OrtOrt

Tornado sirens in the wee hours

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 13:10:00 +0000

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.

Charitable giving

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 15:08:00 +0000

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.

We planted our garden

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 14:54:00 +0000

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.

LROMMC 2011: Final Results

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 12:06:00 +0000

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

Walker March Madness Pool: Final Results

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 12:01:00 +0000

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

LROMMC 2011: Day 8 - Into the Final Four

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 16:43:00 +0000

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

Walker March Madness Pool: Day 7

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 02:14:00 +0000

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

Walker March Madness Pool: Day 6

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 16:43:00 +0000

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

Walker March Madness Pool: Day 5

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 13:51:00 +0000

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

LROMMC 2011: Day 5

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Fri, 25 Mar 2011 13:45:00 +0000

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

LROMMC 2011: Day 4

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 05:03:00 +0000

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

This past weekend, a friend of mine posted a comment that I think fits very nicely: The bracket that is winning today, is the bracket that was laughed at 4 days ago.

Name	Points	Tiebreak
Jerald Caffey	47	143
David Wagnon	45	180
Steve Habenicht	44	146
Lydia Dixon	44	180
Flint Allen	42	128
Gwen Bostic	42	175
Randy Spellins	42	160
John McDaniel	41	148
Barry Settlemoir	41	166
Tamra Upton	41	89
Stephen Shirley	41	126
Lathan Harper	40	138
Tony Lewis	40	138
Jonathan Albright	40	123
Darren Tillery	39	140
Michael Hall	39	160
Brett Krebs	39	133
Chris Johnson	39	133
Jason Holland	38	155
Angel Cook	38	123
DJ Walker	38	128
Eric Chilton	38	146
Roderick Ott	36	153
Angi Orsini	36	128
Lynn McLaughlin	36	119
Tristan Elliott	35	163
Amy Chilton	35	136
Levell Kinchen	35	125
Rob Nossaman	35	146
Donna Griffith	34	143
Matthew Carpenter	33	143
Suzanne Gulley	33	205
William Dunn	32	143
Rick Rocuant	31	111
Carl Burks	24	155

Walker March Madness Pool: Day 4

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 05:02:00 +0000

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

These are the standings after this weekends games. There won't be another update until next Thursday evening after the Elite 8 has been decided. I'm not even going to try to guess what could happen from here on out, but most everyone has similar final fours and championship game setups with only minor differences. There could be some shake ups at the top of the board based on this next weeks games.

Name	Points	Tiebreak
Elizabeth Pollock 1	46	157
David Wagnon	45	180
Mike Bumgardner	45	143
Evan Teer	44	146
Donna Bumgardner	44	139
Kyle Raible 1	44	0
Uncle/Gary	43	134
Jason Harmon	43	164
Nash Horton	43	0
Gwen Bostic	42	175
Randy Spellins	42	160
Josh Simpson	41	140
Elizabeth Pollock 2	41	153
Blake Bumgardner	41	142
Jessica Walker	41	164
Geoff Owens 2	41	145
Stephen Shirley	41	126
Lathan Harper	40	138
Cristi Walker	40	135
Matt Arnold	40	151
Ryan Casey	40	120
Phillip Walker	39	159
Chris Horton	38	0
DJ Walker	38	128
Michael Hussman	38	135
Roxane Martino	38	150
Jared Selby 2	38	160
Jared Selby 1	38	155
Eric Chilton	38	146
Jason Holland	38	155
Greg Walker	37	135
Jared Selby 3	37	150
Kyle Raible 2	37	0
Geoff Owens 1	37	134
Orsini	36	128
Roderick Ott	36	153
Shannon Horton	36	0
Kylah Harmon	36	128
Lynn McLaughlin	36	119
Cash	36	141
Levell Kinchen	35	125
Amy Chilton	35	136
RJ Martino	32	225
Wes May-hem	31	139
Craig	31	147

Walker March Madness Pool: Day 3

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Sun, 20 Mar 2011 18:06:00 +0000

Sorry I'm late with this one. I went to sleep before the final games finished on Saturday. Here are the most up to date scores.

