I lived between your breaths

And I followed every step

Until you became me and you left

Silhouette crept through

The cracks of a fractured heart

But you slept through

Dreams were never meant to

Became the function of our lives

That closed our eyes to life

I lived between your breaths

And I followed every step

I passed every single test

Until you became me and you left

You dreamt of pain to give you comfort

It was sharp and unrelenting

Where thinking becomes too easy

And thoughts become too much

Vacant stares replaced your touch

I knew you’d had enough

I lived between your breaths

And I followed every step

We confronted life and death

Until you became me and you left

I know there’s so much on your mind

Its confronting what you find

Broken and left behind

And when you left It drowned you

And you became just how I found you

You lived between his breaths

You followed every step

Down the path he led

Until he became you and he left

I’m thinking of all the words.

Left stuck in a book, your computer, or your phone, just waiting to be performed.

The lost words.

See I’m a reformed closet writer addict.

Been laying down thoughts without the thought that if one day performed that they could be caught…or bought…or even amount to nought.

But what if these words connect?

Connect with others and they are found, bound to another soul.

Grabbed by another, as they pick up the dribs and drabs, apply their own perspective and breath new meaning into the words until they are made whole.

Because I know I ain’t the only one thinking the same thoughts that I jotted down on this pad.

Words. Words.

I’m thinking of all the lost words.

The greatest songs ever written, that were never heard.

The greatest novels that sat in someones top desk drawer.

See I know when someone is at their lowest putting thoughts into words can help relieve the pain.

But can you imagine sharing those lost words to relieve another persons strain?

I know you got something good, that you’ve written, that is oh so very personal.

But exposing that part of your soul is oh so damn worth it all.

Words. Words.

I’m thinking of all the lost words.

See I could wax lyrical about the literal meaning of the metaphysical being.

But the all seeing aint seeing what i see in the meaning.

Woven deep, seeped into your very essence. It seamed like heavy breathing.

It was deep seated. I believed it. And achieved relief as the reticent sentiment was leaving.

Words. Words.

I’m thinking of all the lost words.

See I’m an observer.

I learn a lot with no need to speak.

Feed off the energy and release.

Words. Words.

I’m thinking of all the lost words.

Sometimes you need to lose yourself to find yourself and begin that journey back to full health.

Where your worth and depth of character is recognised and realized by those at your side.

And I’d rather inspire, than hide, my true side.

So I’ll feed inspiration, while maintaining a higher level, where others look up to you.

Standing on skyscrapers, thats achieved, through building blocks, of good deeds, inspiring others, to succeed.

Words. Words.

I’m thinking of all the lost words.

I believe the greater I know that you don’t.

The greater my strength.

But I think too much.

I think I think too much

So I organise my thoughts into rhymes that spit fire into the ether.

Spin this existence into coded messages hoping you will play receiver.

Catching this lyrical medicine concocted from life tested life lessons.

Because is it not a blessing to release these words in to this world?

All these words I jotted down when they entered my mind, and have sat in my notepad for months.

These are my lost words.

I hope you find them.

And release yours.

Words. Words.

I’ve set free all my lost words.

This is dedicated to enjosephine who inspired me to finally finish a piece, and I haven’t been able to do that in at least 6 months.

A man attends a social media event in real life and ends up dead. The detectives are drawn into this new digital frontier and discover they must use social media to solve the murder. In this world everything is instant, online personas don’t match their real life counterparts, characters are created and lies are told. In this unravelling mystery it appears death is the only certainty.

This is neo noir. A classic detective novel set in a world that we have never seen before. Where technology keeps us constantly connected and our lives are broadcast instantly to the world. Its current, relevant and required reading for those who know nothing about social media, and for those who are completely addicted.

I began writing drafts of Social Media Murder about a year ago on this blog.  The complete, finished version is now available for the Kindle.  If you get the Kindle app you can also purchase the book for your iPad, iPhone, Android Phone, windows 7 phone, PC or MAC.

Social Media Murder is also available as a printed paperback version from Lulu here: Social Media Murder Paperback

A version will be in the iBookstore for Apple’s iPad soon.  I’ve invested a huge amount of time writing this. I think it’s worth reading and I hope you give it a chance.

It’s a very relevant story on Social Media and how it effects our lives in the 21st century.

Good Vibes

When I do go away from Twitter, a lot of people say they miss my positivity.  That is just who I am, a positive person, so naturally it comes out in my tweets. Here’s a taste of those good vibes from the last year. Enjoy!

I love that feeling when you talk to good friends, they put a smile on your face and you instantly feel better about life.

Live for a dream…follow a dream..beautiful dreamin..live for the dreams..follow that dream..beautiful dreaming…

This tweet is dedicated to life..and everybody in it.

#gratefulfor every breath, every lesson learnt, every dream realised, everyone who has had a positive impact on my life.

Being comfortable with who you are as a person, and finding someone who loves you for it. #thegoodlife #contentment

This tweet is dedicated to all the people who don’t even know how much of a positive impact they had on your life.

Look up at the sun this morning, smile and think of the happiest time in your life. You just had a happy moment.

I like living. Always something to learn. Something to make you stronger, to make you grow, to make you a better person.

I’m 30 years old. I’m at peace with who I am as a person. Content, comfortable. The negativity washes straight through me. I’m happy.

This tweet is dedicated to all the conscious people who think a little deeper about the world and those around them.

Go outside and look up at the stars tonight and tell me you aren’t lucky to be on this planet.

Never forget the people that believe in you, never take for granted those that see what’s inside of you and never stop pursuing what you are here to do.

Don’t give up, this tweet is for you, No matter how life gets today, hold on. If you need me, I’ll be there. Heart open, I always care.

Good music.Good vibes.Good will. Good life. Good times. Good feeling. Good timing. Good evening.

I have the best friends in the world who lift my spirits, make my soul shine and leave a smile on my face with their positive words #grateful

May this tweet reach your heart, may the words be your guide, every syllable, every line, I’ve arranged it for you and me. Journey on #smile

If you are worried, I will hold your head for you, and if you can’t sleep at night, I will screen your dreams for you.

