where form meets function

I still have my first iPod.  It’s a 4th generation, black and white, 20GB ipod.  I first got it in December 2004, and it’s served me faithfully since then.  And it’s now slowly dying.

I’ve googled around for some suggestions about what to do.  I found the “iPod Death Clock” which tells you how long you have left on your iPod according to the average life spans.  After entering my iPod’s serial number, it told me to cherish every moment I have with my iPod, as it’s due to die soon.  Not good news. I found another blog suggesting that I bang it on the table.  I’m only going to try that once I’ve exhausted all other avenues.

It’s not just a material possession for me.

I first ordered my iPod online in late November 2004, and had it shipped to a friend’s in the US.  I was living in Finland at the time, but I was planning on going home to Canada for Christmas.  On the phone, I had asked my father to go get the iPod from next door, where my neighbour had dropped it off.  It was the last thing I ever said to my father, as he died suddenly a few days later.  And I think about it a lot.

Nearly every time I turn on the iPod I think of my father.  And now the iPod doesn’t work properly any more, and soon I’ll stop turning it on.