Name	Points	Tiebreak
Elizabeth Pollock 1	38	157
David Wagnon	37	180
Mike Bumgardner	37	143
Kyle Raible 1	36	0
Donna Bumgardner	34	139
Evan Teer	34	146
Randy Spellins	34	160
Lathan Harper	34	138
Josh Simpson	33	140
Blake Bumgardner	33	142
Elizabeth Pollock 2	33	153
Geoff Owens 2	33	145
Jason Harmon	33	164
Jessica Walker	33	164
Uncle/Gary	33	134
Stephen Shirley	33	126
Nash Horton	33	0
Phillip Walker	33	159
Matt Arnold	32	151
Gwen Bostic	32	175
Jason Holland	32	155
Ryan Casey	30	120
Jared Selby 1	30	155
Jared Selby 2	30	160
Roxane Martino	30	150
Shannon Horton	30	0
Michael Hussman	30	135
Cristi Walker	30	135
Eric Chilton	30	146
Geoff Owens 1	29	134
Greg Walker	29	135
Jared Selby 3	29	150
Kyle Raible 2	29	0
Roderick Ott	28	153
Kylah Harmon	28	128
DJ Walker	28	128
Chris Horton	28	0
Cash	28	141
Lynn McLaughlin	28	119
Amy Chilton	27	136
Levell Kinchen	27	125
Orsini	26	128
RJ Martino	26	225
Craig	25	147
Wes May-hem	21	139

Walker March Madness Pool: Day 2

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 04:40:00 +0000

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

If my calculations are correct, we had 44 paid entries (and for the record, I do not give myself a free entry or take a cut of the pool money). I will have to do another count, but as of right now 1st, 2nd and 3rd place will receive $132, $66 and $22 respectively.

Name	Points	Tiebreak
Elizabeth Pollock 1	26	157
David Wagnon	25	180
Mike Bumgardner	25	143
Elizabeth Pollock 2	25	153
Jared Selby 1	24	155
Matt Arnold	24	151
Kyle Raible 1	24	0
Randy Spellins	24	160
Ryan Casey	24	120
Jared Selby 2	24	160
Josh Simpson	23	140
Geoff Owens 2	23	145
Jared Selby 3	23	150
Jason Harmon	23	164
Jessica Walker	23	164
Blake Bumgardner	23	142
Uncle/Gary	23	134
Stephen Shirley	23	126
Lathan Harper	22	138
Lynn McLaughlin	22	119
Chris Horton	22	0
Cristi Walker	22	135
Michael Hussman	22	135
DJ Walker	22	128
Shannon Horton	22	0
Eric Chilton	22	146
Evan Teer	22	146
Gwen Bostic	22	175
Jason Holland	22	155
Greg Walker	21	135
Geoff Owens 1	21	134
Phillip Walker	21	159
Nash Horton	21	0
Amy Chilton	21	136
Kyle Raible 2	21	0
RJ Martino	20	225
Roxane Martino	20	150
Donna Bumgardner	20	139
Kylah Harmon	20	128
Cash	20	141
Roderick Ott	20	153
Levell Kinchen	19	125
Craig	19	147
Orsini	18	128
Wes May-hem	17	139

LROMMC 2011: Day 2

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 04:37:00 +0000

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

Just so everyone knows, Jonathan did in fact use an algorithm to make his picks. Which I absolutely love, because it makes those of us that actually think we know what we are doing, look very foolish.

Name	Points	Tiebreak
Jonathan Albright	26	123
Darren Tillery	25	140
David Wagnon	25	180
Jerald Caffey	25	143
Steve Habenicht	24	146
Flint Allen	24	128
Lydia Dixon	24	180
Randy Spellins	24	160
Brett Krebs	23	133
Chris Johnson	23	133
John McDaniel	23	148
Matthew Carpenter	23	143
Stephen Shirley	23	126
DJ Walker	22	128
Lathan Harper	22	138
Eric Chilton	22	146
Gwen Bostic	22	175
Jason Holland	22	155
Lynn McLaughlin	22	119
Barry Settlemoir	21	166
Tristan Elliott	21	163
Suzanne Gulley	21	205
Amy Chilton	21	136
Michael Hall	21	160
Rob Nossaman	21	146
Tamra Upton	21	89
Donna Griffith	20	143
Tony Lewis	20	138
Roderick Ott	20	153
Angel Cook	20	123
Levell Kinchen	19	125
Rick Rocuant	19	111
William Dunn	18	143
Angi Orsini	18	128
Carl Burks	14	155

Walker March Madness Pool: Day 1

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 04:17:00 +0000

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

Thank you to all who have participated. I went from Monday morning, not wanting to do this, to picking up a record 40+ entries in just a few days. Because of this, obviously, we will have a record payout. I'll have more details this weekend.

Please check your bracket if you have a moment, and if you have any questions, let me know. If I don't have a tie breaker, I'll need to get that from you in the next couple of days.

I should mention, these scores are assuming that Kansas St. won their game. If this is not the case when I wake up in the morning, I'll update the scores.

