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"I’m a party person," I muttered to no one

Innuh miles of corridors, slowly lifted themselves up dozens of broad staircases, the lost wandered the decks pretending they weren’t, the ship sailed on

13

The second night of the voyage I had another boring dinner in the Queen’s Grill The so a 200 bottle of semi-decent red wine asked if I wanted to join the Mashioki fa alone and I told Bernard that I si at an indiscretion I’d cohter, a fat, dour teenager as alandering near the ship’s kennels wearing an UP WITH LIFE T-shirt, visiting her "cat" The soa, recoras, went back to the business of his life while I slipped into rand of Palakon’s at the 21 table and found the cineiant snifter of brandy and chain-satory "ominous" conversation

"What’s the story?" I asked, after ordering a split of cha "You’re the guy shooting this, right?"

"You could say that," Felix said in a thick, not-quite-traceable accent

"I just did," I pointed out "How’s it going? I just want your professional opinion"

"It is going better than the last one I did," Felix muttered

"Which one was that?"

"A picture called Shh! The Octopus" He paused "It was the third part of a soon to be coan with Beware! The Octopus, which was followed by Watch Out! The Octopus The fourth part is called, tentatively, Get the Hell Away froain, distracted, and stared into his snifter "The third one had a good cast A very bitter Kristin Scott Thoned on to play Whitney Houston’s extremely bitter father-the bitter harpoonist" Felix paused "David Hasselhoff is the first victi pause occurred while I tried to process this information Confused, I broke it hesitantly "So-o-o the octopus’s nahed, waved to the bartender for another, even though he hadn’t finished the brandy sitting in front of hi?" I asked expectantly

"Oh, you’ll do," he sighed and then paused before phrasing carefully: "You have a kind of nonspecific fabulosity-oh roaned as his head dropped onto the bar