Ray's Blog: Archive

I'm "upgrading"

I know there haven’t been many posts for a while and I wanted to fill you in on “why”. Besides being super busy with the restaurant in El Dorado and continuing to grow the marketing company in Texas, I have been researching other options for blogs and websites. I really like Tumblr. There are some wonderful things it can do, but for us, we need a bit more functionality. I have...

Aug 11th

2 tags

“The vaguely intimidating twentysomethings who prowl the corridors of the Austin...”

– SXSW 2011: The internet is over http://t.co/Fg0MXio via @guardian

Mar 16th

3 tags

Watch

Whitney’s Birthday at our restaurant. She was sufficiently embarrassed! So funny.

Mar 2nd

2 tags

Mar 1st

1 note

6 tags

Midget Wrestling Stole the Cheese

Saturday afternoon, I’m sitting in the restaurant, keeping an eye on parties and starting to get ready for the evening’s dine in service when the phone rings. My manager takes the call standing in front of me and says a few words about delivering a large order. Then her mouth drops & looking at me in amazement, she tries to hold back laughter. She tells the caller that she will...

Feb 27th

2 notes

Feb 3rd

4 tags

Oct 23rd

9 tags

On Government Intervention...

My friend Arthur (phenomenal guitarist, designer, clothing printer, & designer clothing retailer) posted a link of a CNN reporter/commentator commenting on Obama holding a “private meeting” to merge the two health care bills vs the promised televised public meetings [seen here]. After reading a few of the comments that suggested that no one has had any better ideas or that he was...

Oct 8th

2 tags

Smoke & Elevator Mirrors

Some background: My parents both used to smoke a few packs a day (before anyone knew the stuff was bad for you). About the time my brother was conceived (~39 years go), info was coming out about how it was bad for you and both my mom and dad quit smoking, cold turkey. Since then, they haven’t gone back and have a completely clean bill of health - that is important to remember for later in...

Aug 13th

1 note

4 tags

Countdowns & Counting

There are several countdowns I’ve been keeping my eye on. So, here is a quick update in “countdown” form: 25 days: 1st Razorback Game of the season!! (Woo Pig Sooie!) 30 days: Larry’s El Dorado Opens (give or take a week) 51 days: Archery Season (deer season!) 81 days: 1st p90x is complete (this hurts) 91 days: Our baby is due! 91 days: Opening day of Modern Gun (deer...

Aug 10th

tumblrbot asked: WHERE WOULD YOU MOST LIKE TO VISIT ON YOUR PLANET?

Aug 1st

2 tags

New blog is up: PizzaFoodie

Hey everyone. Given our new business venture, I’ve got a new blog up that I will be camping on and going BIG! www.PizzaFoodie.com. There isn’t much there yet, but subscribe and check back. We are about to blow it up!

Jul 20th

Paul D. Ryan: A GOP Road Map for America's Future... →

Are you open minded enough to read and consider this? Great points and some great ideas!

Jun 4th

6 tags

Apr 22nd

2 tags

Apr 16th

2 tags

Quick Update

Another busy month has FLOWN by. I’m sorry that I haven’t posted anything lately. We are starting a restaurant in South Arkansas so time is scarce and I really can’t say much until all the papers are signed anyway. In short, Katie has retired from teaching and joined me in a family venture to start an investment group and a few small businesses. We will be moving in April to...

Mar 30th

11 tags

Watch

The second must watch MOVIE!

Feb 12th

15 tags

Watch

A must watch MOVIE!

Feb 12th

11 tags

Feb 7th

11 tags

“Let It Be Me” on the album...

Feb 4th

12 tags

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Photos & Video: Katie and I enjoying the winter weather with the pups! Some Favorite Photos: Click Here to see more of our Winter 2010 photos!

Jan 30th

15 tags

iPad: not inventing a new category... resurrecting...

Have we all forgotton? I DID! … I remember a time when my electronic planner was not connected to a cellular network. I remember a time when I had to carry only the data I needed, but I could use this bulky piece of equipment (with a touch screen) for taking notes, managing contacts, calculating, and running a few basic programs. What was it? It was a personal digital assistant! A PDA! ...

Jan 30th

10 tags

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Video & Review of the Apple iPad It’s amazing! Yesterday, instead of the State of the Union campaign speech, Katie and I decided to watch the Steve Jobs’s Keynote Address. We had heard that Apple would be releasing their “Tablet” computer and we were excited to see their developments. We are both iPhone users. Our emails, calendars, contacts, etc are synced with our...

Jan 29th

15 tags

Jan 26th

9 tags

Watch

VIDEO: They are about to raise the debt ceiling!! Currently, we owe: 12,245,872,000,000 Figures on government spending and debt (last six digits are eliminated). The government's fiscal year runs Oct. 1 through Sept. 30. Total public debt subject to limit Jan. 22 12,245,872 Statutory debt limit 12,394,000 Total public debt outstanding Jan. 22 12,302,465 Operating balance Jan. 22 ...

Jan 26th

16 tags

NFL Playoffs: Championship Picks

Ok, I’ve waited all week. I don’t want to pick. The truth is, I have NO IDEA who will win these games today! Colts vs Jets: Ok, an objective opinion would say that the Colts will pass all over the Jets, but the Jets are having an incredible year & they don’t have to play THAT much better to pull out a win here! Painter isn’t starting for the Colts, so that is a blow...

Jan 24th

10 tags

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VIDEO: Penn Jillette, a famous comedian, magician, & performer who is also an atheist shares his thoughts on an encounter with someone sharing their faith with him. See more candid “Penn Says” videos at Crackle PS: There maybe some harsh language in some of them.

