You hate to lose what you have, but what's much worse is that eventually you yourself will be lost, as your mylar comes off the capstan, and all your information scrozzles. And it's not just music. I have recordings of my kids' first conversations. Sometimes they are sandwiched at the end of music tapes. And it's not just recording tape.
Degradation occurs to color photos, too.
Pictures supposed to make our Kodak moments immortal are turning bluer every year, and our memories fade into blue in our hands. It is the foreshadowing of your own death, when your memory is suddenly erased, and anything you ever wanted people to know had better already be communicated. Because that toothpaste is gone. We have no Internet connection up here, so we're trading sentences with each other, just to keep from being bored. I love yoyu very m7ch.