The winter was not harsh, but it was long. Very long, indeed. The tank in my cellar was almost full in early January, but it is almost empty now, and so I decided to bite the bullet this morning. I started by calling a dealer in Medulin at the southern tip of Istria. A month ago he told me to call again around this time because he might get a smaller cistern, which could possibly squeeze its way down my street. No luck, though. As far as I can gather, the new cistern is still but a pipe dream. Thus I called Gianni Benčić, who takes the oil on the trailer of his tractor from the parking lot by the cemetery to my house. I had tomorrow in mind, but he was not sure about that. He was free this afternoon, however. Then I called a dealer in Novigrad on the western coast of Istria, and he also told me that today would be much better than tomorrow. Gianni was happy about the arrangement, but my next problem was getting the money. One ton of heating oil costs a bit more than six-hundred pounds sterling, but the largest amount I can take from the automatic teller machine on the lower square is somewhat less than four-hundred pounds per day. The rest I had to borrow from two friends, one of whom would need the money by tomorrow. Ever since the only bank left Motovun a couple of years ago, this problem appears whenever I do not have sufficient time to take out the requisite amount. After many a phone call to the dealer in Novigrad and Gianni, the oil was finally delivered. As always, it took us almost an hour to decant the stuff from a plastic container perched on the trailer into the tank in my cellar. To add insult to injury, I got splattered with oil when we were finished. Most of the pungent liquid that remained in the hose ended up on my fleece and pants. I had to put everything I was wearing into the washing machine, but I doubt that the smell of oil will vanish in one washing. What is worse, after all this misery I have only a bit more than half a tank of oil. The same ordeal awaits me in September. I cringe at the thought already. The fucking heating oil, over and over again.