Try.Try.Try.Try.Try.Try.Try.Try.Try & then Try Again #keepyaheadup #keeptrying #life

My thoughts on Life

I don’t spent 24 hours a day pondering my very existence and thinking very deeply about life but when I do have those thoughts I do put them on Twitter.  It’s been interesting to look back at some of these tweets about life over the last year.  Most would have a context about a situation in my life, or something I’m trying to understand. These are my personal thoughts on life.  Maybe others have already said the same thing, it might not be new, but it’s what I believe.  Someone once said to me, where do you get these from? They are just me, my thoughts, my views on life.

Sometimes the hardest thing in life is realising we need a little help along the way. Life is not a solitary journey.

I think it’s more important spending time with people that understand you than getting upset with those that don’t #shakeitoff

The greatest emotional weapon we possess is our own mind.

I think there is always something you can learn from every person you meet in this world.

Sometimes you gotta give the advice you’d give to others, to yourself, The onus is on you, for the decisions you make and where you find yourself in life.

There’s not too many special people you meet in a lifetime. Life moves so fast, you just have to cherish the moments you do spend with them.

If you’re searching for the truth, what is not said is so much more important than what is.

Forget who #idontassociatewith its about who #idoassociatewith – positive, caring, thoughtful people who want to do something beautiful in this world.

Imagine all the good things in your life right now on one scale, the bad things on the other. You determine the weight.

Whatever you are going through, I can guarantee someone else in the world is going through exactly the same thing.

The greatest mistake we make as human beings is giving more attention to those that hurt us, instead of those that help us and love us.

Whichever road you decide to take in life, its gonna start uphill.

In life you will take some hits no question. I’ll take them helping, not hurting, righting not wronging, believing not doubting.

People who only ever think of themselves can never fully understand others.

If you want to be a good person, surround yourself with good people.

Don’t pursue happiness, be happiness.

I’ve got a lot to learn in life just every one of us but my actions are only born out of the best of intentions with a warm caring heart.

I love when you get a really strong feeling about something and it turns out to be true. There’s more to life than what we physically see.

Beautiful experiences are born out of beautiful moments. Its a chain and its incredible to watch these be created & then see them blossom.

You can judge the quality of your friends by the advice they give you in difficult circumstances.

I’d rather assume the best than assume the worst.

Life is full of disappointment. Its in those moments that you find out how strong you are, how much self belief & faith you have in the choices you make.

If your heart is full of sorrow but you celebrate life..that is real strength.

If you come to the realisation that we are all human beings then all our differences are null and void. Treat people how you want to be treated.

There are some horrible people in this world, but there are also some some beautiful people, and they’re the ones that count.

Masterchef Tweets

Masterchef Tweets! Yes I lost count of the people who would come up to me in the real world and say “I love your Masterchef tweets.” In fact that is why most of you are following me.  I would be getting 50-60 new followers a night because people would retweet these.  I love to make people laugh so it was a lot of fun.  I would give myself about 30 seconds to write a joke based on what I was seeing on Masterchef.  If you only have 30 seconds a lot of them end up being pretty silly! I think the tweeting added a whole new dimension to watching the show.  I’m not even sure I enjoyed it but I enjoyed it on Twitter.  Here’s a selection of some of those tweets below:

Kylie Kwong suggests always cooking with your heart. Okay that would be good enough for about 1 dish…then you’re dead.

These grapes are not grapes, and this Heston is not Heston. *Rips off mask to reveal Matt Preston*

This candle is white chocolate, and my hair, is actually fennel seeds and orange peel #hestonthemagician

And on the ipod we play a mix of seagull, waves and norwegian death metal.

Aaron likes his women like he likes his strawberries..macerated.

On Jake: He won’t leave something unfinished? Does that mean he is going to chop his whole hand off?

Anybody can work it into a dough.. work it into a deer, a female deer then I’ll be impressed.

Jakes cookbook, 101 creative ways to slice yourself in the kitchen.

Jake we’ve always known you can cut it. You’ve already cut two fingers and a leg.

Sharnee is writing in a number of publications. Translation: she started her own blog that nobody reads.

If they served Margaret Fulton a steaming plate of dog shit she’d say, “I like a new experience, and I love the flies.” #toonice

What could strike terror into their very hearts? George giving a striptease in the pantry,

They need a good batter. Unfortunately Alvin misses the brief and gets Ricky Ponting.

The contestants have been given a chance to fly, unlike the squab.

George is pissed Courtney blew him off. He hasn’t been this disappointed since Gary gave him a timeout in the pantry.

Courtney’s picked up crabs before, but not in the kitchen.

Gary is having flashbacks to his visit to a Japanese whorehouse, “lift the lids on your mystery box now!”

Callum hasn’t assembled something this difficult since he finished that 100 piece puzzle with his mum.

Politics

Politicians are always a great target for a joke or two.  A change of leadership and two elections gave me plenty of opportunity.

Bill Shorten liked Rudd but he didn’t put a ring on it.

Stephen Conroy has delayed the net filter until after the election. I will now delay voting for Labor until after the election.

Tony Abbott’s inner child is a 6 year old Afghan refugee locked in a detention centre. He just needs to let him out and give him a visa.

I hear Real Julia comes with 33% less fat and only 2000 kilojoules of fear campaigning.

I hope to one day live in a country where a sausage sizzle is provided at every single polling booth. It’s every human’s basic right.

Three independents walk into a bar. I’ll let you know when they leave, they are still making an informed decision.

The three independents are still at the bar. Julia & Tony are fighting over who picks up the tab. 3 beers are now worth 1 billion dollars.

The power has clearly gone to Bob Katter’s hat. Control the hat, and you control the parliament.

Faceless party men + knife + 3 independents + 10 billion dollars = 1st Australian Female Prime Minister

Stephen Bradbury just called Julia Gillard to congratulate her on “her win.” Now he doesn’t feel so bad.

Getting up this morning was as difficult as finding a speech from Kevin Rudd that didn’t mention working families.

