Talk about a bad break.

Ron Miller had just won a match in Sunday’s pool tournament at the Chalk & Cue Pool Room when his friends broke the news: A street lamp had fallen on his truck.

The Stanberry, Mo., man didn’t believe them until he looked out a window down to Eighth Street. There sat his red Toyota Tacoma, with a crushed roof and a bed full of shattered glass.

No one saw the pole fall, but witnesses noticed the accident about 3:30 p.m. The base of the copper pole was covered with rust and appeared to snap loose in the wind. No other vehicles were damaged.

After calling the police, Mr. Miller did the only thing he could do; he went back inside and played pool.

“I was winning, but I’m down two games in my match after this happened,” he said.

Mr. Miller came back outside when an employee from Kansas City Power & Light arrived to clean up the mess. In spite of the situation, Mr. Miller managed to keep a smile on his face. He even joked with the KCP&L worker about what color his new truck would be.

“I’m a little bit irritated,” Mr. Miller said. “There’s nothing I can do about it, though.”

He waited outside for a few moments, then left his truck to the crowd that had gathered around it.

“Call me when the police get here,” he said as he walked back into the Chalk & Cue.

After all, he had another game to play.