Antero Rousku works as a warehouseman at a paint shop. His work is of the raw muscle kind, where shades of paint are mixed and renovation materials carried from one place to another, in order to earn one′s daily bread. Rousku, however, is not content with mere bread. Instead, he sells his employer′s ware past the official bookkeeping to Jylh?korpi, who frequents the shop. Jylh?korpi is a devout and outspoken communist given to unscrupulous stealing in spite of his ideology, or perhaps because of it. Rousku′s work mate at the cellar warehouse is the run-of-the-mill working-class guy Raninen, whose life consists of work and arguing with his wife. And, in addition, of doing the lottery, but the way Raninen wants to win is to get the winning numbers in precisely the order they come spinning out of the lottery machine. Not the sharpest pencil in the box, therefore, our Raninen… Rousku′s freedom is threatened by a relationship with Karita, the sales girl at the paint shop. Rousku wants to keep the woman at an arm's length, apart from when in her bed. Karita, however, has decided otherwise, and the noose tightens around Rousku′s neck when Karita announces she′s pregnant.
