Going "No Streaming" for the month of December
Physical media only exercise/experiment
No Stream December
That was my challenge to myself. And at first, it did seem like quite a challenge considering my lifestyle. But it only took a week to realize I’m having the best time all year!
I work as a writer in the music, anime, and marketing industries. Unlike most millennials, I don’t fancy myself a very nostalgic person. It’s my job to constantly engage in new art! And I much more enjoy things happening today over “ remember when”s. So this is me all year, and I rarely really get the time to sit back and appreciate an old album, or older movies (without fidgeting cause I know what’s going to happen). So I also saw this as an opportunity to be nostalgic for a month and revisit things I loved.
Going in, I knew there were going to be pros and cons, but the experiment for me is which will outweigh the other with this practice. As of writing this, I’m on day 22 of December. And this was my experience.
The custom rules
Most of what I consume will be in physical media form. If there’s a movie I wanted to see, or music I wanted to listen to, I had to go out and hunt for it in disc or a cartridge. And this was only going to be for entertainment purposes. Therefore, if I need to use YouTube for tutorials on how to fix something, I’ll be able to do that :)
There are a few exceptions to this. The main thing is anime. Because I need to get my fixes and there was no way I’m going to find them on dvd until 8 years after.
But books, comics, and manga are also great substitutes to movies. So are board games to video games!
Music
I am a vinyl collector, but the hardest part of this is being limited to vinyl is knowing how limited I was going to be unless I plan to spend a LOT of money. More importantly, what if I’m on the go?
It was a simple solution of getting a CD player. Luckily, I have a 15-year-old vehicle that still plays CDs. I sold all my cds for vinyl 3 years ago, and now I’m really regretting it! I had some insanely good stuff, from mid 00’s post hardcore/emo bands to unsigned artists. So first thing I did was go to the same music store I sold all my cd’s to 3 years ago in hopes no one was smart enough to pick them up. Luckily, I managed to come away with a few of the ones I sold! I knew because one of them had the insides of the booklet signed (from Warped Tour), which was still there. So with the thrill of all that, we are off to a good start.
I went CD shopping about twice a week since then. One time with friends, even got them into collecting CDs, which made it even more of a bonding experience. Can you believe that this was a normal hangout between friends not too long ago? It was so rewarding talking about what music we liked, giving each other recommendations, etc.
The vinyl collection was not ignored whatsoever. Records I’ve gotten over the past few years are getting repetitive spins. Especially as I revisit my top 12 albums of 2025. But when it came to CD’s, you can bet I was revisiting all my favourites from my teenage/20’s something era. I even bought a 2-CD tower to store what I have so far. My living room looks so 2005, and I’m all about it.
While this is mostly pro, the cons that I’m aware of are that not having streaming to discover new music before I decide to buy it. Especially for my career, it’s vital I’m up to date with new releases. So while this was such a fun exercise to rewire how I process music. Get a chance to enjoy it more slowly and go revisit nostalgia, it won’t be possible for me to go ONLY streaming forever.
Gaming
This was really simple, as I recently bought Tales of Xillia remastered, Yakuza: Pirates, and Pokémon Legends Z-A.
With all the Christmas things and how busy the work push is for December, I didn’t get as much gaming time as I wanted to. But when I did, I wasn’t stuck trying to decide what I wanted to play with overwhelming choices of games through streaming. It was these 3, or I would do something else. And that made me engage in these games fully!
It’s crazy cause I knew friends who had all the consoles, PC, steam +, and access to so many games, yet somehow always talk about games like they didn’t like the hobby. It’s almost as if they seemed bored and would rarely get excited. They’d play one and move on to the next without getting deep enough to feel much reward of completion. They were nitpicky about every little thing from mechanics to graphics, like they played it to actively find things they hate about it.
This was my realization with gaming this past year, as I wrote about it here. How I worked on making gaming a hobby for me, and reducing the burnout from little things like limiting my choices. And this exercise really helped with this.
The only cons I can think of with this are that I play a lot of indie games from small developers who don’t have the means to release on physical, or if so, it’s hard to find. So if I did stick to this, I would mostly have to buy digital, or only stick to what’s on retail.
Movies
Going to theatres also counts, as it wasn’t streaming. Recently, I saw Bugonia and found it to be one of my faves of 2025!
