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Hello 2009

Mon, 05 Jan 2009 10:55:47 GMT

I’d like to first throw a big “hey ya” over to Ryan while I commence to play off his latest blog. I too, am not one for resolutions, they always remind me of the things that people say they are going to do, most never do, and they are typically things they should have already been doing so it defeats the purpose of true change to wait until the beginning of the year….if you are truly willing to change, then change in the moment, don’t wait, life is ultimately too short to put things off! Okay, I just went into a complete rant, whatever. As I step down off my soap box, which is rather tall because, like Ryan, I am not getting any taller and reach a whooping 5’1”, I must say that 2008 was a great year!

I feel amazing going into 2009, it is going to be a year of challenges, but great expectations lie ahead. I feel confident we will continue to bring great deals to our customers and that our competition will continue to be admirable foes, great competition helps us all. We have to approach the coming years differently, but I believe we are all prepared to do so and there is great courage in stepping up to the challenge. As always, we appreciate all our patrons and colleagues, welcome to 2009!

Have great character…that’s what I’m going to leave you with until my next blog, which will actually be about product or something to do with product :)

Thanks for a great year,

Tifanie

Goodbye 2008

Tue, 30 Dec 2008 16:41:57 GMT

What a year it has been. I haven’t experienced a year quite like this. At the end of the year, everyone comes up with resolutions about things they want to accomplish in the coming year. Tops on these lists are things related to exercise and weight loss, quitting of a bad habit, organize things, or some personal life accomplishment.

I have never been one for resolutions so I will go another year without making them (and therefore can’t break any of them and go thru the guilt complex that comes with breaking resolutions!!!). I will however make a few predictions for this upcoming year as it relates to my interest.

The Arkansas Razorbacks will improve in football this coming year!
The St. Louis Cardinals will finish with a better record than the Chicago Cubs
The Lakers will be in the NBA finals again this year but will win it all!!
I will run a 5k this year (I am not a runner but figure why not, all my friends are getting into marathon running so I will dip my toe in)
Politics will matter less to people now that the election is over
I won’t get any taller this year and will get a year older

Most of these are hopes of mine but the last I can see is accurate. I will however vow to blog more next year to keep you all informed of things going on here at Walmart as well as stuff I see or opinions that I have. Enjoy the final day of 2008 and get ready for 2009!!

Just Call Me Claüs

Fri, 26 Dec 2008 10:32:42 GMT

I am sure you have seen the commercial where the gift of a wireless phone changes Santa Claus into Claüs. I know I am biased, but I simply love this commercial.

Now that Claüs is done with his duties for this year and you have untied all the bows, unwrapped all the boxes, rummaged through every stocking…some wishes may have been forgotten as he was texting his posse. If a phone was missing from your stash, let me recommend a few below.

Palm Centro (AT&T, Verizon, Sprint)

You can go Centro just like Santa. This device is a cool full-keyboard phone with a touch screen. It is pretty compact and is very aggressively priced (Free on AT&T and Verizon)!

LG Dare (Verizon)

A full-featured touch screen phone, with a 3.2 Megapixel camera, GPS, and full Web Access. You can come in today and get it for only $99.88 for either New or Existing Customers with 2-Year New or Qualified Upgrade contracts!

LG Vu (AT&T)

Another great touch screen phone with all the features. Best additional offer is that in certain markets you can also get Live TV. No, not TV clips…actual live television programming on your phone. Killer application. This is only $48.88 for New and Existing customers.

Blackberry Pearl Flip (T-Mobile)

Great texting device with a hybrid keyboard and Blackberry’s only flip phone. Really slick looking phone and is a steal for only $28.88 out the door for New and Existing Customers.

I would be remised is I didn’t link this: http://walmartstores.com/FactsNews/NewsRoom/8873.aspx

And as Santa would say: mry xmas 2 all and 2 all a gud nite ;-)>

Super Bowl and the Boss

Tue, 23 Dec 2008 14:35:51 GMT

Yes, it is coming up on one of my favorite times of the year. As I write this, the Steelers lost to Tennessee but remain firmly in the playoff hunt. I am of course referring to the National Football League and the SuperBowl. Surely this event needs no introduction. If the Black ‘n’ Gold are able to advance, I plan on hosting a party at my house with some friends.

Now, we normally talk about gaming and technology here. We will cover that at the end, have no fear gentle reader. If you plan on having such a party like I may be, you may want to check out these items. I expect that many of these will be consumed by friends and Family at the Muha household if my team advances through the playoffs.

