Joe is lying in bed trying to think of ways to alleviate his boredom. He does this at first by going through the times tables and considering all the uses of the word “lie.” He then thinks about the characters in David Copperfield and A Christmas Carol. He realizes that he can hardly remember the plots or chapters of any novel, lamenting the fact that he knows so little. Joe decides that he needs to concentrate on an idea and chooses time as the most important topic, as time brings order and sequence into his life.

However, all Joe can recall in terms of time is that it was September 1918 when he was injured in a trench. After that, time became hazy. He sets about trying to track time in the hospital. At first, he does so by attempting to count the seconds and minutes between the nurse’s visits, to work out how many visits there are in a day. He finds though that it is too easy to lose track and get distracted while trying to keep count, as he gets confused between seconds, minutes, and hours.

Joe later realizes that he can still feel the sensations of hot and cold on the remaining skin on his neck.