Props, pgs. 101, 103 & 105

pg. 101

• Bob's gun (in holster)
• a blue and white apron with red hearts for pockets
• a mauve and crimson kerchief
• a mashed tamale
• a dustpan
• a bag of garbage (probably full of previously posted props)
• a carmine-shaded table lamp
• a bowl of black olives

pg. 103

• Mark's headless soldiers

pg. 105

• a fresh drink
• a cigarette

pg. 99 - an intermission

This page suddenly seemed an appropriate place to pause.
Not that anything is wrapped up. Instead, we get this:

"All these violent displacements, this strange light, these shocked and bloodied faces - it was as though we'd all been dislodged somehow, pushed out of the frame, dropped into some kind of empty dimensionless gap like that between film cuts, between acts..." - pg. 99

Props, pgs. 89, 91, 93, 95, 97 & 99

pg. 89

• Charley's empty glass
• Dolph's crumpled beer can

pg. 91

• Gerald's wife's apron on a hook

pg. 93

• a cluster of glasses
• Naomi's found drink

pg. 95

• Inspector Pardew's fedora "now dented as well as spotted."
• a mirror
• crunching glass underfoot

pg. 97

• Inspector Pardew's white silk scarf
• the phone (Michelle holding it "at her crotch like a dildo")
• Iris Draper's spectacles dangling on a gold chain

pg. 99

• drinks
• cigarettes
• crushed napkins
• dried blood on the surface of things
• footprints of chalkdust disturbing the crime scene

Cocktail napkins, pg 40

A blog about them:

http://www.idea-sandbox.com/blog/napkin_wisdom/

Esquire's Napkin Fiction Project:

http://www.esquire.com/fiction/napkin-project/

From wisegeek.com: What ARE cocktail napkins?

Cocktail napkins are small napkins that are used for special occasions such as weddings, baby showers, bridal showers, cocktail parties, and other similar events. Cocktail napkins are not used for formal dining; rather, a larger cloth napkin signifies good etiquette on the part of the host or hostess. For informal events, cocktail napkins can be used to carry hors d’oeuvres, as a coaster for cocktails, or to discreetly spit out unwanted food and dab the corners of the mouth.

Cocktail napkins are almost always found at bars. When you order a drink, with the exception of beer, the bartender will usually provide you with a cocktail napkin. This keeps your hands dry from the condensation that forms around the glass, prevents rings on the bar counter or table, and is more tasteful than a cardboard coaster with a beer company’s logo on it.

Cocktail napkins usually come in 5-inch (12.7-cm) squares, although it is common to have smaller or larger cocktail napkins, as well as rectangular cocktail napkins. Cocktail napkins can be plain white squares, embossed with various prints and even personalized, with endless styles of lettering to choose from. Cocktail napkins are generally made of paper, but for an added touch of elegance, cocktail napkins are available in linens.

Depending on the ambiance that one wishes to create, cocktail napkins can be an effective way of enhancing any theme. For a casual party, novelty cocktail napkins can bring humor with pithy sayings, funny graphics, and so on. For more elegant affairs, such as weddings or cocktail hours before a formal dinner, choosing classic and tasteful cocktail napkins can make the event more memorable by adding exquisite detail.

In addition to the countless styles of cocktail napkins, they also have their own specialized accessories. Cocktail napkin holders add an extra flare to the theme of any occasion, with as many variations in style and size as there are for cocktail napkins. Holders made of wrought iron designs, pewter holders, and glass holders are some examples that are more on the elegant side. Novelty cocktail napkin holders are just as abundant. Holders in the shape of beach chairs, animals, babies, and the like all make fun accessories for exciting theme parties.

how to stop a nosebleed

p. 38: "Your whole house looks like it's suffering from a violent nosebleed, Ger." -Daffie



How To Stop A Nosebleed (from wikiHOW)

Thumbs Up Method

1. Stay calm, slowly taking deep breaths. (not through the nose) With your hand and either a tissue or handkerchief (same hand as the bleeding nostril,) make a 'thumbs up' sign.
2. Press your thumb against your nostril's side, not so hard that it hurts, but firmly enough to flatten the nostril.
3. Stay still, leaning forward slightly.
4. Stay in place for 5-10 minutes, breathing normally.
5. Slowly release the pressure; it may feel a bit weird as the blood flows back into your nasal vessels.

Pinching Method

1. Pinch your nose just below the bridge. There is a vein just below the nose bone that is the culprit in 99% of bloody noses. Pinching puts pressure on it, which arrests the bleeding and speeds the clotting process.
2. Find a bathroom as you continue pinching. Now that you have slowed the bleeding by pinching, you should find a bathroom where you can clean up once the bleeding has stopped.
3. Keep applying pressure for at least 5 minutes at a time. Don't check to see if it is still bleeding over this period of time as it is important to keep continuous pressure. After this period of time let go briefly to see if the bleeding has stopped. If not, give it another 5 minutes. (This is also a good time to quickly wash any blood off your hands and get a paper towel or toilet paper to pinch with so that blood gets on the paper and not your hand.) If it is, continue pinching. Don't check every 30 seconds, as the key is constant pressure.

