I found a great way to waste my time.

I bought Rock Band for my Xbox 360.

It̢۪s glorious.

I̢۪d never been a big fan of the whole Guitar Hero phenomenon, nor had I ever wished to touch a plastic controller shaped like a guitar. On a side note, I have been known to stop and stare at the chunky kids playing DDR.

I read somewhere once that if some people put as much time into Rock Band and Guitar Hero as they could the actual instruments, there would be some good musicians out there.

I̢۪m actually waiting for the day in about 10 years where MTV is interviewing a rocker and they say that they got their start off of Rock Band.

Regardless, I caved in and bought Rock Band, mostly because I knew my roommates and friends would love it. They do. As do I. I never thought that I would see the day where four girls are playing my Xbox.

It happened. I thought about taking a picture. I didn̢۪t.

That would be almost as awesome* as taking video and posting it on YouTube.

Then the unspeakable happened. My Xbox is old. I got the three red lights of death. It was only two weeks into Rock Band. For those of you that don̢۪t know, the ring of death means the Xbox is toast.

Now I don̢۪t know what to do with myself. My Xbox has been sent to Texas. I decided not to repair it myself, which I could have done. There is a technique out there that can fix the box. I haven̢۪t checked but I̢۪m guessing that Microsoft doesn̢۪t recommend it.

Why didn̢۪t I fix it? Because I want a new Xbox. With a new Xbox comes a new warranty. And, I̢۪m not yet completely obsessed with Rock Band. Granted, my friends and roommates are bummed, but it̢۪s all for a good cause.

There are three things to be learned from this experience.

First, don̢۪t repair your own Xbox because you̢۪ll void the warranty and you might be able to squeeze a new one out of Microsoft.

Two, Rock Band can be enjoyed by everyone. Girls, guys, and even annoying children on YouTube love it. It’s about time that “Rated E for everyoneâ€Â motto came to mean something.

And three, if your video game system breaks during the school year, your adviser is probably sending a message to you. It̢۪s saying that there̢۪s probably studying to be done. Until of course, the new Xbox arrives.

*not really