I lived without one for two years when we were first married, since getting one up to the apartment would have been next to impossible. (Getting our current one up the porch steps was nearly impossible. It literally weighs a ton.) I wouldn't want to do without it now. It's a wonderful instrument, and I'm so used to its tone and timbre that playing any other just doesn't appeal to me as much. The fact is, I don't play that well. I have good technique, but I can't sight read for beans and I've never been able to play by ear worth a darn. That limits me to pieces I'm prepared to practise for months, which I did with the Pathetique. I love it, in part, because I can play it blindfolded. My kids were rather surprised that I kept closing my eyes or looking away from my fingers. They didn't seem to grasp that a really good pianist hardly ever looks down.