Y2K compliant DVD player at the Salvation Army

Nathaniel Christopher 5 Comments

If you ever need to feel old or irrelevant there’s perhaps no better place to hang out than your local thrift store where items that seemed so marvelous and useful in your youth are unceremoniously stashed between faded Christian books and stained tweed blouses.

The other day I was at the Salvation Army store at West Boulevard and 41st in Kerrisdale where I happened upon a few objects that show how distant and irrelevant my own youth has become.

The cd rack which was full of albums and singles that I still listen to, I can’t imagine the sad soul who would get rid of Jewel’s “Pieces of You” album or Sugar Ray’s flawless “Every Morning” cd single but it was good to re-add them to my collection at only $1.99 a pop.

I did, however, spot a few items that really are irrelevant and silly.

Observe this very bulky Oritron DVD player manufactured at a time when most DVD  functions were accessible through buttons on the player itself.  If you lost your remote, like I do all the time, you could still play your movie. Not bad.

Oritron DVD Player
Oritron DVD Player

It also has another special feature that you don’t see on many players anymore – Y2K Compliance. It still has an official-looking silver sticker which reads “Year 2000 Y2K Compliant” and assures potential customers that it is “certified” by an unspecified “international testing laboratory”.

Y2K compliant sticker
Y2K compliant sticker

Still, some people in the ‘90s were laggards when it came to new technology. I was using a Beta until sometimes in the mid ‘90s and didn’t get a DVD player until 2003 and I imagine there are still people out there who only have a VCR so they might appreciate the value of this Safety 1st VCR Lock. For $1.99 you could save  hands, sandwiches and other body parts from the unforgiving wrath of a VCR motor.

Safety remote
Safety remote

 

I am a resident of Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada who has blogged here for 20 years. I like to share my thoughts and feelings on my own online space. From 1998 until 2017 I worked as a journalist and I hope to use this website as an archive for all of my stories.

5 Comments

  1. oh noez those were important?!?! I scratched those shiney new toys up already @_@ i hope housemate does not severely beat me like he did last night…

  2. ugh, “every morning” makes me want to hang myself ;-; but that dvd player is epic win. The local big K sells vhs tapes STILL..and the most confounding contraption..a device that records dvds *AND* VHS Tapes. WTF?!?!
    *Throws a christian book at housemate*

  3. Maine is a Dick for taking away your VHS.
    I hope Khan does not scratch the Cds with his sharp Claws.

    I saw Shantel today on my street walking her dog Huck with her Lucky lady friend. She looked annoyed with all the GO Canada honking.

  4. Ooh! Well, you guys could come over and watch VHS tapes over here! I have a cabinet that conceals the TV, DVD player and VCR when not in use.

  5. Oh Nathaniel, I’m glad we have you to sniff out these spectacular deals. I still have a VHS player but Maine took it down and put it somewhere because “it’s tacky”. How else am I going to watch my Blue Crush tape?

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