Some choose to ignore it, some dislike it, some are not technically minded, however unless living under a rock, most have heard of it!

I am sure that most of them think that Facebook is about telling people what you had for lunch.  Well, sometimes that’s exactly what it is. And the problem with that is? I mean, if I meet my mate for a pint at the local, I might talk to them about the latest job I’ve done, or about my rubbish network provider, my issue with foreign call centres or…what I had for lunch.

I think that is why I like Facebook. It is almost always instantly good for my emotional state and combats boredom without competition.

Some of my non-user friends prefer to call Facebook “mindless”. That’s actually not a bad thing either, sometimes it’s nice to relax and read trash. Some days my friends on Facebook depart from their role as uptight intellectuals and are all affect. Public feelings, as I call them, can be particularly powerful, precisely because they are directed not at any one observer but somewhere indefinitely “public” and that means you can catch them or not. (“It’s not about me.” Or, “This is so about me!” I like the dabbling, darting nature of address on Facebook. It’s only a direct hit if I want it to be.)

I also go on Facebook because I have a community there whose politics I may not always agree with but who can be counted upon to be suitably disagreeable when something unconscionable happens, some prefer to share and comment on my posts, some ignore, but all read!  They can be passionate, opinionated and irrepressible. I love that. Intemperate, even, it’s still an emotional response. If I’m disgusted with something whiny I’m reading on the internet or featuring in the news, well, I know someone will have a comment about it on Facebook. Even better, if I can’t bear to tune in to conventional news, I know on Facebook I will have a remarkably interesting slice through the day’s events, whatever those may be, and from a slant just slanted enough to be worth my time.

If it isn’t worth my time, something else is one click away. Facebook doesn’t come to me, I go to it. And that means I can leave, thank you, without any rudeness or guilt. There is no requirement to update, link, comment, or even like. I can peruse and stalk or participate away (I’m opinionated, what can I say? I do a lot of participating).

Is it possible in this so-called fragmented, decentralised, customising life of ours that some of these digital devices actually restore community that was lost in the post-War modernity?  Is it possible social networks like myspace, bebo, facebook and twitter put together the fragmented, alienated self? Not sure. But, mostly, it feels good – Sometimes. And, when it doesn’t, I leave the site and, of course, I go to the pub…

These are just a few mindless thoughts about Facebook on an evening where I’m waiting for a report to upload. So I take these ten minutes of luxury and see what my FB friends are up to.  Oh and to write this rambling post that, of course, I plan to share – on Facebook.

Why do YOU like Facebook? Or do you hate it? (In which case, why waste time reading about it?) In any case, I’d love to hear… who knows, it might inspire yet another mind-wandering ramble about my so-called Facebook life.

(P.S. Facebook really does creep me out, not just sometimes but a lot of the times, on issues of privacy and data mining.  So here’s to balancing the creepy factor against the warm and cosy human factor – Like a lot of life.)

As part of my recovery I had to go through periods of depression, slurred speech, headaches and unresolvable tiredness. Victim Support contacted me and advised me as a matter of course to enter an application to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) for compensation despite there being no arrests or suspects to the assault.

CICA is the government body responsible for administering the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme in England, Scotland and Wales. They form part of the Ministry of Justice and also provide a service on behalf of the Scottish Government.

I filled in the forms with the Victim Support and entered my injuries and mental afflictions sustained after the incident. It has been quite a lengthy process and the CICA asked me for supporting information also writing to the Police, the Hospital and my Doctor.

Today I received an offer for compensation of £1500 of which I am planning to accept after speaking to Victim Support. This covers the amounts that I failed to pay on time when I was depressed but no more. I didn’t do this for the money, however I am pleased with the result and the award by the CICA helps to soften the blow (excuse the pun) lol

I feel that I have recovered adequately now to carry on with life in a positive manner and look forward to going out again in Barnsley. I won’t be drinking quite so much and I think I will be a little more guarded about the people around me, however; the experience has, in my opinion, been an important one!

