June 21, 2007

Dear Sis~
Well, today is the Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year, and technically, the first day of Summer. We had almost 5 hours of outdoor rec today, out in the blazing sun (it was over 90 degrees and not a cloud in the sky), stuck in our little concrete, fenced-in dog-run type cages and it definitely felt like the longest day! I got about three shades darker today, for sure. But I cannot bring myself to complain; I look forward to my outdoor rec too much to whine when I'm occasionally stuck out there. Usually, they only let us stay out 1 to 1-1/2 hours and that's what I complain about, not enough rec. Today it was so hot that even all the little birds were panting, and they weren't even interested in eating the bread I threw out to them after the first couple of hours. We're getting a lot of brown-headed cow birds lately; they're pretty bold, not shy or skittish at all. Sometimes they skip right into the cages to peck at the bread, ignoring my presence completely. And there's one brilliantly colored male Red Wing Blackbird that is there every day like clockwork, waiting on his bread or rice rations, chirping and singing or hopping around, flashing the crimson badges on his wings ...

Today I received a complimentary T-Shirt in the mail from the SPCA; I donate to a couple of animal rescue type foundations and now I'm on every animal rights type of organizations' mailing list imaginable. The SPCA sent me this T-Shirt while simultaneously requesting a donation. Anyway, the property room declared it unauthorized contraband so I had it mailed to you. I never did get to see what design it had on the front, but you can tell me when you get it (or wear it up here next time you visit)...

I had a long conversation with Emmett out in the rec cages as he tried to explain to me, to the best of his ability, the circumstances of his last-minute stay of execution last week. But, he couldn't offer much insight. As he put it, once he got that phone call from his lawyer, just 2 hours before he was scheduled to die, telling him that he'd just received an unexpected stay, "I didn't hear anything after that." So while his lawyer told him why he got the stay, it just didn't sink in...It's hard to imagine the level of emotion involved in that situation, when you're scheduled to die, you've said all your final goodbyes to family and loved ones, you've had your last visit (which Emmett said was, unsurprisingly, a very, very tough thing to endure), you've made your peace with God and the universe, and then, after your lawyers have already told you there's no hope left, out of the blue you get a last-minute stay. And now, after the initial joy wears off, Emmett must begin to contemplate going through it all over again (his stay expires in October if he doesn't receive relief from the courts in the interim)...

It's past midnight, Nightline is over and I'm going to bed!
Love & Peace,
Bill