced of.

The snow's still up in the hills... as we discovered yesterday during a hike up to the John Muir cabin with Julie & Jessica. Julie was not ready for the climb, Jessica was wearing 'hiking sandals,' and the snow after about two miles up was soft and slushy, but packed hard and slick on the boardwalk of the Auke Nu trail. The guide book calls the trail "difficult," when in fact the only "easy"trail in the book is the (nearly handicap accessible) airport dike, so I figured it was all the same. After an hour and a half going up, your humble author was getting punched for leading the ladies on a death march... so we turned around close to the top. Got close enuf to smell the cabin, but not to see it. Crap. I have been told in no uncertain terms that if I want to see the cabin, I will have to find another hiking partner...

Still and all, it was a gorgeous day to be out for a walk in the springtime.

On the topic of previous blog follow-up: I passed my engineer's "stress test," meaning that other than some paperwork, I am qualified to drive and operate Engine 45 at my station. It was close: I almost failed because when I parked the rig, my parking put me 8-inches short of being able to connect to the hydrant with a single 25-ft roll of 5" firehose. The gap meant that I had to connect another roll, all while the preconnects were flowing water from the rig's 1000 gallon tank at over 300 gallon per minute. Like the grains of sand through the glass, they are gone and the clock is ticking until the hydrant connection is made. The tank ran out as I opened the intake valve at the pump panel, meaning the pump started to cavitate and the water supply was lost for about half a second as the hydrant water rushed to the pump. Had I taken any longer, the pressure to the hoses would have been lost and I would have had to take the exercise over again.

Like life, you can't give up... just take a deep breath and work through the problem.

My weight loss efforts are teaching me patience, as well. The weekdays are great, with lots of hard exercise and calorie control, but the weekends take almost all the gains back. I am realizing how strongly social events emphasize food and how weak I still am with my food-resolve, and it is hard to follow the path of restraint. In 5 weeks, I have lost 12 pounds... in my mind I expected a lot more, but I will perservere.

When I think of the advice I'd give a youngin' these days, there would be three pieces: first, take care of your back, cause once you screw it up there is no getting it back (no pun intended!); second, take care of your hearing, cause once you screw it up there is no getting it back; and third, master your food intake before your metabolism changes and then you get old and fat, cause once you screw up and get heavy, it's the shits to take it off.

Well, I guess I can think of some other good advice, too, but those three are a good start...

Oh, and the state flags are flying along Egan Highway downtown, which means that the tourons and the cruise ships are on their way... another sure sign that Winter is over.

KL