Useful links:

http://www.cica.gov.uk/ Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA)

http://www.victimsupport.org.uk/ Victim Support National website

http://www.ipcc.gov.uk/ Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC)

Now I have a fairly strict “no spoiler” policy in my reviews, but there is no way to properly review this film without talking about the fact that there is a “twist” in the story. I won’t say what that twist is but there is one.

Cliff (Steve Zahn) and Cydney (Milla Jovovich) are a newlywed couple – we see a few scenes videotaped from their wedding reception and of their friends wishing them well before they leave for Hawaii. They’re young and full of the promise of a life together. There is enough film and story to fall in love with them and their ideals along with feel as though you are actually experiencing the joy and anticipation with them.

They decide to take a long hike to one of the most remote and beautiful beaches in the islands. On the road to the start of the trail they run into a creepy young couple (Chris Hemsworth and Marley Shelton) who immediately sets your radar off – the guy gets offended that Cliff and Cydney (I hate stupidly spelled common names) hesitated at giving them a ride and they part company. Later on our intrepid couple runs into Nick (Timothy Olyphant) and Gina (Kiele Sanchez), another young but more “adventurous” couple. They decide to team up and continue on the trail together, all the while warey of the other couple they met on the road, suspecting them to be the killers of another young newlywed couple not long ago on a different island.

Of course the question is which couple are the actual murderers, and what happens once they are revealed.

A Perfect Getaway has two very different parts – the lead up to the discovery and what comes after. Up until the reveal, while the film has plenty of moments of tension it’s actually quite funny. Olyphant (from Hitman) steals the show as far as I’m concerned – he was very charming and funny, moreso to movie fans I think because much of the humour between him and Zahn (who plays a budding screenwriter) was sort of winking at the audience. In one scene shortly after Olyphant appears in the film and we don’t know if he might be one of the killers, he mentions to Zahn the introduction of a “red snapper” (actually red herring) into a film to throw off the audience. There are more of these types of little jokes as well as others, and to me they were a pleasant relief from the tension. Some say they were overused, but I chuckled at them.

What wasn’t a surprise was the result of the twist, and frankly I found it quite improbable based on what had come before. I would have preferred a more conventional attempt at making the story “different”.

From the point of the reveal the film shifts gears big time into a non-stop cat and mouse game with plenty of edge of your seat moments, violence and some pretty realistic (but not overly done) gore. So while very different, what came before and after the big reveal was pretty entertaining (although I actually enjoyed the first half of the film more) – but the nature of the twist just seemed false and contrived.

Overall I thought it was pretty good – I particularly enjoyed Olyphant as a character, Zahn is always fun to watch and Kiele Sanchez was gorgeous (the scene in which she first appears is quite… distracting lol).

In conclusion I would say that this movie is well worth a visit to your local Cinema, if nothing more than to kick back and relax over a well constructed thriller!

I rate this Movie… 4/5 Penguins!

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra revolves its plot around a team of young agents who form part of an international force of operatives (known as G.I. Joe) who use high-tech equipment to fight global terror. On their latest assignment they battle Cobra, a terrorist organisation headed by an evil Scottish arms dealer named McCullen (Christopher Eccleston).

From the vast Egyptian desert to deep below the polar ice caps, the elite squad pulls on the latest in next-generation spy and military equipment to fight the corrupt arms dealer and the growing threat of his mysterious Cobra organisation to prevent them from plunging the world into destruction and chaos via a unique and deadly explosive metal anialating nano weapon.

A competent cast, led by Channing Tatum (Duke) and Dennis Quaid (General Hawk), breathe wholesome life into a bunch of characters that otherwise could have been one-dimensional and uninteresting. Sienna Miller (Anna) and Marlon Wayans (Ripcord) bring fierce energy to the screen, and obviously for Sienna fans this film delivers – infact I even found myself missing scenes because the screen is too big to concentrate on everything… ;o)

Rounding out the cast are Joseph Gordon-Levitt (as Rex) and Rachel Nichols (as the gorgeous and brainy Shana). Surprisingly, under the direction of Stephen Sommers (Van Helsing) the bulk of the cast mesmerizes, displaying maturity, effortless dexterity, and winning chemistry.

