So those who know me well know I’m thoroughly a Commodore enthusiast. I received my very first Commodore 64 about a quarter century ago, and I’ve been playing games with it since then. Yes, that means even today. Without a doubt I can list M.U.L.E. as one of my favorite games of all time. The Commodore was given to me by my Uncle, who has greatly influenced my opinion of computers as gaming devices, and is surely as responsible for my love of electronic entertainment as anyone I know.
As time has progressed, my Commodore monitor has become an excellent addition to my personal entertainment collection. The composite video and audio input ( granted, only a single channel, but that’s fixed with a Y-joint adapter ) turned the monitor into a smaller TV which I could move about. LAN party friends will surely recognize it as my XBox monitor for Halo, while others will know it as my NES display in my bedroom as a kid.
But sad times have come. After 25 years of service, and longer if you count how long my Uncle had it first, Commodore Monitor Alpha ( I have three, though one is missing ) has stopped providing video. Alpha has been through a lot. I took it with me when I moved up to Washington, during which time I hydroplaned over a river and into a tree. The framing on it cracked, but it continued to serve like a relentless soldier. That was ten years ago. Since then it’s been banged, dropped once ( though only a foot ), knocked over a few times, and never a single issue. However, over the weekend it was being transported from one location to another, and there wasn’t a single collision. When I hooked up my XBox 360 to it, there was no video.
I fidgeted with it’s visual settings; brightness, v-hold, contrast, hoping that it was as simple as one of them having been turned by my car’s seat, as it lost it’s knob plate years ago. But no, there was no adjustment, the video input had simply stopped working. I needed consoling ( ha, puns! ). I hooked my XBox up to the TV, secretly hoping that the XBox was the issue.
Well, it was and it wasn’t. See, that bastard decided it’s going to die on me too. So not only is my Commodore monitor blind, but my XBox is on its way out. I am thoroughly vexed. But what’s really messed up is I feel more distraught about the monitor.
Rest In Peace.
Well, until I crack you open, fix you up, and put your cracked framing back in alignment.
— Vid