A Vuvazela is much like a politician. A repetitive montonous drone you have to hear once every four years. Only slightly less annoying.

Twitter

Twitter is a good insight into the different types of people in this world and how we choose to navigate it.

A tweet is a very powerful tool, it’s the pebble and the pond effect, let it ripple, triple & quadriple until people respond, retweet & reflect.

I can tweet about you, about me, about joy, about money, about fame, about this tweet, about love, about life, about dreams. I can tweet.

Think of a tweet as a blade of grass..that stands in a field of thousands..patterns can be seen but some catch the eye

Trending Topics

I love a trending topic, again it gives you a chance to make a joke. It’s a good challenge.

#FamousLastWords “I saw David Blaine do this on TV one time…”

#sheepsongs Funky Cold Merino

#sadchildrensbooks Nancy Drew & The case of the unplanned pregnancy

#sadchildrensbooks Where in the detention centre is Carmen San Diego?

#howyouathug when the toilet paper you use is 4 ply?

The Seven Year Itch in My Pants #moviesinmypants

Slangin’ with Mr Cooper #disturbingsictoms

#boringmovies The Thinly Veiled Christian Allegory, the Witch & The Wardrobe

If you think violence will ever solve anything then.. #slapyourself See..didn’t work… did it?

& other stuff…

Lindsay Lohan may be crying over her jail sentence, but I cried more watching Herbie: Fully Loaded. #sentencedtomediocrity

Brendan Fevola exposed himself? As a spoilt selfish immature reckless alcoholic womanising gambler? Oh he “exposed” himself. My bad.

Michael Bay is filming his new movie at the Commonwealth Games. He’s saving money on crumbling buildings, collapsing structures and huge explosions.

The Commonwealth Games always relies on volunteers but getting 5 year old kids to build the stadiums and bridges may have been going too far.

Charlie Sheen has hired a “sober coach”. I hear he also has an opening for a “prostitute cock blocker.”

When someone builds a new plane I want them to say “we’ve built the safest aeroplane ever” not “it has more legroom.”

The guy below me in your timeline is tweeting from the toilet. #justsayin

The headache I have now is about as enjoyable as listening to Fran Drescher recite the full works of William Shakespear.

It’s hard to look gangsta when you are carrying a 16 pack pack of toilet rolls under your arm.

If I watch the ARIA’s backwards, will it make more sense?

AAMI a better reward for not making any claims would be to never see your advertisements on my TV screen ever again.

Thanks to everyone who followed me this year on Twitter. I’ve enjoyed the discussions, the laughs, the madness, see you in 2011! This blog allows me to write in more than 140 characters so if you have a question about a tweet, you want to know the story behind it or you have some favourites of mine then let me know!

Favourites

@GoodyGirl77 One of the most caring, thoughtful and supportive people on twitter.  The first to lend a hand, offer support, console or comfort.  Her children are very lucky to have her as a mother.  A shining light in the twitter community.

@ZoutLiquorice One of my absolute favs. The way she tweets about her family life and what she gets up to her kids is always very funny and entertaining.

@misscoca Extremely smart and successful. One of the nicest people you will meet and one of those that will succeed in everything she does. Always got love for L-Dogg! Should be one of the first people you follow.

@patriciadodd She doesn’t tweet much anymore but if twitter is judged by the connections you make in real life then Patricia is an absolute gem.  We do get on well, but she has giving me advice that I remember and call on when I need it. She has had a positive impact on me and has a lot of faith in me. Great, great person.

@CherieCheroo Kind, caring, compassionate, supportive, hilarious and one of the best people from Twitter I’ve met in real life.  I’m happy she’s very happy right now cause she deserves it. She is also extremely intuitive and will probably know more about what’s going on in twitter than most will ever, cause she pays attention and can see what others can’t.

@iammerveilleuse North Carolina native but one of the strongest people I know.  She has been through some extremely tough things in life which have made her an exceptional person because she is come out of it and gone on to succeed. She is a great musician but an incredible person.  Her views on life mirror mine.  I wish she was in Melbourne because we would be great friends.  You can learn a lot from what she says.

@GirlBug Whatever is happening in her day Maryann has a way of describing it in hilarious fashion.  She is also one of the nicest people I’ve ever met from twitter.  She’s the person I always reccomend on Twitter and everyone always comes back to me and says “you were right!”

@bellaboogaloo Such a good person. Full of life. If you love music you have to follow her.

@iamdaniela Few people make me laugh on Twitter as much as Dani.  She will take a running joke and take it to the next level.  Her general descriptions of her life are very funny. We once had an exchange about getting a sticker for being good in school that still makes me chuckle.

@hayley_bree A lot of people view life in a very straight forward way. Hayley can see things that most people can’t see. She actually challenges the way I think & gives me plenty of food for thought.

@darkdirk Very gifted songwriter. Compassionate person. Extremely smart and I think has a very high emotional intelligence.  He is another person who challenges my way of thinking and I appreciate that.

@KelSpencer He’s funny, he cares about his friends and he’s full of good advice.

@NatMcNazz - Completely honest. Upfront, won’t hold back and will always say something interesting. Definitely a good person and I find her perspective on life interesting.

@tweetmayatweet She is focused on her goals, and is approaching them positively so I know she will succeed. That’s discipline.

@VisibleStill – I sense she is someone who cares. A good person following her heart, so she deserves every reward that comes her way

@__mares__ I think mares is hilarious. If you are someone she follows she will talk to you.  Our exchanges have provided me with plenty of laughs.  She is probably the best user of the #hashtag for a laugh on twitter

@rantingpudding – Actually one of the sweetest people on Twitter. Actually cares about people. Probably uses the most cursing, swear words and foul language you are ever likely to see. So if that’s not your thing I would avoid, but definitely one of my favourites.

@Bleutrinitty – She has an interesting view on life, and always interacts with me, so I can’t help but like her.

@Calfy Shawn has a good sense of humour but he is a truly “nice guy.” I look up to him because I’m like good things do happen to good people and he deserves everything that comes his way.

@oneluvgurl One of the top twitter people in Florida. She will normally post a link to something interesting.

