Insurance is an odd concept. It is a hedge bet against the thinkable catastrophe. I'm not here to tell you how Geico can save you money on your car insurance. I don't use them or their price comparison service. My wife found us a better deal thanks to our pristine driving records. We did have a rather alarming wake-up call this morning.

I arose from my bed to place baby in her "play" pen to commence my morning ritual of points harvesting while my wife got some additional rest. After a couple races in Burnout Revenge, I heard the disc drive stop spinning, again. After booting back to the main menu I went ahead and shut down. My 360 had been back in the upright position since last night. My Nyko cooler fan had died and I wanted to maximize the airflow around my machine. In order to test whether or not the fan was indeed kaput, I reconnected it, laid the machine down and then powered the 360 back up.

In lieu of the welcoming, green ring of light, I was stopped by a red ring of light. That had marked the end of my father's 360. My heart sank. Was my 360 next to enter the grave yard expressway? I immediately realized I had not opened that extended warranty on my 360. If it really is dead, it may be too late. I disconnected the Nyko cooler and fed more power to the machine. It powered up perfectly. I breathed a sigh of relief, but that dread feeling continued.

Should I buy another Nyko fan? Probably not. That insurance premium didn't last very long. Had I bought the $50 extended warranty when I purchased my 360, it would have been cheaper than two cooling fan attachments. A $50 hedge did not seem to be necessary at the time of purchase. It was the heat of Summer that compelled me to ensure adequate ventilation for my new purchase. Now I wonder.

I must do more research since recent evidence is pointing me in the direction of trouble. You can bet that console is staying off for the rest of the day. It's simply disappointing that I didn't get any points before the harrowing hiccup. I may have to revise my points goals.