Virgil's father is a taxi driver who originally hails from Haiti. Back there, he used to drive a bus. He always has a smile on his face and a plan in his mind—and one of those plans involves growing a garden.

He rouses Virgil out of bed at the crack of dawn—even though school's out—and they set about their epic task of creating a farm. Virgil's father had always asked his passengers how it was possible to get rich. One of them told him that fancy restaurants pay a lot of money for baby lettuce, the kind used in rich folks' salads. And the fresher the lettuce, the higher the price they'll pay for it.

Virgil's father thinks this is a great idea. So he's going to grow baby lettuce in his garden/farm, pick it, then race right over to a fancy restaurant in his cab. He's even prepared to skip red lights if need be—anything to ensure that those baby lettuces remain nice and fresh.

Unfortunately, the plan doesn't work, as neither Virgil nor his dad know anything about plants, so the lettuces end up dying. This is a huge disappointment to Virgil, as his old man promised him an eighteen-speed with the proceeds of all the lettuce they were going to sell.