Claire Oshetsky > Status Update
Claire Oshetsky
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Ok here is another teaser question for intrepid lovers of unreliable narrators. Celia most certainly gets the name of the hotel wrong where she meets up with the notorious Sock Man. How do you know this? If you care to guess put it behind a spoiler tag…I’m not sure anyone will get this one though…
— Mar 09, 2026 03:01PM
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(view spoiler)[Celia tells us the meeting occurred at the "St. Francis Hotel," but it most certainly occurred instead at the "Sir Francis Drake Hotel,” where for decades the doorman wore a Beefeater costume. In the novel Celia describes seeing this doorman, and shares her thoughts about his costume.
I can’t link to them here but if you search for "Tom Sweeney” and "Sir Francis Drake Hotel” you will find stories about the man who did this work for four decades.
Also the scene at the hotel lobby bar pays gentle homage to the short story “Reunion” by John Cheever, in which the word “Beefeater” occurs four times. (hide spoiler)]