 It was around 2 o'clock on a Thursday afternoon. I was right in my usual groove, counterman at Al's Coffee Pot, Route 22 out of Baltimore. Not a bad job for a green guy, 18 bucks a week and my meals. But I was aiming to be a short order cook when I really got the hang of things. Of course, I'd only been in the diner a couple of months. Well, as I say, it was the usual afternoon, not especially busy, but busy enough. No kidding, Mike. Where's that Westerman? Here you are. What'll you have, mister?