ten years that thing held onto. i hate it. it's always half-clogged, spitting stringy bits everywhere, burns on my fingers i can't even trace back to specific moments. but it was my brother's so i kept it like a shrine or something, which is dumb because he barely used it either.

new one is twenty bucks and heats up in like a minute. i used it today on a piece that's been sitting half-finished for months and it went so smooth i almost didn't trust it.

still weird though. feels like i retired a little piece of him i didn't want to let go of. but the work's better for it.