Reintroduction After Incarceration

[ImTrippingStupid]

Just thought that I would post the community after being incarcerated for most of this past year. I was arrested last March for Possesion with intent charges for multiple counts that included LSD, Shrooms, hashish & Cannabis. Thankfully the District Attorney was an idiot. The DA had on my docket that I was arrested with a lot more liquid then I had so the judge didnt give me a State Manditory Sentence of 2 1/2 to 5 years minimum. I was lucky to recieve the regular minimum guidelines of 6 to 16 months minimum and was released on good time. The final sentence for my charges was 11 1/2 to 23 months plus 3 years consecutive probation. I used to post a lot of news about various things on the forum up until I was arrested. I am hoping to be able to get back into doing just that in support of our tight knit family once I get back online regularly. I didn't get the chance to get to know a lot of people from the forum but I missed coming here while I was down. There aren't a lot of people who understand people like us so it is nice to have a place to go & communicate with like minds.

 

[Sticki]

Hello mate and welcome back!

Sorry to hear of your incareration too, But happy to hear you managed to get a minimum term and that you are now actually free to roam the streets and internet

Hopefully you find your groove quickly

 

[ImTrippingStupid]

I hope that I can get on someone's wifi once i get to my mom's later today. I have to figure out a job so I can pay for the net at her place. Hopefully this one company will get back to me despite my felonies. Talk to you peeps soon.

 

[Crimzen]

welcome back dude
sucks to hear about you getting stuck in a place like that
especially for things which dont really warrant or deserve jail time

best of luck in what must seem a fresh world

 

[itsscience]

I'm sure people felt safer while you were securely locked up behind bars for possessing a few substances that rarely make people violent or commit crimes. I mean seriously, who cares about murderers, paedophiles and rapists while there are people like you running around out there with some mushrooms in your pocket.

Best of luck getting back on your feet mate, I hope the stigma of jail time doesn't hinder you getting work. Let us know how it works out.

 

[IJesusChrist]

wow, thank jeebus you got off in good time, i'm really glad they let you go so soon...

how did you get caught?

 

[ImTrippingStupid]

Thanks guys. I can only hope that things will work out. All of this has me rather discouraged. So much for freedom of religion. I can't even have my sacraments because of having to worry about some asshole coming in my home. Not to mention that I could end up back in prison just for something as simple as taking a little bit of herbal medicine for my ADD.

Sadly it was a close friend I had for a long time that set me up. I knew him from back when I wasn't even into all of this stuff so that really hurts because it's been about a decade since I got into psychedelics. He got busted selling to an unercover and decided to run his mouth. What ever happened to the old school ways where you get busted you do your time? I had no problem sitting. I didn't like it but fuck man I am in no way shape or form ever going to roll over on one of my friends. That isn't what I was taught by the old heads of yesteryear. Guess shit has changed for some people. I knew full well the risks of what I had gotten myself into and I accepted them. I don't understand why those who can't deal with it even bother getting themselves into things. I am only happy that the District Attorney fucked up on my docket otherwise I would be sitting for quite some time.

As far as jobs go. Who knows how that is going to work out. I have over 60 Applications and resumes out in the world and only one company has called me back. I have been waiting for 3 weeks for the go ahead. I got the job offer on the table but they are waiting on my criminal background check to come back from their people who do the pre-employment investigations. I haven't any idea why it is taking so long when I can pull my complete record up in seconds. All that shit is public information. Hopefully I will catch a break sooner or later. I can only hope it is sooner. I had to move back in with my mother after my release. It hasn't even been a week and the woman is driving me insane. I can only pray that I soon am able to get the mental reset that I need. A person can only endure so much drama and then they need to just release themselves from it.

 

[itsscience]

Wow man that really sucks balls!

Please don't get too discouraged because it'll only lead to depression and an even deeper hole to dig yourself out of. I assume that you're in USA because of the reference to the DA so I don't really know what employment situations are like over there but it seems that you're probably applying for professional type jobs hence the background checks. Have you considered blue collar type work like labouring where you're not going to be asked for background checks? I don't mean being a labourer for the rest of your life but just for a period so that potential future employers can see that you're making a go of it and can be trusted to work hard.

