am I being naive?

I have written to inmates for a very long while, and never have I had any of them leave me any bodily fluids on the letters. Maybe food smudges, but that was really it.

I think you will be fine with your new potential pal.

Good luck, and welcome to wap

I think that sex stuff only happens rarely. and I doubt it would happen if you made it clear upfront you were only looking for friendship. And if it ever does happen, just chuck the letter and don't write back.

Hi just_a-friend,
I agree with both Skye and viva, in that those kind of situations are more rare than not. Obviously, when you write to prisoners, you are going to run into some bad apples. But, you can also run into some very marvelous people. And, you will never know until you try.
I think that my PP is a good example. Her ad had no personal information. No birthdate, crime or anything. Just name address and photo. So, upon getting a few letters, I discovered that she was a normal human being, just like anybody else. She had a happy childhood and has children that she loves. She had the misfortune of being married to a man, for three years, who chained her up in a barn, with a hub cap full of water, and sicced dogs on her when she tried to escape. Ultimately she was convicted of murder. But, she says that he had boobie trapped the house and killed himself by setting off one of his own traps. Can that be true? Newspaper accounts say that firefighters refused to enter the house as it burned to the ground, because they and law enforcement people knew about the boobie traps.
So!! You will run into all kinds of tales and interesting situations. Sometimes the truth is stranger than fiction. :-)
I do hope that you can find a nice PP. Happy writing. :-)

Hi just a friend,

Just write, and you will see you will gain wonderfull friends, if you make it out clear from the start what you are looking for, they will let you know if they can live with that.

Enjoy the wonderfull thing of writing to the people in need for some personal contact.

Micky - Belgium

Set your boundaries (in a nice way) in the first letter and stick to them and that should cut down on having problems such as these. Doesn't work every time, but as someone who writes to 11 pen pals, it's well worth the extra effort.

Happy writing and welcom to WAP, btw! :)

MIR

hi just a friend,
and welcome to wap!
i am newer to this forum and have a couple of pp's,like everyone has said just set boundaries and go with your heart.you will find good and bad people everywhere,i go with the the thought that at least i have a better chance of knowing the truth from an inmate.good luck and happy writing.

Friend - In my 1st letter to PPs I state that I am a person of faith and very involved in my church, etc., but will not bring it into the conversation unless they ask. I also state that I am only interested in finding a friend. I haven't had any problems.

Good Luck! Don't let a few nuts keep you from doing a good thing!!

"But, she says that he had boobie trapped the house and killed himself by setting off one of his own traps. Can that be true?"

Yes. I lived in an abusive situation as a child. There really are crazy people like that in the world. It just doesn't get reported often, and if reported, people can't deal with talking about it, and so it just fades away.

I truly think that judges and juries should cut some slack for abusive women who kill their husbands.

Hey just a friend, I am relatively new, just joined the forum and started writing in March. My penpal has been wonderful, we've traded letters and spoken on the phone several times, and it has been a great experience so far. He hasn't said or written or done one thing that has made me feel even the slightest bit uncomfortable. Take the leap. :-)

Hey just a friend,

I can relate to why you want to write inmates because my reasoning for starting to write was similar.

Last May, I lost my uncle in a freak accident. My Uncle Sam was a wonderful and devout Catholic, and he too believed that people need to be given a second chance in life, so he wrote and visited prisoners around New England. After he died, I had a hard time dealing with his death, and thought that by following in his footssteaps, it would provide some closure and help me deal with his loss. I have one PP who is a great friend, but nothing more. I too did not come here looking for anything more than a friendship, and I have had no semen or sexual content letters...so it IS possible!

Just state in the first few letters that you just want a friendship...and hopefully, he'll get the point.

Once you start writing, you'll be hooked! Not only have I made a wonderful friend, but I know that my Uncle Sam is smiling down on me from Heaven.

Good luck,
Amy

Hi just a friend ive only been on here for about 4 months .I think it is wonderful of you to write people so as someone else said dont let the nuts scare you away .And if you dont feel pleased with what you are doing you can always stop writing.I hope you find a wonerful friend to write

Hello that is a rare to receive those items in a letter. Trust me their are some geniune people who are looking for you too. Take your time search the ads. Mine happened the first time I clicked on the state he was the first people and Iread what he had to say and I pondered for two months before writing because I was havin doubts like you. Guess what??? We have a great relationship. We became friends over a course of a few years and it grew. Good luck to you. Tara

Hi Just_a_friend - have you decided to send the letter yet? Hope it all goes well for you. I've been writing to my 2pp's for about 4 months and am so glad I decided to. I've got to know 2 very intersting people and gained 2 new friends.

Hi JP! Good advice here.

I've had prison pps for over 30 years and have always been respected so some of the things you're concerned about are definitely the exception and not the rule.

Always make it clear where you stand and all should be well.