A classic and still a favorite is Franks in a Blanket. This package retails for a mere $9.88 at Sam’s Club and will keep your guests satisfied. If that was not enough, be sure to check out the pick ‘n’ pack Frito products. You get two bags for just $5.88.

Another item that is sure to please your hungry fans are the Planters Deluxe Mixed Nuts. These are a great value at Sam’s Club for $10.87 (except AK and HI).

All this food writing is making me hungry so I will only list a few more. Do not forget the Meatballs (one of my favorites, with a little sauce to spice them up), Mozzarella Sticks and Cheddar Cheese Poppers. Seriously, Sam’s has you covered with some great food items to make your Super Bowl party, well pardon the pun, Super!

All that said, if you are hosting the game, it may be a challenge to have your friends gather around the 12” Black and White television. You may consider upgrading while at Sam’s Club.

Our TV buyer tells me that this Television has dropped to $998 for the 40” version. The 46” and 52” versions are priced at $1298 and $1997 respectively. They are all 1080p widescreen picture in picture units. Of course, Samsung is the official television of the NFL. These units can make all the things you want to see on the big screen look amazing. What an incredibly cool way to watch your favorite teams, play games and watch movies.

OK, you have the food, you have the television and now we are almost set. This brings us to gaming. You knew you were not getting away from here without some cool gaming news. Bruce Springsteen has a new album coming out called “Working on a Dream” on January 27^th. It has also been announced that The Boss will perform at halftime during the Super Bowl. Activision is providing a great value to Guitar Hero World Tour owners. They are releasing two Bruce Springsteen tracks as downloadable content for the PS3, 360 and Wii from 1/27/09 and 2/4/09 at no additional charge. The tracks are the new “My Lucky Day” and the classic “Born to Run”.

So, I will continue to cheer for Blitzburgh, Troy Polamalu, Ben Roethlisberger, Willie Parker, Jeff Reed, James Harrison and Coach Tomlin. We are working on our 6^th Lombardi Trophy and that would help fill out the trophy room at the Rooney’s. If the boys from the Steel City go all the way, you can be sure there will be at least one party in Northwest Arkansas.

You can have a great Super Bowl party regardless of who makes it to the big game as well. Just start off right at Sam’s Club. If you are a Guitar Hero World Tour and/or a Bruce fan, you may want to entertain your guests with a little theatrics of your own. Who is ready for some playoff football?

Games of the Year: Our Selections

Mon, 22 Dec 2008 14:51:36 GMT

It is coming to the close of another year. With that thought in mind, we kicked this one around the office and solicited the opinions of many folks to come up with these. Our team has put together our choices for Games of the Year (GOTY) and some honorable mentions. Like any other list that comes out this time of year, there will be plenty of disagreements and maybe some agreements.

Regardless of the selections, one thing is certain: this has been a fantastic year for gaming. As a buyer and an enthusiast, it sure has been fun. Our criterion? We only had two:

1) The game had to be available on the platform (or in the case of overall, not platform specific).

2) AND released in this calendar year.

We gave our panel a very large sandbox in which to play. They took advantage of it as you will see below.

So, with out any further delay, here are our categories and winners for Games of the Year.

CATEGORY: Sony PlayStation Portable

3^rd place – Shaun White Snowboarding

2^nd place – Patapon

WINNER – God of War: Chains of Olympus

CATEGORY: Nintendo DS

3^rd Place – Final Fantasy IV

2^nd Place – Lego Indiana Jones

WINNER – Guitar Hero On Tour

CATEGORY: Nintendo Wii

3^rd Place – Super Smash Bros Brawl

2^nd Place – Wii Fit

WINNER – Mario Kart

CATEGORY: Microsoft Xbox 360

3^rd Place – Fable 2

2^nd Place – Grand Theft Auto IV

WINNER - Gears of War 2

CATEGORY: Sony PlayStation 3

3^rd Place – Resistance 2

2^nd Place – Little Big Planet

WINNER – Metal Gear Solid 4

CATEGORY: OVERALL GOTY (not platform specific)

3^rd Place – Wii Fit

2^nd Place – Resistance 2

WINNER – Fallout 3

Before we went to print this, there was lots of jostling back and forth from our distinguished panel. One interesting note, Fallout 3 was a pretty clear winner for the overall GOTY. Each of us was limited to a 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd place vote by platform and by overall GOTY. As the buyer, I broke all ties.

