4/15/11 - Tornado sirens in the wee hours

I knew we were supposed to have pretty heavy storms last night, but when I got in bed, the wind was blowing, but that was about it. At 2am, however, I was awoken by the tornado sirens. I've always been the type, that when the sirens go off, that's your signal to step outside and just have a look for yourself. I still have that same thought process, with one added piece, make sure your girls are safe (all three of them).

Last night was no exception. I immediately got out of bed and stepped outside, just to have a quick look. What I saw did not make me happy. It was COMPLETELY calm, which is always the signal that it's about to get real. But on top of that, it just felt "wrong". It might have been the fact that I was stirred from my slumber at 2am, but it just put me on edge.

With it still calm, i came back in, but before I could get back in bed, it started raining. Not just a little bit of rain, but a serious rainstorm. What came with it was from what I could tell very high winds (internet showed only 15mph winds, but I'm not buying that). It was also swirling rain, as I could hear the rain hitting each side of our house in succession. That was enough for me. I decided to get my girls and hang out in the bathroom for a few minutes, simply preparing for the worst.

Makenna slept in my arms the whole time, Kinsley sat in Cristi's arms, but was quite good with the whole ordeal. I've learned that trying to get Raider in the bathroom is virtually impossible, and with it raining outside, he was terrified already and would have peed on the carpet had I got near him...he had to fend for himself.

No more than 5 minutes in the bathroom, we went back to bed and after tucking them all in I turned on the TV to check the local channels for any updates. It took a minute for a satellite (thanks Dish) to pick up any stations, but once it came on, all they were saying is that there was virtually no more threat of a tornado and the rain was clear past our house based on their weather maps.

Once I heard that, I was much more at ease and headed back to bed. Not something I'd like to do again anytime soon, but it made me feel pretty good as the sirens actually woke me up before Cristi. Being a dad is rough, knowing you are responsible for the protection of several other lifeforms is pretty nerve racking.

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4/11/11 - Charitable giving

People know that I'm tight with my money. That's how I was raised, and although I'm not quite as much of a miser as I used to be, I still save and don't like to let it go easily. Charitable giving is something that I still have problems with. I donate money to causes that I feel are worthwhile or that I fully understand. My biggest problem is that I don't trust must other people to use the money I give in a proper way. (same issue with paying taxes, although i still do it).

But, this is a post about something completely different. I was at one my lawn care customer's homes and I saw a young boy in Boy Scout uniform and has dad walking door to door. I immediately assumed that they were doing some sort of fund raising for Boy Scouts, quite common, no big deal. (As I retell the story, the numbers might be off as it has been a while since this has happened, but the basic idea still remains).

When the reached the house I was mowing, they walked to the door and I was at a point in my job that I was able to hear the conversation. The homeowner answered and the boy began his speech. When he was done, she politely said that she didn't need any of what he was selling but asked if she could write a check. He said that would be fine. She then asked if $10 would help him, and he responded with, "No ma'am, it has to be at least $25". His father reiterated this fact.

Are you friggin' kidding me? The Boy Scouts are more than willing to accept a check, but only if it is at least $25. I have yet to figure out why this is? When you buy $25 worth of popcorn (that you can buy at your local grocery store for $5), the scouts probably only get half of that, if that much. And that doesn't include the overhead included in gathering paper work, filing papers, checking figures, passing out purchases, etc. I would think that a $10 check (which you just have to cash at the bank) would be much more profitable. Heck, a $5 should be completely acceptable.

That's like a beggar refusing to accept a wad of $1 bills because he only accepts $10 bills. If you are going to go around and ask for money, and someone is WILLING TO GIVE YOU MONEY...can someone please tell me why they wouldn't accept it.

This story ends with the homeowner telling him that is too much and sending him away. I don't guess the Boy Scouts are hurting all that bad.

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4/8/11 - We planted our garden

Last year, we built a 4' x 2' raised garden where we planted a some strawberries, tomatoes, cucumber and basil. We attempted to grow some flowers and onions but both failed miserably. This year, we kicked it up a notch.

I tilled up a very large section of our backyard, I'd say around 10' x 20' to plant all sorts of stuff. We let Makenna pick out a few things that she wanted to grow. Of course, I don't think she had any idea what she was picking, but she liked the pictures on the seed packages.

We started with 2 larger tomato plants and 4 smaller tomato plants. Everything else was started from seed. This will be a bit of an experiment as to what works best. Here is a breakdown of what we've got going.

