well past its prime

I've used the same shaving brush for ... I don't really know. It's probably at least twenty years. I don't have a shaving cup, just the brush. I spread a bit of shaving cream on the bristles and work up a lather with my thumb, and I get a perfectly passable shave. But even so, it's very clear to me that the brush is well overdue for a replacement. I'd probably get an even better, more comfortable, shave. But what can I do: that brush is already a part of me.


Of course numerous, probably countless, other items stay with me for lengthy periods of time. There's the kitchen scotch/sponge that lasts for months, or the bottle of shampoo that seems never to become empty (until all of a sudden there's nothing in it, and I haven't gotten more). But "lengthy" is very relative. Thirteen years with the same tubes of toothpaste, or twenty years with the same shaving brush are enough to develop an almost emotional attachment.