Congratulations to all of the winners and honorable mentions. While it does not have the cache of the Oscars, Emmys or other awards, we think it was fun to do. Hopefully, it may spur some discussion here on-line. What is missing from our list? Where are we wrong and where did we get it right?

Seriously ... one of the cutest ads ever!

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 16:29:56 GMT

One week 'til Christmas and I'm getting really excited! And, with that excitement comes some exhaustion! So much to do and it seems overwhelming. I imagine you are all as busy as I am getting ready. Finishing up Christmas gift shopping. Writing out and sending the Christmas cards. Getting the house ready for guests. Getting ready to feed those guests. Prepping for travel. This week I saw for the first time one of the Walmart Christmas ads and it was adorable, and a good reminder of why all the prep and running around is worthwhile. Check it out …

Stocking Stuffer Alert!!

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 14:26:18 GMT

Okay gang, Christmas is around the corner and stockings around the world need some love! So for the record, I’m a little partial to the things I would like to see in my stocking so here goes my top 10 list so get to stuffing!!

1) iPhone accessories *preferably a pink cover if you’re taking hints*

2) Guitar Hero World Tour XBOX 360 video game

3) Britney Spears…Circus CD

It doesn’t get better than “Womanizer” ladies.

4) Beyonce…I Am Sasha Fierce CD

Such a fun CD, energetic, sassy, and intriguing. You gotta love “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)”, it’s a single girl’s anthem for sure, at least if you’re a feisty female! If you’ve not watched the SNL skit with Justin Timberlake doing a parody of this video, you must go watch immediately….I seriously laughed so hard my abs hurt!

And have you seen the video for “If I Were A Boy”, it has a twist, go check it out.

www.myspace.com/beyonce

www.beyonceonline.com

http://soundcheck.walmart.com/beyonce.aspx

5) Kung Fu Panda DVD

6) Digital Photo Frame

7) iTunes Gift Card

8) Sony Memory Stick

9) iPod headphones *mine are about worn out, again, only if you’re taking hints*

10) Jimmy Wayne (oh, what I meant to say is the Jimmy Wayne…Do You Believe Me Now CD)

Great Video Game Gift Ideas

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 09:53:15 GMT

Great Gaming Gift Ideas for 2008

There are 7 more shopping days before Christmas and I am sure there are some people like me that still have some shopping left to do. So for those of you with kids of all ages on your list, I thought I might offer some video game suggestions. Of course the video game hardware is HOT, Wii is a ton of fun – this is on my Dad’s Christmas list. XB360 is a great gaming system at a super price. And the PS3 is a game machine and a BluRay player all in one.

As far as software is concerned our customers are telling us that these are some of the best games of the year:
NDS Super Mario Brothers
NDS Guitar Hero on Tour
360 Gears of War
360/PS3 Grand Theft Auto 4
Wii/360/PS3 Madden NFL 2009
Wii Fit Balance Board
Wii Mario Kart with a Wheel
Wii Play with Wii Remote
Wii Super Smash Brothers
Wii Zapper

And don’t forget one of my favorites…
PS3/360/Wii/PS2 AC/DC Track Pack – recently on Rollback to $29.92

If you buy a hardware system make sure you get an extra controller or two or three so more friends and family can join in the fun!

Hope you all have a wonderful 2009!

How I spent last week and Saturday

Mon, 15 Dec 2008 17:58:19 GMT

Sam Walton once said,

“Celebrate your successes. Find some humor in your failures. Don’t take yourself so seriously. Loosen up, and everybody around you will loosen up. Have fun. Show enthusiasm - always. When all else fails, put on a costume and sing a silly song. Then make everybody else sing with you. Don’t do a hula on Wall Street. It’s been done. Think up your own stunt. All of this is more important, and more fun, than you think…”

So what does this have to do with videogames? Well, glad you asked. A few months ago, we had one of the Vice Presidents of Activision and his local team come in and show off Guitar Hero World Tour at one of our Saturday Morning meetings. In case you did not know, these are monthly meetings where all of the management teams from the Home Offices get together and discuss the business. In addition, we often have inspirational guests to come in and share their stories so we can learn more about success, business, current events, problem solving and the like. In my short 17 years with the company, I think I have learned more at these meetings than I did during my MBA program. The culture and inspiration run deep. During that meeting, your humble author got to play and with the Activision team. We put on a fun show. Our CEO, Lee Scott, asked our Sam’s Club President, Doug McMillon and Mr. Scott’s other direct reports to play against each other at an upcoming meeting. Well, that is when this adventure began. We worked together to come up with a friendly competition.