Overall, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra is the kind of action movie worth repeating trips to the cinema. It achieves what Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen didn’t — absorbing entertainment with the right balance of gripping action and spirited storytelling. At the same time, it also succeeds with its adrenaline-inducing sequences, commendable performances, fuel packed explosions and superb direction that whips all the elements into an engaging whole.

I would whole heartedly recommend this movie to everyone that loves a bit of action – and thats everyone isn’t it? Lol

I rate this movie… 5/5 Penguins

The plot (if you want to call it that) is easy to follow. Dr. Rick Marshall (Will Ferrell), a paleontologist is disgraced by others scientists who call his theories about space-time vortexes ridiculous. Three years later, Holly Cantrell (Anna Friel), a research assistant from a British university, re-ignites his passion to find other dimensions through time warps. Using a device that finds tachyon particles that somehow allows people to jump between worlds, the two locate a time hole at a little crappy souvenir shop run by a redneck named Will (Danny McBride). Will gives Rick and Holly a little tour into a cave he has set up as a tourist attraction and before you know it, the three are traveling into another dimension we will soon know as Land of the Lost. The place is complete with a T-Rex, mosquitos that can suck you dry of blood, dangerous creatures called Sleestaks, and a primate named Cha-Ka (Jorma Taccone) who befriends them and tries to help them navigate their way back to our own dimension.

Yes I got this far but I couldn’t tell you if they made it as I walked out of the Cinema after only 45 minutes!

For the exception of the characters (but not the names) being changed, the story is practically identical to the series. Instead of having a motherless family of three who we can really care about, we get a crazy scientist, a sexy research assistant, and a jackass of a redneck. I honestly never really cared if they made it out at all… dead or alive.

There are some laughable moments in the film but not enough to say the movie is funny. I did enjoy the “chorizo taco” joke. You see, the Paku word for Sleestak is “Sarisataka” and when Cha-Ka is trying to warn Rick, Will, and Holly about them, the redneck Will mistakes Cha-Ka’s words as “chorizo taco”. I thought it was pretty funny. But that is only one of about three or four instances that actually made me laugh.

I hate to say it because I really enjoyed Ferrell’s comedies in the past, but I honestly think its wearing thin. I felt it was just the same old, same old with him throughout the film. Anna Friel did ok and is… well, lets just say it… pretty hot. Jorma Taccone must have felt pretty damn lucky that the script continuously had him grabbing Friel’s breast. McBride gets a handful once as well, but I wonder if that was just improv on his part. Taccone played Cha-Ka, the primate and was absolutely horrendous. I couldn’t stand the character at all. It was obnoxious. Never funny, and, considering this was a family movie; playing Cha-Ka as a sexual pervert probably wasn’t a good idea. I know… that was the script, not him. Still… I couldn’t stand the little f**ker. Danny McBride, however; did an awesome job as Will the Redneck. When I say I laughed three or four times in the amount of film a actually watched, it was usually his doing.

To say I hated Ferrell’s interpretation of Land of the Lost would be going too far. The movie intrigued me somewhat as I wanted to know what else they would implement into the film from the old TV series.

But its not one I would recommend anyone seeing in the cinema. One has much better use for 7 quid. Trust me on that. Go buy yourself two or three happy meals and let Land of the Lost…. stay LOST.

I rate this Movie… 1/5 Penguins!

This afternoon I was the victim of a little of both – stop what you’re doing and watch this.

Guy Ritchie’s Snatch (not to be confused with Madonna) is on my top 10 list of favorite movies, ever. Frequently when it comes up in conversation I am asked “Yeah, but have you seen Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels?” To which I usually reply with one of the following:

1. “No, Chief. I’ve been living under a rock for the last 10 years and actually don’t have a huge, all-encompassing obsession with British gangster movies. Enlighten me.”
2. “Yes, I stumbled across it last week while perusing your awesome and eclectic movie collection. It was right between Gladiator and Top Gun.”
3. “Piss Off.”