Tomato: a lot of tomato, at least 25% of our garden is tomato.
Cucumber: Last year we grew two plants, this year we should have 4 or 5
Squash: We've never grown squash, so we are interested to see how it works out. We planted about as much squash as we did cucumber.
Carrots: Makenna wanted to plant carrots even though to my knowledge we have never kept carrots in our house unless we are making pot roast. We planted about a 2' x 2' section of carrots.
Onion: we planted probably 24 or so onion bulbs, just to see if we can get them growing better than last year.
Sweet Corn: Makenna also picked out the corn, so we figured we'd give it a shot. I expect to get 3 or 4 stalks of corn by the end of the season.
Dill: if the seeds take, we will have enough dill to last us a life time.
Basil: Like the dill, if half the seed takes, we will have more basil than we know what to do with.
Flowers: Makenna also picked out some pretty pink flowers she wanted to grow, so we'll see how that goes.

In another section of the yard, our ground was completely bare from where our patio had a ramp leading to it. We have since replaced the ramp with steps leaving a big dirt spot. In an attempt to get something to grow, I brought in some soil to build up the area and grade it, and then threw out some bermuda seed. I'm hopeful that if anything grows, this will be the one.

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4/5/11 - LROMMC 2011: Final Results

If you are looking for the Walker March Madness Pool, please follow and bookmark this link.

I was horrible about updating towards the end, but that was primarily because the results had come down to the championship tiebreak since virtually no one had anything riding on the title game. In fact, both 1st and 2nd came to a tiebreak, as well as 3rd and 4th. With the lowest total points in a title game since 1949, the lower the tiebreak, the better you did.

I'll get the trophy updated with the latest names this week, and you can view the trophy in Michael's office as soon as I can get it to him. Michael is not only this year's winner but the first individual to make a repeat appearance on this most sought after trophy. Here are the final standings, in correct order.

Name	Points	Tiebreak
Michael Hall	58	160
Gwen Bostic	58	175
Tamra Upton	56	89
Jerald Caffey	56	143
Amy Chilton	54	136
Randy Spellins	54	160
David Wagnon	54	180
Steve Habenicht	53	146
Barry Settlemoir	53	166
Tony Lewis	52	138
Levell Kinchen	51	125
Flint Allen	51	128
Chris Johnson	51	133
Stephen Shirley	50	126
Angi Orsini	48	128
Brett Krebs	48	133
DJ Walker	47	128
Donna Griffith	47	143
John McDaniel	47	148
Lydia Dixon	47	180
Darren Tillery	45	140
Rick Rocuant	44	111
Angel Cook	44	123
Eric Chilton	44	146
Jonathan Albright	43	123
Lathan Harper	43	138
Lynn McLaughlin	42	119
Roderick Ott	42	153
Rob Nossaman	41	146
Jason Holland	41	155
Tristan Elliott	41	163
Matthew Carpenter	39	143
Suzanne Gulley	39	205
William Dunn	35	143
Carl Burks	27	155

Labels: LROMMC11

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- Walker March Madness Pool: Final Results

If you are looking for the Annual Little Rock Office March Madness Challenge held for office mates, please follow and bookmark this link.

I was horrible about updating towards the end, but that was primarily because the results had come down to the championship tiebreak since virtually no one had anything riding on the title game. Of course, it just so happens that the winner did in fact have UConn picked as their champion. The only one of the 50 or so brackets I received.

I will be in contact with the winners to make sure they are paid out correctly. Final tally:

Ryan - $129
Jason - $64.50
Cristi - $21.50

Here are the final standings.

Name	Points	Tiebreak
Ryan Casey	67	120
Jason Harmon	61	164
Cristi Walker	59	135
Gwen Bostic	58	175
Amy Chilton	54	136
David Wagnon	54	180
Randy Spellins	54	160
Michael Hussman	53	135
Kyle Raible 1	53	0
Phillip Walker	52	159
Nash Horton	52	0
Elizabeth Pollock 1	52	157
Uncle/Gary	52	134
Mike Bumgardner	51	143
Levell Kinchen	51	125
Josh Simpson	50	140
Elizabeth Pollock 2	50	153
Blake Bumgardner	50	142
Jessica Walker	50	164
Geoff Owens 2	50	145
Stephen Shirley	50	126
Matt Arnold	49	151
Chris Horton	48	0
Orsini	48	128
Evan Teer	47	146
DJ Walker	47	128
Donna Bumgardner	47	139
Geoff Owens 1	46	134
Greg Walker	46	135
Kylah Harmon	45	128
Cash	45	141
Roxane Martino	44	150
Jared Selby 2	44	160
Eric Chilton	44	146
Jared Selby 1	44	155
Kyle Raible 2	43	0
Lathan Harper	43	138
Jared Selby 3	43	150
Roderick Ott	42	153
Lynn McLaughlin	42	119
Jason Holland	41	155
Shannon Horton	39	0
Craig	37	147
Wes May-hem	37	139
RJ Martino	32	225

Labels: MM2011

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3/28/11 - LROMMC 2011: Day 8 - Into the Final Four

I slacked off over the weekend. I didn't update at all until just now. Since Rick is the only person to still have a team in play, there will be no changes in the top of the standings. Although, if Kentucky does win the title, Rick will come within 1 point of 3rd place. The final results will be determined by the final score of the championship game.

