one hundred twenty-six days before
- When the Colonel finds out that Miles's night-hazers urinated in his shoes, he makes a rather salty declaration of war.
- After a few classes, Miles realizes that what passed for work in his former school isn't nearly enough to do well in the difficult classes at boarding school.
- Before World Religions starts, Takumi and the Colonel mention to Miles that Alaska is upset on his behalf. They ask Miles to mark who hazed him on a makeshift seating chart. Kevin, one of the hazers, walks in and glares at the Colonel; Miles marks him off.
- The Old Man—Dr. Hyde—comes in. He only has one lung, so he moves slowly. In his overview of the class, he asks questions that center around "the most important pursuit in history: the search for meaning" (126before.17).
- Miles, who hates discussion classes, is excited for the Old Man to teach him.
- Throughout the day, Miles gets acquainted with his classes and points out one more person who hazed him: Longwell Chase, who is friends with Sara, the Colonel's girlfriend.
- Sleeping soundly during an afternoon nap, Miles awakens to Alaska crooning (shouting) a Beatles's song directly in his ear. When she degrades Dr. Hyde, Miles defends him and claims he's a genius just to disagree with Alaska.