My house and my daughter were randomly attacked on Friday night by a group of drunken teenage chavs. They were so drunk that there was no reasoning with them. The whole thing lasted about ninety minutes from start to finish. They made three quite prolonged attacks, I called 999 three times, and the Police came twice.
It started when they threw a rock at the front door and we went to investigate. After that, if we closed the door they attempted to kick it in, and if we opened it they tried to get into the house.
During their second visit they pulled my daughter out of the house and halfway down the path. She ended up with four girls piled on top of her and a visiting friend had to go and drag her back in. (She's covered in bruises and has a very sore ear because someone tried to pull it off.)
The first lot of Police came after this had happened (and the second call), didn't seem too bothered, and went off to have a look around. We thought that now the Police had turned up that would be an end to it. We were sadly mistaken.
When the chavs came back for their third visit they'd obviously finished the vodka because the ringleader was waving the empty bottle around. That's when we shut the door for the last time as he smashed it against the reinforced glass (cutting himself in the process), and that's when they finally managed to kick the bottom panel of the door in just as we shoved a large sheet of chipboard over the hole.
When the second lot of Police came they'd arrested the ringleader, but none of the five girls who were with him. Statements all round.

It's normally fairly quiet round here. This was just so unprovoked and surreal and relentless. I really felt as if we were in a Zombie film, particularly when they broke through the door.
I thought I was over it today, until my stone deaf mother turned on her TV at full volume while I wasn't looking earlier and gave me a severe flashback. My daughter is thoroughly traumatised by it all. She works at the local McDonalds, and recognised some of the girls as customers. My lodger is having to escort her everywhere at the moment.

I'd seen a couple of them before, but the rest were new to me.

http://seemikedraw.wordpress.com/

So, this came in the post today. I'm seriously impressed. This might work where all else has failed.
http://easycigarette.co.uk/epages/eshop221151.sf.asp/secsbM2nc2H7eA/?ObjectPath=/Shops/eshop221151/Products/%22Micro%20Electronic%20cigarette%22
So far, it's looking good. The end lights up when one puffs, there is 'smoke', and it actually tastes (and looks) like a fag. Due to a fuck up on the charging front I can't start properly until tomorrow, but I have high hopes. It's the only starter pack I found which has two fags, and at a very good price. I'm also hoping it will help my youngest to quit, because she's been trying for so long.
(I'm allergic to patches (which work), and anything else is no good because if I have a choice between any other NRT and a fag I'll go for the fag.)

I was inordinately amused.


moar funny pictures

I haven't had any emails from lj since Thursday afternoon. Is it just me?

ETA Sorted, I think. I went to my ISP's webmail and adjusted a spam setting, but why it would suddenly and arbitrarily decide that lj emails are spam I have no idea.

Well worth a browse.
http://looneytic.com/index.html

# ( Cut for size )

# ( 9 more )

My daughter just showed me this.

x-posted to all_macros

I've got a job. I start on Monday. I can't quite believe it. I've been a fully paid up, card carrying member of the underclass (a la Matthews family) for so long that I thought I'd never have a job again.
It's a 6 month contract and I'm going to be a 'PC Deployment Specialist' lol. It will seriously curtail the amount of time I spend online, but I'll be able to pay off my overdraft and stick 2 fingers up at the Housing Benefit Gestapo. It also means that the next contract will be considerably easier to find with this under my belt.

I've just had my third front pager on ICHC. I do feel slightly embarrassed about it, but I would get drunk to celebrate if I hadn't got totally rat arsed the other night. Maybe a small amount of wine is OK.

Please leave a one-word comment that you think best describes me. It can only be one word.

No more.

Then copy & paste this in your journal so that I may leave a word about you. :)

(I blame fusion_mobile.)

...that is relevant to my interests.

My laptop died 3 weeks ago, and now my PC has finally died as well. I'm posting this on my daughter's laptop. My laptop needs taking apart & soldering, & the PC has been limping along for a couple of years now and finally died today. The problem is twofold. I fix everybody else's but neglect mine, plus I foolishly left the side off after something I did, and the cats are all sprayers, despite being neutered. I have discovered to my cost that cat spray is capable of stripping gloss paint and eating through metal. I don't know why it's not marketed, because it is extremely effective. Anyway, I have a dead PC & a leaky radiator (no hot water or heating for the past 4 days). I love my cats, but life would be a lot easier, cleaner and less expensive without them.

Dammit. One of my cats pissed on my bed in the night. New duvet and clean bedding. It went right through to the mattress. We have had words. I also forgot to put the bin out, so the rubbish is going to pile up.

This is my all time favourite advert. Unfortunately, the picture quality isn't brilliant.