Good luck with it mate and try and go easy on your mum, if she's anything like my mother or like I am as a parent then she loves you unconditionally and her nagging/intrusion is just misplaced worry and care for the soul she would do anything for.

I can't sympathise with you enough mate and even though it is a massive cliche I'm convinced that one day you'll look back on all of this and realise it for the temporary bullshit bubble that it is.

 

[ImTrippingStupid]

Wow man that really sucks balls!

Please don't get too discouraged because it'll only lead to depression and an even deeper hole to dig yourself out of. I assume that you're in USA because of the reference to the DA so I don't really know what employment situations are like over there but it seems that you're probably applying for professional type jobs hence the background checks. Have you considered blue collar type work like labouring where you're not going to be asked for background checks? I don't mean being a labourer for the rest of your life but just for a period so that potential future employers can see that you're making a go of it and can be trusted to work hard.

Good luck with it mate and try and go easy on your mum, if she's anything like my mother or like I am as a parent then she loves you unconditionally and her nagging/intrusion is just misplaced worry and care for the soul she would do anything for.

I can't sympathise with you enough mate and even though it is a massive cliche I'm convinced that one day you'll look back on all of this and realise it for the temporary bullshit bubble that it is.

Almost everywhere does background checks here. The position I applied for and am waiting to hear back from is for a machine operator position running an injecion mold maching. You were correct in figuring that I am in the USA. I honestly can say that i wish I wasn't though. I recently put in an application to study onlline with the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. That school is insanely expensive though. I am trying to study Web Design & Interactive Media. I would like to keep looking into other schools for a Computer Science degree but I am not so sure that i will end up with the job that i want in the field do to my record. If i could keep up with the work i could however figure out my own business. the biggest thing is trying to come up with an original idea for a web domain so i can make a lot of money off of it. otherwise i would end up just doing consultant work. At least that is how i see my situation. I am not sure how I would fair for work in other countries. I definitely wouldnt mind finding out tho so if anyone has any information or knowledge of this I am all ears. i have been wanting to move to Europe for a few years now. i guess that i should have while I had the chance and the money.

I been out for a little over 2 weeks now. I am slowly adjusting to the streets again at least. I will be finishing up my printing training for a certificatee I am going for at the moment in a little over a week. no idea if that will land me a better paying job then i might have lined up but it is worth a shot. I would really like to just find a job doing something i could possibly enjoy at this point. I dont want to run a printing press but it is doable. It isnt too hard and i do kind of enjoy running Lithography presses. I would sooner try and figure out a screen printing company of my own if I was goign to go into pint media. It is a lot more fun. Not only that but even with automation I can't be replaced in that branch of the printing industry unlike with the other styles of printing processes.

 

[ImTrippingStupid]

Well I guess I can kiss the machine operator job good bye. The company didn't call me but I logged into the workforce development system website for my state and saw that I wasn't hired through thhe company i been waiting for my background check to come back for. So much for a shitty ass factory job. Currently I have 100+ applications/resumes out and only one company called me back and thats a no go. I guess it is back to detailing cars workin with Heroin shootin crack smokin fiends for me. Such a dead end job with no chance of raises, promotions, or benefits of any kind. Total fuckin waste of time too. I really wish I knew what to do about finding employment. I am starting to think I would have just been better off going upstate for a few years. At least by then the economy might have been better.

 

[itsscience]

That's bad news man, I'm sorry to hear it. Working with crack shooting fiends is going to make life difficult for you.

 

[ImTrippingStupid]

Got an email today from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh online division saying that I was accepted for admissions into their Web Design & Interactive Media program. Now all I have to do is figure out how the fuck i am goign to afford the tuition for an Art Institute! :shock: I wonder how much money I would be able to make designing websites. At least with that I have a shot of freelancing or something over the internet. If I can't find a job to make a career maybe I should just figure out a way to make a career myself. Sadly I am goign to need somethign to make me some loot so I can survive. :|

 

[Crimzen]

a friend of mine does freelance website design
it definately a viable source of income if you take it seriously enough
once you have the skills there are actually a lot of business's out there that want websites done for them
you can charge a decent amount and depending on your proficiency you can get it done quite quickly

if you end up doing the course i recommend making up a business card and just introducing yourself to local business owners/managers