Snatch is by far the superior movie, and someone with an appreciation for the vocabulary of lead villain “Bricktop” comparable to my own has created a brilliant mashup using footage from Star Wars. Darth Vader’s dialogue is substituted for that of Bricktop and incredible hilarity ensues. For the love of God, do yourself a favour and enjoy this masterpiece: “You stop me again while I’m walking and I’ll cut your f**king jacobs off”

The marriage of specific scenes with dialogue is incredible, and you haven’t lived until you’ve seen Vader choke one of his Imperial underlings and then call them a “c*nt” for good measure.

He also appears to have a fondness for tea which I didn’t know about. What did you think?

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kDKiQfBs9lo

We all knew Borat. Borat was a friend of ours. Brüno, you’re no Borat.

I may be unfair in my remark, but everyone is going to compare Sacha Baron Cohen’s ‘Bruno’ to his insanely funny ‘Borat’, and let’s be honest; while pushing the PC envelope in new and imaginative ways as well as the ’18′ rating, especially insofar as the male member is concerned, ‘Brüno’ is only intermittently funny and all too often the “ambushes” of celebrities and

civilians look staged… The movie is even a tad – dare I say it? – Tedious.

Admirers of this British comic’s gifts for caricature and improvisation and nearly everyone who found themselves laughing uncontrollably at Baron Cohen’s unrepentant anti-Semitic Kazakhstani in ‘Borat’ probably will turn out for Baron Cohen and director Larry Charles’ latest mockumentary. So I expect that the box office should be sold out for Universal this time around. It’s unclear though whether Baron Cohen can continue to bring his TV characters into the real world, or something approximating it, without diminishing results: Based on the evidence I have witnessed in ‘Brüno’, such results seem inevitable.

For one thing, where the focus was laser-sharp in ‘Borat’, it’s fuzzy in ‘Brüno’. ‘Brüno’, for those really out of step with modern culture, is Baron Cohen’s gay Austrian fashion expert with his own TV show, “Funkyzeit”. Early in the movie, Bruno makes such a disastrous spectacle of himself at a designer’s show during Milan Fashion Week, that he is schwarz-listed.

He abruptly decides to go to Los Angeles, accompanied by his lovelorn assistant, Lutz (Gustaf Hammarsten), to become a celebrity. One’s heart sinks right there. ‘Borat’ zeroed in on bigotry and Western hypocrisy for its satire. The target of Hollywood and vacuous celebrityhood has so many arrows in its bullseye, there is nothing left to hit.

Perhaps a victim of his own success, Baron Cohen probably is too well known to get away with so many sneak attacks on unsuspecting people no matter how he transforms himself physically. A few times in ‘Brüno’, one senses a real victim. More often, especially with such demi-celebrities as Paula Abdul or LaToya Jackson but even with a determined dominatrix, one senses a more than willing victim.

In a recording session that ends the film, where everyone from Elton John to Snoop Dogg to Sting to Bono shows up, the film drops any pretense that these are not invited guests.

Baron Cohen has better luck outside of LA In the Middle East, Brüno does get chased by angry Hasidic Jews. And in trying to mediate a panel featuring an Israeli and Palestinian leader, his mixing up of Hamas and hummus is genuinely funny.

Brüno’s adopted African baby paraded before a black audience is not funny; it’s em

barrassing. This is one of several instances where an audience might experience both exasperation and tedium with the comic’s relentless act of running a joke into the ground. Brüno’s attempt to go hetero, assisted by two Christian ministers who specialise in such conversions, was just boring and the punch lines were able to be pre-empted word for word.

‘Borat’ was, despite his cheerful bigotry, somehow a lovable character. His questions sprang from the sweet innocence of a third-world bumpkin wallowing in isolated ignorance. With ‘Brüno’, you mostly feel annoyed. A gay Austrian fashionista would be no ignorant character. He would be sophisticated, savvy and certainly aware of prejudices against gays. Would he really prance semi-naked through Middle Eastern holy sites?

