Time has passed after this conversation but in short time my child gets back from school (only God knows what school has become nowadays, a blackmailing tool for the parents) with a small paper “given by his teacher” on which was printed, that: “in case of a traffic accident of my son, I am responsible of that accident”. I ask you to believe me that from that moment the world became for me … grey. In such way I have chosen the schools were my children will learn that they wouldn’t have to cross any streets with heavy traffic. In stead of other parents that choose: their favorite teacher, the foreign language that is allowed in, the number of computers that the school has, its performance in time and who knows what other claims they would put forward according to what they missed from their own school. As I was telling you, that was my only criterion: my child to be safe in his way to school and home, and now I receive this sheet of paper with this printed on. I was speechless in front of my child. I retired breaking the psychic blackmail object. These thoughts flashed my brain when that pupil asked me that question at which any flinch weren’t allowed and the answer had to be of any ambiguousness:
-Guys, did you watch TV last night?
-Yes, we did.
-Do you remember, was the story for children broadcasted?
-No.
-The story wasn’t broadcasted? So, nothing happened.
-No. In this case, no.
-Then is it clear that nothing happened?
-???
The day of 17 December from year 1989, happened to take place on a Sunday. As the school was ending on the day of 22, in order to avoid the heavy traffic, the pupils from the near counties were already leaving the boarding school, fact that left the school from the usual noise place in a true oasis, days that came out like a balsam for the teachers, strained in all this 14 weeks, now having the chance to take a break, that was even more efficient than the holiday itself because of the satisfaction from the well done work, finished in good terms and giving them the chance to remember the childhood eventfulness, spent in this time of the big fests and in special occasions.

Because I could not go for my holidays so suddenly, in my spare time, missing the main occupation I have, I have chosen to use my time before the fests, in visiting my relatives. So being, together with my wife and children we “settled” in visiting. As in the most times, we didn’t have a lot of food in our fridge (talking about the time after the year 1981, when the crises got worse until unbearable). The nut tree we planted in front of our apartment house still kept some nuts for us, enough to cook one cake, while the flour …was on feed/ration (1/2 kg per person). Like people on big foot, we chosen for our first visit the relatives that weren’t so close, by all means. They were the relatives that were living in “Hatvan” once known as being the gypsy neighborhood. Between us and them there were about 4 km distance. We were glad they were home as we hit hard the problems: “What are you doing on holidays?” There where years when the New Years Eve was on the hand of every “earthling” and anyone could enjoy it according their own savings, there were collective friends parties, parties of people who knew how to party, living the true holidays. In the last years, the menus with “the fish that nobody wants”, with the “songs selected by someone” and the least “insignificant” prizes, were leading everyone to mind their own needs. During our visit we also discussed about the “exposures” revealed as commercial from the TV show that will be broadcasted on the New Years Eve night (a small observation, we were talking about the program after 12 o’clock, before that the program was “theirs”). The hosts told us with regret that they were not able to watch this show because their TV was broken and at the workhouse they do not receive anything for fixing until after the holidays, so … It is not a gossip, but it seems like when you most wish your TV to work, that is when it breaks. Us, having two TV’s (in order to get through the above annoyance) we offered, with heartache, to borrow one of it until they fix their own. So that the house wouldn’t be empty on holidays. It’s not as if we were using two Televisions; do not get us wrong! God forbid us! We were being allocated 20 Kw every month. If you happened to head over this consumption they would disconnect you. In order “to settle” in this miserable standard consumption we spent a lot in changing the equipment and still we did not succeed. The halls had no bulb and inside the rooms we had bulbs of 25-40 W. We used turn on the radio only for the news and the traditional music shows (by that time the radio program was being printed). The fridge became the comforts’ caricature. We had it but we could not use it, it would spend the entire electric current “ration”. The TV …

With so many requirements and restrictions, only on Sunday you could allow to “take a hold of” the “magazine” program, meanwhile…The New Years Eve program.
At the end of our visit they decided to come to our place for the TV. On our way, while we were having the usual conversations I noticed a sort of movement, actually some soldiers running in different directions. I assumed they have an “emergency” and the agents called their superiors, a usual thing for those in the army. The fact that most of them were not wearing their uniform properly was the reason I adjudge, gossiped and blasted them. It was as if “somebody thrown the clothes on them” and for an old soldier these soldiers with the belts on their hands, with the hook unbuttoned, order less … were distasteful.
One day while I was in Bucharest an old man was arguing: “ Not even the newspapers get in time, when Ceausescu is missing.” They remind us he was paying a visit in Iran. Regardless the situation the army’s wearing was an example for all times. As it was a Sunday and the soldiers were having a day off, they were wearing dirty uniforms, some of them wearing a part of the monition, some not. All this disarray was inexcusable for an institution that believes in “cleanliness and discipline”.
After we gave them the TV, they hurried up … to watch TV.
After “Pacepa’s” run away, while his book: “Red Eye sights” was being read at the “Free Europe” radio, I saved money and bought a tuner that would give me the satisfaction needed while listening the radio’s news. What came to me after the guest left with the TV was to listen the “Europe’s” news that broadcasted all day long, continuously. With this occasion I found out that: “something happens in Timisoara” and that in there were around 4000 dead people. That …
Then I was sure that their news was broadcasted from inside the country and that they don’t know as many things as they should know, since the departure of the ones that gather up the information and go on the field for broadcasting is dangerous considering what was going on. In fact we didn’t wish the country’s denigration, one of the favorite subjects from the chronicles of “Free Europe”, was telling that inside the country were blacked out. This was their “job” in our service. Still we were thankful for this knowing that for the bread they have to eat they had to say what the “masters” wanted them to say.