Name	Points	Tiebreak
Michael Hall	58	160
Gwen Bostic	58	175
Tamra Upton	56	89
Jerald Caffey	56	143
Amy Chilton	54	136
David Wagnon	54	180
Randy Spellins	54	160
Steve Habenicht	53	146
Barry Settlemoir	53	166
Tony Lewis	52	138
Flint Allen	51	128
Levell Kinchen	51	125
Chris Johnson	51	133
Stephen Shirley	50	126
Brett Krebs	48	133
Angi Orsini	48	128
Lydia Dixon	47	180
John McDaniel	47	148
DJ Walker	47	128
Donna Griffith	47	143
Darren Tillery	45	140
Eric Chilton	44	146
Rick Rocuant	44	111
Angel Cook	44	123
Lathan Harper	43	138
Jonathan Albright	43	123
Lynn McLaughlin	42	119
Roderick Ott	42	153
Jason Holland	41	155
Rob Nossaman	41	146
Tristan Elliott	41	163
Matthew Carpenter	39	143
Suzanne Gulley	39	205
William Dunn	35	143
Carl Burks	27	155

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3/26/11 - Walker March Madness Pool: Day 7

Here is a link to the spreadsheet of possible outcomes for the rest of the tournament. For the most part, everything revolves around UConn and where the end in the tournament.

If UNC makes it to the title game, Cristi wins and Gwen, Levell and Hussman battle out for 2nd and 3rd with Jason an off chance for 3rd.

If Kentucky makes it to the title game, Cristi wins, Gwen gets 2nd and Jason and ryan battle for 3rd.

If UConn makes it to the title game, it's all kind of a toss up there because I'm having trouble making sense of the results. I do know there is a top to bottom fight between Ryan, Jason and Cristi and Gwen has an off chance of getting 3rd. With all that, here are the standings as of Saturday night.

Name	Points	Tiebreak
Cristi Walker	59	135
Gwen Bostic	58	175
Jason Harmon	56	164
Ryan Casey	56	120
David Wagnon	54	180
Randy Spellins	54	160
Michael Hussman	53	135
Kyle Raible 1	53	0
Phillip Walker	52	159
Nash Horton	52	0
Elizabeth Pollock 1	52	157
Uncle/Gary	52	134
Mike Bumgardner	51	143
Levell Kinchen	51	125
Josh Simpson	50	140
Elizabeth Pollock 2	50	153
Blake Bumgardner	50	142
Amy Chilton	50	136
Jessica Walker	50	164
Geoff Owens 2	50	145
Stephen Shirley	50	126
Matt Arnold	49	151
Chris Horton	48	0
Orsini	48	128
Evan Teer	47	146
DJ Walker	47	128
Donna Bumgardner	47	139
Geoff Owens 1	46	134
Greg Walker	46	135
Kylah Harmon	45	128
Cash	45	141
Roxane Martino	44	150
Jared Selby 2	44	160
Eric Chilton	44	146
Jared Selby 1	44	155
Kyle Raible 2	43	0
Lathan Harper	43	138
Jared Selby 3	43	150
Roderick Ott	42	153
Lynn McLaughlin	42	119
Jason Holland	41	155
Shannon Horton	39	0
Craig	37	147
Wes May-hem	37	139
RJ Martino	32	225

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- Walker March Madness Pool: Day 6

With the loss of Ohio State, that knocked out another large portion of people's brackets. I'll brag on my wife as the only person left to have all four of her final four team's still alive.