 

[ImTrippingStupid]

Yesturday marked the 3rd week since my release from prison and I am now officially enrolled into The Art Institute of Pittsburgh Online Division for Web Design & Interactive. I am trying to not waste anytime with getting this show on the road. I had talked to a friend that owns a tattoo shop about doing some work for him on a site just so I could start ona portfolio once I get some skills in the field. He said he didn't need anything but knows of some studios & etc that I could possibly do some work for once I gain the knowledge depending on my approach & personal style for design work. I am in good spirits at the moment. I am hoping to be able to pick up some design work while enrolled so I can pay down the Federal loans that I am floating just to go back to school. Trying to follow a DIY or Die philosophy when it comes to making money. I'm not desperate but I gotta do what I gotta do to survive. Times are tough and there isn't any time for twirling my thumbs. I know that at least in the Web Design field the outlook for the future is at least bright. The Internet is only goign to continue to grow. The only way to stop the internet would be a massive world failure of computer systems.

 

[Schwanke668]

I'm rather impressed and someone jealous of your zeal. For a variety of reasons that I am always trying to improve I generally have no personal motivation for anything that isnt 100% fun. What got me into trouble in the first place in college and Ive been battling it ever since. I actually went to CMU which is right down the road from the Art Institute in Pittsburgh. Wish I hadnt though. I was WAAAYY in over my head and probably wouldnt have turned to a life of stupidity if I had gone some place where I actually could compete with the other students and not feel like I was an idiot all the time.

Something my dad recommended to me once was if I ever got to the point where I could do serious website design even at a basic level but not just 'foolin around' like I do, is you could set up a portfolio contract where you offer to do it for free for the company but it stays as your property and you contractually agree to maintain it until a certain set of situations is met like you decide its time to move on and turn it over to them for free or they decide they dont want it anymore and you stop developing it for them but use it in your portfolio as an example marking every page as non functional example or something.

Then you get a chance to make a portfolio with no real strings attached and that might turn some heads later on. Especially if you did it for a tattoo shop where half the point is art, then you could go all out on tattoo ideas for the website etc, especially using peices of the their artwork in the design of the site itself for example.

Just an idea. I really am jealous of your motivation. If I was half that motivated I might actually be able to do an at home business. Seems like everytime I get 30% or so into a project something comes up and kills it for me and I dont have the whatever to get past it. Dad says over half of small businesses fail within the first year. You would tink one out of my like 6 would have made it by now lol.

 

[ImTrippingStupid]

I'm rather impressed and someone jealous of your zeal. For a variety of reasons that I am always trying to improve I generally have no personal motivation for anything that isnt 100% fun. What got me into trouble in the first place in college and Ive been battling it ever since. I actually went to CMU which is right down the road from the Art Institute in Pittsburgh. Wish I hadnt though. I was WAAAYY in over my head and probably wouldnt have turned to a life of stupidity if I had gone some place where I actually could compete with the other students and not feel like I was an idiot all the time.

Something my dad recommended to me once was if I ever got to the point where I could do serious website design even at a basic level but not just 'foolin around' like I do, is you could set up a portfolio contract where you offer to do it for free for the company but it stays as your property and you contractually agree to maintain it until a certain set of situations is met like you decide its time to move on and turn it over to them for free or they decide they dont want it anymore and you stop developing it for them but use it in your portfolio as an example marking every page as non functional example or something.

Then you get a chance to make a portfolio with no real strings attached and that might turn some heads later on. Especially if you did it for a tattoo shop where half the point is art, then you could go all out on tattoo ideas for the website etc, especially using peices of the their artwork in the design of the site itself for example.

Just an idea. I really am jealous of your motivation. If I was half that motivated I might actually be able to do an at home business. Seems like everytime I get 30% or so into a project something comes up and kills it for me and I dont have the whatever to get past it. Dad says over half of small businesses fail within the first year. You would tink one out of my like 6 would have made it by now lol.

