PUPPIES IN PRISON
APRIL 8, 2015: 8:00pm: WATCHING THE PHILLIES & RED SOX GAME
Hi everyone. Here I sit, watching my favorite baseball team (Philadelphia Phillies). I had a pretty good day today. I woke up, had a hot cup of coffee & went to the gym, but not to work out. A friend of mine gave me $3 so that I could take a photo for my mom with a puppy dog. I got to meet the little guy, play with him, & then hold him while they took the photo. First time I held a dog since 1998. I am mailing the photo out to my brother tonight & I have asked him to put it on my Facebook page, make me copies and when I get copies, I'll be sure to put one on my blog. Probably in about 2 weeks. So keep an eye out. The puppies in prison program is pretty cool. Prisoners go through a lengthy screening process before being chosen, & their job is to give obedience training to a puppy. This lasts for 1 year. Then the dog is sent to the outside for more extensive training in order to become an assistence dog for people with medical disabilities, medical problems, or just someone who needs an assistence dog. These dogs have a wide variety of training possibilities once they leave here. Saddened me that I was unable to be a part of this program. But I was glad that I got the opportunity to take a photo with a puppy. When I have extra money, I will try to take a new photo with as many dogs as possible.
Another story I wanted to share continues to bring a smile to my face every time I think of it. My brother told me that he woke up in the middle of the night to find his 3 year old daughter, Lucciana, making a mess. Coffee grounds were everywhere, she was covered in her moms make up and her moms fancy smelling shampoo was everywhere. He cleaned her up and went back to bed. In the morning he woke up to see that coffee was in the toilet. Make up was every where and then he sees the dog, Vixon, this poor dog had a makeover. So my brother JJ tells me that Lucy loves the smell of coffee so she got into it to smell it, spills it everywhere and tries flushing it down the toilet to hide the evidence. (She didn't do a good job.) She used her moms make up and gave the dog a make over, why, because her mom put make up on her and Lucy loved it. And the shampoo just smells really good. I close my eyes and see this adorable little 3 year old doing all of this and it's just so funny. Kids get into everything so my brother has had to put childproof locks on everything. He asked her if she would talk to me on the phone but she said she can't, he said why, she said she isn't old enough yet. She's so funny. They are going to go out today to fly her kite and ride her bike that she got for her birthday. I love that he is making these memories. He is a great Dad.

On another note, I have been asked to be a part of the religious audit that the Dept. of corrections does with the chaplain's Dept. That will be on the 15th, and on the 21st I have been invited to be a part of the volunteers appreciation banquet. There are many volunteers who come here for religious service, or drug & alcohol treatment groups, they all do this on their own time so this is a way for us to thank them. And since I am new to this prison, I don't know any of the volunteers so this will give me an opportunity to meet them. At my last prison, some of the volunteers for the catholic cursillo retreat have been coming there for over 30 years, just to minister to prisoners. I'm really looking forward to this.
And I guess my last words will be of my brothers upcoming birthday. On April 16 my brother JJ (Lucy's dad) will be 36. Happy birthday little brother.
Mother's day is coming up, May 10, don't forget your moms. No one will ever love you like your mom. Take care, create a happy memory today & God bless. Ciao.