Our lives have been planned along a road grid-homes far from work, shopping far from everything, with ugly stretches of concrete and blacktop in between.
I don't know what kind of hocus-pocus they teach in Rowley's karate classes, but the last thing I needed was for him to lay me out right there on the blacktop.
Then I was around the hill on the blacktop and in another country. In five minutes I turned into the driveway of the Wades' house, parked and walked across the flagstones and rang the bell.
He let the door swing open. The drunk promptly slid off the seat and landed on the blacktop on the seat of his pants. So I went over and dropped my nickel. I guess it's always a mistake to interfere with a drunk.