This month had me hunting for DVDs/Blu-rays at thrift shops. Were all of them gold? No. In fact, I watched the worst movie I’ve seen in a while by taking a risk by buying one based on how much I liked the cover. Don’t see Haunted Highway. 0.5 out of 5.
But what I did appreciate was how I got to buy used copies of movies I’ve seen and loved (for a measly $2 on average, btw), and rewatch them with the option of commentary + behind the scenes! My favourite find so far is The Silence of the Lambs collectors edition, which has close to 7 hours of bonus features that I’ve yet to see fully. I also don’t feel the urge to turn off a film 5 mins in if I think it’s gonna be bad because I have so many other things to stream, so it made me sit through them easier. Even though I wish I didn’t for some of them. So this one is going to get a pro and a con for me.
How to start?
But what if I can’t afford physical media?
What if I don’t like what I bought?
What if I don’t have space?
You have questions, and I’ll try to have answers based on my experience with this.
I fully understand not everyone can afford going full analog and having a vinyl or DVD collection, but my counter to that is, “isn’t that what were doing with having all these streaming services?” We’re basically paying for cable at this point. Plus, there are many cheaper options, like buying used physical media. Choosing CD over vinyl etc. So I do think anyone can take on this exercise themselves if they want to, without the worry of budget. I also think adding a budget rule will add to the fun, as you now have to be particular with your shopping!
Yes, there is also the space issue. My suggestion is, don’t collect like you’re trying to build a library. You can always trade with others and find a community within physical media collecting. And the engagement from that to real, human recommendations is so worth it.
Overall Experience
As cliché as it sounds, it reminded me of simpler times where we enjoyed the things we had to the fullest.
It allowed me to slow down. It’s refreshing not be on devices full of distractions and algorithms. Ads and suggestion feeds that are just made to be attention-grabbing and shocking, as if “I must see this!!!” or “you’ll never believe what so and so did!” I got to be selective and curated with my experience without the overwhelming feeling of having too many options.
Plus, I got to revisit a lot of classical music I loved, and films I adored with a whole new perspective!
I did mention some cons, yes, and it’s mostly about limiting discovery. Especially for what I do for work, saying no to all streaming would put me at a disadvantage and ironically, make me feel limited again (which is odd cause that’s what I wanted in the first place). But I do think taking a month to give myself a reset and really absorb the art I engaged with is a practice I feel I need to keep doing now and then. It’s helped me be mindful of my consumption, while boosting my interpretation skills, and having more time to sit with each piece. Having a conversation after each one instead of letting the algorithm hit next. It also adds a lot of wonder and adventure to my life with the thrill of connecting, trading, and collecting.
Overall, it reminds me of how balanced I should be. As a human being, I’m not meant to consume everything being released. So, while realistically I can’t just go “no stream” forever, I’d love to revisit it once a year.
..and I urge you to give it a try!
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Thanks so much for reading
Lamar
Appreciate you sharing your experience! I’ve been getting back into collecting CDs basically from scratch myself (man, I wish I still had some of the CDs I had when I was younger). Plus, I have a box of vinyls, but I’m currently without a functional record player. But above all, I’ve been trying to dedicate more time to buying digital albums on Bandcamp. Eventually, I hope to build out my own NAS and Plex server (or something similar) so I can rip all my CDs and stream them along with the digital media I own.
It’s certainly a process that takes time and money, but it makes me feel way more interested in and connected to the media in my life. Way more worthwhile than the choice overwhelm and subscription fatigue of streaming. Still, I can’t go fully without it, especially as a music writer. A work in progress!
Good luck with your collection!
Genuinely I would love DVDs when they included bonus content. I could spend hours watching the film, then learning all about how it was made. It's how I know what went into making the Star Wars prequels, how Pixar became a powerhouse in cinema, and how the Matrix made that iconic special effect which everyone copied. And now you don't see anything like that, the magic and mystery is hidden away.
I bought some DVDs and Blu-rays last year because I could never find some of my favourite films on the streaming platforms I paid for. I got The Terminator and T2, Mad Max Fury Road and Akira, I haven't even got round to watching all of them yet, but I'm glad I actually own them.
What a great thought experiment you did, I really liked it.