6:15 a.m.: I wake up to the shrill sound of the count bell. Crawling out of bed, the first thing I do is feed Adams, the 18-month-old golden retriever and Labrador mix that I am currently training. I’m a participant in the puppy program at the State Correctional Institution at Muncy; it’s a voluntary program in which we train and care for future service dogs. 

6:20 a.m.: I change out of the oversized shirt and boxers I wear as pajamas and put on a clean shirt and sweatpants. Around the unit, I don’t have to wear my state uniform of a button-up shirt and pants. Neither Adams nor I are morning creatures, so we snuggle up on the bottom bunk to steal a few more minutes of sleep. Not having a roommate is a rarity in prison, so I make the most of it by sharing the vacant bottom bunk with Adams for cuddle time.

6:45 a.m.: Count clears, and I take Adams outside to do his business. I live in an incentive unit, where we have greater freedom to move around. Members of the puppy program are able to take the dogs outside at any time. The unit has a big lawn out front, so this is where we take the dogs. When we come back in, I make a steaming cup of coffee with creamer and artificial sweetener to sip as I read “The Dark Forest,” the sequel to Liu Cixin’s “The Three-Body Problem.” Adams balls up next to me, resting his head on my lap. This is my favorite time of day. The slow, peaceful morning gives me space to think and breathe before the chaos starts.

7:30 a.m.: I brush my teeth, wash my face and then take Adams to the basement of our unit. In the mornings, I usually have the basement to myself, but later in the day almost everyone in the program brings their dogs downstairs to play. The basement is a large space with tables and chairs, and a bathtub and grooming supplies for the dogs. We installed fabric handles on the drawers, which the dogs learn to grab with their mouths to tug them open. We also teach them to push open the cabinets with their noses. This morning I worked with Adams on positions, touching, retrieving objects, stays, recalls, turning light switches on and off, and opening and closing drawers and cabinets. 

8:15 a.m.: Adams and I stay in the basement to play fetch, his passion in life. While Adams chases the slobbery ball, I chat with my friend, who is also in the program.

9 a.m.: I put Adams in his kennel in my room so he can take a nap while I work out. Exercising is my sanity. I usually do strength-based calisthenics. Today, I do different variations of squats and lunges to train my legs and a number of core exercises, including variations of crunches, situps, planks and leg raises.

10:30 a.m.: I take a quick shower, soak my sweaty clothes in a white laundry bucket with detergent to wash out later, and make another cup of coffee.

11 a.m.: I’m in my room for count, so I use the time to catch up on responding to email messages on my tablet. Because the tablets are so limited, I joke that they are the same kind that parents give to little kids. We can only use them to purchase and listen to music, send electronic messages and play games.

Noon: I call my grandmother Nana using the phone in the small closet in our dayroom, where there is a wooden chair for this purpose.

12:15 p.m.: For lunch, the kitchen is serving chicken and gravy. The thick texture always reminds me of cat food, so I make a peanut butter and honey sandwich instead and follow it with a chocolate health shake. Lunch is always my breakfast. Afterwards, I scrub the laundry I started earlier with soap and a brush before rinsing it out and hanging it on the clotheslines I’ve constructed in my room.

1:15 p.m.: It is both cool and sunny outside, perfect weather for walking. I take Adams out to the yard to meet up with a friend who lives in another unit. The three of us walk laps for a while. Then I let Adams run around and play on the basketball court with another dog named Oscar. People love petting and interacting with the dogs, and the pups welcome the attention. It’s a real pleasure to witness the comfort and joy that the dogs offer people here.

2:15 p.m.: I hustle to the activities building for the biweekly soda distribution. I can’t wait to pick up the Diet Dr. Pepper I ordered. Adams follows lazily behind, dragging his hind paws on the pavement. As I sign my name to receive the soda, Adams takes the opportunity to sprawl out on the carpet. It takes me a few seconds to get him up and going again.

2:30 p.m.: I soak more laundry and make dinner — refried beans and rice, letting it cook on my radiator. Both the beans and rice come in plastic, resealable bags. I put everything in another plastic bag with hot water and place the bag on the radiator in my room so it can get hot enough to cook. Most people cook using contraband stingers, which are made of a laundry bucket, an extension cord, nail clippers and salt. I used to cook food this way, but I don’t feel comfortable using something so dangerous when I’ve been entrusted to care for a dog.

3 p.m.: Adams and I nap together. Throughout the week, I’m busy studying for my college classes, working as a tutor in the machine shop, attending exercise classes and volunteer tutoring. I cherish Sunday afternoons because I finally have time to nap.

4:30 p.m.: I wake up for count, eat dinner and try to catch up on reading the pile of New Yorker magazines I’ve accumulated.

5 p.m.: Count clears, and I take Adams to the basement for playtime with the four other dogs that we currently have here.

5:30 p.m.: Back in the phone room, I call a friend.

6 p.m.: I put Adams in the kennel for the hour of alone time he is required to have each day. I use this time to finish my laundry and volunteer to take trash to the compactor for disposal.

7 p.m.: I feed Adams dinner, and we walk across the compound to attend the evening med line, where I collect my daily medications. 

7:30 p.m.: I take a long, hot shower.

8 p.m.: Adams and I hang out in the common room. He wrestles on the floor with one of his puppy friends while I chat amiably with my human friends.

8:45 p.m.: We return to my room so I can begin my evening rituals. Exhausted, Adams puts himself to bed, which makes it easier for me to clean. Every night, I clean the floor using sanitary pads and disinfectant, and I disinfect all of the surfaces that I frequently touch — a habit I developed during the pandemic.

9:20 p.m.: I floss and brush my teeth, moisturize my face, change into pajamas and putter around my room.

9:30 p.m.: I shut the light off and climb up in bed with my book, leaving my TV on as ambient noise. Eventually I fall asleep.