Even after bad luck had taken Mike's sight, he still enjoyed an adventure. In one, he helped blind racers ski down a mountain, to impress a girl. Mike says, "You might think skiing without sight is tough, but we had the hard part, since we told them where to turn." Then, he laughs and adds. "That meant standing on a ski slope with blind racers headed right for us." His adventures and jokes help many people work through bad luck, not just blind folks.
This book is based on real events in Minnesota and begins when Mike attends a school for blind adults. A simple lesson is cooking without sight. A challenging lesson is about finding work. Mike learns that adults with low vision have a low chance of returning to work, which becomes his biggest hope. He wants to find a job again, so he can own a house again. He meets many good people at the school, but some cry more than they used to. Others laugh more, and a few compete in downhill ski racing. In this book, all of them help Mike work through bad luck and blindness.