"Here", the trepid tinkerer said, a tremble in his voice, "Put these on." And he handed to the Lady of the Labs a pair of heavily rosetinted glasses. "I think it might be wise to shelter under the edge of the bar for a second or two." He donned a pair himself.

She looked at him sardonically for a moment, and shrugged her somewhat furballed shoulders. He reached over, and pulled the lever all the way down...there was a vast shudder not unlike billions of recipients of sweaters from distant aunts......Rays of warm light shot out into to vast infinities of cyberspace, and a VOICE SPOKE:

"If in heaven itself together should rise the shining brilliance of a thousand suns,
then would that perhaps resemble HIM, Jollifier of Worlds,
Vast edifices of happiness, tumultuous clouds of never failing joy, endless ticklifications pouring down like sweet rain upon the manyparched deserts,
Thus is revealed MAX VOBISCUM, Originator of Universes in the 10 Directions, Sustainer of the 10 Directions,
Creator of the 10 Directions, Connections innumerable, infinite in extent, intimate in content, fulfiller of worlds,

And wherever one may look comfort and joy abounding, not to mention increase of generation through cosmic jello pits beyond number and the wall of Velcro to which is flung all sorrows and sufferings. Look upon my promulgated happiness, and JOLLIFY!!!!!!!!!!"

The VOICE subsided, and the vast cosmic panoply shrank down to ordinary size, and the two figures, their hair burnt off and their clothes somewhat resembling the crinkly part of the Christmas turkey, surveyed the scene, which had been permeated with iridescent fun, and among which frolicked Mudcatters irradiated with anti-sad vaccine, and innumerable coupons for extra drinks from the bar. Colours from the covers of late 1960's concept albums filled the sky. All was for the best in the best of all virtuous worlds!

"Hmm." he said. "Still needs a little work on the colour coding. "

The lady beside him took off her glasses, which had left tan marks around her face, and patted his arm. "Give it a rest, tiger. Wait till next year."

He looked at her, and nodded, and then said, somewhat anxiously: "Would you like to come up and see my blueprints?"

"wotthehell," she replied, "wotthehell" and brushed off the burnt fur balls around her collar. They went off into the night together, carting the remains of the box and the night with them, the door of the Mudcat Arms swinging behind them, as the revellers picked up where the universe left off. The snow came down around them, very much like the opening of the 3rd Act of La Boheme, and was general all over Mudcatville.