"James P. Hogan - Realtime Interrupt" - читать интересную книгу автора (Hogan James P)

during the Civil War, and subsequently grew to become the center of the steel industry through the 1960s.тАЭ
Joe shook his head. тАЬNo, I was asking about me. How long have I been here? What did I come here for?тАЭ
тАЬI think youтАЩd better talk to Dr. Arnold about that,тАЭ Katie replied.
Joe sighed. In his scattered moments of clearer perception, he was getting used to this kind of thing. Arnold said it
was because his mind wandered off into its own internalizations and lost logical continuity. тАЬAre you a history major
or something?тАЭ he asked as they resumed walking.
тАЬNo. IтАЩm a nurse. Why?тАЭ
тАЬDo all nurses talk like that?тАЭ
тАЬWhy shouldnтАЩt they? DonтАЩt most people take an interest in such things?тАЭ
тАЬHardly.тАЭ
тАЬWhat kind of things would you expect me to be interested in?тАЭ
It was such a peculiar question that Joe didnтАЩt know how to answer. When he looked at her, her eyes, although
fixed on him, seemed to have an emptiness that gave him the feeling of talking to a shell.
тАЬWhat do you think when you look at me like that?тАЭ she asked.
тАЬThat everyone I meet here is strange.тАЭ
But it could be because of the way he was seeing things, he told himself. Maybe people never had been the way
he thought he remembered.

He remembered being with a group of young people, laughing and teasing each other as they walked along a road
by a shore, where waves broke over rocks below. It was an old town somewhere, of imposing, high-fronted houses
built in terraces around squares with green lawns. Ships sailed out of a harbor, past a lighthouse at the end of a long
stone pier.

тАЬYou were involved in some unconventional experiments involving processes deep in the brain, which have
affected your mind and altered the way you see the world,тАЭ Dr. Arnold told him.
тАЬI seem to remember I worked with computers. I came to this country to work with them from somewhere else.тАЭ
тАЬAh, excellent! YouтАЩre getting better every day. Now I want you to meet Simon, whoтАЩs going to be your regular
counselor. Simon, this is the man we want you to help. His name is Joe. Do you remember your full name, Joe?тАЭ
тАЬCorrigan. . . . Joe Corrigan. Pleased to meet you, Simon.тАЭ

One Saturday night there was a dance for the patients to get to know each other and begin rediscovering long-
unused social skills. Corrigan felt as if he had been caught up in a charade of walking character clich├йs.
тАЬHow are you finding it, Joe?тАЭ Dr. Arnold inquired, rubbing his hands together like an anxious headmaster
showing his face at the annual high-school ball.
тАЬTell me these people arenтАЩt real,тАЭ Corrigan answered.
Arnold seemed unsurprised but interested. тАЬWhy? WhatтАЩs wrong with them?тАЭ
тАЬI feel as if IтАЩm in an old, corny movie.тАЭ
тАЬThe parts of your memory are starting to come together again. Not as much of what you think you see is really
out there. Your mind is filling the gaps by projecting its own, stored stereotypes from long ago. DonтАЩt worry. ItтАЩs a
healthy sign.тАЭ
***
There came a day when Corrigan grew tired of being restricted. He wanted to get out in the air and work with his
hands. In a shed in the rear grounds of the hospital he found some garden tools, and decided on impulse that he
would plant a vegetable patch. There was no need to seek approvalтАФone of the advantages of being deemed unstable
was that nobody was surprised at anything one did. In any case, asking would simply be an invitation to be told no. A
phrase came to mind from somewhere in his past and made him smile: тАЬContrition is easier than permission.тАЭ
The world was coming more together now, and although he hadnтАЩt said so, inwardly he considered himself to be
virtually back to normal. But when he turned over the first fork of soil, there was nothing underneathтАФjust
blackness. He stared, confused, then closed his eyes and shook his head. When he opened them again, nothing was
amiss: he saw earth, roots, a shard of pottery, and a few rocks.