Name	Points	Tiebreak
Eric Chilton	13	146
David Wagnon	13	180
Mike Bumgardner	13	143
Randy Spellins	13	160
Jason Harmon	12	164
Matt Arnold	12	151
Kyle Raible 1	12	0
Elizabeth Pollock 2	12	153
Jessica Walker	12	164
Roxane Martino	12	150
Blake Bumgardner	12	142
Gwen Bostic	12	175
Elizabeth Pollock 1	11	157
Donna Bumgardner	11	139
DJ Walker	11	128
Jared Selby 1	11	155
Cash	11	141
Jared Selby 3	11	150
Amy Chilton	11	136
Josh Simpson	11	140
Uncle/Gary	11	134
Stephen Shirley	11	126
Ryan Casey	11	120
Roderick Ott	11	153
Jason Holland	11	155
Michael Hussman	11	135
Shannon Horton	11	0
Nash Horton	10	0
Kylah Harmon	10	128
Greg Walker	10	135
Phillip Walker	10	159
Jared Selby 2	10	160
Chris Horton	10	0
Levell Kinchen	10	125
Lathan Harper	10	138
Geoff Owens	10	134
Craig	9	147
Cristi Walker	9	135
RJ Martino	9	225
Orsini	9	128
Lynn McLaughlin	9	119
Kyle Raible 2	9	0
Evan Teer	8	146
Wes May-hem	7	139

LROMMC 2011: Day 1

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 04:05:00 +0000

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

I believe I have everyone's bracket entered. If I have missed you, or if you think I missed one of your picks, please let me know and we'll get it squared away. Thank you to everyone who has participated this year.

I should mention, these scores are assuming that Kansas St. won their game. If this is not the case when I wake up in the morning, I'll update the scores.

Name	Points	Tiebreak
Randy Spellins	13	160
Lydia Dixon	13	180
Flint Allen	13	128
Eric Chilton	13	146
David Wagnon	13	180
Chris Johnson	13	133
Suzanne Gulley	13	205
Darren Tillery	12	140
Steve Habenicht	12	146
Jonathan Albright	12	123
Michael Hall	12	160
Brett Krebs	12	133
Gwen Bostic	12	175
Jerald Caffey	12	143
Amy Chilton	11	136
Barry Settlemoir	11	166
Jason Holland	11	155
DJ Walker	11	128
Rob Nossaman	11	146
Tony Lewis	11	138
Stephen Shirley	11	126
Roderick Ott	11	153
John McDaniel	11	148
Matthew Carpenter	11	143
Tristan Elliott	11	163
Donna Griffith	10	143
Lathan Harper	10	138
Levell Kinchen	10	125
Tamra Upton	10	89
Angel Cook	10	123
Orsini	9	128
Lynn McLaughlin	9	119
Rick Rocuant	9	111
Carl	7	155

March Madness 2011, how long before your bracket is busted.

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 17:18:00 +0000

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

March Madness is here. As in years past, my time is stretched pretty thin. I'll do my best to collect all the brackets and money before the first tip-off (not including the play-in game), but some might be collected Thursday evening. We will have to run on the honor system, and those that I anticipate receiving that evening, are very honorable people. If you have any issues with this, leave your concerns in the comments section. I will accept brackets via snail mail (postmarked by Wednesday) or received in person. The catch this year is that I will not be making runs all over town to pick up money and brackets. If you want to be part of this, you will need to either mail the bracket AND money to me, or you can drop them off at my house.

I'll put my address, phone number and email address at the end of this section. All you will need to do is print out the bracket from this link (ESPN is my preferred bracket), fill it out, put the bracket and either cash or check for your entry fee (still only $5 a bracket) in an envelope and send it to me.

Daily updates (daily as in game day) will be made on this website with the most up to date scores. I will not longer be doing daily emails, you'll just have to check back here to see who's winning (or how bad your are doing).

Contact Information
DJ Walker
148 Feldspar Drive
Sherwood, AR 72120
GravyTrain6@gmail.com
501-412-7634

A completed bracket should contain the following information:

A prediction for all 63 games of the tournament
The play-in games do not count for points. If you have a play-in game winner, winning a game in the tournament, you will have to pick the team however. For example, if you think West Virginia will lose their first round game, you will have to pick UAB or Clemson.
The entrants name, phone number, email and tiebreak point prediction. The contact information is only used for payouts. Don't worry about spam, I hate it as much as you do.

To be eligible for the pool money, an entry fee of $5.00 is required.

