This is not a metaphor

I have a really old vacuum cleaner. It's a canister style vac and has seen better days. Over the years I've owned lots of vacuum cleaners. All but this one were uprights. Several were bag-less. All of them crapped out eventually.

This one just keeps going. The hose cracked, was shortened, and cracked again. It was repaired with plastic and zip ties. It cracked again. It was covered end to end with duct tape. I can't remember now why I just didn't buy a new hose. Are they out of production? Was it too expensive? No matter. The duct tape is doing a fine job of holding everything together, the motor produces a mighty suck, and the retractable cord mechanism still reels it all the way in.

Truth be told, through it all, it's always been my favorite. And I can tell the truth, because vacuum cleaners aren't sensitive. I'm allowed to have a favorite. I bought the others because they were new and different, or because a guy with an English accent made them sound sexy. Or because the last new, different, sexy one had broken. This one I keep and keep coming back to because it works.