Playing Taps for my Xbox 360

Today I am boxing up and shipping my recently departed Xbox 360.  It served me well for over 2 years, acting as my primary gaming platform, go-to console for DVD and HD-DVD playback, and keeping a specific region of my entertainment center exceptionally warm.

On monday, during a furious round of Call of Duty 4 online, everything froze up.  It couldn’t find the energy to send video to the television again, and eventually its bright power light was surrounded by three ominous red lights, forming three-fourths of a ring around the now useless power button. 

Microsoft is replacing it for me for free since it has been less than 3 years since the initial purchase.  Its possible that the system they send me to replace it will have HDMI output and better internal cooling, which are both steps in the proper direction.  But my sentimental gamer soul will forever miss my first 360 console. 

At least I got to keep the hard drive.