Happy 4th!
Quick announcement
Dear friends and readers,
I wanted to let you know that I contributed a piece to today’s edition of Common Sense with Bari Weiss. Contributors were asked to write a short piece on what they love about America. I chose to write about diners. Please check it out.
Some of us remember all-night diners, right?
I hope you and yours are having a terrific holiday weekend!
—Joseph Massey
I love this. I moved to NYC from Kansas when I was 19. Along with innumerable days and late nights that rolled into years I spent every Thanksgiving and Christmas in a diner with every other person who couldn't or wouldn't be with their families during the holidays. I have my own family now and though I love them I long for those days and that feeling of being connected to strangers, each of us living out the story of our lives side by side, alone, but together. I make a break for it whenever I can now and head to the nearest diner with a book or pen and paper. It's where I know myself best. Thank you for this lovely essay.
Beautifully and poignantly written, sir.
There are a handful remaining that cling to that intimate, casual simplicity. Particularly in the South, Waffle House and Steak and Shake are two that come to mind, where authentic unpretentious conversations seem to be drawn out organically, as if the room itself were breathing honestly.