There must be something about CPAs, something that makes them more vulnerable than other folks. I've known three in my life and all three had the same problem........their wives.

I was living in Oregon at the time and recovering from a nasty divorce of my own. I'd driven into town that morning to run errands........the bank, renewing my auto insurance, a new tire, that sort of thing. I stopped at a franchise restaraunt for some breakfast.

He was wearing a suit that looked like he hadn't taken it off for weeks. He was recently shaved though and his hair, while much too long to go with the suit he was wearing, was neatly combed. He was seated on a window ledge near the entrance to the restaraunt. He was reading a paperback book.

"Excuse me, sir." He had stood and was approaching me. "Could you spare some change? I haven't eaten today and........." In those days, my usual response to this kind of question was "Sorry" and a hurried walk past the person asking such a question.

For some reason, I stopped and looked closely at the man. Maybe it was the incongruety of the suit. Maybe it was the intelligence coupled with despair I saw in his face. Whatever the reason, I told him I would buy his breakfast if that was what he wanted.

"Just bacon and eggs and some coffee." he said when the waitress arrived. I ordered too and we settled into small talk while we waited for our meal. "Do you live here in town?" was my first question.

"No, I'm from California." was his answer.

"You visiting someone here?"

"No, I'm just passing through. I've been hitch hiking the last few months."

"Any particulat destination?"

"No" his voice trailed off. "I'm just..........just killing time."

"No family?" He looked to be in his late thirties or early forties.

"I've got two daughters." he said and began to pick at his paper napkin, tearing small pieces from it as he shifted around in his seat.

"You don't have a job?" I asked just to make conversation.

"I'm a CPA." he said in a monotone.

"You got fired?" I asked.

"No, I had my own business. Owned the building my office was in."

The waitress was back now with our cofee, so we stopped and each took a sip of the hot brew. He smacked his lips approvingly and said "Thank you."

I'd been quitely studying him for a minute or so when he looked up and saw me staring.

"You want to know what happened, don't you?"

I told him "Yes" and waited.

"I went home after work one day and there was a note on the front door. All the note said was 'My attorney is Fred Carmody. You can find his name in the phone book. I don't want to ever se you again'. I couldn't even get into the house. She'd had the locks changed. I spent the night in a motel."

He went on to tell me about how she had closed out all the bank accounts including the business ones. He told me about the dancing instructor she had moved in with. He told me about how business fell off to almost nothing during the summer after the tax months of Feburary to May accounted for 90% of his yearly business. He told me about how he had been unable to make the payments on his building. He even told me about the restraining order against his visiting his children had been granted after he tried to force his way into the house of the ance instructor to see his kids.

We finished our meal in silence. He thanked me again for the meal and picked up his knapsack. I asked him one last question as we left the restaraunt.

"Are you going back?"

"Yes" he asid, strappiing his knapsack over his shoulders.

"When?"

"I don't know.Soon.......maybe."

He walked to the side of the road and put out his thumb.

I got in my car and continued with my day. I've often wondered what happened to that man. I wonder if he told me the truth or it he just had a story he told to pay people for a free meal.........of bacon and eggs.