@jmanol James is way advanced beyond his years on this earth. He is genuinely genuinely funny. Has amazing taste in music, and will always make you laugh.

@Rellacafa Very honest with the way she is having to constantly fight her body. A very strong women and I get a lot out of reading her tweets.

@starinmelbourne One of the most unique people on twitter. I’m sure every guy on twitter is trying to get at Star, but I just think she is a very sweet person. That’s why I like her.

@thatcharliegurl Supportive person who really looks out for people and makes sure they are okay.

@MissReneeLJ Has extremely good taste in music, so I have to reccomend.

@SophieAG A lot of varied interests. Been following for ages cause she is quality.

@ginblossom She’s funny, she’s sweet, and she has a brilliant self depreciating style of humour.
@Tracenater She is one of the funniest people I follow.  I know if I’m involved in some witty exchange that I have to lift my game when replying.

@SimonRamblesOn Excellent taste in music.  He retweets some of the funniest tweets, it’s how I ended up following a lot of people, and he is funny himself. A great value follow.

@I_enigma She is one of the highest tweeters in my feed. Tweets a lot, but the quality of her tweets is always there, which can’t be said for many high volume tweeters.

@damana Been through a lot in life and has an interesting perspective on it. I would say thinks a little deeper than most.

@amazoe Someone from Canada, not sure how they followed me but we obviously connect on trying to overcome obstacles on life.

Positive people

@Barb_Calabrese As far as positive people on twitter goes, she is in an elite class.  Will always say something that rings true, and I really believe in.

@reneeludwigs Positivity and great quotes and ideas on approaching life and enjoying living it.

@AnnTran_ Great quotes will come from this account

@heavyd I don’t follow too many “famous people” but Heavy D is always tweeting something inspirational, soemthing good, a good quote. Has tweeted a lot of my favourites.
@llcoolj Clearly the best rapper tweeting on twitter. He succeeded in life for a reason, and he will inspire others with what he says. He really is using Twitter for good.

Great Quotes on Life

@livetorque The tweets from this account are probably responsible for most of my favourite tweets on twitter.  Just agree with so much that is said.

@condensedwisdom
@lovepeaceunity – This would be my favourite one of these accounts.  Does post a lot of tweets, but there is always something I get out of them.

@ShiCooks Another quality “positive” account.

@WorldsofGood

@MindFortune

@ThisDamnQuote

@AceofLife

@EternalQuotes

@motivatquotes

@Arahants Buddhist account, quotes on self, self-reflection.

Funny People

@Lord_Voldemort7 – This account has a lot of followers for a reason, constantly providing the best lines on trending topics.

@Stewie_Griffinn One of my favourite tweets I’ve read on twitter was this: #IfiHadaPennyForEverytime I had a penny, I’d double my penny. Another great trending topic joke account.

@godwingrech The leader in Australian political humour.

@Joan_Rivers Joan Rivers is an absolute legend.  If you get a joke from her in between her promoting something it is normally pretty damn hilarious.

@downesy He may be one of the top marketing experts in the country but he is also very funny. Whether it’s riffing on Tiger Woods, the cricket or creating trending topics, he will make you laugh.

@G_melbs One of the funniest people on twitter.  Her scathing use of sarcasm will make you laugh time and time again.

@annetreasure Very funny, unique style of humour.
@vanessakii Another person I think more people should be following. When she tweets, it is always funny.
@SoulPainter His value is in his replies to other people. Always very funny.

@StephCata Just a very funny person.

@comedy_nerd In the comedy industry but genuinely funny in his own right. Never too far away from a laugh inducing tweet.

@Pennington_Hall One of the most interesting people on Twitter. Many tweets about the unwanted attention she gets from guys. Could offend, will definitely entertain.

@lhjh70 Has a great level of wit and sarcasm, intelligent and funny.

@Sarkata Don’t think she gets enough credit, should have more followers because she is very funny.

@bui He has come up with some hilarious tweets, cutting edge, pushing the envelope type jokes.

@idmacman He is one of the funnier people on twitter. A well timed joke is never far away.

@MickNeven – He’s a comedienne. Good observational humour.

@azizansari One of the best actors/comics on twitter because he knows how to use it, and makes quality jokes.

Relationships

@DamnItsTrue This account is pure gold.  The name speaks for itself, it always is true.

@TheLoveStories – Sets the standard as far as these kind of accounts go.

@TheDailyLove

@TreatWomenRight

@Relationship101

More Fine Twitter Folk

@SixInchHeel – She will probably surprise you. Good person.
@fashion_noble Cares about people. Has a deeper view on life, and is quite resilient in the face of adversity.

@RozBatson I sense she’s living a pretty positive life and cares about others.
@mariellam Just a great personality, funny and will brighten up your twitter feed.

@busichic Always doing something interesting. Also has done some great charity work which I’m impressed with.
@brandonrofl This kid is pretty entertaining. He has a lot of followers for a reason. I find what he says interesting.
@eiin Another good person on Twitter,  I like her food related tweets. Always makes me hungry for something nice.

@ceefor Someone following their dreams, watch him as he accomplishes them.

@chewak Will say something funny by pointing out something that probably never occured to you.

@glenny3972 A good family man, who will do a lot for his kids. Always impressed by his opinions on life.

@kraima One of the great TV twitter commentaters.  He set the example that I followed with my Masterchef tweets.  If there is live TV viewing + tweeting going on you should be following Kraima for some laughs.

@NyuIsHappy Just a very cool person.

@wannastartanew Good sense of humour.  Her exchanges with others often prove hilarious.

@mellalicious Entertaining. Hip-Hop, hair, family life, always tweeting on something interesting.

@Puggles99 One of the hippest people on Twitter whether he’s talking about Glee or Taylor Swift, Roger will surprise you.  Those he follows he interacts with.

@miss_melbourne Just an interesting person. She’s gotten all those followers for a reason. Expresses her views.

@Grinner78 Can be pretty funny on a hashtag topic!
@Bckybcbc I like Becky. She has good taste in TV. Big fan of Dexter and Amazing Race. Also plays words with friends. From Tasmania too.

