nice, cheap surprise

I've been quite proud that my car is 7 years old and still running well. The exterior isn't so nice anymore (lots of dings and scratches), but the engine only has 50,000 miles on it, largely thanks to 2 years of working from home.

Now that I'm trekking to Framingham every day, I guess I wasn't too surprised when I started hearing a clunking/rattling noise under the hood. I didn't worry about it until Richard heard it this past weekend. Though he didn't say it, his face said "that sounds bad."

Of course, I listen when my husband gives me these clues. Kinda like when his face screws up after kissing me and I realize I need to brush my teeth and I hurriedly do so.

Anyway, I showed up at the mechanic's bright and early today. I needed an oil change anyway, so what the heck.

The sheer relief came when he called to say the rattling was because part of the heat shield had broken away, so they just removed it altogether (for free!) and now it's not making noise anymore.

How happily and relatively noiselessly I drove home!

Until I started thinking, do I need that heat shield? Is my engine going to burn a hole through my hood?

Ugh. I'll see if Richard gives me any clues tonight.