High, Low and in Between, Same as You

I knew just how the motel would be: “groovy” in that Austin way, retro but millennial in schemes of pink and orange, perhaps a neon sign that spelled in cursive, “Y’all Means All!” or “In Willie We Trust.” Nevertheless, I’d found a room for half the going rate, and I’m hardly in the business of turning down a deal. Upon my near-midnight arrival, the lobby’s yawning concierge handed me a key of the sort that has the mailing address printed on the keychain, and written on the flip side: “SO CLOSE YET SO FAR OUT.”