detail from: KRK Art dizajn

AT THE CONGRESS IN CHICAGO

In April 1969, a congress of the American Association of Cereal Chemistry (AASS) was held in Chicago, to which my mentor Dr Isidore Hlynka submitted my paper "Wheat Pentosans and Their Relation to the Rheological Properties of Dough." It was determined that I would also travel to Chicago, at the expense of the "Grain Research Laboratory" (GRL). The congress was held at the Hilton Hotel from April 26 to 30.

In order to prepare me well for the presentation of scientific work in front of about a thousand professional participants, my mentor trained me for three days, in the library of the institute. According to his instructions, I went out to the podium, greeted those present with a slight bow and addressed them as "Ladies and Gentlemen" and announced the name of my topic. Dr Hlynka sat, measured the time of my presentation and made remarks. After my presentation, he told me the duration, which had to be exactly 20 minutes, emphasizing in the first sentence what I had to point out as more important, and mentioned also what could be less important and possible mistakes. On the third day, after my presentation, we sat down and he told me: ''Now the presentation was without a mistake, we can go to Chicago, I will sit somewhere in the audience, and you will do it as it was done today and in the end you will suggest that you be asked additional questions, whoever wants to, and you will answer them as you know, which I am convinced will be without error." Professor, Dr Isidore Hlynka, my mentor, told me then how to write scientific papers, he explained: “What is most important needs to be in the first sentence, and in the shortest form, completely clear. No need to mention anything that is not necessary. He also added that this rule can be applied in writing anything, and even in oral presentation."

We traveled to Chicago, he, Dr Hlynka; Dr Kith Tipples; Dr Phill Williams; Dr Don La Berge: and Dr Jimmy Kruger. Each of them, except Dr Hlynka, had their work reported, too.

In those days, before I left for Chicago, Bosa's delivery was approaching, so I left her at home with my colleague Cecilia Marek, so that she would not be left alone in a rented apartment.

My presentation of the work at the congress went very well according to plan. There were also a few common professional questions, to which I answered professionally well, to the satisfaction of Professor Dr Hlynka. That evening, all of us younger ones, except Dr Hlynka, went out to a nightclub.

During the congress, many companies exhibited their products, as samples, which they distributed free of charge to the congress participants. For me, many products were new. I visited all the manufacturers and gathered a lot of samples. Among others, I took the perfumes of the company Phreez & Phreez, and the case was that the president of that company gave them to me and invited me to dinner at the famous restaurant "Maksim’s". There were six of us sitting at the table during dinner, and the president's wife was sitting next to me. I told her quite quietly that I would like to steal a small plate with a picture of a lord holding fur over his shoulder and written the name of the restaurant "Maxim's". I didn't notice that the waiter was standing behind me and he heard what I said to the lady. Immediately, he went and brought six plates, one for each guest. That's how I got that souvenir without stealing it.

One day I visited the Museum of Science and Technology, on the shores of Lake Michigan. The museum was reached by subway, and my colleagues, when I announced my intention to visit the museum, discouraged me, joked that it was dangerous to travel by subway in Chicago, that only blacks traveled there and that I could have problems. True, when I found myself in the car, there were five black people and one of their girlfriends next to me, and one of them was leading a huge dog, but none of them said a word to me, nor did anything happen. I really liked the museum, the settings were extraordinary, all from the domain of the latest achievements of that time.

Before returning from Chicago to Winnipeg, my colleagues teased me again, of course they joked again, that I would have problems at Canadian customs with many samples, which I took from the congress. Then I told them: "I will go first to the customs, and you look what will happen" and they agreed with my proposal. And I only had a briefcase out of my luggage, in which I put all my samples, and on top of everything I put my dirty laundry. When I came in front of the customs officer, he asked me what I had to show, and I just opened my briefcase and when he saw my dirty laundry, he just slammed my bag and said: "Go!" And they just laughed and one of them said: "Smart Yugoslav!" My joke worked out and my friends liked it.

As soon as I got home, I went to Cecilia Marek, sat down with her and her husband, told them how we got to Chicago, and brought Bosa home. Bosa had a delivery ten days later, on May 11, 1969, on Sunday, Mother's Day, our daughter Anastasia was born.

The day after Bosa's delivery, I came to work at the institute on a regular basis, and told my colleague Jean Melish that I was met at the maternity ward by an insurance man who offered me life insurance for a baby born the night before, which surprised me, and she told me that this is normal in Canada. And while I was drinking coffee, with colleagues, in the next room, an unknown man entered the laboratory, even passed by Jean and sat on my chair and picked up my wallets from a jacket hanging over the chair. Jean thought he was the man I told her about the insurance, so she didn't react. On the way home, I stopped by Eatns and took the necessary food. When I wanted to pay at the cash register, I pocketed two or three times through all my pockets. There were no wallets in my pockets . Then I returned everything I had taken and apologized to the cashier. The next day, when I told my colleagues about the event, they suggested that I could report it to the police, but the report needed to be paid $ 100. I gave up, and in the two wallets I had in my pockets was about $ 106 and all my documents. Luckily for me, someone mailed the documents to me after three weeks. I had the address in my wallet. I guess the thief only takes money, and throws the wallet, but someone who found it, when saw the address, had sent it. I was happy to receive the documents.

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