only music we ever heard on the radio was country music. I remember a song
called “This Old House.” After I’d heard the song several times, I realized
that the song wasn’t about a house at all, but about a human body.
Back in the day, you just figured things out on
your own, but now we have the internet, and I was curious about the song. I
found a treasure! Stuart Hamblen, the man who wrote the song told the story of
finding a dilapidated log house while he was on a hunting trip in the Sierra
Mountain range. The old house was falling down and when a dog came out of the
house, Stuart went inside and found a man who had passed away. He wrote the
song while outside the house, and many people thought the song was only about
the old house, but Stuart says the song is about two houses. “…the other house,
the mortal house that the maker of man has loaned to the man for such a short,
short time.”**
Why did such a thought cross my mind? I was
thinking about my old car, a 2010 Chevy Malibu. I bought the car new as my
“retirement” car, and I’m still driving it 110,000 miles later. After all the
nasty weather a few weeks ago, and after a drive down a country road, my car
looked pathetic. It was making a loud noise, which I hoped was from the tires.
This car and I have traveled a lot of miles and
been through a lot in the past thirteen years. I couldn’t help but compare
myself to the car, which is definitely an upgrade from “This Old House.” We’ve
both suffered some bumps and dings over the years. Fortunately, neither one of
us have had any accidents. We have to recharge our batteries and change the oil
regularly. We’ve had a few flat tires, and scraped up our fancy wheels. We are
both a little worse for the wear, but I think we’re in pretty good shape for
the shape we’re in.
Still, in my mind, I was a little worried about
the noise…and I went online car shopping. I couldn’t find anything that really
caught my eye. The prices on new vehicles are shocking, so I thought it might
be much more feasible to give my car some TLC. My Malibu has been a dependable
low-maintenance car and I couldn’t see taking a chance on finding another great
vehicle.
During one of the recent warm days, I took my
car through the carwash and saw the beauty of the red jewel color sparkle. It
reminded me of the time I’d just washed my car and went to the Post Office. As
I pulled in, this old gentleman told me, “That is the most beautiful car I’ve
ever seen.” Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I like the looks of the
car too.
I made an appointment to have an oil change and
have the sound investigated. Yes, it was the tires. With an oil change and new front
tires, we’re back in business.
If there’s a point to this story, it would be
that for a car (or a body) to last, we need checkups and regular maintenance.
Sometimes the noise (or pain) isn’t anything to worry about, but better safe
than sorry. Here’s to hoping that my car’s engine (and my brain) keeps on
clicking on all cylinders for many years to come.
**Find “This ‘Ole House – Story Behind the Song Told by
Stuart Hamblen” at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNzcGxl5nk8
Copyright © Feb 2024 by L.S. Fisher
http://earlyonset.blogspot.com
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