short-story – Married in Arkansas

Understanding the Check Engine Light: Causes and Solutions

So, I become depressed when I see the dashboard check engine light. Why? I’ve experienced a lot of car breakdowns over the years, which depresses me.

Some of the reasons include

Loose or Faulty Gas Cap – that is true for older vehicles, but new vehicles don’t have gas caps anymore.
Faulty Oxygen Sensor (O2 Sensor) – These sensors tattle on your engine when the air-fuel mixture just ain’t right.
Bad Catalytic Converter – Without it, your vehicle is basically a mobile polluter.
Failing Spark Plugs or Wires – No Spark? No vroom. Just sadness and misfires.
Mass Airflow Sensor Malfunction (MAF Sensor) – It measures air coming in. When it’s confused, so is your engine.
Bad Ignition Coil – The middleman between the batter and the spark plugs.. when he calls in sick, things go south.
Vacuum leak—those tiny little hose cracks = BIG dramatic engine light show.
Dead or Dying Battery?— A weak battery can freak out your car’s computer faster than a squirrel in traffic.
Bad EGR Valve (Exhaust Gas Recirculation)—It helps reduce emissions… and apparently your sanity when it fails.
Dirty or Clogged Fuel Injectors – Think of them as the tiny baristas for your engine. No coffee = No gas.
Thermostat Malfunction—Too hot? Too cold? YOur engine just wants to be Goldilocks perfect.
Transmission issues – Sometimes, engine lights double as warning lights for slipping gears or failing sensors.
Worn Timing Belt – Tick-Tock, the rubber clock… and if it snaps, oh honey, catastrophic.
Bad PCV Valve (Positive Crankcase Ventilation)— If it’s clogged, your engine basically starts choking on its own fumes.
Software or Computer Glitches – Even cars have their “Have you tried turning it off and back on again?” moments.
AND The Big ONE! The why I am writing this blog post Moment! It is PO325 – Knock Sensor 1 Circuit. In plain English – Your car’s brain thinks the knock sensor isn’t doing its job right. The Knock Sensor is like a tiny microphone bolted to your engine block. It listens for tiny knocks or pings (which happen when combustion inside the cylinders isn’t smooth, like a badly timed fireworks show.) If it hears knocking, it tells the computer, “Hey, back off the timing a little! Things are getting rough in here!” When does it fail? Well, your engine can run with bad timing because the computer isn’t being warned about knocking, and you might hear ticking, pinging, rattling or just feel a loss of power. Sometimes, you won’t feel much at all – but left alone, it can cause real engine damage.

The Knock sensor fell asleep at its post,
so the engine pings like a haunted ghost,
and though it tries to sing along,
the rhythm and timing are all wrong.

What causes PO325? 1. A dead or dying knock sensor, damaged wiring or loose connector to the sensor, and sometimes even engine sludge or build-up affecting the sensor’s ability to “hear”.

How to fix it? Usually means replacing the knock sensor, but the mechanic might recommend checking/fixing the wiring harness too if it looks crispy or chewed up.

You can change it yourself if you’re feeling do-it-yourself today, but it will be a bit more work because, like my husband’s Silverado, that sucker is concealed beneath the intake manifold. The sad trombone “Womp womp” is sounded.

My husband’s truck engine light turned on this morning as we were leaving for work, which is why I am revealing all of this. There is this “S” curve that goes down into the curve. His 2019 Silverado had a problem gaining power going up the hill this morning, and then “Boom!” the check engine light turned RED. Normally, our vehicles don’t have issues.

Oh, how I hate that pesky light. So many vehicles and so many troubles. His Silverado has 102,000 miles now. He has driven the heck out of that truck. I just pray that this doesn’t turn into an “Old Blue.” If you have listened to any of my songs, you probably hear my lyrics where I mention her. She is a 1984 GMC Sierra. She was old when we got her in the mid 1990’s but I’ll tell you one thing – she hauled a lot of yardsale stuff and made us a lot of money.

I think trucks can have personalities too. Old Blue was a gas guzzler. She had two tanks that only held about 12 gallons on each side. We were lucky if we got 10 miles to the gallon. And she seemed to know when we were going to come into money. Every year at tax time, that refund check was spent on her. If he got a bonus at work, that money was spent on her. But the one thing I am thankful for is -she didn’t break down when we were far from home.

Yup, she hauled a lot of stuff and now, the Silverado has become the New Old Blue except she’s dark gray. I just hope that these inanimate objects, to us that is, can’t talk to each other. Silver does get parked about 20 feet away from Old Blue everyday so may, I hope and pray, that Old Blue hasn’t rubbed off on her.

Dust Balls

The story centers on Mrs. Martha, who begins cleaning the house while her family goes fishing. While using an old vacuum in the children’s room, she inadvertently frightens the dust balls living under the bed, led by Momma Dustball. In a frantic yet humorous chase, they all find safety.

First, let me share this. I put in a prompt into Suno ai to create a little song about dust bunnies. My mom called them dust balls but I call them dust bunnies and this is what Suno created. I really think it is quite funny. I do suggest reading the story before you listen to this. I am also going to create a YouTube video on my channel.