Here is what became of it. Mr. Scott’s direct reports formed two bands. One played Rock Band 2 and the other Guitar Hero World Tour. Mr. Scott picked his own team. He was going to play bass guitar. His team also included one of my Wal-Mart counterparts, Matt Shy on Drums, a special vocalist (more on that later) and me on lead guitar. You have heard of two-a-days for football camps, well we had 4 a days with the executive teams teaching them how to play Rock Band and Guitar Hero. As you might imagine they are a competitive bunch. No one wanted to fail out. Yes, I can say I got to teach the CEO of Wal-Mart Stores Inc how to play Guitar Hero World Tour last week. We went from a humble start, to Mr Scott getting over a 90% on the Lenny Kravitz song, “Are You Gonna Go My Way?” We saw that the other bands were getting good with Bon Jovi’s “Livin’ on a Prayer: and AC/DC’s “Back in Black.” The pressure was mounting.

On Saturday, we got to the location at 6:00 AM and it was PACKED with folks. The event team had arranged the meeting to be broadcast to various locations around the world. We had fake security, an announcer and one of our judges was none other than American Idol judge, Randy Jackson. If you think he is funny and inspiring on television, you should hear him in person. He also introduced his new line of eyewear for men. Very stylish!

The pressure was great, but all of the bands were up to the challenge. The first two bands ROCKED the house. Their cheering sections went wild and they even tried to influence the judges. Our band was last. Mr. Scott, Matt and myself were announced and we took the stage. Then came the big announcement. Our singer was none other than David Cook from American Idol and music fame. He put on one heck of a show. The man can sing and really got the crowd fired up. On top of that, he really seemed like a genuinely nice person. He took pictures with his fans, signed autographs and was friendly with folks.

Next up, the judges made their decision. It was close, but Mr. Scott’s team pulled out a narrow victory, kind of like my beloved Pittsburgh Steelers did on Sunday against the Ravens. My company BlackBerry was going wild with e-mails from co-workers. It seemed that everyone had a really great time. Who would have thought that a video game could move a team of business people to express themselves in such a fun way in front of thousands of people?

So, that was my week. Thought I would share my fun with you. To say this was a high point would be an understatement. Fellow Pittsburgher, Andy Warhol said, "In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes." I cannot argue with him. If he is correct, I think I used up about 5 of mine last week. It was well spent. Special thanks to my team at Sam’s Club for holding down the fort while I was practicing, the Jennifers, Willie and Mark from the meeting team, Wade and Wes from Wal-Mart Television, all the executives, David Cook, Randy Jackson. Activision and EA and Matt from the Wal-Mart buying team. You all made this happen.

Unleash your inner Rock god (or godess) for less at Sam’s Club

Tue, 09 Dec 2008 11:14:20 GMT

Hope you all have recovered from lots of turkey and Black Friday. It was a really exciting time here in the home office. Glad to see that Members responded to the plans that the merchants and operators put together. Our season is not over yet as you might imagine.

We have been hard at work with our partners at Activision. Yes, after frying lots of turkeys for friends, neighbors and family at the house over the holiday, we returned to figuring out ways to help our Members stretch your dollars even farther at Sam’s Club. We know it is a tough holiday and we are looking for more ways to provide superior value. Here is what we did for our Members.

By now, we have all heard of the great, genre defining game, Guitar Hero. If you have not, it is time that you have! Where have you been? A quick Google or a You Tube search should get you up to speed pretty quickly. It is available on various consoles like the 360, Wii,PS3 and PS2. The latest version is called Guitar Hero World Tour and we worked with Activision on a plan. If we can help folks out this holiday season, we think we can sell more units. So, we put our thinking caps on and are announcing today that we have dropped the price to $77.77 for the Wii, 360 and PS3 versions (The PS2 version will drop to $68.88). Yes, this is the same game that sold for about $100 everywhere else before the price drop. We plan on keeping it at this price for as long as we can, but it is entirely dependent upon the sales. As long as sales are strong, we will keep it at the new price. I have not seen a lower price at any retailer, so we are really doing what we can to help our Members get more for their bucks.

In addition, Activision is making some downloadable songs available at no additional charge with the purchase of these units through 12/31/08 (on the systems that have downloadable content and capability). This makes the value even more outstanding.

So, you can be the star and rock out this holiday season and be the hit of your festive gatherings. It is a great time in a box for almost all ages and a real crowd pleaser.

What do you think of this offer? Know of anyone who has been good this year and should get to enjoy such an item?

