Washing the Car

I have to go out of town tomorrow.  Today as I was racing around town I realized how filthy my car was: mud splattered, rivulets of dirt running down the windows and sides and bumper after the smattering of rain we had the other night.  

I tried going to the car wash but it is a very awkward place to access and there was a huge line up. I couldn't face it, so I headed off to fill the tank with gasoline at my neighbourhood station.  Talk about "lucking out".  After I filled the tank and paid the bill I realized I was still the only person there and decided to take advantage of that little fact.  I found one of the window washer squeegies sitting in the one bin where the ice had melted in the direct sun, ran the wet, soapy squeegie over the entire body of the car and then wiped everything off again with handsful of paper towels from the dispenser.  YES!

Admittedly it was a bit of a rush job...hardly the sort of thorough washing and rinsing I could have given the car at the spray'n'wash, BUT it was free, it was "good enough" for heading out on the highway in the morning and all I have to do now before I go is wash the inside of the front windshield!  The gas station attendant was watching me with a rather quizzical look on his face, but since I wasn't holding anyone up, I continued on until the outside of the car was at least passably clean.

So, there is my household hint for the week:  If you want a free car wash that is at least adequate for a couple of days, head for a customer-free gasoline station and take advantage of the soapy wet squeegie and free paper towels.  Easy peasy, not very time consuming and certainly a good half measure until you can get your car into a proper car wash booth.  I am delighted by the improvement in appearance of my vehicle for tomorrow's trip.  I am driving into rain and snow showers, so the "clean" won't last long anyway, but I love starting off "fresh".