Understanding the Rhythm of Travel Atlanta on a Monday morning is already bustling when you arrive. The terminal is packed, and it will remain so when you leave. No one is shopping. No one is browsing. The coffee lines move swiftly because the people in them know exactly what they want. Gates fill in sequence, not all at once, and the rhythm of it is almost mechanical. Check-in to security to concourse—the same choreography repeated by thousands of travelers who have done it

I'm typing this from seat 22E—middle seat, coach, somewhere over Tennessee. An hour ago I had seat 3D with the leg room and the extra width. No meal service on this flight (STL to ATL doesn't rate glassware), but still. First class is first class. Then I saw her at the gate. Young woman, late teens or early twenties, Army duffel at her feet. She was heading to Fort Benning to finish her training. When they called for pre-board upgrades, I walked over and asked if she wanted t