Name	Points	Tiebreak
Cristi Walker	55	135
Randy Spellins	54	160
Gwen Bostic	54	175
David Wagnon	54	180
Kyle Raible 1	53	0
Michael Hussman	53	135
Ryan Casey	52	120
Elizabeth Pollock 1	52	157
Uncle/Gary	52	134
Nash Horton	52	0
Jason Harmon	52	164
Mike Bumgardner	51	143
Blake Bumgardner	50	142
Elizabeth Pollock 2	50	153
Josh Simpson	50	140
Amy Chilton	50	136
Jessica Walker	50	164
Geoff Owens 2	50	145
Stephen Shirley	50	126
Matt Arnold	49	151
Phillip Walker	48	159
Orsini	48	128
DJ Walker	47	128/td>
Donna Bumgardner	47	139
Evan Teer	47	146
Levell Kinchen	47	125
Greg Walker	46	135
Geoff Owens 1	46	134
Cash	45	141
Kylah Harmon	45	128
Eric Chilton	44	146
Jared Selby 2	44	160
Jared Selby 1	44	155
Roxane Martino	44	150
Chris Horton	44	0
Lathan Harper	43	138
Jared Selby 3	43	150
Kyle Raible 2	43	0
Roderick Ott	42	153
Lynn McLaughlin	42	119
Jason Holland	41	155
Shannon Horton	39	0
Craig	37	147
Wes May-hem	37	139
RJ Martino	32	225

Labels: MM2011

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3/25/11 - Walker March Madness Pool: Day 5

If you are looking for the Annual Little Rock Office March Madness Challenge held for office mates, please follow and bookmark this link.

Let's all be honest, pretty much everyone's bottom half of the bracket is busted. There were actually two people with their final four team still alive, Cristi and Gwen both have UConn and Florida, Orsini has Arizona left, and Ryan, Phillip, Chris, Jason and Levell have UConn still going. There are I think 10 others that still have Florida alive as well.

Name	Points	Tiebreak
Elizabeth Pollock 1	49	157
Jason Harmon	49	164
Ryan Casey	49	120
Gwen Bostic	48	175
David Wagnon	48	180
Randy Spellins	48	160
Kyle Raible 1	47	0
Stephen Shirley	47	126
Evan Teer	47	146
Josh Simpson	47	140
Matt Arnold	46	151
Nash Horton	46	0
Cristi Walker	46	135
Uncle/Gary	46	134
Mike Bumgardner	45	143
Phillip Walker	45	159
Jessica Walker	44	164
Elizabeth Pollock 2	44	153
Donna Bumgardner	44	139
Geoff Owens 2	44	145
Blake Bumgardner	44	142
Michael Hussman	44	135
Kylah Harmon	42	128
Orsini	42	128
Amy Chilton	41	136
Jared Selby 2	41	160
Chris Horton	41	0
DJ Walker	41	128
Kyle Raible 2	40	0
Jared Selby 3	40	150
Lathan Harper	40	138
Greg Walker	40	135
Geoff Owens 1	40	134
Cash	39	141
Roderick Ott	39	153
Lynn McLaughlin	39	119
Jason Holland	38	155
Roxane Martino	38	150
Levell Kinchen	38	125
Jared Selby 1	38	155
Eric Chilton	38	146
Shannon Horton	36	0
Craig	34	147
RJ Martino	32	225
Wes May-hem	31	139

Labels: MM2011

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- LROMMC 2011: Day 5

If you are looking for the Walker March Madness Pool, please follow and bookmark this link.

So pretty much everyone's bracket was busted last night with the San Diego St and Duke loss, as well as the Pitt loss two rounds ago. In fact, out of the 35 entrants, I think there are only 12 brackets with a Final Four team left in the lower half of the bracket. Angi still has Arizona, Levell has UConn, Gwen has both UConn and Florida, and several others have Florida.

Great year for good games, horrible year for brackets.

Name	Points	Tiebreak
Jerald Caffey	50	143
Tamra Upton	50	89
Randy Spellins	48	160
Gwen Bostic	48	175
Flint Allen	48	128
David Wagnon	48	180
Steve Habenicht	47	146
Stephen Shirley	47	126
Barry Settlemoir	47	166
Tony Lewis	46	138
Michael Hall	45	160
Chris Johnson	45	133
Lydia Dixon	44	180
John McDaniel	44	148
Angi Orsini	42	128
Brett Krebs	42	133
Amy Chilton	41	136
DJ Walker	41	128
Angel Cook	41	123
Lathan Harper	40	138
Jonathan Albright	40	123
Darren Tillery	39	140
Lynn McLaughlin	39	119
Roderick Ott	39	153
Jason Holland	38	155
Tristan Elliott	38	163
Levell Kinchen	38	125
Eric Chilton	38	146
Rob Nossaman	38	146
Suzanne Gulley	36	205
Matthew Carpenter	36	143
Donna Griffith	34	143
Rick Rocuant	34	111
William Dunn	32	143
Carl Burks	24	155