Solitary Man

[Wayne23]

11/25: 86-55 over Texas Cretin here. We were a powerhouse tonight; up 21 at the half. 19, 12 for Fole, 17, 13 for Jete, 11, 4, 7 for Reg Adam, 13, 7 for Peke. +18 RBs, 8 TOs.

Ron Jete: I am kickin' it! I feel really good about the way I'm playing. Hoping coach notices and gives me more PT!

Marty Carr, Bench Coach: Coach Blake and I were talking about the Center position. We're in a real quandary. Ray Peke is a better defender and Ron Jete is a better scorer and rebounder. They're both doing a terrific job when they're in the game. For now we're going to give them equal time with Peke in at the end of close games because of his D. We're reluctant to take minutes from SF Clif Engo because he's a great defender, and because Peke and Jete really aren't suited from that position, and there's no way we'll take minutes from Fole, so it is what it is.

[Wayne23]

11/29: 68-59 over Georgia ST here. We led by as many as 23. We relaxed a little toward the end which made the score closer but the game was not close. 16, 14 for Fole, 14, 6, 3 for Jens, 10, 6, 3 for Engo. +12 RBs, 11 TOs.

We're 5-0, and the only close game was the OT game at Norfolk ST.

So, I have no friends outside and I have none inside. A lot of the inmates find a friend or two, others join a group, not necessarily a gang, just a group that they belong to.

I mentioned the religious gangs but a lot of guys just belong to religious groups. There are more Christians than anything else, then Muslims, some Buddhists, a very few Jews, and even fewer atheists. I already said I'm an atheist but I don't hang out with any of the others. Actually, I'm one of the few who will even admit to that belief. It is pretty unpopular in here.

Other guys get together around hobbies- fitness, chess, games of all kinds.

I play this game but I don't even know if anyone else does.

There are book clubs, too. I read every day but I'm not interested.

Some guys hang with people they work with. I don't.

I just go my own way.

[Wayne23]

12/2: 82-86 at Omaha. We were bound to lose one at some point, I guess. 34.2% shooting, 33.3% from three point range. That was the telling stat last year and here it is again. We took 11 more shots and made 2 fewer baskets, 5 fewer threes.+14 RBs, 9 TOs, but you need to hit your shots. 29, 15 for Fole, 11, 11 for Jete, 10, 6 for Engo. Reg Adam was awful, no points, fouled out, and his man lit him up. Rily, the #3 guard, played well. No change happening there though. Adam just had a really poor night. Generally he's a much better player than Rily.

Jab Moore, Scouting Coach: I kind of saw this coming. I told Coach Blake we'd have a really hard time stopping their outside game, and we did. He listened, but we didn't have the talent to fix the problem. That's going to hurt us against good outside teams.

[Wayne23]

12/6: 94-66 vs. Wright ST here. Easy win. 33, 15 for Fole, 15, 11 for Jete, 10, 6, 5 for Rily. +25 RBs, 4 TOs.

Gotta say I love having only 4 TOs for an entire game. That's amazing.

I've been thinking about the kind of life I want to have when i get out, and I have to think when, not if. The goal is to be out of here at age 50. I'm 30 now. It would take a small miracle for all of this to take less than 20 years, so I'm resigned to that. An inmate learns patience or goes insane.

Anyway, having a criminal record for a felony, and having done time, I'm not going to just be able to hang out my shingle and practice law. I expect that, if I catch a break, I'll get a job with a big law firm and do research for them. Most lawyers don;t actually go to court, they do research or write wills, or write other legal documents. I don't think a law firm will want me to work with clients, so I'll be in city halls looking things up- deeds, land records, and all kinds of other things. That's fine.

I see myself living in as small a space as possible but on a big property, at least 5 acres. If I live in 600 square feet, that's enough. I'll have a cat. By the same token, the right condo unit could work if it was well enough sound proofed and small enough. I will want and need privacy.

[Wayne23]

12/13: 76-83 at Central Arkansas. I am PISSED! That team was 1-7 coming in. Ridiculous to lose to them! They got off to a fast start, built a 17 point lead, and we never caught up, never got it closer than 5 points. -11 RBs, which never happens. We let them shoot an unbelievable 62.2%, which means we didn't play D at all. Fole had 32-7 and everybody else stunk the place up.

