R.I.P. JVC TV

I was just about to settle down with Disc 3 of Season 2 of Dexter last night when I noticed something odd about the output of my DVD player. Usually the screen is a bright blue, but instead it was a mixture of red and green. When the DVD started, everyone was looking green. Must be something wrong with the tint function. I tried adjusting the controls, but everything stayed either neon green or fuschia.

Lovely.

It didn't take me long to figure out that the picture tube--which mixes red, blue and green--was missing the blue. I don't know much about TVs or picture tubes, but mine was almost 20 years old. I'm surprised it lasted as long as it did.

Still, it couldn't have picked a worst time to die on me. Although new TVs are pretty inexpensive these days--and I could use an upgrade to digital--I don't have the money to be shelling out for a new TV. So, I turned to Craigslist. I've found jobs and writing partners and even sold stuff on Craigslist--surely I could locate a cheap TV!

And I did. $40 for a 27" RCA TV. It's still analog, but it's 27", baby! That's seven more than my JVC. Of course, I didn't stop to consider that 27" might be a bit much to carry. Fortunately, my neighbor was home to help me lug it up a flight of stairs to my apartment. 27" is also a bit big for the little TV cart on which my 20" JVC nestled perfectly. But I shoved some stuff underneath the set to stop it from wobbling.

I first set up the antenna and digital converter. Could not get a picture for the life of me--but after I punched on some buttons randomly on the remote in frustration and desperation, suddenly a picture appeared. Note to self: see if you can locate user manual online...

The old TV had like a 4" wide ledge across the top that the digital converter box and/or antenna could sit on. The new one has only a 2" ledge so after the digital converter crashed to the floor TWICE, I wised up and taped it to the top of the TV.

I was able to hook up an antenna, digital converter, DVD and VCR to my old TV which only had one output port and required a mini-modulator in order for the old-fashioned technology to be compatible with the new-fangled DVD player. I haven't been able to figure out how to hook even just my DVD player up without losing the antenna capabilities, so for now it's swapping wires in and out whenever I want to watch a DVD. My friend Davey the AV tech will come by one of these days and help me figure it out.

The old JVC TV is sitting on the floor, screen facing the wall. *Sniffle* It was a good TV--I'll miss it! When I can afford a new one, I think I'm getting another JVC. In the meantime, I get to watch the rest of Season Two of Dexter in 27" of red, green AND blue.