Engine Trouble

I just took one of those crazy quizzes you find all the time on facebook.  You know the ones that lure you in for reasons you cannot define.  This one happened to be on how many car parts you could identify.  I think I took it because it stirred memories of working with my father under the hood of many cars.  Since I had no brothers and my father was a wealth of knowledge in so many things I decided to take advantage of that knowledge.  My father always took care of our cars, in fact let me tell you one little funny story.

When I was in high school I drove a 1960 something Ford Falcon, it was a really nice car and I loved that car.  It really drove well but had developed a little sound under the hood.  I mentioned this little sound to my father one day in passing.  I did not drive my car to school because school was several miles from our home, we rode the bus.  I went to this school during a time of gas rationing.  At any rate, I came home from school one day to find my father at home and greasy up to his elbows.  When I greeted him he said, “Hey, come outside and let me show you something.”  I followed him outside to my car, he lifted the hood, I looked in only to find nothing but the cement of the driveway staring back at me.  I looked at him in awe, “Where is my engine?”  He had taken the entire engine out to give it an overhaul.  For complaining about a small sound?  Really?  I just about had a heart attack.  All the parts were laid out in under the car port.  Dad cleaned and returned most of the parts back into the car within a few months.  I couldn’t believe he had left over parts but he said they didn’t matter and you know what?  The car ran perfectly and there was no small sound or any sound out of the ordinary after that so I guess those parts really didn’t matter.  My father taught me all he could while putting that engine back, he taught me many things before and after as well. 

After Rob and I married and the hood of our car was up for any kind of at home repair job it would be me under the hood and not my husband.  It was easier to do it myself than explaining how to do it.  If a bolt was too hard to turn then Robs muscles were quite handy otherwise, I just got the job done.  I appreciate my father for teaching me how to fix mechanical things.  It’s come in handy!