This fee must be received before tip off of the first game on Thursday (exceptions do apply as explained at the beginning of this post) or in an envelope postmarked by Wednesday before the first game.
Other brackets are readily accepted, however if the fee is received after the tipoff, no prize money will be rewarded to the entry.
All brackets received will be listed among the leaders and prize money eligibility will be denoted. I have found it interesting to see how individuals do, regardless of their interest in college basketball or pools.

Multiple brackets can be entered per person.

Each individual can have no more than 4 brackets eligible for prize money.
For every bracket entered, the entry fee is required in order to be eligible. If only a portion of entered brackets should be eligible, I have to be informed before the first game, otherwise, I will denote the eligible brackets based on the order I enter them in the system.

Prize disbursement will be determined as follows:

1st Place receives 60% of the final pool rounded up to the nearest whole dollar.
2nd Place receives 30% of the final pool rounded up to the nearest whole dollar.
3rd Place receives 10% of the final pool rounded off to complete the total prize pool.

Points will be awarded for winning picks as follows:

By picking the winner of a 1st round game, 1 point is awarded.
By picking the winner of a 2nd round game (correctly placing a team in the Sweet 16), 2 points are awarded.
By picking the winner of a Sweet 16 game (correctly placing a team in the Elite 8), 3 points are awarded.
By picking the winner of an Elite 8 game (correctly placing a team in the Final Four), 4 points are awarded.
By picking the winner of a Final Four game (correctly placing a team in the Championship game), 5 points are awarded.
By picking the winner of the Championship game (correctly predicting the NCAA National Champion), 6 points are awarded.

Tie Breaker

In the case of a tie at the end of the tournament, a tiebreak will be determined by the entry correclty guessing the TOTAL number of points scored by both teams in the Championship game.
If a tiebreaker is not provided at the time of bracket submission, a default tie breaker of 0 will be used.
The winning entry with the closest prediction to the actual total (whether going over or not) will be given the win. If both entries are equally close, the individual who chose lower than the actual total will be awarded the win.
In the case that none of the "Winners" submit a tiebreak prediction (or if the predictions are the same), the entrant with the most correct picks in the first round will be given the win.
If still tied, the 2nd round will be used, followed by the third round, etc.
If still no winner has been determined by the championship game, the entrants will share the title or position.

3rd Annual Little Rock Office March Madness Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 13:34:00 +0000

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

Welcome to the 3rd Annual Little Rock Office March Madness Challenge (LROMMC) 2011. The rules are simple and are included below. Since everyone is here in the office, it should be pretty easy to collect the brackets. I'll take a walk around the office on Monday to pass out brackets, another pass on Wednesday afternoon to collect brackets and a final walk on Thursday morning just before the first game to pick up the stragglers.

Daily updates (daily as in game day) will be made on this website with the most up to date scores. I will not longer be doing daily emails, you'll just have to check back here to see who's winning (or how bad your are doing).

A completed bracket should contain the following information:

A prediction for all 63 games of the tournament
The play-in games do not count for points. If you have a play-in game winner, winning a game in the tournament, you will have to pick the team however. For example, if you think West Virginia will lose their first round game, you will have to pick UAB or Clemson.
The entrants name, work extension, and tiebreak point prediction (see below). The contact information is only used for payouts.

Points will be awarded for winning picks as follows:

By picking the winner of a 1st round game, 1 point is awarded.
By picking the winner of a 2nd round game (correctly placing a team in the Sweet 16), 2 points are awarded.
By picking the winner of a Sweet 16 game (correctly placing a team in the Elite 8), 3 points are awarded.
By picking the winner of an Elite 8 game (correctly placing a team in the Final Four), 4 points are awarded.
By picking the winner of a Final Four game (correctly placing a team in the Championship game), 5 points are awarded.
By picking the winner of the Championship game (correctly predicting the NCAA National Champion), 6 points are awarded.

Tie Breaker

In the case of a tie at the end of the tournament, a tiebreak will be determined by the entry correclty guessing the TOTAL number of points scored by both teams in the Championship game.
If a tiebreaker is not provided at the time of bracket submission, a default tie breaker of 0 will be used.
The winning entry with the closest prediction to the actual total (whether going over or not) will be given the win. If both entries are equally close, the individual who chose lower than the actual total will be awarded the win.
In the case that none of the "Winners" submit a tiebreak prediction (or if the predictions are the same), the entrant with the most correct picks in the first round will be given the win.
If still tied, the 2nd round will be used, followed by the third round, etc.
If still no winner has been determined, by the championship game, the entrants will share the title or position.

The blog is back...although not linked up anywhere yet.

