Stay on the Right Track

By Steve Gordon - July 14, 2010

It has been nearly a month or more since I wrote the home page even as it was only posted on July 1st. I was out on the porch tonight reading a book about World War II that is riveting and very good stuff and it occurred to me that I had something more important to do. I can read later. I can be impulsive like that.

It is likely with this blog being new little of this will be read immediately, but I am working on trying to get the blog out so people will find it. There is a link on www.prisonforum.org that I recommend for anyone interested in prisons and reform. I would like to get a link with The Pennsylvania Prison Society and I plan to work on that.

In the mail yesterday came a letter from the Summer Wood Corporation. They provide management for Taco Bell, KFC, Pizza Hut, and Long John Silvers. I applied for a manager or assistant managers job with them. I have over 20 years of food service management experience so it is logical I look for work in that field. I have been straying and applying for jobs outside that realm however not wanting to limit my options.

Please understand that I am not putting Summer Wood out there as bad guys, I am just using them an example of the “establishment” that contributes to making it hard for people released from prison, who have skills, to get steady jobs with established companies. To their credit they did give me a phone interview at least, but the letter was mailed the same day as the phone interview and took only a shade over 24 hours to arrive here in the mailbox.

Actually one of my answers to the phone interview question of why I wanted to work for them was that I wanted a stable company where I knew I would have a job (where I could contribute) as opposed to a smaller privately owned operation that could go out of business in today’s economy in short notice and leave me searching again. But then every college kid and unemployed worker is probably looking for the same thing, and they haven’t created a felony record for themselves. This searching for a job thing is very stressful and it taxes your every fiber.

Many of you probably know how it goes with these letters. “Thank you for your interest in our company and for taking the time to interview with us.”, it read and then continued, “ I’m sorry to say we are unable to offer you a position at this time.” Of course mostly there are no letters or even email replies to the hundreds of job applications and resumes I have sent out.

Mom said today that she felt I must be getting bored with nothing to do. Of course the reply is obvious – yes, I am. I find things to do and there are things to fix and work on around here, but I feel uneasy about the whole situation. I get out like when some friends invited me to play golf with them and paid for the initial round of golf. It’s good to have kept friends through my 10 years in prison that are supportive of me even if they cannot help my employment situation.

Now you might say playing golf is frivolous and not responsible, just as some have criticized our nation’s presidents over time for playing golf in the face of this or that crisis. I will make this brief. You have to have something to go to that allows you to get away from the stress and pressure of life’s woes. This works for me now as it worked for me before I put myself in the jam I am in today. Without that I believe any normal person would eventually cave under the weight and the constant looking for the light at the end of the tunnel.

I think it was Will Rogers who once said something like, “You can be walking down the right side of the train tracks and still get run over.” It kind of puts it all into perspective to consider that you are doing everything right and there are still footprints up your back. I will take those trips to the golf course and even as I have exhausted all the favors people might bestow upon me, I might have to dip into the savings for a round or two from time to time until I start collecting income from a job.

One final note on the golf. I used to do some freelance golf writing and get as much as $200 for one story. I lost those contacts but not all of them and I did earn a few dollars and got free golf for doing a course review for http://www.golfbuckscounty.com/ .

I also went to the place where my 89-year-old father works part-time. His boss actually offered to give me a job when I was released and had I been released on parole years ago when eligible it could have been a full-time job with benefits. But it is a small place and the economy has slowed things down and that is no longer available. It is an example of how the games played by the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole affect people succeed because they were aware of this.

Dad is still proud to introduce me as his son on an equal basis with my brother who did not put himself in prison. My internal problem is that I have thrown dirt on the family name and yet the family continues to be behind me. Well, all except my son who has his own issues and will be 27 years old next week. That is another internal problem, but I won’t go into that today.

Today I just wanted to tell you about how things are progressing and emphasize how no matter how hard those doors get slammed in your face, one will crack open and maybe the next one will let you in. Giving up and doing something stupid is not the way to go. You have to stay on the right track and you have to keep walking in the right direction.

For me, I will be out on the porch tomorrow night with my book, The Steel Wave by Jeff Shaara. It’s too dark to sit out and read this Wednesday night but it is never too dark to keep your head up and keep your feet and mind moving forward.