Chapter 5, TrekPolitiks Summary

An earthquake strikes Los Angeles on January 17, 1994. Ethan takes the news especially hard because parts of his neighborhood as a child have been destroyed. He remembers a toppled overpass near which he had kissed his first girlfriend.

All the company members attend a party in San Francisco. Daniel notices that the house is immaculately decorated but carries with it an artificial feeling that lacks any reflection of the owners' personalities. Susan discusses the decorations with the hostess while showing genuine interest in duplicating the scheme. The current cool thing to do among the San Francisco high-tech crowd is to serve uncommon and expensive vodkas, and Daniel wonders where all the eccentric geeks are. Everybody dresses "like real people" (p. 225). Another man hits on Karla, which disturbs her and indicates to Daniel how much more attractive she has become. He puts his...