DannyBoyinExile

As part of its crackdown on drugs, TDCJ has recently switched over to an electronic mail format. This is the wave of the future in many states across America (including the federal prison system), and finally made its way to Texas.
Modern technology is slowly making paper mail obsolete, but this is more of a method to combat the use and sale of various chemicals that are soaked or sprayed onto paper, allowed to dry, and mailed to inmates.
“K2” is easily the most common of all the drugs that people smoke in TDCJ, simply because it will not show up in a standard drug test. Ironically, what they’re smoking isn’t K2 at all… The REAL K2 was invented by a doctor, and is actually synthetic THC. Which means that it WILL be detected in any drug test for marijuana, as THC is still THC, whether or not it was made in a laboratory.
What inmates call K2 is hugely popular BECAUSE it won’t make them fail a urine test. They can smoke it until they’re literally foaming from the mouth (and quite a few of them have!) – but they’ll pass a drug test, so there’s not much the administration can do about it.
What is commonly referred to as K2 is actually some other chemical (or combination of chemicals) that is known to get people high – which is then ingeniously labeled and sold as potpourri. It can be any of a hundred chemicals, and each specific brand is usually a different chemical, so there is no way they could possibly test for them all. But by no means is “K2” the ONLY drug to have found its way into a Texas prison through the mail. Methamphetamines, PCP, LSD – and even fentanyl are commonly found by TDCJ mailrooms. Fentanyl, of course, is by far the most dangerous, as there is no way tell how concentrated it is on the paper until you smoke it – and when you do, it may be the last thing you ever smoke!
There have been quite a few deaths in TDCJ due to fentanyl overdoses (acute opiate intoxication, as the coroner would say), and numerous axes of it being detected in inmate drug tests. Not to mention the financial ramifications of inmates smuggling and selling it. Illegal drugs have made some people “penitentiary rich” – but more than a few have ended up penitentiary dead, which isn’t nearly as glamorous. TDCJ has even posted a listing of all the serious and dangerous items they have confiscated during the recent shakedown, including a sizeable number of weapons. Most of it didn’t come through the mail, of course, but the switch to electronic mail will eliminate most of the paper contraband – and I can’t blame the Administration for its efforts to combat drugs.
Now our mail is scanned electronically, front and back (even the envelope!), and sent to our tablet as an email. We still SEE the actual letter, in its own handwriting – but no longer will we be able to slice it up and smoke it.
I assumed that electronic mail must by definition be faster than the old kind, but you know what they say about assuming… I can assure you that electronic snails are no quicker than their paper counterparts. I received my first letter this way recently – and it took a mere three weeks to reach me. I’m optimistic that eventually the routine will stabilize and get much faster. Or people can always just send emails to me directly, without using the snail mail at all. Some people prefer to read handwritten letters. I personally would rather get my mail in three hours, instead of three weeks. I don’t even miss the perfume on my letters, because I could never tell if it was my wife or the mailroom lady who smelled so good! I’ve learned a lot about the various drugs and chemicals around here, because I love to read. Especially when I’m high! (just kidding) I’ll admit that I’ve tried some of them in the past (and even inhaled), but I’m proud to say that I don’t mess with any of it anymore. I don’t need the extra drama in my life – and I’m trying to make these last few brain cells last for as long as I can! I may BE here, but I’m still alive, so I don’t need to make my situation any worse than it has to be. So says DannyBoy.