16-IX-2010.
The rasejani are negotiating a gathering around here, on Carska bara (imperial puddle). At Firriver, I was doing something about the web app, I think figuring a way for newly enrolled to get an email before going further - confirm your registration, please (nope, that was George). The simple spam defense. Also it took me some while to upload a SFBC database (the whole dbfs directory, zipped) for whichever reason.
Early in the afternoon we three walked downtown to buy a few things, above all a decent typist's chair for me. Sitting on one of our regular chairs doesn't quite work for me(... 6 words...).
First, got me some winter boots, those yellow ones, above ankle, at Borovo. They are called Borelli now, and they pee thin, unpaid bill, no electricity in the shop. The shop is tight, less than a quarter of what it once was, and it's not even in the same house, perhaps next one down the street. The girlie works alone, so unplugged. But the shoes turned out right, just require a lot of unlacing and lacing.
Found the chair, finally, in the old nets factory where grandma used to work, now converted into a big chinese shop. It was rather cheap - 4700 RSD but that's because the Chineses sell cheap stuff. Not bad. Took a cab and the guy stiffed us like triple rate because of the chair. Still better than pushing it for 2-3 km or dragging it into a bus.
In the afternoon Nina's classmate Zana came by, and chatted with her over skype. We've met her on and off this summer, and it was a bumpy ride, she'd get all enthusiastic about staying in touch with us, then would get all insulted over some slight. So it goes.
The photo is more to show the layout of the room at the time, and the rare time when we'd get sunshine in, it's around autumn equinoxe.
The next day oma came and talked with Go over skype. She was a bit amazed at how it's not just possible, but rather that it's not SF, she's talking across nine timezones, but then didn't have much to say either. What mattered was that they saw each other.
On 18th the two weeks of emails finally became meat, or rather fish: rasejani have gathered on Carska bara (imperial puddle, literally), which is a wildlife preserve nearby. As Škrba said, it's 50km to Belgraders, 70km to him, 15 km for me, and he's agreed to come pick us (three). He already ditched his old yugo and drives a white Punto... which is the same thing for this decade. Of course, we first sat here for a while, I showed him some minimal set of photos („if you have the time to see all 12000...“, „look, I know that a talk with you is impossible to finish, but then I'll try to get there as early as...“ „You'll come when you arrive, and will stay as long as you are present, that's the most precise measurement possible...“), and then we went off. We were the first, of course, knowing the place and being practically locals. The rest came quickly enough - pLazić, ajVar, Magi, Zlotvor with wife and son, Stinge with wife and daughter.
We first went for a boat ride. The puddle is actually an old riverbed - the river itself shifted few hundred meters east a century or two ago - and the peninsula left between that and the fishery lakes, plus some land on the other bank. The boat goes there and back, with a break at the farther end of the peninsula. All the seats were sold, and the others were equally equipped as we were - pLazić and Škrba with their Canons (though Škrba had a G6, medium amateur class, not much better than my Fujica). Someone had brandy and I was somehow chosen, among all of us, to be the taster. Well, good one.
The ride is about an hour and a half. Then we had lunch. Lena got something satisfactory, perhaps pohovano mushrooms, they should have that on the menu, this is a hotel. We had fish čorba and some fried fish, what else would you order if there's a few hectares of fish pond right behind the building. It's served in these small kettles, and I think the metal piece under the bottom is a small alcohol burner to keep it hot. In other places they serve it in original pitch kettles, straight off the fire (which I doubt, it must be bigger, they just pour into smaller ones), but this is a hotel.
Lena drew a very good portrait of ajVar. Stinge's wife was sort of absent, mostly looking into distance. She looked like she was a great chick, ten years and fifteen kilograms ago. Magi was sort of absent too, as his phone rang a few times and he frowned but still had to answer. I think he was the president of some municipality in Belgrade at the time.
pLazić I saw for the first time, and probably Magi, Zlotvor and the wives and children. Nothing new, this is the folks from sezam, we're used to knowing each other for years, unseen.
Mentions: čorba, Firriver Fertility (Firriver), Fujica, George Whiteley, Gorana Sredljević (Go), Gradivoj Škrbić (Škrba), Jelena Sredljević (Lena), Nevena Sredljević (Nina), oma, pLazić, pohovano, rasejani, sezam, SFBC, Stinge, Suzana Injački (Zana), yugo, in serbian