This is a little story written by my mother a long time ago. Lord rest her soul—she passed in 2014, and she had written this cute little story. I guess this is where I got my creative writing skills. I did clean up the punctuation and tweak it a little bit more to make it more current and interesting. I hope you enjoy this.

Mrs. Martha decided to clean the house while her husband took the kids fishing on a Saturday afternoon. After searching a first-floor closet, she found her old Hoover Vacuum Cleaner in an upstairs hall closet. Unsure if it still worked, she decided to try it in Sammy’s and Bobby’s bedroom.

Under the bed, dust balls lurked everywhere. Martha plugged it in, stepped on the foot lever, and clicked on the on/off switch. The swooshing and whirling of the machine was so loud it vibrated the carpeted floor and the hallway too. All at once, the dust balls got scared.

Momma Dustball had been living happily under Sammy’s bed. She yelled to her children. They were the smaller dust balls Harry, Mary, Jerry and baby Charlie.

“Hear that?” Frantic now, Momma Dustball began to rush her children. “Run up under the bed quickly now!”

The children were yelling and crying in need of a place to hide.

“Up here children.” Momma helped baby Charlie first. “Hold on, Jerry. Harry help your brother and sister. Get them up under the bed frame, quickly!“

As the vacuum passed nearby, Mary held onto her Mommy. The vacuum moved back and forth closer to the bed. The others gripped the bed frame while scared dustballs floated around.

“Oh no! Help me!” Harry yelled as he lost his grip and flew towards the strange machinery that only Momma Dustball had seen before. Just before he was pulled into nothingness, the noise and wind stopped, and everyone sighed with relief. He was safe.

“You are all safe for now. Come here, my babies.” Momma Dustball hugged her little ones tightly.

The End.

The Haunted House That Inspired My Song

Whispers in the Walls by Lisa Sanders

As an adolescent, I lived in a house that seemed to have its own life. From the creaks in the floorboards to the strange sounds that resonated down the halls, it constantly felt like something—or someone—was watching me. These bizarre incidents lingered with me long after I left the house, and I realized that the memories of that location would haunt my creative soul indefinitely. That unsettling inspiration eventually became the basis for a song I wrote, one that captures the feelings, terror, and mystery I felt all those years before.

When I started writing the song’s lyrics, I intended to convey the spooky feelings I had as a young girl in that haunted house. The atmosphere of terror and disorientation I experienced, the shadows that appeared to dance just out of sight, and the sense of helplessness in the face of something far stronger than myself are all reflected in the song. It seemed alive, full of unspoken tales and mysteries, and it wasn’t just a house. Here’s a sneak peek at the lyrics inspired by these feelings.

The tone of anxiety is established in verse 1 with the fear of being awakened by whispering in the middle of the night. I can still recall those times when I was lying in bed, hearing unreal sounds yet feeling them with all of my senses. It seems as though there is no way out because of the walls crowding in and the shadows moving on their own. I was surrounded by fear like a thick blanket, and I never really got over it.

Verse 2 describes the sensation of being followed by someone invisible. The echoes of footsteps in the corridor, a cold sensation running down your spine as if someone—or something—was present but you couldn’t see it. I always felt watched, as if the walls themselves had eyes, and the scariest aspect was not knowing what would happen if I slipped up.

The Chorus is the heart of the song, in which I ponder on the house’s unwavering grip on me. It wasn’t just a haunted house in a creepy, mythical sense; it was an actual location with ghosts of twilight and gray. The wails and screams of the past appeared to reverberate in the air, as if the house was playing a game with me that I could never win. It seemed like I was stuck in a chess game, where I was always the pawn, helpless and inconsequential.

Verse 3 introduces the tangible manifestations of the haunting: rattling windows, slamming doors, and the unending darkness. I felt like there was nowhere to escape or hide. Those icy, invisible hands reaching from the bottom and the words pleading for more made me feel helpless and insignificant. The home seemed to be demanding my attention, drawing me into its twisted embrace.

Verse 4 depicts a rising sensation of imprisonment. Every corner held a fresh horror and a new secret. The thump of my heartbeat as I attempted to navigate the house served as a continual reminder that I was always on edge, racing against time and terror. But no matter where I turned, I couldn’t get away from the house’s merciless grasp; it was always in charge.

The Outro adds to the eerie mood, with flickering flames and murmurs twisting inside my dreams. This is where I consider the thought that the house wields power over me, locking me in an eternal loop. It reigns supreme in my memory, a place I can never leave, no matter how much time passes. It’s the ultimate twist, the house’s unbreakable grip on me, and it feels like it’ll never let go.

When I look back, I understand that those scary situations, although leaving me rattled, inspired something creative and long-lasting. This music allows me to process my concerns, transforming what was previously a source of anxiety into something artistic. It reminds me that even the most traumatic situations can shape who we are today.

So, while the mansion previously held me captive in dread, it now has a special place in my heart because it inspired my song. And, in some ways, it has finally allowed me to change roles—no longer the pawn, but the one who gets to tell the story.