20.   July, 2024 - November, 2024

Hello :)

How are you?

Summer was nice.  I watched the Olympics and remembered when I was seven I bet a friend that I would be in the Olympics one day.  Dammit.

Anyway, I'm still working in the education department - the cover picture is of me and the guys I work with.  In July we held GED graduation in the visiting room. The students wore caps and gowns and threw their caps up at the end - man those ceilings were low.

I continued to study this summer - less on the hot days. I learned how to change colors and borders in the web browsers. Also, I drew this screen that I need for my app, over and over in different ways. And I started making sense with how to work with dates and times in programming.

On Labor Day there was a “concert” on the little cement slab in the rec yard for people with clear conduct. Guess who performed? THE - incredibly popular, just played at the Emmys and Saturday Night Live - Jelly Roll. Ja, it still makes no sense. But he signed my cap afterwards. #famous

I have 6 months left here - my last day is 6 May, 2025. So, depending on how long deportation takes, I could be back in SA for winter. I’m excited to gather my resources and start my next chapter…

Chapter 50

Barrett stepped out of the plane and took a long, slow breath through his nose. Boerewors? Chops? Yes, someone was braaing :)

Miss you lots. Please send pics.

Love,

Barrett.

Update:    All my worldly possessions - everything I owned - were stored with a close friend. I just found out that, a few weeks ago, all of it burned to ashes - along with all his stuff and his house too…Gone.

So I’ll see you all soon with the clothes on my back: Holy cow.