Heavy, wet snow was putting the windshield wipers to the supreme test and they were failing. Slowly, the snow was being pushed onto the previous pile until the wipers had to quit. It would be impossible for me to go on, so I tried to get over to the side of the road and out of danger. The wheels were spinning but I was going nowhere. The dashboard clock read 02:15. A bar's sign twinkled through the large snowflakes. Getting to the bar through snow that seemed to be falling at a foot a minute was a formidable task.
The lights inside of the bar had been dimmed to one point before off. A, too dark, hallway twisted and turned several times before the checkroom became visible. "What time d'ya close?" I asked the giant-sized, bald guy.
"Whenever," He said, handing me a ticket for my coat. There was another short hallway with a half-turn that led me to the serving bar, in the middle of a very large ballroom. The light level was so low that I thought I might've been the only customer, although, I could hear talking and laughing. I ordered a draught beer. I hadn't had one in quite a long time and thought I'd enjoy a change. It was a big change from what I was used to, it was served in a waxed, cardboard cup. "What time d'ya close?" I asked the effeminate-looking barman.
"Whenever," he replied, smiling dutifully. I remembered the tune but not the name of the song, Whenever, Whenever. I thought it might've been from the Broadway show, Annie. It really didn't matter.
"Like, what time is whenever?" I couldn't help laughing.
"Well," he said, thinking it over, "I guess ya could say, whenever is when the guy comes in for the next shift." He smiled with his eyes.
"Hey, that's great, I guess I can stay for a while yet, huh?"
"You're welcome to stay till whenever," he said, actually laughing, this time. "Seriously, though, the official closing time is supposed to be 03:00 but, unofficially it's whenever."