I don't know what the lifespan of an actual beaver is*, but after 40 years of service the beaver that sits on Trevor's desk is no longer. This beaver began its life as an ordinary electric pencil sharpener and didn't become a beaver until about the time Trevor was 8 and he decided to add eyeballs, teeth, and a tail to it. For some reason, I never took a picture of it. Now, I've documented it. I love seeing Trevor's creativity.
Is it strange that when we purchase the replacement, one main feature we'll be looking for is that it is shaped like a beaver? Since I haven't shopped for an electric pencil sharpener since... well... ever, I'm not sure what other features are important. There sure are a lot of different shapes and styles now, a sampling of which are in the affiliate links below. There weren't any brown ones, so I stuck with black. Which should we choose? Let me know in the comments!
* I looked it up. According to the Smithsonian, North American beavers usually live for 10 to 12 years, but the longest-lived beaver under human care reached 30.
X-Actos are good. I have one and LOVE IT. It sharpens the colored pencils that are always breaking without breaking them. Mine is the X-ACTO Boston School Pro Electric (an older version that's out now that takes multiple sized pencils). If you don't need multiple pencil sizes though, the lil one is probably great.
ReplyDeleteMy identical pencil sharpener (minus the beaver parts) died recently too. It was a hard blow. Since we only have grand littles occasionally I replaced it with a little battery job. I miss my old friend! :(
ReplyDeleteWow. 40 years is a long service. They don't make them that well these days. Please pick a new one that's based on performance because a lousy one will eat up your pencils.
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