Jan 23rd

15 tags

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Jon Stewart Calls Out Keith Olberman… You know it’s bad when even Jon Stewart thinks Olberman went too far.

Jan 22nd

12 tags

Jan 20th

6 tags

Brown Wins Massachusetts Senate Seat, Potentially... →

WOW! This is HUGE!

Jan 20th

5 tags

Jan 20th

7 tags

Jan 19th

2,856 notes

12 tags

NFL Playoffs

The Games: Sat. 3:30 PM CT Arizona at New Orleans FOX Sat. 7:15 PM CT Baltimore at Indianapolis CBS Sun. 12:00 PM CT Dallas at Minnesota FOX Sun. 3:40 PM CT NY Jets at San Diego CBS My Picks: Saints, Colts, Cowboys, & Jets Most of these are complete toss ups! The Saints will have a tough game vs the Cardinals. I look to another offensive battle here. Warner has the experience...

Jan 16th

13 tags

Dec 24th

14 tags

My Christmas PlayList!

I’m not the type of person that can handle the 24/7 Christmas radio station. (No one really can. That is why Sheriff Joe Arpaio ordered that the music be “played throughout his jail system through the holiday season!”) Although I remember a time shortly after College that Wax, Ben & I forced all of our roommates to listen to nothing but Christmas for the entire season -...

Dec 17th

10 tags

The Broken Ankle Adventure

(photo album at the bottom) Monday night, I decided to go on a run. I had been in a while so the plan was to take it nice and slow so I can ease back into the swing of things. I ran 2.13 miles in about 30:03 with the cool down (keeping track of it on RunKeeper - an app I decided to test and review over several runs). I was feeling good. I stretched and showered. I hadn’t pushed so hard that I...

Dec 13th

12 tags

Watch

Movie Review: Julie & Julia Another movie Katie and I watched yesterday was Julie & Julia. I thought this would be a “chick flick” but it was actually right up my ally for 3 reasons: 1st, I love food & cooking 2nd, I blog & like writing & 3rd, I watched some of Julia Child when I was growing up. She was much older at the time, but Meryl Streep’s...

Dec 9th

8 tags

Watch

Movie Review: UP Yesterday afternoon, while I was home with the broken ankle, Katie and I decided to watch Disney/Pixar’s “UP”. I told her that I would do some work while she watched it since it was a kids’ movie, but when it started, I became as involved with the characters as she did. There were definitely some dumb/silly kid moments, but the overall plot &...

Dec 9th

10 tags

Dec 9th

4 tags

Dec 7th

10 tags

Redneck Bank Loan. Never underestimate a Cowboy.

A Redneck cowboy from Sweetwater, Texas, walked into a bank in New York City and asked for the loan officer. He told the loan officer that he was going to Paris for an International Redneck Festival and would be gone for two weeks. He needed to borrow $5,000 but he was not a depositor in that bank. The bank officer told him that the bank would needsome form of security for the loan, so the Redneck...

Dec 2nd

16 tags

Oops! Leaked emails expose Global Warming Hoax!

“Global Warming” scientist were further exposed yesterday as email exchanges between several “noted” climatologist were released online after a hacker broke into the CRU server and published the data on a Russian server. In the emails, they talk about how to suppress data and other scientist that do not validate their beliefs! They even talk about redefining what a...

Nov 24th

8 tags

Nov 5th

10 tags

BIG NEWS for Fort Smith JOBS!

Two big stories broke last week & it could mean HUGE opportunities for the Fort Smith jobs market in the future. 1st: Whirlpool: Recall of 150 workers possible This is big news for workers of the local Whirlpool plant (WHR) that laid off about 300 workers a few months ago. The news comes as they investigate the possibility of increasing the production in the refrigeration portion of the...

Oct 19th

24 tags

Health Care, HB3200, & the US Chamber of Commerce

The US Chamber of Commerce released two charts explaining the difference in the current health care system and how the new health care system would look as explained in House Bill 3200. To download these charts as a PDF visit: http://bit.ly/HB3200ByUSCC or click on one of the images to view the whole PDF file. It is widely agreed that the proposed new system would hurt small businesses - who...

Oct 13th

15 tags

Watch

Bobby Petrino on ESPN’s College Football Live. Great interview! GO HOGS!

Oct 7th

13 tags

Swimming with Sharks

A Business Broker’s take on “Shark Tank” - by Ray Ellen, Owner & Intermediary for CBI Sunbelt The show, Shark Tank has caught my attention & deservedly so! I have been watching it for a few weeks and the application for small business owners is enormous! In the show, business owners and entrepreneurs present their business before a panel of “Sharks” - titans...

Sep 29th

10 tags

SBA to Ease Limits on Loans for Buyouts →

The Small Business Administration, after enduring a backlash from lenders and business appraisers, plans Oct. 1 to modify a restriction it had placed on loans used to finance acquisitions of small companies. In March, the SBA, capped the guarantee it was willing to extend on “goodwill” financing, which is the amount of a loan used to purchase an existing business’s intangible...

Sep 21st

4 tags

Sell Products Online EASILY with Google's New...

Hello all! Today, as I read through the news, I noticed some thing that I just had to share with business owners. Google has another new “gadget” for your websites & blogs that will allow you to easily sell your products online! This is truely a game changer for small businesses! On Google’s Website they outline how to do this with three easy steps: Sign up for a Google...

Aug 5th

1 tag

Quick update on the Move!

Hey all! Thanks for all your prayers as we move! Here is a quick update of where we are: Housing We are moving out this Friday, July 31st! Actually very busy packing up the house right now! Oh, the smell of tape and cardboard… We’ll have pix and video when we get settled in. Katie’s Job Katie will be working as a Kindergarden teacher in the Alma School district! We are really...

Jul 29th