The calculations behind Baron Cohen’s ambushes too often are mean-spirited. We sense, as we never did with ‘Borat’, the c

omic behind the character. Especially when his accent keeps changing – from an unconvincing Austrian to his own British and even to a whisper of ‘Borat’ himself.Consequently, the character’s gayness reads false. Baron Cohen needs to spend more time in certain gay bars if he wants to learn how to do “flamboyant” and “fabulous”. I have friends that would probably pull off a more convincing act… It’s a ghost of the real thing.

In conclusion, save your money, I left feeling robbed and angry that the film had been screened, 2 out of the 4 of us that watched it thought it was ok, however; I was not as easily entertained, fixated or challenged comically!

For those still interested… Here is the trailer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fv3QMs3-ieg

I rate this Movie… 0/5 Penguins!

Without a doubt, this is the best comedy I’ve seen yet this year. And I have seen a few, including ‘I love you, Man’ and ‘The boat that rocked’

The Hangover features four guys going to Las Vegas for a bachelor party: everyman groom Doug (Justin Bartha), his slick buddy Phil (Bradley Cooper), harried Stu (Ed Helms), and Doug’s soon-to-be brother-in-law Andy (Zach Galifanakis). After a rooftop toast, Phil, Stu, and Andy wake up the next morning to find their hotel room trashed, minor injuries all over their bodies, their memories of the previous night gone, and Doug missing. Most of the film centres on their efforts to recreate the events of the bachelor party and find Doug in time to get him to his wedding. You can actually feel the pressure as if you were there!

Some of the discoveries aren’t too far-fetched – a missing tooth, for instance. Others, like what they find in the bathroom or what they get when the valet brings their car around, start to stretch the bounds of credability. Somehow, though, I found myself willing to accept even the craziest things, and I think the key lies in the beginning of the film. The writers and director took the time to let us get to know the guys, and actually like the guys, before things go nuts. If I didn’t genuinely like Doug, I wouldn’t have cared if they found him. If I didn’t feel for Stu, his panic over his overbearing girlfriend (Rachael Harris) would come across as cliché. Even Andy treads a careful line between being creepy and being someone who’s an object of pity, someone that you root for in a bizarre way.

As the guys begin to peel back the layers to discover what happened in the time they lost, we stumble into increasingly goofy and entertaining situations, and despite the trailers, there’s actually very little raunchy comedy in this movie. There’s some, mind you, but it isn’t wall-to-wall like a lot of movies of this type, and that’s a big plus. Perhaps even more important, this isn’t a film where the guys end in the same place they began. There’s genuine growth and character development, and a nice payoff at the end where you cheer for one of them as he takes control of his life.

This is a really strong comedy, built on a good script and supported by wonderful performances by the three main actors. I didn’t expect to even like this movie that much as I thought the best bits would have been in the trailer, but I was so so wrong, I walked out of the theater laughing, recalling favorite scenes, and ready to see the movie again. What more could you want out of a comedy?

For those of you interested… Here is the trailer!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KxFJJr8ld4

I rate this Movie… 5/5 Penguins!

In actual fact I have a normal Barclaycard currently with a balance that is ok and payments are being made to the account. I am suprised that Barclaycard gave me a credit card with an old balance outstanding but they did.

I did some research and the findings were that if a company fails to collect on a debt for 6 years the debt is marked ‘Statute Barred’… This means that it is unenforceable and the payment of the debt is to the discretion of the debtor.

I contacted the DCA in question with a standard ‘Statute Barred’ letter requesting confirmation that the debt is indeed ‘Statute Barred’ and therefore Dead. Alas, they did not reply so I followed the letter with a phone call, they said that the debt was NOT ‘Statute Barred’ as I had made a payment in early 2008 therefore acknowledging the debt and restarting the 6 year timer. THIS IS A COMMON LIE used by DCA’s to convince you that you have to pay the debt. In actual fact once the debt is ‘Statute Barred’ it cannot be Unstatuated… Because there was a gap of over 6 years from when I finished and defaulted on the account to when I made payment in 2008 the debt remains Dead.

