I am Joel.

I am a father and a husband. I even have a dog. I enjoy writing about my job, but many times find myself just blabbing about my life in general. What can I say, I mostly just like to write.

I was in the Marine Corps for 4 years, and was stationed at a Nuclear Weapons Submarine base in Georgia for two of those years. I was stationed in Japan when 9/11 happened (0311, ooh rah) and was a heartbeat away from going to Afghanistan on 9/18.

I was honorably discharged as a Corporal in 2002.

I don’t think I’m anything special; just another guy with a website. I hope you enjoy.

Yes, I work in a Jail in Cowlitz County, Washington.

I have been there since 2002.

Cowlitz County Jail moved into a new residence in mid-2006. Across from the previous jail, the new jail uses “state of the art” technology to help us do our jobs as Correction Officers. Which is just a fancy way of saying we have pan-tilt-zoom cameras everywhere and push-button control panels instead of old-style switches and one fixed camera per area. It’s nice; it’s got some issues, but it’s nice.

Take a look at the current list of our guests.

We even have a mission statement:

The Cowlitz County Corrections Department is a criminal justice agency dedicated to providing and managing progressive correction services in an efficient, effective, and socially responsible manner. Our goal is to provide cost-effective services while maintaining safety for the community, staff, and offenders.

[Emphasis on "cost-effective"]

In the future we may go to the “cryo-storage model” (a la ‘Demolition Man’), but until then I will be gainfully employed.

If you’re looking for an interesting job with excellent benefits (and you aren’t a felon), take a look and see if we are hiring - tell them that Joel sent you.

The actual Cowlitz County Jail website hasn’t been updated in quite a long time, so some of the information on the page is out of date. Any questions can be submitted by leaving a comment on any one of my posts.