nanovivid

I left work early today to get some work done on my car. When it comes to "car stuff," well, let’s just say I’m not one of those geeks who is into computers and cars. While I’m perfectly comfortable tearing apart a computer, put a car engine in front of me and I’ll be glad to cringe away to avoid getting any icky grease on my clothes.

So when my car started getting louder a while back, I didn’t know what was up. The fine folks at Wrench Craft were kind enough to inform me that one of the pipes in the muffler assembly needed to be replaced. That makes sense, because my car was certainly not being muffled. My first stop today was for an oil change. Yes, I’m that much of a car wimp. Shut up.

Little did I know that my next stop would be as frightening as it proved to be. Since the guy at Wrench Craft had recommended Bill’s Muffler, I decided to take my car there. As I drove up, I noticed that there seemed to be a large number of late high school/early college aged car nerds hanging around. You know, those guys who drive the souped up civics and have arguments about torque converters and hydraulics. I cautiously made my way to the dingy office and handed over my key to the guy at the desk. Then I proceeded to cower in the corner pretending that the local paper was for some reason exceedingly interesting to me.

At first, it was pretty quiet in the office but that didn’t last long. Soon, a gang of car geeks descended. There was also a token female in the group who didn’t seem very interested in cars but talked about how she needed to lose weight as she proceeded to eat two pieces of chocolate cake. I managed to keep from attracting their attention and somehow made it through the arduous minutes until my car was ready.

I must admit that in spite of the frightening appearance, Bill’s Muffler seems to do good work. My car is purring along much more happily now — no more loud scary noises. Now I just need to get the tires and alignment checked…

♫ Elvis Presley - A Little Less Conversation