A DAY IN THE LIFE OF LIFE

Written on the 27th January 2007

A couple of weeks ago I asked Charlie to write down his daily routine and send it to me for the website. The following is the result:

• Rise 6.30 a.m.
• Bury head in cold water
• 10 sets of 50 press-ups
• 10 sets of 50 sit-ups
• Walk up and down cell till breakfast at 8 a.m.
• Shave head and face
• From 9 a.m. till 10.30 a.m. I create art
• Read, write, walk up and down till lunchtime 12 noon
• Listen to Radio 5, relax, read my letters, answer some
• 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. 1 hour exercise: press-ups, sit-ups, stretching
• 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. Yard, I jog then shower
• 5 p.m. Tea
• 6 p.m. I make phone call
• 6.15 p.m. A pint of tea
• 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. More press-ups, more walking up and down
• 8 p.m. t 10 p.m. Lots of creating art and poetry
• 10 p.m. strip wash
• Lights out for James

Life in solitary is normally 23 hours behind the door, apart from if you're on visits, etc.  I can go months without seeing another con, and that's how it is. Peaceful, free of prison politics and totally your own space. Years of this become a way of life. I know little else. But you must be very determined and actually work out your routine and stick to it, as it's so easy to let go and become lazy. If you allow that to happen then it's all over. Depression and anxiety will creep in, followed by hopelessness.

A solitary existence can and will bury you if you allow it to ... it's caused the death of a lot of poor souls. I've learned to ride it and use it to my own advantage. You could say I have become "The King of Isolation".

I'm the guy who could be on a desert island and be free and happy and survive and finally die of old age. I must do a book on "Solitary Survival" and how to beat the loneliness.

Once you overcome the boredom and claustrophobic conditions of a cell the you're over the worse.

My cell is actually a cage. It has two doors: the outer door is solid steel and the inner door is an iron bar door ... like a zoo! It's 14 feet long and 8 feet wide and 12 feet high. It's my house, my life and, at times, I feel like I'm a tortoise ... like I'm in a shell. And I've made it my domain, my little house. I never put photos or pictures on the wall and my reason is simple: I don't believe in comfy home comforts or it brings on institutionalised feelings! I prefer to keep it as a cell and myself a prisoner after almost three and a half decades of living behind a locked door, with 28 years of them in solitary conditions.

I still hate prison and all it represents, but my dreams are freedom and my soul is alive, so I must be alive and kicking