After two extensive mowing and trimming sessions to get my lawn in some semblance of order, it was time to give Vanessa a good washing. It had been a long time and it was hard work, but very therapeutic…

I started with her rims, because that's usually the hardest work. I use Black Magic Wheel Cleaner. Its a fairly noxious spray that eats and loosens brake dust which is the worst offender when it comes to dirtying Vanessa's dress shoes. The directions say to spray it on evenly, wait 30 seconds and rinse it off. They also advise that some mild abrasion with a soft bristled brush may be necessary to get off really caked on brake dust. Uh huh. They say this because if they instead said “scrub your ass off” maybe you wouldn't buy the product. In my experience it takes several applications and rinses, and a good 20-30 minutes of scrubbing per wheel to fully clean them back to their mirror-like shine… of all the work on the car, this is the most back-breaking.

And in a way the most enjoyable. I left the windows down and played my CD's… singing while I scrubbed, with both sweat and tension boiling away in the summer heat. I can't squat and kneel for that long, but I have a small folding chair which I moved from wheel to wheel as I worked. 

Once that's done I closed the windows, shut the car off, and started the initial rinse. Nothing special, just a nice even coat of water over the entire car. Then comes the pre-soak. Most of the sources I've seen that discuss car washing suggest that you shouldn't start by scrubbing immediately without first soaping the car up so as to loosen the dirt, grit, and whatever. I use a Miracle-Gro hose-mounted feeder and dump some Mopar soap into it–this makes a nice sudsy fluid that you can quickly drench the car with. I just run it until the soap runs out and then I detach it and switch back to the regular hose for rinsing. During this stage I listen to the birds sing, note the passers by, and enjoy the sights and smells of summer.

And of course it's a nice time to spend with my daughter. We had a bikini car wash Saturday, but the only one in a bikini was 8 years old (my bikini was at the cleaners.) Of course for an 8 year old, it's mostly about getting soapy, getting sprayed with the hose, and running around like a maniac. But that's okay.

Then comes the regular soapy sponging. “Start high and work your way down,” I told my daughter. I use color coded sponges–pink ones for above the bumper line, and yellow ones for below. This helps ensure that the sponges that see the worst of the grit and tar aren't ever used to say, buff the hood. We did one section at a time, rinsing each afterward and going back for the trouble spots. Long after Neya had gotten tired and gone in, I was finally done. It was getting dark. There was still work to do, interior stuff (vacuuming, windows, treating the surfaces), but I was done for the day. I'll probably do the interior cleaning on Monday. Also there were some spots of tar and dead bug goo that need special chemicals to remove. Finally she needs a good waxing… I'll probably do that Monday too.

All in all, very hard work, but satisfying. Nice way to enjoy the day.