When it comes to car details, the important things are the little things. A good job needs to bring dust and dirt into every corner and crevice, including vents.

When it comes to car details, the important things are the little things. A good job needs to bring dust and dirt into every corner and crevice, including vents.

Ghent, New York-I try to exercise every day. However, as of last Tuesday at 3 pm, I still haven't.

"No problem," I said to myself, "you have to vacuum the car and refine the dashboard." I wonder if many other people have put so much aerobic exercise on cleaning the car that it constitutes A form of exercise.

I didn't even complete the task. For the first time in history, I decided to divide this trivial matter into two days: I vacuumed the floor, cushions and seats with a vacuum cleaner on Tuesday; I introduced the dashboard, seat pockets, cup holders, etc. in detail on Wednesday.

When I proudly reported my progress to my wife, after bravely dragging the vacuum cleaner back from the driveway, she didn't sound impressed. In fact, it’s worse: she didn’t even notice that she was begging for a sponge bath in the car. I did not take her indifference as a person. She also doesn't usually notice when the "check engine" or "low fuel" lights come on.

Believe me. Cars, especially floors that have not been vacuumed for months, are embarrassing. I am not obsessed with car cleaning. I have a life. I am not the kind of person you see in the car wash. After getting the Ultimate car wash, I eagerly put the dormitory in a stainless steel industrial vacuum cleaner.

I can't bear the pressure. When my 50 cents or dollars are used up, I have just started. A good job needs to bring dust and dirt into every corner and crevice, including vents.

One reason that Tuesday’s homework took so long is that I found a brand new crack. When I started to fold the rear seats of the Honda CR-V to better access the dog hair trapped in the gap between the seat and the backrest, I first noticed that the space under the seat contains traceability Debris in 2017, the year the car was purchased.

I can view my wife's indifference to the details of my car as an indirect criticism of my obsession with the details of life when big things slipped. Take earning a living as an example. I realized that I was the main beneficiary of my mania. Looking at a clean car gave me a moment of happiness, almost ecstatic.

My interest in car hygiene can be traced back to my 7th or 8th birthday. At that time, my parents gave me one of the best gifts. This is what a child of that age can have, at least a boy, if you allow me to accept unbelievable gender stereotypes.

This is a gleaming Playmobile battery-powered toy dashboard, which has a steering wheel with a working horn, a shift lever, a glowing turn signal, the sound of the motor when the ignition key is turned, and a pretend AM radio. The windshield wipers even work.

Fast forward 15 years or so, when I got my first car, Ford Maverick. In fact, this is not a good example. This car is not only a lemon, but the dashboard is also very boring. Basically, what you are looking for in a car dashboard is a dashboard that mimics the mood in the cockpit of a Boeing 787 or Stealth F-117 Nighthawk.

In all possible worlds, you will be surrounded by the wonderland of lights and dials, not only on the dashboard, but also on the ceiling and armrests. What you are trying to create is the illusion of being a professional airline pilot. Or, better yet, an astronaut guides his futuristic spacecraft in the galaxy.

I would love to attribute my passion for dashboards to the children of the 60s and the space age. However, my intuition is that this is also the reason for the popularity of video games. In life, where else can you get a sense of control, mastery, and mission, just like you are behind the steering wheel of an Xbox console (its contoured wedge design is even similar to invisible technology) or even the most inconspicuous SUV's steering wheel What did it do?

For example, my gray Honda CR-V. It was so common that I couldn't distinguish it on the street or in a Wal-Mart parking lot, until I pressed the remote control key, it flashed and screamed.

I first gently vacuum the dashboard to remove easily accessible dust, and then use a wet sponge to remove embedded things. Whatever you do, do not use one of the Magic Eraser sponges. They are indeed magical and can remove stains that other sponges cannot reach. However, they are also slightly abrasive and will permanently darken the glass that protects the speedometer and other instruments. I can shoot myself. Of course, cars, no matter how popular or well-maintained, are not Faberge's eggs. They are devices exposed to the natural environment. Some wear is inevitable. I accept.

In the range of 1 to 10, 1 is my friend Bruce, whose Prius has never been in contact with a vacuum cleaner, and 10 is another friend of mine Steven, whose Porsche engine block was washed. I like to think I landed near 7 or 8 psychologically grounded.

In the meantime, I’m going back to the car this afternoon to finish the cleaning work, hoping that before others need to use it and start dirtying it again. People want the original perfection for an hour or two.

This is similar to the tingling sensation in my spine when I took out my brand new toy dashboard from the box in my childhood-before my nasty little brother sat behind the pretend wheel and broke it.

Ralph Gardner Jr. is a journalist whose work has appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and The New Yorker. You can contact him at ralph@ralphgardner.com. The views expressed by the columnists do not necessarily reflect the views of Berkshire Eagle.

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