Jim is at a party with some other academics in Cambridge, one of the last of his time there. He is having a decent time—he drinks, makes small talk, and even sings a few arias, which were requested by a sweet looking woman. Eventually, he is called to meet the guest of honor, an amnesiac named Harry Samson. Jim has met Harry before, but Harry appears not to remember him, and explains that he has decided to lose his memory after he realized that there is nothing he can do to "prevent the destruction of the earth." Jim pushes him, in disbelief about this story, but Harry does not break, and tells him that he loses his memory every morning at 3:30 a.m. Later, Jim drives in New York City, and tries to outwit the traffic lights by slowing his pace as he comes up to each red light so as not to fully stop on his whole journey. After he parks, he gets on the subway with no real destination in mind. He rides the train aimlessly, goes to Coney Island, and watches the trains as they come in and out, then goes to Queens Plaza to watch the sunset. He gets on the subway again and sees Harry Samson. Jim wonders what Harry is doing there—in New York rather than Cambridge—and makes eye contact, but doesn't go over to speak with him. What is the point if Harry won't remember him? Jim gets off the subway, goes to get dinner, and thinks about phoning a woman named Gale (who'd been at the party in Cambridge and who he'd gone out with before). Instead of phoning her, he recalls the time he asked her out for dinner and they hooked up. He walks around Manhattan, sees familiar sights, and reminisces about his life and the places he's been; a bookstore where he bought a favorite book, and the Metropolitan Museum, where he saw many operas. He enters a tavern, sits at the bar, and orders a beer. He watches other people, and half-pays attention to the war movie which plays on the TV. He leaves, phones the "better half," and takes the bus to her place, where she has left the door unlocked and the couch ready for him to sleep.