And so the lion fell....

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 17:26:24 GMT

Grab your popcorn and gummy worms and get to the theater if you haven’t already seen Twilight. And grab the soundtrack while you are at it because it is sweet! Yes I know, I’m a little beyond the demographic to be jazzed about the series, but I cannot help it. You see it all began the summer I turned 32….just kidding, it all began about 3 months ago when I was brought into a room with the movie buyer and a room full of studio & music Execs giving us the rundown on a little movie hitting the theaters 11/21/08, Twilight. I admit I knew nothing of the book series before entering the room and the closest I’ve gotten to knowing anything about the series is I kept getting buttons on Facebook that I didn’t have a clue what they were referencing with things like “the forbidden fruit always tastes the sweetest”, and “so the lion fell in love with the lamb”….I thought what is this teeny bopper phenomenon that is occurring, I could’ve cared less honestly. Well that was until I watched a couple trailers for the soon to be theatrical and perused some licensed hoodies, t-shirts, mugs, etc. From that moment I was all about finding out more about this series of books. We were lucky enough to screen the film weeks before it hit theaters in order to decide our interest as buyers and I actually left the screening on a mission to go back and read the first book…who does that!! Typically one reads the book prior to watching the movie, but I had a ferocious appetite for knowledge of the characters after watching the movie, I wanted to know more and I wanted to know it immediately.

I can’t wait for the remaining movies to release over the next 3-4 years, I am going to read the remaining books with break neck speed because I want to know what happens <> <> to think I am going to take that much time out of my life to delve into something that I’m supposedly not the demographic; oh, you gotta get into it if you aren’t already people!!

www.stepheniemeyer.com/twilight.html

www.twilightthemovie.com

Blitz, here is the scoop!

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 16:07:28 GMT

Well, as we indicated in previous blogs, we are letting out some of the great items we will have at Sam’s Club on the Friday after Thanksgiving. This is commonly referenced as Black Friday or Blitz Friday. So, I rounded up some of the elves here in the Sam’s Club Home office to see what they have been working on for all of our Members this year. As you can imagine, folks have been busy and we are really proud of what we can offer.

As this article is written by the gaming guy at Sam’s, I am going to go first. (I guess that is my prerogative dear readers).

Yes, this is the real one and the real price. We have a Wii Bundle that includes the Wii Hardware unit, a TOTAL of 3 Wii-motes, 3 Nunchuks (the console has one, so this is two additional Wii-motes and Nunchuks) Mario Super Sluggers and King of Clubs (so that is 3 games total as Wii Sports comes with the console). That is a $450 value. We will have this for $425.00. We have a good many units for the clubs, but we expect this will sell out very briskly. This may be one to cause folks to get up early. We know many folks are looking for a Wii and we have them!

We are not done there. Here is the Special DS bundle we put together with Nintendo.

This includes a Metallic Rose DS, Nintendogs Labrador, Purr Pals, A Princess Peach Bling Kit and a Princess Peach Stylus/Game Case. This is a $220 value. We will have this for $199.88. We also expect this will sell out as well.

We have also loaded the clubs with Wii Fit units, which should also sell rather rapidly. Be sure to check our flyer in club as well as the video game run for some other great items. There will be some special pricing on the remaining inventory of Grand Theft Auto IV and Midnight Club LA on that day as well.

Okay, enough about my favorite topic. Now, on to computers. As you know, I am an Apple fanatic, but this deal even has me looking twice. Our computer buyer has put together this!

The Blitz ad says $350 but Santa called and challenged him to do better. So now Sam’s is at new price of $345 and an additional $20 case value is included. This is an 8.9" WSVGA Acer CrystalBrite TFT LCD (1024 x 600) with an Intel Atom Processor, 1GB Memory, 120GB Hard Drive and a Crystal Eye Webcam. WOW. That information tells me that Sam’s really put together a great item for our Members! This unit is great for surfing the net, e-mail and is a nice netbook.

Next up is cameras. The camera buyer has some super items for folks on your list (or maybe yourself) as well. Look at this:

Yes, that is a Nikon S550 which retails for $149 at most places. Sam’s will have it for $129.87. Whoa, I sure hope you have been good this year! If that was not enough, check out:

The Samsung camcorder that usually sells for $200 will be in the clubs for $179.72. Capture those special moments and you can bring them to life on your television. Oh, the old television is not quite up to handling all of the newest technology and the digital conversion? Sam’s Club has you covered.

