When, as he did when he saw his son and daughter-in-law, he smiled, Claude -- tall and scholarly -- was attractive enough to interest a Canadian figure skater. Phoebe, however, was unexpected. There she was, wearing a loosely open white silk shirt over a soft blue tank top and a belted black denin skirt that revealed her shapely figure skater's legs. On her feet were blue leather sandals.

Claude could have explained that that very day, October 1, was Phoebe's birthday and that his wife, Phoebe's former coach, had asked him to deliver Phoebe's birthday present. However, he had just emerged from an algorithmic number theory conference, and Chinese food was on his mind.

On the undefeated Huygens team, Griff McGuire coached two Chinese Running Backs; the McGuire party was shown to a private booth. Egg rolls, fried won tons, Chinese sauces, and a pitcher of Tsingtao beer immediately appeared. Claude had pre-ordered sliced pork sauteed with water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, mushrooms, pea pods and other vegetables; Mongolian beef; sesame chicken; hot and sour shrimp; and white rice. That way he was assured that dinner was precisely what he desired.

"Before I give you your birthday present, I should tell you that Professor Bond -- whom before today I last saw at Alberta Number Theory Days" -- is back from Scotland, where he has been acting as a double for his recently-involved-in-an-exploding Island-issue cousin. Professor Bond gets paid more for playing his cousin's double, than he does for teaching mathematics. But he says to assure you that your Lab Assistant job in his Experimental Mathematics Lab will begin next week."

"Scotland?"