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The allure (and quiet defiance) of the American Diner.

I prefer to make the 14-hour drive from Colorado to California in a single, unbroken arc. This is a crucial part of my lore. I hate stopping. Stopping feels more inconvenient than crossing five states on four cups of coffee and an audiobook.

I hate reducing my enormous suitcase to the most indivisible bag of essentials in the parking lot—standing there l…