Car Wash

I have a car I bought in 2009 that I still think of as new. But aren't people supposed to treat new stuff better than old stuff? Not me. I rely on its newness to take care of itself in a kind of Picture of Dorian Gray self-sustainability. 

Which is why, in three years, I've washed this car maybe six times. It bugs me when it's dirty, believe me. I think, "How can you be so dirty, you new little car?" Every time I drive it, the same thought crosses my mind: "I've got to try at least to dust the dashboard." 

Half a year's worth of inner grime has recently been matched on the hood with spring pollen. It's South Carolina's gooey, yellow dust that drifts visibly through the air for weeks on end and renders even the best cared for cars abandoned in appearance. 

So when the group email at work rolled in about a mobile car detailing service setting up in our school parking lot, I signed right up. (My parents' imminent arrival may have a tad to do with a sudden willingness to part with money for something I don't seem to need the rest of the year.)

To cut to the chase: I dropped $45 and got a car back that blinded me with shine. They even vacuumed the trunk! I took off my shoes before I got in the driver's seat. I took off my shoes and bagged them. 

The best part is this: when I arrived home a week later, a handwritten envelope from Adriene's Personal Touch Mobile Carwash & Detail was in my mailbox. A thank you note! With a paragraph of handwriting inside it! 

Yeah, baby. It's safe to say the art of correspondence is making a comeback when you get a thank you note for letting somebody wash your car.