Every so often I read something that challenges my assumptions about something common. This piece in the New York Times on hotel bars did that for me.
I long used to think poorly of such places. But reading this, I thought: yeah, hotel bars can be really great.
Read it yourself and see.
P.S. That image is one of my desktops. I find it oddly soothing.
Smart People I Know 
That image makes me think of 1950’s jazz.