Play

My 35-year-old Denon CD player finally skipped out. I'd kept my old Sony DVD/CD (and Video-CD, thank you) player stowed in anticipation of this moment. I unplugged the two RCA cables from the Denon unit, plugged them into the Sony, hit play, and it worked. No software upgrade, adaptor or pairing process was required: no validation or permissions had to be set; I didn't need to sign into a supplementary app that scanned the room to adjust the audio balance. I didn't have to set my region or update an online store. Listening to music really did use to be this easy.

I can't find the Sony remote. I went searching for it in the lounge drawer where we keep old tech. It wasn't there but I did find a retired iPod touch and an equally redundant Apple TV, two working but antiquated digital cameras and a dozen cables that have fallen out of standard, along with countless little plastic and metal adapters purchased at additional cost as connection workarounds. Maybe one day I will recondition my iPod Nano, which functions but has no battery life. Or maybe I'll join the ranks of millennials allegedly reviving old tech. It's also possible I'll discover these items are useful 48 hours after I've thrown them out. More realistically they'll gather dust until we need space in the drawer.