I was finally able to visit my son in Coleman II Federal prison a couple of weeks ago. The time before this one, they were on lock-down and I didn’t get to visit. Even this visit was iffy.
After calling to verify there was not a lock-down in progress, I arrived at 8 am, which is when visiting begins. On arrival, I was not allowed in because of fog. There was a lot of fog, and I guess if they can’t see the inmates they don’t let them out. So, I waited, and waited, and waited. I was not allowed to use their restroom, right inside the door, and had to drive ten miles to a gas station to use their facilities. At about 11:30 they let the visitors in. It then took almost an hour for processing. By the time I finally got to see my son, it was almost 1 PM and visiting ends at 3 PM.
In spite of those difficulties, it was a great visit. He looked so good and was happy to see me. Of course we hit the vending machines, and he ate two jalapeno hamburgers, chips, candy and soft drinks. You can only bring in $20.00, so that covered it. They’re very strict, and after I obtained anything from the vending machine, I had to take it to the guard desk and open it up so they could see there weren’t any drugs added to the food. Imagine unwrapping a microwave hot hamburger and opening up the layers!
We took some photos, and I have them now as a remembrance of the visit. That was nice, since he looked so good. We are both looking forward to next year when I will no longer have to visit him in prison. Hopefully time passes quickly!