My story begins the day after I moved to Minneapolis to live with my brother, a computer superfreak with a multinational media corporation.

His success had given me the opportunity to leave my dead-end job and start afresh somewhere else.

Taking advantage of my new freedom, I slept in until noon. When I finally emerged from my den, a stiff back reminded me of my long road trip the previous day, and I decided to take my SUV for a well-deserved oil change.

After a brief search, I spotted a service station and pulled in. I’d been in the same sort of quickie station many times before. All the places had the same design, the same red-and-white decor, the same interiors. This time, however, there would be something wonderfully different in store. An attendant came out as I was digging in my pockets for... Read More