midday
Such a state of mind was appalling , yet it did not last long ; and , as the days went by , as Semenoff approached death , the more remote and vague and incomprehensible did it seem to him . Everything around him , sounds , colours , and emotions , now once more regained their former value for him . The sun shone as brightly as ever ; folk went about their business as usual , and Semenoff himself had important things , as also trivial ones , to do . Just as before , he rose in the morning , washed with scrupulous care , and ate his midday meal , finding food pleasant or unpleasant to his taste . As before , the sun and the moon were a joy to him , and rain or damp an annoyance ; as before , he played billiards in the evening with Novikoff and others ; as before , he read books , some being interesting , and some both foolish and dull . That all things remained unchanged was irritating , even painful to him at first . Nature , his environment , and he himself , all were the same ; and he strove to alter this by compelling people to be interested in him and in his death , to comprehend his appalling position , to realize that all was at an end .