When I was younger I enjoyed having a shiny car or Jeep. Washing was a chore and I hated finding new chips in the paint and and new door dings, but the looks of a clean rig made me happy. As I get older I find that I kind of like leaving mud and dirt on my Jeeps. Now that's not to say I never get my Jeeps washed. Washing them acts like a big ol'e reset button because the mud helps me remember the adventures that I have had.

 I really started thinking about this when I was washing the underside of my WJ the other day as I was working on a Tech article and I saw orange/red mud from Moab UT. I love Moab, and there is something very cool about having dirt in my driveway that was once the rocks around the Utah town.

The Mud on my TJ is from a wheeling trip near my house after a brief and rare desert rain.

So what do you think? Shiny or muddy?