The following piece is written by Robert  who grew up in the city of Dublin.  Wash houses are where the housewives used to bring their clothes to launder them.  They were only in the cities and not in the country areas.

DUBLIN WASH HOUSES

The wash houses I remember were in Tara St and there was one at the back of the Ivy Market and another inside the gates of St Kevin’ Hospital in James Street.   The one that we mostly went to was the Ivy Market wash house and we used to go on a Wednesday or a Saturday.  My mother used to pay 6d (old money) for a half wash which meant she was allocated a wash space for half hour.  The wash space was a cubicle which had a sink fixed to the wall with hot and cold water taps.  She brought her own soap powder and washing board.

She then washed and rinsed the clothes and put them through the mangle and brought them home to dry on the line.  A full wash took longer and as well as being able to wash and rinse the clothes, it was possible to use a type of spinner.  The spinner was like a cast iron vat with a lid that was closed and bolted when the clothes were put into it.  It was powered by steam engine and when a lever was pulled the drum inside it turned and it made an awful racket for about fifteen minutes.  The clothes would not be fully dry coming out of the spinner but the heavy wet was gone off them.  Then the clothes were put into a giant hot press.  To use this you pulled out a long set of hard wooden rails with a handle attached to the outside of the press.  The clothes were spread along the rails and the whole lot was pushed back in for about an hour.  There was intense heat in the hot press, which came from the furnace which was used to heat the boiler supplying the hot water for washing.  Getting the washing done could take a whole day if there were lots of people there but it would always take at least a half day.

My sister and myself used to go with our mother and we would go across to the Tivoli picture house while we were waiting for the clothes to dry.  Although it is no longer in use, this wash house can still be seen at the back of the Ivy market, and is now owned by the Eastern Health Board.  It looks exactly the same on the outside.

Snow

It’s snowing outside!

I imagine being with my child right now. We would fool around in the snow and have fun, making snowballs, snowmen, ski tracks and angels in the snow – laughing together.

It hurts to be in prison and not be able to do what you like with your child. But the thought of being together soon makes me stronger. I love my child more than anything else in the world, but drugs have taken her away from me and she lives with a foster family. I miss her so much that I cry in my cell. But I can only blame myself.

What worries me is what she is doing, who she is with and where she goes with her friends. She is twelve now - a lot can happen to her, lik it did with me. For those of you who have children – start thinking about them and not just yourself. Care about your children!

I hope the snow will still be there when I get out of here. Then we can do all the things together that I am dreaming of.

Anita (age 37 Drammen Prison)

Anita was released in February 2003. She has got an apartment, she goes to our school for ex-prisoners every day and she is on medication for her drug addiction. Her daughter visits her every second weekend and we still have snow!

KNOWING HOW TO SURVIVE

“We can focus our consciousness on dark depths of revenge, brutality and vulgarity or we can also play with life even here”.

Today I would like to think about all of the things that I have lost by being here. I have lost my freedom. Everyone manages to get by with it in some way there are alternative ways of doing things of course, and for some of us this prison is a real favour and allows us to survive the cold winters, which we would not survive behind the wall. But for most of us prison is not a favour and we would give away anything just to feel the taste of freedom.

The worst are those unsatisfied needs of my spirit. What do I lack the most? Have I lost my family? No, my family keeps calling me and helping me. Have I lost my beloved? No, she keeps writing to me. Have I lost my friends? Those real ones, no, as for those fake – did I need them? So the prison became some sort of test for my love, friendship and attachment. I have not lost all those people I love and care for, and my eyes are open now so I know who I can count on. I have learned caution, which  will help me in my future life so I won’t fall once again.

I have become more sensitive and I have seen what is most important in my life. Not mates, not parties, not job but love and family. But let us go back to the prisoner who tastes some new dish from the pack of his cellmate. Sometimes they learn about things they have no idea of. What do I mean? A human being is different from other animals because he has a consciousness. Everything is in our mind and it depends on us if we survive this time in here. We have an imagination, which allows us to realize our dreams. We can focus our consciousness on dark depths of revenge, brutality and vulgarity or we can also play with life even here, surprising ourselves by our new abilities and talents which have been hidden in our souls.

Anon. (section vii) Rzeszow