I want you to think about something for a second. When is the last time you watched TV? I don’t mean logging onto Netflix or Hulu, or watching the television at the doctor’s office. I mean actually sitting down, with a remote, and flipping through channels to see what is on. If you are like me, then you would have to think back a long time, because it seems that television is no longer a relevant part of our lives.

I came to this startling conclusion, when a few days ago, I discovered that I did not have an auxiliary cord for my television and hadn't noticed it in all that time since I came back home from break in January. And the fact of the matter is, even after stumbling upon this fact, it still does not bother me. It is not like I regularly watch television. I really only use it as a screen for my PS4 or my laptop. Just a few years ago, I would have never dreamed of going so long without access to cable, but now in the age of online video streaming, television has gone from an absolute necessity to an optional extravagance.

And I am not alone. According to The New York Times, 41 percent of millennials aged 14-25 watch television primarily on a computer. Another 16 percent watch it either on a tablet or a smart phone. Add it all together, and this means that a majority of young adults, 47 percent, do not rely on television sets to follow their favorite programming. In my own personal experience, I can say that this seems to be the trend among me and my friends. Most of my friends live on campus, yet not one of them watches television through cable. And I know at least a few of my friends who do not even have televisions in their rooms. The only time I really see anyone watching traditional live television is for sporting events like the Super Bowl, the World Cup or a baseball game.

Now you may be asking yourself, “Why does this matter?” I would be lying if I said that am not an avid user of online streaming services, as Netflix binge-watching and my Amazon Prime subscription occupy most of my free time. But I feel like this shift from the experience of watching live programming every night to logging onto an account where our favorite shows are always available is slightly harmful.

There was a certain sense of community in tuning in with millions of others to watch a show at a specific time and date. It is the reason the series finale of "Friends" meant so much to people and why a show like "American Idol" could become such a nationwide phenomenon. There was also the added bonus of flipping the channels and discovering something you would enjoy. With just a few clicks of the remote you could go from watching a sitcom to a nature documentary, and then to a low-budget horror movie. One could experience all facets of pop culture by simply going from channel to channel.

Now it seems everyone is secluded in their own personal TV bubble. We watch our favorite shows and are kept from anything that strays from our interests. Everyone now seems to be in the midst of either catching up on their favorite show, or binge watching it to an extreme. You cannot just watch something once, enjoy it, and come back to it next week. Now when you see a show you like, you have to devour it like it was the last thing you would ever see before you died.

Perhaps it is just the nostalgia talking, but I miss the days where you could sit down, press the power button on your remote control, sit back and enjoy whatever happened to appear on your television.