Thanks for your words and thoughts on this subject. I am a bit more motivated then I was before my arrest in regards to legal things at least. However, I still have my moments where I truly feel as if I am doomed for failure. I wish I could say that I don't doubt my future but even with going back to school I find myself falling into thought patterns that won't get me anywhere. All I can do is try and keep myself busy so that I don't have the time to dwell on my issues that pull me into the abyss. In the past year my confidence and self esteem took a major hit. If I would have followed through with any one of my numerous ideas other then selling drugs in the past I probably would have made a substancial bit of money. I always seemed to have insanely good ideas but unfortunately for me I don't have the money to do most of them. All i know is there are a bunch of printing companys in my area that don't have websites. i found this out when I was looking to find a job at one of them and took the time to search for their sites so i can learn more about the companys. I am figuring on hitting them up once I gain more knowledge inn design work to see if they would be interested in the services that i could provide them. I am constantly trying to figure out ways to improve my situation that I got myself into because of my arrest. I have had a thought since the economy dropepd that it may very well be a lot easier to make one job versus finding one job so I am trying to find my way into a career that I can create myself. I am getting too old to be working a bullshit ass job.

I talked with another friend today who said he knows of people who would pay me money right now if I can figure out some kind of web design work that is good. At the moment I have minimal experience and knowledge of the software but I am going to see what I can do without knowing what I will be learning in the classroom. Like I said it is a DIY or Die scenario I am living in at the moment. More or less I just have to keep my eye on the prize and strive for a better life. if I can keep up the motivation that I have been trying keepp going I think I should eventually be successful. It is going to take a lot of initiative and drive to accomplish the things that i want to do.

 

[itsscience]

You can do it mate. School is a good start. Have confidence in yourself and give yourself no option but to succeed.

 

[ImTrippingStupid]

You can do it mate. School is a good start. Have confidence in yourself and give yourself no option but to succeed.

Thanks. I appreciate it. I started my classes today. I finished one assignment already and almost have a second one finished. I just have to write a paragraph on a few things to go along with my upload of the work I did in photoshop. I was goign to do my thing in Illustrator but there ws one section I couldn't figure out the proper way to do it in Illustrator. So far so good. I am in good confidence. I just worked a 15 hour shift today so I am a bit beat in regards to energy for doing my assignments but thats life. I may have a potential positionin this company that I used to work for. As I was abotu to head home the boss had talked to me abotu coming back in on Sunday. At the moment i am getting paid under the table so at least I made over $100 in cash today. There is a possibility that I may hit $200 total for 2 days worth of work depending on th rate he will give me. I asked for $10 a hour so we will have to see whether I get it. The last time i worked for him I made $8 an hour. I really hope he doesn't use the old pay scale I was on. But hey it is a job. The owner of the company and most the staff already know what I went to prison for because they seen my face all over the news. At least I don't have to worry about them not bringing me on to work because of my charges considering that i just pulled almost a double shift. Today was the 1st time i worked in abotu 1 1/2 years. So doign a 15 hour shift was brutal for me. I am totally not used to those kind of hours like i used to be.

 

[itsscience]

There you go dude, it's happening for you and all you need to do is to work hard. Keep it up man, I'm really glad to hear you're getting on with your life.

 

[ImTrippingStupid]

Just checking back in I figured I would give a recent update. I been working under the table now for about two weeks. i am not getting the amount of money that I wanted but its money just the same. Shit has been rather hectic lately due to working over 40 hours a week and doing coursework. I am one class short of being considered a full time student. I am clocking an average of 50 hours a week at work and about 20-40 hours a week in my online courses so I have been extremely busy as of lately. Not to mention the fact that I am also having to figure otu time to get my D&A evaluation and counseling shit set up. I am maintaing a high A average at the moment in my classes. I have approximately a 97.09% thus far. I am one of the top two people in my design class at the moment which is excellent. Things are definitely lookign up. I just need to find a better job so that i can make more money and not have to work so many hours if I can help it. I have to pay for part of my tuition out of pocket as I am takign classes so I can take more which is the only reason I am not goign full time at the moment. Having bad credit is a bitch! Thanks for allt he encouragement you guys have given me since I have bene out of prison. It has definitely been a lot more then what my family has put forth.