A sad day

I have met the unhappy iPod icon of doom and am sad for it.

It all started last Wednesday when my iPod screen froze. I pressed buttons, rolled the wheel, even toggled the hold switch; nothing worked. My roommate is a tech guy so I called him up for advice. “Hold the menu and select buttons for 10 seconds and it should reset,” he said and it worked. My iPod was alive again! That only lasted a couple of days.
It froze again Friday afternoon. “Could be serious…but it’s only a little over year old,” I told my self and went home. My iPod is important on the ride home because my mode of transportation is my bike. I bike everywhere when I can even in the winter which, sadly, still hasn’t hit.
It was Saturday morning as I was getting ready to do the dishes when the unhappy icon of doom appeared (I like to zone when I do the dishes). Disappointed but not defeated, I went ahead with the dishes without the music. Afterwards I checked the Web because my iPod (it’s so smart) told me to.
The icon would appear with the support site displayed, http://www.apple.com/support/ipod/, which states…

“In most cases, the sad iPod icon indicates a hardware issue. If you are able to force iPod into Disk Mode, then it may not be a hardware issue, and you should try to restore your iPod with the latest software.”

…I could not force iPod into disk mode…

“If you cannot force your iPod into disk mode and restore it, then your iPod is in need of service, set up an iPod Service Request or visit your local Apple Retail Store.”

So I visited the Tech Center on campus where I got the iPod a year ago. I got it on discount when I bought my laptop, Susanne (that’s right, I named her). I told John, the Tec Guy, the problem and he said, “it’s toast,” confirming my fear.
However not all hope is lost; my birthday is in a month!