On the morning of their move across the country, a mechanic and his college-educated engineer friend struggle to pack and cope with the decision. The engineer is in love with a woman named Helen, whom he planned to marry until he had a crisis about settling down. The mechanic recommended that they should shake up their established lives by moving to Los Angeles, but now that they're about to go, the engineer tells the mechanic he can't. He struggles to describe the epiphany he had while watching a woman with a blue sash walk across the street that morning. The engineer realized watching her that women and men could fulfill no greater role than marriage, and it was a necessity to happiness. He had to stay, despite his recent quarrels with Helen. The mechanic tries to talk the engineer out of his change of heart, but fails. The engineer marries Helen, and the mechanic doesn't make the trip without his friend. Although they see a little of one another, their friendship wanes. Occasionally, the mechanic thinks about the disturbing epiphany his friend had regarding the blue sash and is grateful that such a thing will never befall him.