text: [Themes: Humor, Zorkian]
  
  > Describe the surroundings
  Another basement room, just like the others. This one isn't quite empty: a tall metal filing cabinet stands against one wall. A small metal box, previously hidden by the cabinet, is mounted on the wall. Doorways lead north and west.
  
  > Go north
  I'm in what must be the basement of the factory. The walls and
  floor are made of concrete, and the ceiling is covered with pipes and ventilation ducts. Large metal light fixtures hang down at regular intervals. There is a thick layer of dust on the floor. Otherwise, the room is completely empty.
  
  Open doorways lead south and east. A metal staircase attached to the north wall leads upward.
  
  > go east
  Basement, with Telephone
  This is another room, just like the last one. There are doorways leading west and south. The room is almost completely empty, except for one thing: sitting right in the center of the concrete floor is a little table, the sort of fancy table made from curved pieces of wood that you find in antique stores. And on top of the table is a telephone.
  
  > examine table
  It's a little wooden table. The feet are shaped like claws holding balls, and the legs are carved to look like they're covered with flowers. I have no idea what this thing is doing here. I can hardly imagine anywhere that it would look more out of place. I don't understand anything that's going on.
  
  > Go upward
  I'm standing on a narrow metal staircase which leads down to the basement, and up to a closed door. Or rather, it would be closed if there weren't a huge hole smashed right through the middle. It looks like a freight train went through here, and the door got in the way.
  
  > Go upward
  I climb through the hole in the door to the hallway on the other side. It takes a few wrong turns, but eventually I find my way back upstairs again. The whole factory seems to be deserted. Not a sign of anyone. The parking lot is completely empty.
  
  As I stand waiting at the bus stop, I have the strangest feeling.
  It's like waking up from a trance, or leaving the auditorium at the end of a concert. I know I've been somewhere strange, witnessed amazing things, but I'm not certain exactly what they were. "States of dreamy melancholy, fits of aimless joy." Was I the audience or the performer? Did it really happen, or was it just a fantasy? A witch's spell? Am I the artist? And if not, then who is?
  
  I think I'll stop off at the mall on my way home. I need an ice cream cone.
  
  Dear Mom,
  
  Thanks a lot for the cookies you sent. They were really great. I still say you make the best oatmeal raisin cookies in the world.
  
  My new job is going really well. I never would have guessed that screwing caps onto toothpaste tubes could be so interesting. My boss, Mr. Bucket, says I have a natural talent for it.
  
  I was really lucky to find a job so quickly. A lot of the guys from Frobworks are still looking. No one's sure what the new owners are planning to do with the building yet, but there's a rumor that they want to start a computer game company. Pretty weird, huh?
  
  Anyway, thanks a lot. I'll write again soon. I love you a lot.
  
  Your son,
  
  P.S. Next time, could you send chocolate chip instead?
  
  FBI WARNING:
  
  THE FBI COULD NOT CARE LESS WHAT YOU DO WITH THIS GAME. THEY MAY, HOWEVER, STILL CHOOSE TO TAP YOUR PHONE LINE, READ YOUR EMAIL, AND SEND LOVE LETTERS TO RANDOM PEOPLE SIGNED WITH YOUR NAME. THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT YOU ARE SUSPECTED OF COMMITTING ANY CRIMES. THEY JUST ENJOY DOING IT.
  
  No grues were harmed in the making of this game.
  
  Congratulations! You have completed the game!
  
  Type OUTTAKES to view outtakes, RESTORE to load a saved game, RESTART to start the game over again, or QUIT to quit.
  
  Type OUTTAKES to view outtakes, RESTORE to load a saved game, RESTART to start the game over again, or QUIT to quit.
  
  Type OUTTAKES to view outtakes, RESTORE to load a saved game, RESTART to start the game over again, or QUIT to quit.
  
  Type OUTTAKES to view outtakes, RESTORE to load a saved game, RESTART to start the game over again, or QUIT to quit.
  
  Type OUTTAKES to view outtakes, RESTORE to load a saved game, RESTART to start the game over again, or QUIT to quit.
  
  > Outtakes
  It's time for breakfast! I sit down to a delicious meal of fried eggs and start... ummm... excuse me.
  
  I'm sorry, I just can't do this. I can't stand eggs. Even the smell of them makes me sick. Couldn't we please change them to something else, like toast or cereal?
  
  OK, wait a minute. I have an idea. We'll keep the eggs, but as soon as they ask me to eat them, I'll realize the bus is coming. So I won't have time to eat them, and I can just grab a pop-tart or something instead. That way we can keep your whole "cooking the eggs" thing you were so proud of, but I won't have to eat them. Would that be ok?
  
  >put widget into wodget
  
  I put the peg of the blue widget into the hole of the red wodget and... wait a minute! It won't go in! Hey - this wodget has a...
  
  triangular?
  
  OK, very funny! Who's the wise guy in props?
  
  >wear uniform
  
  Just like that? "wear uniform"? Am I supposed to somehow put it on over the clothes I'm already wearing? Or do you want me to strip them off first? And then what should I do with them? Carry them around? Leave them here?
  
  Oh, right. Plot device. Never mind.
  
  >turn on flashlight
  
  I turn on the flashlight and... Wait a minute. It isn't going on. The bulb must be burnt out. OK, I'm standing here in the dark, and my flashlight won't go on. Um... there aren't really any grues down here, are there? Could someone turn on the lights? Hello? Anyone? Bill, is that you? Bill?
  
  Dear Mom,
  
  I have some very important news to tell you. I have decided to get a job with a company that writes computer games. I know this will come as a disappointment to you, since you've always wanted me to work in a factory like you and dad. I know what you will say about family traditions and your great uncle Herbert and all that, but this is MY life, damn it. I'm sick of wasting my life putting stupid pieces of plastic together day after day after day. It's time I did something that I care about, for a change.
  
  And while I'm at it, what's up with the cookies? How many times have I told you that I can't stand oatmeal raisin cookies? Why do you insist on doing this to me? Are you trying to prove something, or can you simply not believe I could really feel differently from you about anything in the world?
  
  Dear Mom,
  
  Thank you for the cookies you sent. I guess you forgot that I don't eat oatmeal raisin cookies, but I really appreciate the thought.
  
  I have some wonderful news for you. I've decided to get a job with a company that writes computer games. I know it's a bit different from what you've always imagined for me. But this is a great opportunity, and I think I could be really good at it.
  
  I hope you won't be too disappointed by this. I just don't want to keep wasting my life working at an assembly line. Not that there's anything wrong with working on an assembly line. I know you and dad have done it all your lives, and you really like it. It's just that I don't want to keep wasting my life
  
  (sigh)
  
  Type OUTTAKES to view outtakes, RESTORE to load a saved game, RESTART to start the game over again, or QUIT to quit.
  
  Type OUTTAKES to view outtakes, RESTORE to load a saved game, RESTART to start the game over again, or QUIT to quit.
  
  Type OUTTAKES to view outtakes, RESTORE to load a saved game, RESTART to start the game over again, or QUIT to quit.
  
  Type OUTTAKES to view outtakes, RESTORE to load a saved game, RESTART to start the game over again, or QUIT to quit.
  
  Type OUTTAKES to view outtakes, RESTORE to load a saved game, RESTART to start the game over again, or QUIT to quit.