Pressure Method

1. Find the two very slight depressions on the back of the skull, approximately four finger-widths from the base of the skull (in line with the tops of the ears) and four finger-widths from the mid-line of the back of the skull. If you had eyes in the back of your head, this is where they would be.
2. Press the spots firmly, but gently, and if you have connected correctly, the bleeding should stop immediately. Keep up the pressure for about five minutes and then release. If the bleeding starts again, just repeat the process, but hold it longer: you may have to keep up the pressure for ten to fifteen minutes to stop it completely.

Upper Lip Method

1. Roll up a piece of gauze or tissue into a "cigar shape" approximately 2 inches long and a little thicker than a pencil. Folding it into a small, thick square also works well.
2. Wedge the tissue under your upper lip where it's tight and close your lip over it.
3. Apply light pressure by compressing your lip over the wad. Tilt your head forward.

Chemical Method

1. Mix equal parts of lemon juice, vinegar and salt. You only need a little.
2. Wipe any blood from your nose with a paper towel or tissue.
3. Carefully smell the mixture, from about 4 inches away. The fumes should stop the bleeding quickly. Remember, if you get dizzy, stop smelling the mixture.

Afrin Method

1. Spray nose four times in the bleeding nostril(s) with a decongestant spray such as Afrin or Neo-Synephrine. Decongenstant sprays such as these contain oxymetazoline nasal which constrict blood vessels and stop bleeding within seconds.
2. Do not use oxymetazoline nasal for longer than 3 to 5 days. Longer use could cause damage to your nasal tissue and lead to chronic congestion. If your symptoms do not improve, see your doctor.

Cold Method

1. Drink ice-cold water slowly, allowing the water to cool the roof of your mouth. This will cool your nasal passages and blood vessels will contract, allowing clotting to be faster. It should stop soon after. NOTE: This will only work with slight to moderate nosebleeds.
2. Using an icepack over the nose may help as well.

After the Nose Bleed

1. Do not clean out your nose after the bleeding has stopped.
2. Clean up everything else. Your hands, your face, the sink--anything you dropped blood on needs to be cleaned.
3. Moisturize. If you have chap stick, moisturizer or Neosporin on hand, put a little of that in your nose to help healing and prevent it from bleeding again. A thin coating of petroleum jelly is simple and can be helpful to prevent nosebleeds due to dry air. If you are prone to bloody noses, it is a good idea to do this every morning to prevent bleeding, especially in dry weather.
4. Put an extra paper towel in your pocket just in case it starts to bleed again. If it doesn’t start for the next hour, you should be in the clear.
5. Avoid doing anything to cause your nose to bleed. Don't blow your nose, pick your nose, or bump it if at all possible. Nose bleeds can be caused by accidents, but are more commonly caused by dry conditions, causing the nasal membranes to dry out and crack. While we don't feel this, the end result is obvious.

Props pg. 36. 38. 40. 42. 44

p. 36

• Ros's glossy panties

p.38

• tube of red lipstick
• Daffie's drink: straight gin with maraschino cherry juice
• small black cigarillo
• Tania's 'Susanna and the Elders' paintings
• fresh pitcher of martinis

p.40

• gin bottle
• Howard's scout knife
• Anatole's french cigarette
• bottle of bourbon
• 2 wine glasses of vermouth
• cocktail napkins
  
• salt

p.42

• Howard's fractured lenses
• cocktail napkin
• ice bucket
• empty bottles
• avocado dip
• little cheese board and knife
• grapefruit
• steak knife
• canapes
• empty tuna cans
• cracker boxes
• dip mix packets
• bread
• homemade pickes and relish

p.44

• french cigarette
• saucepan
• crushed ice in Patrick's salty bitch
• beer
• old bottle of tequila
  

Alison's Husband

pg. 160

"... he could have been
a cardboard cutout posted
at the kitchen door with a
recorded message."

Props and Memory

This post on Boing-Boing reminded me a bit about the prop inventory we are doing.

I was looking at the list of props and imagining what it might look like if all the props mentioned in the book were accumulated and displayed.

The boing-boing post is about scientists studying memory... and suggesting that a memory, when recalled, plays out in one-seventh the time as the original experience.

How long does Gerald's Party last? 7-10 hours? If we were to present the memory of this party, it would last a little over an hour. But how? Is the memory "faster"? Are extraneous details edited out? Would the display of every prop from the book suggest the story they are a part of? What is left of the party when actions NOT related to the props are purged?