iPod screen responsive, but not visible?

So a while ago my ipods touchscreen began to lose its brightness. I figured i could just turn it up again later, however one day the screen just went totally blank. I mean gone. However, if i was to press down where the buttons would appear (such as the double tap and hit play in the top center) The ipod would still work! i could shuffle through all the songs normally. I cannot take it back to the apple store because my warranty has expired. I have not dropped this ipod but i did use it pretty much nonstop. Im thankful that i can still play music on it, but without the ability to pick and choose songs at will, or even play my apps anymore it feels like i'm lugging a large ipod shuffle around. Any help would be great. :)

Short description for those who don't want to read all that: Screen blank; still responsive if you remember where buttons appear.