LIGHTEN UP ABOUT RECOVERY LIFE: Some humor and stories outside of the regular stuff
An 8-foot "Spread" - Spread is commonly cooked in prison, made of Ramen on the outside, and everything from potato chips to canned food and dressings on the inside - This one made to celebrate birthday of a counselor at a rehab in Korea Town who once did time in prison.
So in the past posts about rehab so far, I talked about how I first got into this whole world, with no idea of what I was getting into.
When I was first admitted to the Royal Palms in late 2017, I was placed in an Intake Room with 3 other guys, before moved to a 2-man room.
In this room was Robbie; a huge, bald homie covered in tattoos; Shane - a big Irish guy; and Alex, who slept all the time. We called Alex Sleepy Hollow.
The thing is that these two other big guys and I happened to be chefs/cooks, so here we are in rehab and Robbie especially looking all hardcore, and we would be up all night talking about recipes and crazy kitchen stories and other hilarious things. We gave Robbie a porn name: Robbie Rims.
One night, Robbie says to me, "I'm going to hypnotize you." He had taken Anger Management classes in prison, and what he did to me was like a guided meditation that was really great! I've done it to other people and it's relaxing and pretty cool.
Anyhow, I did my first 90-day rehab and I was elected Resident Council President, which messed me up because those responsibilities were very distracting. But before that, I worked in the kitchen with the main cook whenever it was my turn for Kitchen Duty.
Betty was her name and she would put on her old school soul classics and we'd be singing in the kitchen preparing food, or I would be cleaning or helping serve. She trusted me.
Around that time they had hired another cook and the whole house used to say that he was on crack.
He was sketchy and he'd disappear for a while during work and looked like he needed sleep.
One morning I remember he called me over to him and pointed to the building across from ours, and asked me if I saw someone in the window looking at us! Sketchy. He didn't last too long.
There was a story that Snoop Dogg's uncle went through that rehab and donated a lot of what is the gym there. Royal Palms has a really good gym.
One of the crazy things is that despite being in this house full of men, many still coming off drugs, many with mental issues and on psych meds, and many just angry and frustrated; there were never any big fights that I remember. There were tons of jokes and maybe some hard words exchanged sometimes, which everyone ended up laughing at, but no real fights.
So I finished my 90 days at Royal Palms and went to a sober living home at the last minute, as an only transitional housing resort, called Beacon of Hope.
Again, I had no idea what I was getting into, but it made sense to go to a sober environment and stay connected to sober people before getting a normal job again and paying rent and living a regular life.
This particular sober living takes GR (General Relief) and Food Stamps as payment. They also take SSI (disability) and other forms of payment.
I mentioned to the managers that I was a cook, and very soon, I was helping out as a volunteer in that kitchen.
Some years before, I cooked at a facility for 20 disabled people called Washington Terrace, and I got a taste of using my skills for people with needs, instead of working in prestigious kitchens, looking for more money and climbing the ladder in that line of work.
So I cooked a lot at Beacon of Hope. After a while, I took over breakfast, lunch and dinner. One of the managers overlooked the kitchen and he appreciated my help and taught me a lot, just like any other chef at a restaurant could teach me. This manager makes some of the best BBQ ribs anywhere!
One thing that I learned about sober living homes is that not everyone in there is so sober. There were men, young and older, who were obviously drunk or high on something; and it wasn't easy to just get used to that at first.
Some men there didn't necessarily have an issue with drugs or alcohol, but found it cheap to live there. Some were homeless, some just wanted to save money, some didn't want to or couldn't work, etc. Men were there for different reasons.
I began to consider work and got my resume together, but I wasn't ready. Instead, I got real caught up in cooking at this sober home and at the time, there was a lot to do in order to get the kitchen in shape and maintain it. On top of that, the house was getting many donations from Vons and I was organizing everything.
I didn't think that I would end up putting Beacon of Hope on my resume, but today is, and I know that I can count on a good reference.
Despite that, it felt good to be of service and to cook in this way for people who really needed it. It was more fulfilling and personal.
Here is where I began to really change my perspective and get a new direction in my life. And that was a big part of my problem that led to my addiction in the first place.
But like I said before, I wasn't ready and I was moving too fast, trying to do too many things. I relapsed- not just once, but a few times. I had 2 seizures there because of alcohol withdrawal.
In the summer of 2018, I decided that I wanted to try rehab again. I didn't think 3 months was enough, especially when I spoke with others who told me that they went through rehab for at least 6 months.
But under the new Medical regulations of 2017, rehab treatment centers only offered 60 days with a 30 day extension if you qualify for the extension.
That's all for now.
I will keep posting about my own story, and about the state of all this recovery business as I understand it today.
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