Chapter I
The Veiling of ImagesOn Sunday morning, 12 March 1989, John Forde awoke to find himself fat. He had, of course, been aware for some time that he had gained weight – a good deal of weight – but, so long as he could squeeze into his clothes, he had been able to discount the gravity of the situation. He had, however, taken up smoking a little over a year ago – on the sly, of course, as Sir Christopher hated cigarettes – in the vain hope that this would help him to reduce, which, needless to say, it did not; he only managed to add one more arm to his arsenal of vices. Intentionally, he did not own a scale and shunned all attempts at dieting – in imitation of Sir Christopher – in the deluded hope that, if he succeeded in not acknowledging the problem, it would have no grip on him.
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