We often take for granted how drastic technological developments have changed our way of living in the span of just a few years. But some people are barred, in some cases quite literally, from experiencing the convenience and lifestyle we’re so accustomed to… And stepping back into society can seem a little overwhelming when you’re forced to be isolated from it for years.

One Australian man who spent the last 12 years behind bars experienced just that, revealing the massive culture shock he had after being released.

The former prisoner shared that the shock started when his wife picked him up from jail – in a car that didn't exist when he was still a free man back in 2010.

“I got spat out at 7 am, my wife picked me up in this car I had never seen before,” he said.

“I spent 25 minutes staring at the dash, then I said hello.”

In an interview held on the Kyle and Jackie O Show on KIIS 1065, the man said that when he went to jail, Uber eats wasn’t a thing yet and Michael Jackson was still alive.

“The world is a completely different place,” he said. Funnily enough, it was a simple trip to Woolworths which really left the ex-con perplexed.

“My wife had given me an iPhone and set up the face ID, then we headed to Woolies to buy some fruit and vegetables,” he explained. “She said you have to tap your phone on the ‘tap and go’ and I nearly broke the screen!”

Kylie and Jackie O’. Image Credit: news.com.au​

The hosts burst out laughing with the man before explaining how there's a big difference between a prison tap and a real-world tap.

“You don't do anything softly in prison,” Kyle said.

The man added that he still received news in jail, and even worked out ways to get reception on a small handheld radio during a strict 17-day Covid lockdown. But these moments weren’t sufficient to prepare him for all of the drastic changes.

He said he was also disappointed when he tried to find the radio hosts – only to discover that they had moved stations since his time away.

The unidentified former inmate called the radio hosts after they questioned whether or not relationships could survive a prison sentence.

He said that he and his wife are just as in love as they were before he was put behind bars, boasting about how their relationship is a success story. The man is still on parole as he was only released seven weeks ago, but he clarified that things are looking up.

“I have had a job since the day I got out,” he said proudly.

Watch a video about what a couple of prisoners found the most shocking in the modern world below:

Video Credit: ToadFilms​

 

[Ricci]

So much for rehabilitation. Reintegration into society must be so hard as the world turns at such a rapid pace these days.

 

[JayKay]

Re-entry into the local neighbourhood after Covid lockdown and evening curfew over the last 2 years has been very difficult.
At times, I felt as if it was easier to stay isolated in my own home.
After 12 years, to have a loving wife pick you up
and start your new chapter is beautiful, but oh so daunting.
One day at a time, one foot in front of the other, slowly, slowly.....go well, friend.

 

[Groovy]

I wonder if there were tvs and radios in prison

 

[Ricci]

I wonder if there were tvs and radios in prison

Apparently only if you have the funds to buy them from the prison authorities.

 

[Groovy]

Apparently only if you have the funds to buy them from the prison authorities.

Really?? I thought they had it all in prison
I’m sure his good mates would let him know what was going on outside……….come on.
Poor man, he didn’t even know that his loving wife had a car……..did she visited him?? Maybe he was confined to a solitary cell

 

[Ricci]

Really?? I thought they had it all in prison
I’m sure his good mates would let him know what was going on outside……….come on.
Poor man, he didn’t even know that his loving wife had a car……..did she visited him?? Maybe he was confined to a solitary cell

Other than your meals all extra has to be bought. They work and get about $15 - $30 depending what they do, from this they can buy anything from pens, writing pads and envelopes to shampoo, deodorant, toothpaste to chips, soft drinks and lollies. They also have to pay for their phone calls which are timed to six minutes. Most of them are also subsidised by family on the outside who can pay money into their A/c. Everything in prison costs a damn sight more than it does on the outside so their earnings don't go far. Visiting can be difficult as the authorities seem to take great care to send inmates as far away as possible. I know of inmates incarcerated 6 and 7 hours drive from family, not a journey you can undertake every week.

