Oh My Pod

This Christmas, I got the one thing I NEVER thought I could possibly get. A new iPod. Bear in mind that my previous iPod was three months old. Now this, my fifth iPod to date, has inspired me to go through the history of my precious Pods, for they have been a significant part of my life for quite some time.

My first iPod was the first generation iPod. It was only available for Mac, so, naturally, I was the only person I knew with one. This was sophomore year of high school. I had just moved to Maryland from Indianapolis, and I wanted to make some kind of impression, so I touted the white wonder around school. I put it in my shirt pocket (Catholic school = uniforms) when I wasn't using it, so people would see it sticking out ever so slightly but just enough to arouse their interest. Of course, every time I went to my locker and bent over, the iPod would fall out on to the floor....

I'm not exactly sure what my first iPod did to my reputation. I think it made people generally think I was rich and a bit nerdy. At the same time, it made them quite envious, which I thought was the greatest thing ever... at the time. After less than a year, the iPod died, probably from all the falls. It just couldn't take any more. R.I.P.

My second iPod was also the first generation. The Pod was still a Mac only product, but the PC transition and, therefore, the exponential growth in popularity, would begin. Soon after I purchased the Pod, the second generation, which was the first hybrid, made its debut, and I was pissed. But still, very few people had an iPod, and I felt quite special through the rest of high school. This iPod lasted for a few years before gradually wasting away and eventually dying. I was less upset when this iPod passed because I had gotten my first cell phone. Yes, I was one of the few people who had their first (and second) iPod before their first cell.

I didn't get my third iPod until college. It was the third generation iPod with the cool but annoying touch-sensitive "buttons". I remember being amazed by its thinness. It had to be half the size of the previous model. By the time I got this iPod, everyone had an iPod. Walking through Cal is like being in a giant iPod ad. Everyone has one, from SoCal yuppies to nerdy asians to GBC staff. It's, like, the wave of the future or something....

Anyway, my third gen iPod inspired me to make an iPod documentary for my film class, showing how the iPod influences our daily lives and such. It wasn't a very good documentary.... The third iPod started acting weird after about a year, but it was still usable for a long time. Eventually, it just stopped charging and, rather than just replace the battery, I decided it was best to get the next generation.

My fourth iPod was a birthday present to myself. I got it two months before the announcement of the 5th gen video iPod. It was the first iPod in which I had enough space to fit all my music (5500 songs at present). I could also put my pictures and schedule on it, as well as files from other computers, which came in handy for reasons I won't go into right now.

Two months after I got the Pod, an incident that has come to be known as The Incident happened. Walking to CKC from class one day, I didn't notice the six thuggish black guys approach me from behind. Luckily for me, however, they were idiots. The initial strike was the only damaging blow. Two busted lips is no joke. But the subsequent kicks once I'd fallen to the ground were harmless. In addition to being stupid, they were also slow. I got up and ran towards the CKC bus stop, where a dozen Cal students were watching the whole thing. The thugs couldn't catch up. During The Incident, I had, on my person, about $600 worth of stuff, and they managed to take... my backpack. It was later found by the police. Anyway, The Incident did some damage to the iPod, causing the display to become faded and wrecking the headphones. But it was still usable. Then, one beautiful Christmas morning, I unwrapped a gift from my father only to find...

A brand-new fifth-generation iPod.

The problem is, this iPod had half the capacity of my previous Pod. So I've decided to sell it AND the previous to get a better fifth-gen.

Anyone interested in a 30 GB fifth-gen for $250, IM me. Cal and MD/DC people only.
Also IM if you're interested in a 60 GB fourth-gen for $150.

=)