I checked my records and I see that the oil and filter were changed on 1/22, and total mileage of 1,270 (miles) driven since then. I know that the Youtube stars bleat 5,000, 6 months whichever comes first (Scotty Kilmer, Car Care Nut). Conversely, the oil forums out there pretty much endorse long oil change intervals (5,000 + miles).

Oil used was Quaker State 5W-30, synthetic, and a Walmart "OEM" filter. Car is never short tripped and sees no winter, so moisture should be of no concern. I do have the oil and filter on deck already bc I thought it was due, but it seems that the old oil on the stick is as clean as when I poured it in...change it, or don't waste new oil? It's an '04.

 

You are likely to get conflicting views, but personally I change oil annually or 10k, as specified, and use full synthetic.

People like Car Care Nut are possibly correct in that shorter intervals are a little better for engines. That said, in the UK (and Europe) 10k/1 year intervals have pretty much been the norm for most cars for as long as I can remember. As far as I can tell, this hasn't resulted in engines failing for lack of an oil change, any more than anywhere else. In my experience, a car is more likely to be killed by rust, accident damage, transmission failure etc, long before a modern engine, using good quality synthetic oils, fails due to 10k/1 year oil changes.

That's just my opinion (assuming normal driving conditions), which I'm sure many will disagree with, but personally I stick to 10k/1 yr oil changes, make sure that transmission fluid is changed every 60-70k or so, rust proof the underside, cavities and wheels wells and top that up annually, and figure that all will be well short of bad luck.