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The nascent hot weather announced news already known to the town's teenagers--summer vacation was imminent. Grant and his friends filed out of school at the first sounding of the dismissal bell and headed for their favorite pizzeria, Luigi's, where they each bought a copious serving of garlic knots.  The scent of their snack permeated the air as the boys stepped outside and sat down on the curb to discuss a paramount problem. It was one of great importance to all seventeen-year-olds getting their driver's licenses in 2006. The recent, prodigious rise in gasoline prices threatened to make car ownership out of reach for any teen working for minimum wages.

Meeting at Luigi's had become a common activity for the boys. Each had a fourth-period lunch that left them hungry after school every day. Aside from this one common factor, the boys were quite different from each other. Grant, a sandy-haired, thin boy, was pragmatic. Almost everything he did was designed to bring him closer to his goal of becoming the next Bill Gates. Dwight was a budding Pablo Picasso; his intense blue eyes were usually focused on a sketchpad where he brought fantastic images to life. Jason was the third teen in the group. His mind was always stuck in neutral because he could not seem to get beyond thoughts of  girls. The final boy in the group was Angelo, the only senior. He was a certifiable bookworm who always got A's in his honors English class. As a result he was venerated by the teachers and administrators of the school.

Grant began the discussion with candor. "Listen guys! We have to figure out a way to afford a car! We can't turn seventeen without one. It's a rite of passage. Does anyone have an idea?"

Jason turned his attention away from a girl in the parking lot who was getting into her car and said, "Oh man! Did you guys see that new girl from Florida? She's in my gym class. She's gorgeous."

Grant rolled his eyes and looked toward Dwight. "What about you?" 

Dwight, who was busy creating a meticulous drawing of dragons in his notebook, looked up. "Did you say something?"

"Forget it! Keep--"

"The girl from Florida is gorgeous, but Kimberly is even better!"

"So what Jason! How do you plan to take her out on a date if you don't have a car?" Grant questioned, trying to inspire some critical thinking skills in his friend.

"The solution is facile. I'll get a loan to buy gasoline."

"Oh really? If you take a moment to compare your expenses and your income you'll see that your expenses will soon be too much to handle. You won't be solvent for very long."

"You're right Grant!" Angelo added. "Jason will end up like the farmers in The Grapes of Wrath!" 

"What happened to them?" asked Dwight, looking up for a moment from his drawing.

"They went broke, lost everything, and had to move to California!"

"Ah! California! Beaches filled with suntanned surfer girls in bikinis!"

"Yes Jason. But you won't be able to afford the gasoline to get there!" Grant added sarcastically. "We need a new money-making paradigm so we can all have an ample income. A McDonald's paycheck isn't good enough anymore."

"Hey! Didn't Ms. McNeill look awesome today?"

"Jason! That's it!" Grant shouted as he jumped to his feet?
"Huh?" 

Grant finally had everyone's attention. "Ms McNeill can help us figure out a plan. She's a business teacher. We need a business plan!"

"What kind of business?" questioned Dwight.

As Grant thought of an idea, he glanced at the sketchpad on the sidewalk. "Hey Dwight, that dragon's good! We can design t-shirts for teenagers."

Grant's plan received a laudatory response from all the boys. The next day they delayed their after-school snack an hour so that they could meet with Ms. McNeill. One week later, Angelo had a business plan written. Grant used the persuasive skills he learned in his English class to convince the boy's parents to act as their venture capitalists. With cash in hand they went to the Cash Converters store and found the apparatus they needed to produce silk-screened t-shirts. 

Within a year boys' t-shirts were pervasive at the high school and their pockets were replete with money to fill the gas tanks of the shiny cars they bought at the used car lots on Route 88. Their business success was a phenomenon that all their classmates wanted to copy.

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