@Grosby Sister of Becky, a good person, and I enjoy the tweets between the sisters, so you have to follow both.

@FoxBrownFox Interesting views from Chicago. I like to get something different in my timeline and she’s often commenting on the goings on in America.

@Ezza78 A caring person.

@MissSafeT If you are talking about safety, you are not going to get the truth from some government funded research report that attempts to validate the government’s stance on revenue raising. No you will probably get the truth from MissSafeT, perhaps it can be controversial, confrontational? but damn there is a lot of truth in what she says.

@melburnian He posts some awesome photos, but he’s just a really nice stand up guy.

@FatherBob The pope should be having a good look at what Father Bob does, how he can connect with young people and the work he does in the community.  He is great, and so is his twitter account.

@sammarks One of those people that everyone in Melbourne must be following.  She is a good communicator.

@torieryan Just a genuinely good person.  If you follow her you will know what is happening in her life.

@MarcusMoments Good person, loves food..and shopping.. and his iPad.

@kimbaskitchen One of the top food bloggers on twitter.

@Shibz2311 Genuinely cares about others. Good supportive person.

@geekcupcake Definitely one of the most active people on Twitter.  Most people you are following are probably already following her so you will enjoy her conversations with everyone else.

@onegirlinmelb Always very intriguing, and you will like her if you follow.

@JMSness When I think of politics, I think of Jess. She has some strong opinions and is always inciteful on the political landscape, from a Labor perspective of course hah.

@duncanriley I’m intrigued by the way he calls people out for unfollowing him. He puts things out there that most people won’t. May not be to your taste but he will say what he thinks.

@stormbikes You can’t beat life experience and the knowledge that that entails.  He will offer good advice to people cause he is a smart person who values the right things in life.

The writing does not always sustain the story.  Their are some cliches which were bound to appear in such a well tread genre. What sets it apart however is the brilliant acting, the truly creepy killers, and an excellent season wide arc involving Luther’s ex-wife and a relationship with suspected killer Alice Morgan.  Idris’ acting really shines as he explored the pain of a broken relationship with his wife.  He is unhinged and angry, and of course a brilliant detective.  Sergeant Teller is probably the weakest character on the show. She is a standard police officer, who puts up with Luther’s questionable actions because he gets results.  Luther’s partner Ripley is well played by Warren Brown but is clearly the straight man of the piece.

The most compelling storyline involves Luther and Alice Morgan.  Luther suspects she killed her parents but was unable to put her away for it.  Over the 6 episodes their relationship develops even further.  It is very nuanced performance and quite intriguingly played by two fine actors.  Is Alice extremely dangerous or very helpful? Will Luther eventually catch her and put her in jail or is something else developing?

The six cases Luther solves are all very brutal. We do follow the killers, and the acting from them all is exceptional.  They are truly terrifying and there is many disturbing scenes.  I wouldn’t watch this show while eating your dinner.  The scenes between Luther and the killers are all fantastic once again.  As soon as Idris Elba is on screen, this show really goes to another level. Luther really reminded me of my all time favorite british series “Cracker.” He is taking down some crazy people, but he is a very troubled person himself. He is always treading a fine line, and is quite prepared to cross it. It makes for interesting television.

It may not be the most perfect show, but what Luther does well, it does very well.  The end of the first season really sets up the show for a second season.  They’ve established some very strong characters and a fantastic central character to build a show around.  The acting is superb and the writing is very solid.  If you love all the HBO shows, and quality TV then Luther is definitely a show worth tracking down.

This beer is a great challenge to the traditional similar tasting beers found in Australia. Infusing something like coffeee was a tricky task.  If the balance was not right it could have been a disaster.  Fortunately, Longshot is a great tasting beer.  It completely works as a beer and the coffee flavour comes in as a great aftertaste.  The coffee is not overpowering. It has a beautiful aroma of chocolate, toffee and coffee.  As soon as you say coffee bear the first thought is, “how could it work?” I think Longshot is a beer you must definitely try.  I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised just how well it tastes.  They have managed the fermentation process perfectly and got the coffee flavour just right.

The coffee used in the beer is a highly aromatic Ethiopian blend called Yirgacheffe.  It compliments the beer perfectly.  If you would like to match Longshot with food, dark chocolate or beef both work well. Longshot comes in a four pack and retails for $19.99.  Only 5,000 cases of Longshot have been produced and it is only available from Dan Murphy’s so if you would like to try it I suggest you act quick.

Longshot comes in a 4 pack and uses Yirgacheffe coffee beans

Moon glistens. Police car pulls up to the curb. A detective steps out and walks past some drugged out kids. Turning up Little Lonsdale Street, she spots a body strewn across the sidewalk. Blood is dripping down the pavement. An open hand lies just out of reach, of a blood stained iPhone.

“Just another glorious weekend in Melbourne, Andy.”

“That’s right C, the home of sport, the arts, and weekends of drunken violence.”

“What do we have?”

“Not sure. Someone reported a dead body at 1:05am”

“Look at all these people around here, surely they saw something?”

“I’ll go talk to some of these witnesses C.” Detective Pearce walked over to the surrounding crowd and began to question them.

Detective Celia Hughes knelt down by the body. She had just joined the Homicide squad. A background in Psychology helped her quickly rise through the police ranks. She was sharp, and a keen student of human behaviour, which would make solving the cities grisly murders easier than most. Although people are very complex, their actions and motivations are not. Detective Hughes was often disappointed by just how simple these cases were to solve. A jilted lover, an angry family member, a crime of passion, man’s basic instincts and desires were often the root of all these evil acts.

People are very predictable and their patterns of behaviour rarely deviate. She could see these patterns since she was a child. She had a heightened skill and awareness that was fostered by her mother. Her mother possessed the same skill but rarely used it.  She was an emotionally drained recluse but they were deeply connected. Words were rarely necessary, they communicated between each other with thoughts.  The ability had often left Celia with a shallow feeling of disappointment. Particularly when her friends fell into the same old traps. She could see things before they happened.  These days she arrived at scenes when it was all a little too late.  She actually preferred this as she got to avoid the emotional trauma, although death seemed a far more abrupt end to a humans failings. The cases she dealt with rarely mirrored the cop shows seen on TV. There were less twists and turns, and more connecting A to B.

