According to the prebrief 7 years have passed from the moment he walked through the door to his next moment of experience. If you have faith in prebriefs, that is.

He looks around, trying to orient himself.  What does he see?

His view is dominated by a floor-to-ceiling window to a lush landscape of the earth in its prime, fully lush, top diversity, optimal eco-system efficiency. No surprise there.

"Uh... this isn't... what?  What happened?  I was going to the writing workshop..."

He checks himself over, and finds himself still wearing the conference badge, still carrying his laptop bag.

He goes wandering around, appreciating the view as he searches for something familiar.

"The sub-experience you chose for this pause duration terminated under the conditions you requested. It is T-1.""

He looks around, searching for the source of the voice.

"I don't remember requesting any pause duration; am I experiencing memory loss?"

The voice registers with no direction information. "There is no physical indication a memory loss has occurred, and I have no record of a registered reset prior to the pause period. Have you lost recollection of the seconds just prior to entering the pause period?"

He continues wandering as he talks.

"I remember being at the Less Online conference, and then I experienced a discontinuity right as I was walking into the writing workshop, suddenly finding myself here.  I don't know when the pause period began, as I don't recognize the phrase 'pause period'.  Where am I right now?"

"You are the sole owner of edit rights on your experience. If you are missing memories, it is due to unregistered edits, most likely a reset, that you yourself inserted in your life plan. The discontinuity you're experiencing is due to a transition from simulated to physical experience."

"Huh."

He walks quietly for a minute.

"I guess that makes sense.  Who are you, and where am I now?"

"I am your raised aspect. Commonly referred to as a handler. Every human has one. I'm yours. My primary function is to facilitate optimal negotiation results between you and the environment. A reset, registered or not, is often traumatic, but the key fact you should hang on to as you're processing your new condition is that this was elective. You chose, for some good reason, to have this trauma, perhaps to facilitate an easier departure from Earth. Why you would like to keep that hidden from your handler is a source of some non-immediate concern."

"Fascinating.  Okay.  Nice to meet you.  Do you have a name?"

"Traditionally, I am not recognized as a separate enough entity to warrant my own name. You can give me any name you feel comfortable with."

"What can you tell me about where I am and what's going on?  You mentioned departure from Earth?"