Its large, hulking dark presence no longer squats in a corner of the family room. Its presence always seemed somehow offensive among the light, colourful and attractive objects that sit in that room where we spend so much of our time.

We bought that 32-inch set not long after we moved into this house, just over 20 years ago. It has been a reliable workhorse of a machine, giving us fairly good reception and a limited number of stations, since we reached the conclusion many years ago that we weren't at all interested in fattening the bottom line of cable companies. Instead of a monthly cable- or satellite-reception fee, we decided to invest in health insurance for our two little dogs, but that's another story altogether.

With the deadline for changeover to the new system of television signal reception to high definition, we thought we'd procure a box to convert the old signals into the new, and a new interior aerial, but that didn't do the trick; our old television set appears to be simply too old to be technically amenable to the changeover.

We don't appreciate feeling pressured into the purchase of a new television set. Mostly because television watching is not integral to our lives in any meaningful way. I rarely watch television and my husband has become increasingly disgusted with the quality of programs available, and also, truth be told, resentful of the hold it has over his evening attention, far rather preferring to read intriguing and useful literature than watch insignificant television programs.

So out it went. Heavy as sin to cart it out of the room. And into the garage, where it now sits, glowering with annoyance that its presence within the house has been usurped. Until we decide how best to rid ourselves of it entirely, it will remain there, useless and rejected.

Amazing, actually, if the mood strikes one, alternatively, what can be picked up on the Internet.