In this story by Fernando Sorrentino a man relates how being trapped inside his tenth-floor apartment after his key broke off in the lock changed his life. After being refused service and black-listed by the Argentine Locksmiths’ Union, he looks for help elsewhere. He phones the building janitor, his girlfriend and co-workers, and even drops pamphlets to pedestrians on the street below. No one is willing to assist. When his telephone, power and water are cut off, the innovative man develops a thriving farm in his apartment. Themes include resourcefulness, self-sufficiency, isolation, the apathy and redundancy of urban lifestyles.