More car issues, Kitty adventures and leaving Santa Fe

How could there be a week/month without a car trouble? About 2 months ago, I started noticing a rumbling sound coming from the rear of my car (that was still back in Co. Springs). Since I had my car in for the brake booster issue so many times, including for a full inspection at the Honda dealership and to replace my front axles, AND I asked the mechanic about the noise, I assumed it was a loose metal plate somewhere and didn't have to worry about it. Wrong!

On my way to the gym one day, I was getting on the highway when I heard a familiar noise coming from my exhaust system. The noise was familiar because it happened about 7 years ago when I had to replace my exhaust system. "Darn," I thought to myself. "Must be broken again!" I continued with my drive to Santa Fe and I was pulling into the parking lot that had  several "sleeping policeman" aka road hump on the road I heard a metal clanking noise. I thought, "What could there be in my trunk to make this noise?" After parking, I looked under my car and was petrified seeing my muffler almost dragging on the ground. IT CRACKED OFF and was hanging by the metal thing. My heart dropped. As I collected myself, I went to the gym, and after looking at which mechanic opens the soonest and which has the best reviews, I headed to the shop that was nearby. But not before I took my trusted duct tape and taped the hanging muffler to the body of the car. This would work. 

The mechanic was open 30 minutes after I got there and was willing to take a look at my problem without an appointment. I headed to the coffee shop to wait. Luckily, I had my work laptop with me as I was planning to work from another coffee shop that day. After a few hours, the mechanic reassured me that he would just need to reweld the pipe as there was no damage to the muffler. $85 later and with no noise anymore coming from the rear of my car, I was a happy camper. Initially, I thought about my horrible luck, but after assessing how the situation turned out, I don't think there could have been a better outcome. Well, besides the muffler not rusting off the pipe...

Now onto Kitty... He really enjoyed his stay in Santa Fe. It was so peaceful and quiet that after our last night in Denver and non-stop fireworks on July 4th, he was at ease at the new place.

He also enjoyed the local wildlife. Deer would come so close to the house that I could take tons of pictures.

And let's not forget about those promised pesky scorpions in the bathtub. After a month in the casita, I caught two baby scorpions, safely grabbed them with the tongues provided by the host and released into the wild...

My trip in Santa Fe was coming to an end, and I was determined to hike my favorite trail in the back just one last time. Leaving this place was emotional. I am not sure why I connected to it so much given several issues with insects, hot weather, terrible water pressure and no espresso machine (or toaster, for that matter), but this place I will remember for a while.

Last hike on my favorite trail

Last sunset in Santa Fe