 

[Groovy]

Other than your meals all extra has to be bought. They work and get about $15 - $30 depending what they do, from this they can buy anything from pens, writing pads and envelopes to shampoo, deodorant, toothpaste to chips, soft drinks and lollies. They also have to pay for their phone calls which are timed to six minutes. Most of them are also subsidised by family on the outside who can pay money into their A/c. Everything in prison costs a damn sight more than it does on the outside so their earnings don't go far. Visiting can be difficult as the authorities seem to take great care to send inmates as far away as possible. I know of inmates incarcerated 6 and 7 hours drive from family, not a journey you can undertake every week.

I just was saying that, because sometimes we hear the media saying that the prisoners have sports facilities, or this or that, or that the human rights department (?) is trying to bring in, better facilities etc!!
Oh well, now I know Thank you

 

[Ricci]

I just was saying that, because sometimes we hear the media saying that the prisoners have sports facilities, or this or that, or that the human rights department (?) is trying to bring in, better facilities etc!!
Oh well, now I know Thank you

They are supposed to have education departments but a lot of them don't have teachers and some use inmates to teach others, it's mostly really basic stuff like arithmetic and reading and writing with a bit of form filling and resume writing for the brighter ones. Once face to face visits were banned due to covid they were supposed to get access to up to 2 x 30 minute video calls home per week each but there was only one screen which meant that there were a total of of 8 calls per day or 40 over a week, this was for a facility with 200 inmates so a lot of them missed out. They are not happy. They are also spending a lot of time in lockdown as covid means that an already tight workforce of guards is decimated and there are not enough to keep the facilities working as they should. When you know how our prison system works (or doesn't) it's enough to keep you on the straight and narrow!!

 

[Groovy]

They are supposed to have education departments but a lot of them don't have teachers and some use inmates to teach others, it's mostly really basic stuff like arithmetic and reading and writing with a bit of form filling and resume writing for the brighter ones. Once face to face visits were banned due to covid they were supposed to get access to up to 2 x 30 minute video calls home per week each but there was only one screen which meant that there were a total of of 8 calls per day or 40 over a week, this was for a facility with 200 inmates so a lot of them missed out. They are not happy. They are also spending a lot of time in lockdown as covid means that an already tight workforce of guards is decimated and there are not enough to keep the facilities working as they should. When you know how our prison system works (or doesn't) it's enough to keep you on the straight and narrow!!

Thanks for the info

 

[barbaranne]

Apparently only if you have the funds to buy them from the prison authorities.

Not in all prisons.

 

[Ricci]

Not in all prisons.

Prisons supply 1 tv in common areas, great if you want to watch the same as everyone else. If you want your own you have to buy it.

 

[Defiant540]

They are supposed to have education departments but a lot of them don't have teachers and some use inmates to teach others, it's mostly really basic stuff like arithmetic and reading and writing with a bit of form filling and resume writing for the brighter ones. Once face to face visits were banned due to covid they were supposed to get access to up to 2 x 30 minute video calls home per week each but there was only one screen which meant that there were a total of of 8 calls per day or 40 over a week, this was for a facility with 200 inmates so a lot of them missed out. They are not happy. They are also spending a lot of time in lockdown as covid means that an already tight workforce of guards is decimated and there are not enough to keep the facilities working as they should. When you know how our prison system works (or doesn't) it's enough to keep you on the straight and narrow!!

why should they be happy!???

 

[Ricci]

why should they be happy!???

Why shouldn't they? Not all of them are inherently evil. some of them just made wrong life choices, or were in the wrong place at the wrong time. A lot of them are just like you and me, or could be your family member or friend. The idea of prison is to re-habilitate and keeping contact with the outside world plays a big part of that. Prisoners have families, kids, parents etc and if we want them to succeed on the outside they need a strong base to work from. Don't get me wrong, I'm a firm believer of the punishment fitting the crime but if you just lock them up, keep them isolated and throw away the key you are never going to re-habilitate them and should therefore just put a revolving door at the entrance to all prisons.