I was jarred - a little spooked as well - at so blatant a reference to something...

I was jarred - a little spooked as well - at so blatant a reference to something referred to, by mutual agreement, almost exclusively with codes, catchwords, a hundred different euphemisms.
"It was the most important night of my life," he said calmly. "It enabled me to do what I've always wanted most."
"Which is?"
"To live without thinking.