noon
Malone ripped out a particularly foul oath and sat up on the couch . `` That , '' he muttered , `` is a fine thing to wake up to . '' He focused his eyes , with only slight difficulty , on his watch . The time was exactly noon . `` But first , '' the announcer burbled downstairs , `` a word from Mother Kohler herself , about the brand new special B-Complex _ Irradiated _ Bolster you can get at your neighborhood stores ... '' `` Shut up , '' Malone said . He had wasted a lot of time doing nothing but sleeping , he told himself . This was no time to be listening to television .