Time and toasters
We all carry a variety of timers in our head. These timers are placed on every single item we own. An example would be when you pick up an ink pen off your desk and it will not write. You immediately refer to the timer in your head, realize the pen is only 10 months old, and should not be out of ink.
The same holds true for each and every item we possess. That coffee mug that you got on your trip to the Grand Canyon 14 years ago broke and you immediately calculate the age of the cup. It had a good run and served you well.
The numbers and how we view them vary greatly from item to item. A 14-year run for a coffee mug is judged good but a 14-year run for a home furnace is viewed as shoddy. The numbers are very arbitrary and can become extremely skewed, especially when the judge losses track of the time that has passed.
Did you know the average lifespan of a pair of socks is one year? I can honestly tell you that every pair of socks I own is past their lifespan. Many of them would actually fall into the ancient category. If I had a pair of socks that gave up the ghost after one year, I would be greatly disappointed and perturbed.
The average kitchen knife has an expiration date after only two years. My dad would have a fit if he saw that statistic. In my house, growing up we had a set of knives that were with us for at least 20 to 30 years. The knives still did their job and were kept sharp by us kids doing the consistent work on a wet rock.
Towels and washcloths are supposed to last a maximum of two years. When I was a single father, I think I owned a set of towels for well over 10 years. To be honest, I would probably still have them if my wife had not thrown them out and replaced them with new ones when we wed.
My wife tells me often that I have no sense of time, because things that I think happened two years ago really happened four years ago. Therefore, I guess that toaster I had when I married my bride was probably more like 10 years old versus the two years I told her. Toasters live to be about six years on average. It served me well but my love replaced it anyway.
Nonetheless, towels, toasters and time wait for no one. The one thing none of us can replace is time. Enjoy your time because it is the most valuable asset you own.