Meat was rationed in Bucharest in ?87. In Brasov it was also the bread that was rationed. As far as I remember, each family was allowed to buy two kg of meat per month. If you didn?t buy your ration in time, you were allowed to buy 4 kilos later. However, in order to buy that meat, you had to stand in never-ending queues. I used to live, just like now, in the center of the town, opposite to the shop Unic, which had a corridor in the back, where things were sold, because you were not supposed to have a queue in sight, in broad boulevard. The shop management was threatened to be fired and the shop closed if any body suspected the existence of a queue. Nothing had to be seen. That was their order. To be able to spend all those hours in a queue, I bought a small chair, like they use on trips; I was surprised to see writer Paul Anghel standing in a queue in front of me once, saying that he didn?t normally like to stand in a queue, but that he had guests from Switzerland, and had to buy some food for them. Malvina Ursianu, his wife, had sent him to buy the meat ration. There were many such stories?. Once I met the great Tudor Vornicu in a queue; he was an extraordinary man; we were in front of him once in a queue and my husband told him to move forward, but Tudor Vornicu, although a personality at that time, refused to do that. (A. S., 130)

The big problem was the basic food, that is meat, oil, sugar and eggs. I was having terrible nightmares at that time; I had the impression I see stands full of meat, but by the time I reached them, the meat had been sold. Another dream was about piles of egg boxes that disappeared by the time I entered the shop. I had an obsession about getting supplies. One time I let myself be cheated willingly, hoping that it might not be a cheat after all. In ?87 or ?88 somebody rang the doorbell; ?teacher, he said, I don?t know hoe he got my name, I can get you some food, Sibiu salami, this and that?. ?How come you know me? ? I asked him. ?From Mrs. Magda?. ?Which Mrs. Magda?? He was confused for a moment and I realized that something was wrong. However, he had called me ?teacher?, so who knows, I said to myself. He said I should give him some money and he would get me what I needed. I told him I would go with him. He said he was working at the Intercontinental Hotel and had some connections. I was aware that something was wrong. When we reached the Intercontinental, he told me to give him the money and he would go fetch the food. I insisted to go with him. He didn?t agree, as he was afraid his boss might see him. I gave him some money but I never saw him again. Things were so bad, that you got into situations like that hoping that you would get some food. (A. S., 130)

Getting supplies was the most difficult, especially after 1983. That is when it all started.