I found the section around page 500 about James (Jim) Incandenza as a child interacting with his father very interesting. Did anyone else notice that Jim speaks similar to the way Hal speaks? I think that it is the matter-of-factness with which they both express their ideas. Looking at the way Hal speaks to Orin, responding with what seems like no emotion, it reminds me of this passage on page 499 where Jim is speaking to his father: "But I said I'd definitely hgeard and could confirm the prescence of a squeak when he'd pressed on the mattress, and could verify that the squeak was no one's imagination." So, if this glimpse into the past shows the similarity between Hal and James, why do we get the impression (from Hal's narratives) that Hal and his father were not extremely close?