Detective Pearce returned after questioning many of the largely drunk onlookers.

“What you see, C?” Pearce asked.

“Bruising of the ribs, looks like a car ran through this guy at some point,” Hughes replied.

“Yeah one person saw a Ute hit the man at high speed and drive off.”

“Not the cause of death though.”

“Whaa—“

“I think this is murder, the hit and run may have been after they were well dead.”

“The hit from the car wasn’t enough to kill him?”

“Yeah I think there may be more to this.”

“Drug overdose?”

“No, I don’t think this is a junkie OD’ing off his weekly fix. This is murder.”

“Let’s wait until they check the body…”

“No, I can feel it Andy.”

“What do we know about the victim?”

“Can you pass me the iPhone?”

“Sure.”

Detective Hughes pulled out her gloves and once in place grabbed the iPhone. It was a familiar feeling, holding an iPhone in her palm. She loved her own. It was practically a third hand. She quickly logged in and out of the Apps available. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google Maps.  These days’ people carried their entire lives around with them.  Forever connected.

Detective Andrew Pearce looked on in amazement. He hated technology and the invasiveness of it in our everyday lives. He would walk through the nearby shopping centre at lunch time and wonder what world he was living in.  Everybody had their head down looking at their phones.   They are so connected that they don’t even exist in the now, he thought? Who ever had time to enjoy the moment they were in, you know where they were actually standing and breathing? It was a fractured world. He now spent most of his time while navigating the centre trying to avoid people walking into him. So addicted to typing away on their phones they didn’t even have a moment to focus on looking where they walk. Hughes moved her fingers across the screen quickly, letting out an “hmm” or “interesting” every few moments. He was impressed by her speed; she clearly knew what she was doing.

“Well then?”

“Well according to his Facebook profile his name is John Raspovic, late 30s, Croatian heritage, worked in IT, apartment in South Melbourne, in a happy relationship, from all reports seemed to be living a charmed life.”

“No one lives a charmed life C, at least not behind closed doors.”

“So negative Andy–”

“–In fact those that you think are living a charmed life, are the ones to worry about.”

“So what was he doing out on this fine evening?”

“One of the witnesses said they had seen him earlier. At, a… umm… twigup? Whatever the kids do these days.”

“Tweetup, you mean?”

“Twitter, Andy, it’s a twitter meet up called a tweetup.”

“Doesn’t make sense to me C, who cares what someone just had for lunch.”

Pearce was a 20 year veteran of the police force. He had been working in the sexual crimes unit. That was until the government introduced a mandate to move detectives around different units. He was a specialist in his field, recognised overseas. He had the ability to get into the mind of the perpetrators and catch them. He was still resentful for being moved and after this year in Homicide he was going to take a long leave of absence. A year of long service leave and then a quick exit was on his mind. Tweetups? Not so much.

Detective Hughes however was a keen user of social media and was beginning to realise its increasing importance in tracking down and uncovering criminals in the 21^st century. People often didn’t realise what kind of information they were sharing. People’s online profiles were now a breeding ground of evidence that quickly revealed motives.  The more information that was available, the clearer the picture she could draw.  She was a visual person.  As she scanned through this man’s iPhone it was clear there was a lot of misinformation. His interactions with others were not always truthful. She could see a man living 5 or 6 different lives and no family member, friend or work colleague was ever getting the entire 360.

“Interesting DM’s here.”

“DM’s?”

“Direct Messages.”

“Huh?” Pearce looked confused.

“On twitter you can send someone a private message. They are called Direct Messages or DM’S,” Hughes explained.

“Oh okay, so what do they say?”

“Well there are a few people who he planned on meeting tonight. Ellie, Sam and Walter”

“Interesting.”

“Hey, hey stop that!” Pearce yelled out at a young woman standing by the crime scene.  She was taking a picture of the dead body with her iPhone.

“Shameful,” Pearce muttered underneath his breath.  “Kids have no respect for human life these days.”

“…or death,” Hughes retorted.

“It’s those damn video games C. They grow up with bloody violence from the moment they are born.  This all means nothing to them.”

“You are too old school Andy.  That woman has probably twitpiced the body already.  It’s online, it’s on Twitter and thousands of people have seen it. In the next 5 minutes they will all be commenting on it.  There won’t be a report until tomorrow’s afternoon paper, but with social media everything is instant.”

“I don’t care about the aftermath C, but if someone mentioned on that Twitter bullshit that they murdered someone tonight, then I’m interested.”

“True indeed.”

…..

The crowd was overflowing onto the sidewalk as the two detectives stepped into the bar. Loud music drowned out the remaining sounds. The bar was filled with smoke, and it was hot. A red neon light shone from the back. It was a diverse mix of people with one thing in common. They all had a glowing iPhone in their hand.

“Okay, let’s see if anyone knew this Raspovic character.”

“Raspovic? No, never heard of him,” a tall lanky man replied. He was standing near the bar.

Detective Hughes raised her voice above the noise, “His username was therapture”

“Oh, yeah I did talk to him. I don’t know most people’s real names, only what they use online.”

“When was the last time you saw him?”

“A few hours ago, I think. I’ve had a few drinks. I saw him leaving with Ellie.”

“Ellie, what can you tell me about Ellie?”

“Ellie, she’s one of the regulars at these tweetups, she’s umm, very popular.”

The detectives exchanged a glance and Pearce wrote the name down in his notepad.

“Description?”

“You’ll know her when you see her, she’s hard to miss.”

Suddenly, someone grabbed Detective Hughes from behind.

Tall, ungainly and bright eyed. “Hey!” he yelled. “Don’t I know you?” Hughes was caught off guard and this man’s hands were flailing wildly.

“No, no you don’t.”

He stared at her, then into the distance; eyes darting and head jerking around in strange movements.

“Well can you show me your tits?”

