My wife was mocking my wallet today. That's fine, it's pretty funny looking - because it's 35 years old. I bought it at a garage sale when I was 8, I believe for 5 cents. I have used it continuously since then, and it's finally getting to the point where stuff falls out when I take it out of my pocket (I've got a rubber band around it now, and yes, I'll probably get a new wallet soon).
This made me think about how old my oldest possessions are, and how long you can keep using a quality item - or alternately how crappy and breakable some stuff is. It's pretty inspiring, at least to me, to see people keep using old gear.
I have a set of pots and pans handed down to me by my parents when I went to grad school that date from *their* grad school days (ie, early 1970s) and a Bridgeport vertical mill that I got in 2000 that is from the 70s as well. I have a stand mixer from the 1950s.
All of those items are old and cool, but I didn't start using them until much later than the wallet. So I'm not counting them as my oldest useful possession.
I want to hear about your oldest continuously (or at least regularly) used possession. I bet some of you can beat my old Ocean Pacific wallet!
Ground rules:
-Age of item starts from when you started using it, but bonus points if it was already old/used when you acquired it.
-It can be a gift or a purchase or a found item, doesn't matter. Bonus points if free/found. Extra bonus if you've repaired it.
-Has to be *useful* on a day to day basis. No antique cross-stitch you hang on the wall, no children's baby teeth, no classic car that just stays in the garage for years at a time. Recreational items are fine (ie, bicycle, tennis racquet, board game).
-No real estate.
-Bonus points for funny stories/unusual items.
So, Mustachians, what have you got?
-W