I asked for the previous payment amounts and dates with which they replied there aren’t any. Remember: It is up to the company to prove that the debt is NOT ‘Statute Barred’ not for you to prove it is! Stand by your guns and if you firmly believe there has been a 6 year gap with out you making a payment to the account or acknowledging the debt (in writing) then it is dead and you don’t have to pay it if you wish not to!

I have enclosed a copy of the ‘Statute Barred’ letter for you to cut and paste if you have a debt you believe should be dead from your past. Feel free to send it, and remember to send it Recorded Delivery. England and Wales has a 6 year period of silence and Scotland 5 years. The DCA will try all attempts to encourage you to pay and will lie to you, they may even fabricate payments to make you believe it is still live and enforceable. Don’t ring them, don’t acknowledge the debt and don’t pay them anything… Just send the following letter. If they continue to hassle you without sending proof that the debt is Open then you must report them to the Financial Ombudsmen for bad practice, they will investigate!

Once accepted a DCA may offer a last ditch attempt of an offer of say 50% of the balance! Do not pay, you don’t have to pay anything!!!

‘Statute Barred’ Letter: Request for proof of debt being live!

Your Name:
Your Address:
Date

To:

WITHOUT PREJUDICE

Dear Sir/Madam

Account No:

You have contacted me/us regarding the account with the above reference number, which you claim is owed by myself/ourselves.

I/we would point out that under the Limitation Act 1980 Section 5 “an action founded on simple contract shall not be brought after the expiration of six years from the date on which the cause of action accrued”.

I/we would also point out that the OFT say under their Debt Collection Guidance on statute barred debt that “it is unfair to pursue the debt if the debtor has heard nothing from the creditor during the relevant limitation period”.

The last correspondence/payment/acknowledgement or payment of this debt was made over six years ago and no further acknowledgement or payment has been made since that time. Unless you can provide evidence of payment or written contact from me/us in the relevant period under Section 5 of the Limitation Act, I/we suggest that you are no longer able to take any court action against me/us to recover the alleged amount claimed.

The OFT Debt Collection Guidance states further that “continuing to press for payment after a debtor has stated that they will not be paying a debt because it is statute barred could amount to harassment contrary to section 40 (1) of the Administration of Justice Act 1970“.

I/we await your written confirmation that no further contact will be made concerning the above account and confirmation that this matter is now closed.

I/we look forward to your reply.

Yours faithfully

(Your signature)

Source: http://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk/

The company I have had problems with and the trail of debt ownership is

Barclaycard > Lowell Portfolio > Buchananclark + wells

Please feel free to comment here of any problems you are having and I will do my best to help out if I have relevent information that might be of assistance to you in resolving debts to these Bully DCA’s… The National Debtline is very good and I would recommend you call them to discuss any issues!

Woo Woo UPDATE: I recieved today a letter from the DCA after sending them a second copy of the letter (this time recorded delivery) stating that the account has been closed with the DCA and sent back to the clients – they are not going to do this unless the account is indeed ‘Statute Barred’… Get in! Result! Wish you all luck in your pursuits!

Art of Successful ‘Bushing’:

1. Surprise is 90% of a successful Bushing, ensure your victim is totally unaware of your plans.

2. Ensure you have enough force to wedge your victim in the bush or knock them off balance (a small discreet run-up is recommended)

3. Do NOT help your victim, instead stand there and laugh, this will ensure your victim feels embarrassed.

4. Attempt to get a snap shot of the bushing or aftermath, sometimes a 3rd party is useful here although ensure they are either impartial or pro the Bushing event!

5. Do not be stupid with this activity, remember that dispite how hilarious this activity is, people can get hurt – avoid brambles, nettles, deep ditches, watercourses and fencing! (you have been warned)

6. Have fun and give up if you have unsuccessfully completed a Bushing – the surprise will have gone and your victim or indeed any witnesses will be warey of your antics…

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