“I can show you a jail cell. You are speaking to a detective.”

“A detective?” someone else butted in. “Can I get a hug? Hi I’m Ponyboy.”

“Charming, but no.”

Pearce looked on in amusement, but when they both turned back to the person they were interviewing, he had vanished.

“Shit.”

“Well, we may have a lead C.”

“Not sure, it’s something, but there a lot of shady people here. We have a lot of suspects.”

“Really? These bunch of creepy geeks? They don’t seem the murderous type?”

“You’d be surprised Andy, and you’ve been a detective long enough to realise people go a lot deeper than first impressions. Don’t assume anything.”

“True enough.”

“You cops are you?”

Two men step forward.

“Yes.”

“Marorgi and antifuzz.”

“Huh? Doesn’t anyone use their real names around here?”

“Sorry, force of habit. It’s Tom, Tom and Patrick. Can we help?”

“Did you know Raspovic… and before you give me that blank look his username was therapture?” Pearce asked.

“No, no, not really, we met him briefly.”

“I think he left here pretty early.”

“With anyone?” Detective Hughes queried.

“I’m not sure, I think by himself.”

“Well now he’s dead.”

“Tragic.”

“Yes.”

After an uncomfortable pause the two men walked away before quickly sliding out at the nearby exit.

“C, I think we should get someone to follow them. Call one of the officers.”

“Kat, hello, yes, yes, it’s Detective Hughes.”

Kat was one of the younger members of the police force. She was in her mid 20s, tall, beautiful and always great assistance to Hughes.  It also helped Celia talking to someone not in Pearce’s generation, or even mental state for that matter. If he was an aging fossil, Kat was a breath of new born fresh air.

“It’s about this twitter murder case; I need you to follow this Patrick character. He is leaving the bar now with another man. Mid 30s, thin build, brown hair.”

“No, I refuse to follow him. In fact everybody should unfollow him.”

“Very clever, but I mean on foot.”

“Couldn’t help myself,” Kat let out a big laugh.

“Make sure you stay on their tail, I don’t think they are telling the truth.”

“Well everybody lies, just not all the time”

“…and that’s the point,” Hughes finished.

As Detective Hughes hung up the phone something resting on a table grabbed her attention.

“Grab that piece of paper, Andy.”

“What is it?”

“It appears to be a list of every person who attended the tweetup.”

Pearce scanned the list, there were over 20 names written down including “vosky, civoc. twisties, blackpanther, therapture, ellie87, fieldm, wharris, skeebear, misscoke, ladybug, darkkirk, zencrazy.”
“It’s hard to read too much into their names, well except the last one,” Pearce said handing Hughes the piece of paper.

“They’re all suspects.”

“Yeah, and its most likely one of them is responsible for this man’s death.”

“The timing suggests the murderer came from this tweetup.”

…..

Heavy breathing, much like a possum that is way too close to your house.

“Just head down to the basement.”

“Oh really, is — this your dungeon?”

He began to tie her up.

“Ron, come closer.”

“You’ve got something I need.”

“I know.”

Deep breath released.

The man in his 40s, greying hair, reached behind his back and pulled out a knife. His face suddenly became expressionless.

“Where is it, Ellie?”

Ellie began to panic. “Where is what? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

The basement was suddenly full of tension. Breathing stopped.

“You’re man had something of mine, something he stole and I know you’ve got it,” he said with distinct venom between gritted teeth.

He reached in and slowly moved the blade closer to her face. Utter fear.

In that moment fear can render you powerless. Fear can also be a powerful driving force for action. Ellie was suddenly hit with a sense of calm. She hit him where it hurts. She bent her knee and looking him dead in the eye thrust it deep into his groin. He let out a groan and fell to the ground, bent over in sheer pain.

“You’ve got it all wrong,” she screamed as she untied herself frantically. She looked at the knife that had dropped out of his hand.

“You will pay for this,” she screeched as she picked the knife up off the cold basement floor. She stared deep into his eyes, eyes that were watering as he stayed bent over writhing in pain, “just not right now.”

She climbed up the steps and ran out of the house. Her feet moved as fast as her heart was racing.

…………

Dee walked up to the third floor, and banged on the door. No response. She pushed the door ajar. She could hear the low murmur of a TV so she walked in.

A man lay there, passed out on the couch, saliva dribbling onto the cushion, an iPhone laid on his chest.

“Hey, heeerooo, wake up please, 1:00pm is about time to start your day!”

“Waa-D, what are you doing here,” He sat up groggily. “You’re disturbing my blissful sleep.”

“You call slobbering on the couch while Dr Phil plays in the background bliss?”

“Hey, Dr Phil is helping me overcome my relationship problems, issues with my father and my fear of balding talk show hosts.”

“Sure.”

“Plus I’ve got a sore back, and I still ain’t over what happened, leave me alone.”

“Still struggling? You need to get over her. Have you even moved from that position in the last 72 hours?”

“No need, I have an iPhone, I’m connected to the world. Don’t let the solitary surrounds of this apartment fool you.”

The apartment was a mess, full of old pizza boxes, and weeks of accumulated rubbish. Dee was annoyed already. She liked everything to be in order. She was meticulous, smart as a whip, and got annoyed when people didn’t live up to the standards that she maintained herself.  She was however hurting, so even a dirty apartment didn’t get to her as much as it normally would.

“No time for that Hero, I need your help, I have a case.”

Hero was a private detective, of sorts. A former federal agent who specialised in online crimes until he was struck down with a debilitating back injury. He was now freelancing. This really meant spending half of his time dealing with Centrelink and the other half taking cases from his friends every couple of months. He hadn’t made it off the couch for a few weeks though. He’d tried every back operation, alternative therapy and just plain quackery known to man. He was now resigned to living in pain. His real name was James but people had been calling him Hero for years. Conceited? Arrogant? He didn’t care what people thought, he thought he was damn good. He believed he was always right, and most of the time he was. Dee was an old friend from his university days. He hadn’t seen her in a long time, so he knew if she if she was coming to him it must be serious.

“What’s going on?”

“Someone has stolen my… entire life savings.”

