School Started On Monday (HEAVY SIGH)

And boy have we been stressed!! PJ started at Tapp Middle School which had its orientation last Thursday night. We rec'd a letter a while back saying that the school did not meet its test scores for Special Ed students so it was now a "Needs Improvement" school and we could choose to send our child to one of 2 other middle schools in the area as long as we provided transportation. I just disregarded that letter because Morgan went to Tapp for 3 years and the nearest alternative is 9 miles away, but my neighbor convinced us to re-consider so we went to one of the alternate schools to visit. Then we went to Tapp's orientation where the 6th grade admin. gave a presentation to parents and students which, when describing the dress code, included exhorting the girls to "cover their jewels." THEN, at the end of the presentation the woman read a poem by Maya Angelou and played a song by Fantasia. I couldn't even look at Patrick at that point because I KNEW I would just start laughing out loud. That kind of clinched the whole idea of switching schools. I don't mind diversity, but COME ON!!

I'm in an appraisal class this week so poor Patrick has had to deal with getting the principal to sign our ticket out of there (which she was not happy about doing), registering PJ at the new school, then having to go BACK to the first school to withdraw him. So, its been a busy week, but today PJ started at the new middle school and we will be carpooling with 2 other parents from Tapp so life may settle down again back to normal.

Here is a picture Josh sent a while back that I forgot to post.

5 Minute Management Course

It has been a while since I found something funny...I mean I have been in Arkansas for 2 days....this was pretty funny. 5 Minute Management Course Lesson 1: A man is getting into the shower just as his wife is finishing up her shower, when the doorbell rings.The wife quickly wraps herself in a towel and runs downstairs.When she opens the door, there stands Bob, the next-door neighbor.Before she says a word, Bob says, 'I'll give you $800 to drop that towel..' After thinking for a moment, the woman drops her towel and stands naked in front of Bob, after a few seconds, Bob hands her $800 and leaves. The woman wraps back up in the towel and goes back upstairs.When she gets to the bathroom, her husband asks, 'Who was that?''It was Bob the next door neighbor,' she replies.'Great,' the husband says, 'did he say anything about the $800 he owes me?' Moral of the story: If you share critical information pertaining to credit and risk with your shareholders in time, you may be in a position to prevent avoidable exposure. Lesson 2: A priest offered a Nun a lift. She got in and crossed her legs, forcing her gown to reveal a leg. The priest nearly had an accident. After controlling the car, he stealthily slid his hand up her leg. The nun said, 'Father, remember Psalm 129?'The priest removed his hand. But, changing gears, he let his hand slide up her leg again. The nun once again said, 'Father, remember Psalm 129?'The priest apologized 'Sorry sister but the flesh is weak.' Arriving at the convent, the nun sighed heavily and went on her way.On his arrival at the church, the priest rushed to look up Psalm 129. It said, 'Go forth and seek, further up, you will find glory.' Moral of the story: If you are not well informed in your job, you might miss a great opportunity. Lesson 3: A sales rep, an administration clerk, and the manager are walking to lunch when they find an antique oil lamp. They rub it and a Genie comes out. The Genie says, 'I'll give each of you just one wish.' 'Me first! Me first!' says the admin clerk. 'I want to be in the Bahamas , driving a speedboat, without a care in the world.' Puff! She's gone.'Me next! Me next!' says the sales rep. 'I want to be in Hawaii , relaxing on the beach with my personal masseuse, an endless supply of Pina Coladas and the love of my life.' Puff! He's gone. 'OK, you're up,' the Genie says to the manager. The manager says, 'I want those two back in the office after lunch.' Moral of the story: Always let your boss have the first say. Lesson 4: An eagle was sitting on a tree resting, doing nothing.A small rabbit saw the eagle and asked him, 'Can I also sit like you and do nothing?' The eagle answered: 'Sure, why not.'So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the eagle and rested. All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the rabbit and ate it. Moral of the story: To be sitting and doing nothing, you must be sitting very, very high up. Lesson 5: A turkey was chatting with a bull. 'I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree' sighed the turkey, 'but I haven't got the energy.' 'Well, why don't you nibble on some of my droppings?' replied the bull.They're packed with nutrients.' The turkey pecked at a lump of dung, and found it actually gave him enough strength to reach the lowest branch of the tree. The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch.Finally after a fourth night, the turkey was proudly perched at the top of the tree. He was promptly spotted by a farmer, who shot him out of the tree. Moral of the story: Bull Shit might get you to the top, but it won't keep you there...

5 Minute Management Course

What am I doing in Arkansas?

Good question that I have asked myself several times today. Technically I am here to hire a manager for a store we are opening in a WalMart in Rogers Arkansas. Just getting here is a bit of a challenge. The closest decent size city is Fayetteville (sp?)...flights from Dallas to Fayatteville were retarded. $450+ with a layover. What?!? It is an hour flight...how do you have a layover? There is nothing between Dallas and Arkansas to layover to... Of course Southwest Airlines flies to Tulsa which is only 100 miles or so from Rogers so that is the way I ended up going...Flight was only $130 with no layover but I get the added joy of a 100 mile drive through OK. Nice. This is the city where Wal Mart's home office is located so the fact that we are building a Campero in the first Wal Mart ever is supposed to be some sort of big deal. I don't consider any failed business idea a big deal unless it drags a company into the abyss. This is a bad idea and it will not be successful but, hey, I just do what I am told. Luckily, it won't drag us anywhere near the abyss but I can't see how this failure will help my career. On the bright side, I could be wrong and this could be an awesome idea...Yea, unfortunately my track record predicating this stuff is usually pretty good. To shed some light on this lovely little berg, I ate at an all you can eat BBQ Rib place tonight...Have you ever heard of such a thing? The waitress actually told me not to order the $15 entree' I had asked for because they had the $10 all you can eat rib special...It was very nice of her but it doesn't make me think this area is crawling with upper middle class rib (or chicken) eaters. There are probably 30 restaurants within 4 miles on this street with at least 10 empty buildings that were restaurants that have closed...another great indication of a place we want to build our new restaurant. Anyway, I am very excited about the 18 (yes, I wrote 18) interviews I have tomorrow...I am sure I will be blown away by the quality of the candidates and general hygenie of this group. Fun, Fun. As you can tell, I am doing a fine job of maintaining a very positive attitude toward this whole venture...hooray, well done, me. BTW--Donna-- the trip we talked about around the 15th is not going to happen. Sorry about that...we will get out there someday soon. Take care all. ron