There is many a man my age or somewhat older in the center of Zagreb. Wearing hats and ties, they stroll around the outdoor cafés in the pedestrian area in search of men like themselves. Pensioned off a few years ago, they have nothing but socializing to do. One look at men like these is enough to tell you everything there is to know about them. In former Yugoslavia, they used to hold one important office or another. Some were in business and others in the administration. And the essence of each and every job they held was socializing. They knew men like themselves, and that was all there actually was to their jobs. A few short calls and a lengthy meeting could achieve a great deal. And so they talked, drank, ate, and smoked for a living. Everything else was beyond them. But they enjoy their social skills to this very day. Many of them have children or even grandchildren in high places in what is Croatia today. The connections still work, albeit through generations. A few short calls and a lengthy meeting can still achieve quite a bit. All together, they have nothing but socializing to do to this very day. They talk, drink, eat, and smoke as ever before. And everything else remains entirely beyond them.