Bench Coach Marty Carr: I've never seen Coach so upset. He was really dropping the hammer in the locker room after the game. Practices are going to be not fun for a while, I'm thinking.

[Wayne23]

12/20: 88-57 over Air Force here. We certainly played D. I guess the grueling practices of last week paid off. 25, 6 for Fole, 13, 13, 4 for Jete, 13, 3 for Engo. +11 RBs, 9 TOs.

Bench Coach Marty Carr: We're starting Jete. His numbers are WAY better than Peke's. It just makes sense.

Ron Jete: I'm starting! I'm so pumped! Hard work pays off!

Ray Peke: Lost my starting job. I have to admit Jete is putting up way better numbers, but it's disappointing.

[Wayne23]

12/27: 91-87 over Lousiiana-Lafayette here. No D again. Damn! They led by 9 early, 3 at the half. We gave up 50 in the 1st half, which is outrageous. We played better D in the 2nd after my halftime harangue, but this has got to stop! We took over with about 10 minutes left after a 12-2 run, and we were in no danger from then on. Not happy at all though. 32, 13, 5 for Fole, and he was the difference; they couldn't stop him. 18, 9 for Jete in his first start; great game! 12, 4 for Engo. +11 RBs, 11 TOs.

Ron Jete: I really wanted to prove I could get it done as a starter and I think I did that tonight. Of course I need to do it every night, but I'm ready to try!

Recruiting Coach Marty Buck: Not much going on. I'm making lots of calls but there's just no interest. Considering we're probably going to have 4 scholarships still to fill that's not good. But realistically not much happens at this time of year. It will start to heat up again at the end of January when SAT scores hit, and then again in March.

[Wayne23]

1/10: 85-60 at Stetson. Great start to Conference play. We played well all night. 22, 11 for Fole, 11, 6, 5 for Peke, 11, 5 for Engo, 11, 4 for Jens. Jete was in foul trouble all night. Two poor games in a row but I'll stay with him a while longer.

Ron Jete; Trying not to get down on myself. The last two games have not been great. True, I played against really good Centers both nights, but i need to do better or I'll be sitting again. Damn!

Ray Peke: I'm working my butt off to get my job back. I think Coach is noticing.

Coach Blake: The kitchen job is going really well. I'm working 10-12 hours a day and coming in on my days off for a few hours, but it feels good to have a position with some authority. Takes a tiny bit out of the sting of being in here. As an inmate you can feel invisible, powerless, worthless. This job is helping with all of that and the law studies are, too. I'm busy with all of that and with coaching and that's a very good thing. The major complaint in here is most guys feel like there's not enough to do. They get listless and lazy and that leads to depression. None of that is an issue for me, thankfully. And having a plan to try to get out is a very good thing as well.

[Wayne23]

1/13: 61-49 over Prairie View here. We hled them to 12 in the first half and that was that. 17, 10 for Fole. No impressive numbers for anyone else, but it was a defensive game all the way. We forced 26 TOS and committed 16, and we were +5 on the boards. All of that led to us taking 21 more shots, and that was the difference.

Ron Jete: I thought I had a good game, thankfully, and Ray Peke didn't. Not rooting against him though.

[Wayne23]

1/17: 80-73 over North Dakota here. We led most of the way and for the entire 2nd half, but never by more than 9. 17, 12 for Fole, 14, 10 for Jete, 21 for Jens, 11, 8, 4 for Engo. +13 RBs.

I sit here in my cell some nights and really let it get to me. Yes, I have a computer, desk and a hardback chair, as well as my bunk, and a sink and toilet. The computer, desk and chair are a huge factor. Without them I would be utterly miserable. While my use of the internet is severely limited, and while I am unable to post anywhere except here, I still have a connection to the world. And that is immensely helpful. Still, it's a lonely, empty existence. I can't forget that I am locked in this room, locked on this wing of the floor, locked on this floor, locked in this building. It's not a happy thought, and sometimes it overwhelms me.