“For real? How?”

“Well he told me he was starting his own business. A new pizza business which used technology in interesting ways, TV screens, tablets, credit card swiping, easy ways to order. It looked and sounded like a great investment opportunity, he was in IT.”

“A pizza joint? Really?”

“He also mentioned Tapas at one point.”

“I’m still not convinced,” Hero said.

“Look, it’s a complicated story, and I’m trying to break it down as quickly as possible, but yes the Pizza slash technology idea sounded good.”

“How did you even meet this guy?”

“On Twitter.”

“Really? Twitter? Well there’s your first problem.”

“Look, this is serious.”

“Why don’t you just report him to the police?”

“Because he’s dead.”

“No shit, and the money?”

“No idea, but it’s gone, and that’s why I need you to find it.”

“You didn’t kill him did you?”

“No, of course not. Look he clearly wasn’t who he said he was. I can’t believe I was fooled, but this man must have been a professional swindler. Now I’m not sure what to believe. All I know is he stole a stack of cash and he obviously pissed someone off enough for them to kill him. Will you help me?”

“Only for you Dee, and of course I’ll be taking 15% of the cash I recover.”

“Of course you would.”

“Do you have any leads?”

“I have an address, his other business partner was supposedly a man called M.S., and I think there are others he conned on Twitter, so we can talk to them.”

“Ok Dee, I think we have the makings of an investigation. Grab that bottle of codeine for me and the Voltaren on the bench and let’s go get that money.”

Check out the book on Amazon here: Social Media Murder

The graphics have come along in leaps and bounds since the first two seasons.  The characters and environments look fantastic on a high definition television, this is clearly Telltale’s best looking game so far. The environments really look alive in 3d, graffiti on buildings, and added grit and grime to the streets adds to the atmosphere.  The only disappointment is the first episode pretty much stays in New York city.  What I loved about Season 2 of Sam and Max was it went to new and interesting locations every episode, so I hope we get to visit some zany places in upcoming episodes.

The music again is top notch.  Jared Emerson-Johnson has created a great sci-fi score.  The theme and inside Skunkape’s ship are real highlights.  His music for Sam & Max really win some awards, it’s diverse, always enjoyable, and adds a lot to the vibe of the game.

The true test of any Sam and Max game, and what the characters ultimately live and die on, is the humour. Is it funny? Definitely, the writing is once again excellent.  I don’t think the situations are as strong and funny as the end of season 2 but a lot of this episode is about setting up the overarching arc of the season. There is so much dialogue in this game that you will surely find some laugh out loud moments.  References to The Exorcist, The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe, The Twilight Zone and the endless supply of penal jokes had me thoroughly entertained.

One of the big improvements in the writing is in regards to Sam’s dialogue.  Too often all the big laughs are left to the psychotic bunny but Sam more than hold’s his own with some hilarious quips.  I do have one issue with Telltale’s Sam though and that is in the voice work.  The delivery of Sam’s line are so dry and monotone that he does not take advantage of the writing.  William Kasten is doing some excellent work as the voice of Max.  He really punches each joke, and uses the pitch of his voice to sell every line.  I don’t think you can go past the voicework done for Sam in Hit the Road.  The voice acting portrayed a real Humphry Bogart/Gumshoe character and Sam’s lines were just as effective as Max’s.  I hope David Nowlin does a bit more with Telltale’s Sam, or they change voice actors because it’s a real missed opportunity.  The other characters are again great.  General Skunkape is brilliant, and very funny.  Harry Molemen has many hilarious scenes in this episode, and even Grandpa Stinky delivers some laugh out loud moments.

The control scheme has been completely reworked for the Playstation 3 release and it works a treat.  I could never envision playing an adventure game on a console and it working as good as this.  It’s extremely user friendly and the control scheme does not get in the way at all. Left analog stick to move Sam around and the right analog to select objects and dialogue choices, triangle and square to interact with objects.  The dialogue options are very well done and more reminiscent of Hit the Road.  You choose a topic, which means the joke is not given away before it’s delivered.  This is extremely important to Sam & Max because you never know what to expect, or what they’ll say.  This really adds to the comedic value of the game, and an example of how the improved UI work has payed off.  It is very easy to use and allowed me to completely focus on the game, solving puzzles and listening to jokes.

The puzzle difficulty is similar to other Telltale games.  I would say they were largely in the moderate category with a few puzzles slightly more tricky.  I did play the game with the hints completely turned off.  I think it’s the best option for a Telltale game if you want to get the most value for your money.  The game took me a couple of weeks to complete and I only ever really got stuck at one point.  All up around 5 or 6 hours of gameplay.  I’d expect the puzzle difficulty to increase as the season goes on.  I’m sure the Playstation Network release will bring many new players to Sam & Max so it’s important to make it as accessible as possible.

The writer for this episode was Chuck Jordan who has penned the best Sam & Max episodes so far, “Abe Lincoln must die” & “Chariots of the Dogs.” One writer missing from this season is Brendan Ferguson who appears to have left Telltale Games.  This is a big loss. He was one of the first 10 Telltale employees, was a writer on the cancelled Sam & Max Sequel, “Freelance Police,” and the first two seasons of Telltales “Sam & Max.”  Telltale has however acquired Mike Stemmle, one of the original writers of Sam & Max: Hit the Road as well as the executive producer of “Freelance Police.”  Few people know Sam & Max, besides Steve Purcell, as well as Mike Stemmle so I can’t wait to play his episodes. He is penning episodes 2 and 4.  Mike did some great work on episodes 1 and 4 of Tales of Monkey Island.  His puzzle design is I think the very best in the games industry and those 2 Monkey Island episodes have the best puzzles of any Telltale game.  It is the perfect balance of being tricky and well though out, but not so hard that it completely stop you in your tracks.

Overall it is a very strong start to Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse and I think the games will only get better as the story plays out.  The game mechanics, the graphics, the voice acting and music are all excellent.  The first episode has set the story up, now it’s just a matter of playing that out and delivering the jokes.  The game is excellent value and I’d reccomend getting the Playstation 3 version.