09-VIII-2005.
Went with dad to town. The 5000$ that I brought to him, to have just in case, he accepted but won't spend, but we rather went to a bank and created a currency savings account with both of us as bearers, so let it lie there. Lena went with us, to make another city bus ride. Dad has a retiree's monthly ticket, just flashes it and rides.
After the bank dad went to do other errands, while we just walked around downtown. I remembered to drop by the local newspaper, met Joška and one ooooold member of DC-99. Joška is the web guy there, does the online edition. So we had a chat and made a few shots. Scheduled Joška for tomorrow, to give me a ride to the airport, because there's no transportation so early in the morning, I'd have to night somewhere - at the airport, where I wouldn't be able to sleep, it's all marble, or in the city (and then pay the cab outrageously).
In the evening we somehow gathered Mire and Zorica plus Baja (without wife). Dad outdid himself with the barbecue, this was five notches better than the farewell dinner six years ago. There was some wine, too. I have no idea what we talked all evening, except that Baja recounted the whole history of his son, who fell ill of who knows what, there was some surgery, and while it was ongoing, he was chain smoking in the lobby, and some random guy just comes and tells him „your son will be fine“, just like that. And it was okay, the surgery was a success, he recovered and became an active athlete, runs marathon.
And, ah, yes, how he bought a small boat and tours the rivers and canals of Vojvodina, and also a video camera, so he edits the shots into small movies, to have something to watch in winter. Too bad, he said, that we're meeting only now, we could have arranged a tour.
Mom remembered that Baja still has my old movie projector, to which he jumped and wanted to get into the car and bring it right away. We all calmed him down and just let it sit. This was the last mention of that projector.
Mire is on a gas rig again. Sometimes he meets Arpi at work, but more often his shift mate is Bager (who used to be in VIII2, and was somewhat nuts), and I got an impression that Arpi is actively avoiding him, because he keeps talking some philosophy, theorizing about anything, bringing serious like books to the shift. They do have lots of time on their hands there, because they don't do much work, they are permanently dežurni, so they just sit for an hour or two, then make a round, check the pressures and flows and then go back to their cabin to wait for the next round. In a butthole in the middle of the fields, where a nasty wind may blow, nobody wants to be shiftmates with someone he dislikes.
Mentions: Arpad Gunaroši (Arpi), DC-99, dežurni, Jablan Škanata (Baja), Jelena Sredljević (Lena), Joška Apro, Milorad Škanata (Mire), VIII2, Zorica Škanata, in serbian