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 20:02:00 +0000

Probably no one is going to know this post is here. The rss feeds are jacked up, which means it won't post to facebook, anybody subscribed to me won't pick it up, and I'm pretty sure I have no followers on google's blogger network. Pretty much, no one knows I exist again, and that saddens me a little bit.

I'm hopeful I have my website back up correctly.

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 18:15:00 +0000

I've moved a few things around with my hosting company, made some setting changes with blogger, and hopefully, this means that my blog is once again pointing to the correct location. This blog post will determine if it is setup correctly. I'm not going to hold my breath as I made these changes as I was in a rush one morning.

Had to move the blog for now.

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Sat, 01 May 2010 04:49:00 +0000

Although I never use this anymore, Blogger discontinued support of their ftp upload. I haven't taken the time to point my blog back to ortort.com, so for now, although you can still go to ortort.com, you won't get any new posts, you'll have to go to ortort.blogspot.com.

This blog has moved

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Sat, 01 May 2010 01:49:00 +0000

This blog is now located at http://ortort.blogspot.com/.
You will be automatically redirected in 30 seconds, or you may click here.

For feed subscribers, please update your feed subscriptions to
http://ortort.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default.

I don't post for ages, and then all I do is complain.

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 19:38:00 +0000

I've got issues with customer service. I don't feel like I expect too much (and if you disagree, let me know in the comments...seriously, I need to be put in my place). Today's issue is in regards to sales. I'm trying to buy an enclosed trailer for my lawn care business.

Here's what I'm looking for. I want to talk to someone knowledgeable about the product. I want to be able to contact someone and get a call back if necessary. I want the salesman to sound like he is actually interested in selling me something. Last, but not least, if you tell me something, you better be telling me the whole truth.

I thought I had found the trailer I was going to buy. I talked to four locations. One was going out of business (Company A), didn't have the trailer I was looking for and wasn't getting any more. The next place (Company B) when I called said he was leaving for the day (at noon on a Tuesday) and would call me back later with all the information I needed. He actually did call me back, but not until 3:00 the next day. The next place (Company C) I left a message only to not get a call at all. Company D I actually went to last saturday and talked to salesman who quoted me a price on the exact trailer I was interested in. Tuesday I called only to leave a message. I never got called back. I called back and finally spoke to the same salesman and I found out what I needed to in order to buy the trailer today.

So today, I drive 20 minutes to the lot to place the order for the trailer. What I was looking for had to be custom ordered. On saturday, there was no extra fee for this request and there were several discounts for this and that. Today, however, a different salesman tells me that the other guy is new and that the price for the trailer is now $300 more. I was lied to. I had budgeted for the price I was told, only to find out it was a flat out lie.

I walked out of the office. Plain and simple, and at this point, I will not be going back, regardless of the price of the trailer. Company B is now looking like a great company because at least they called me back. Company C who didn't call me back, might still sell me a trailer because I'm going to go up there tomorrow and see what they can offer.

Honestly, I don't feel like I'm asking a lot. I'm willing to pay for what I want. In fact, if the guy on saturday would have told me the correct price, I'd be blogging about purchasing a new trailer right now. The money is not the issue, it is about the customer service. If I have issues with the trailer, I want to feel like I can contact the company and trust the response I get.

So there ya go, my latest issue with companies who manage to stay in business without even having to try at making a customer even somewhat satisfied.

The tournament is over

noreply@blogger.com (DJ Walker) — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 19:33:00 +0000

I know I'm a day or two late on this, but I've been sick the last couple of days and haven't had a chance to update the website with the final standings. As you can see, the winner is a 2 year old, followed by last year's winner and 3rd place goes to the most interesting bracket I get every year.

Pay out is $87, $44 and $14.

Name	Points	Tiebreak
Nash Horton	74	143
Greg Walker	70	145
Wes May-hem	67	145
Kylah Van Horn	66	161
Cristi Walker	66	150
Michael Huffman	66	130
Tim Shelton	63	0
DJ Walker	61	148
Chris Horton	59	156
Whitney Walker	58	167
Kyle Raible	56	156
Blake Bumgardner	55	144
Stephen Shirley	54	135
Phillip Walker	53	154
Craig 1	52	170
Matt Arnold	51	153
Donna Bumgardner	51	148
Nick	51	137
Randy Spellins	50	141
Geoff Owens 2	49	135
Jason Harmon	49	1061
Mike Bumgardner	49	157
Jared Selby	49	150
Uncle/Gary Reynolds	48	166
Craig 2	46	170
Kent Bryant	46	150
Jessica Walker	46	154
Geoff Owens 1	43	127
Eric Chilton	42	143
John Albritton	39	148