Luke: You know, this place hasn't been painted since my dad was alive.
Lorelai: No, I didn't know that.
Luke: He painted it before he opened it and once more when the roof caved in one winter. I think that's probably it.
Lorelai: The paint lasted a long time. He got his money's worth.
Luke: Yeah. He really loved this place, you know? [exhales] The store was his life. Mine, too, I guess. I spent every minute I wasn't in school in here. I spent a lot of minutes I was supposed to be in school here, too.
Lorelai: How come you opened a diner? Why didn't you keep it a hardware store?
Luke: I don't know. I didn't love the hardware business the way my dad did, and I knew how to cook, so I just thought a diner would be more... fun.
Lorelai: [chuckles] That's a hard word for you to say.
Luke: I just always wanted to work here. [sighs] Just where Dad did.