Our TV buyer has also been working on great values for our Members. Here is a 42” Philips 1080p LCD.

The ad says $898, but he got a call from the North Pole. With a little bit of persuasion, the long distance caller was able to get the retail down to, get this, $798 at Sam’s Club!! You can add a Sony Blu-Ray player that normally sells for $277.87 for just $197.87.

To really enjoy all of the benefits of Sam’s Club, you should consider being a Member or giving the gift of Membership. I know I will be in the clubs on Friday. It is really awesome to be able to work with such a great team of folks here in the office. They all are working for the benefit of our Members. I am confident that my family and I will have a terrific Thanksgiving. Hope you do the same. Eat, drink and be merry on Thanksgiving for on Friday, we shop!

So, what do you think? Does Sam’s have you covered this year?

We are at it again!! (this is fun)

Mon, 24 Nov 2008 08:45:58 GMT

Have someone really difficult to shop for on your list this year? Do you know a special someone who has been really good and a gamer, but has everything? Sam’s Club may have you covered. In the event you missed out on the Metal Gear Solid 4 Solid Snake statue or the Brotherhood of Steel statue from Fallout 3, have no fear. We have something available and if you can put up with a little delayed gratification, one more thing. (If I could only say the “one more thing” in a pair of Levi’s and a black turtleneck, I wonder if folks would pay attention.)

Yup, there he is, Cliff Bleszinski. No, you do not actually get him, but something pretty cool from him. Mr. Bleszinski and Mr. Mark Rein have signed a copy of Gears of War 2, Limited Edition and Sam’s Club has it on our auction site.

Bleszinski has been a key visionary behind the award-winning, multimillion selling “Unreal” series and the 2006 Game of the Year, “Gears of War.” Mark Rein is the Vice President of Epic Games. These folks created the Unreal Engine and the franchise of the same name. Rein also worked at id software as well. So you have two industry titans signing a copy of a blockbuster limited edition of a game. You can also get the regular version of Gears of War 2, unsigned, at Sam's Club. I doubt that many folks have something like this on their list and fewer will have it in their hands. We are so very pleased to be able to offer this to you and are very pleased that our good partners at Microsoft helped us.

Oh, and one more thing (did I get your attention?)…

If you can be a little bit patient, this is now on auctions as well:

Yes, a Locust Bust from Gears of War 2. Man, this looks like it is alive! It will not ship until the 1^st quarter of 2009, but WOW. This is another really cool item that we are offering up for auction. Yes, we have been busy finding really cool items, but that may not be the only things we are offering up this season. Stay tuned.

We really love doing things like this for our Members. It really helps folks to see how valuable a Membership to Sam’s Club is and how special the relationship is between our company and our Members. Hey, that may be a great gift as well. If you know a gamer who is not a Member, why not give the gift of Membership? It can provide an entire year of great selection and prices to someone on your list. We also sell a lot more than just games, but to really enjoy all of the benefits, a Membership to Sam’s Club is key.

Hope you are taking some time out of your routine for some gaming. I am backed in with Fallout 3 (just finished last night), Saint’s Row 2 and Fable 2. Too many games and not enough time!!

So what do you think? Having trouble finding something unique for gift giving this year? Does this help?

It's never too early to spread thanks!

Wed, 19 Nov 2008 10:04:54 GMT

Hunger isn’t something most people think about every day. Sure, it's mid-morning and I skipped breakfast so my tummy is growling up a storm, but that’s not what I mean. What I mean is this … I don’t think every day about how long it will be before I can afford my next meal. I don’t think every day about the millions of people living in this country who go to bed hungry every night. With Thanksgiving a week away, I'm not worried that my family won't have dinner on the table.

According to a recent USDA report, 36.2 million Americans, and that includes 12.4 million children, lived meal-to-meal in 2007, rarely knowing when the next meal will come. Unbelievable.

Today the Wal-Mart Foundation donated $2.5 million to Feeding America. This is money that will be used to provide the organization with new refrigerated trucks to transport food. And, on top of that, Walmart is donating food to Feeding America - enough by the end of 2009 to provide about 70 million meals! I know you might be thinking 'that’s how many billion cans of green beans and corn.' But think beyond the tin can – we’re talking fruit, steak, chicken wings … the good stuff!

A Walmart associate volunteers at a Feeding America food bank, stocking the fridge with lots of fruit, bagged salad and veggies!

Let's keep this goodwill going! Volunteerism and charitable donations are one of the best and most rewarding gifts you can give this Christmas, so help battle hunger and put Thanksgiving dinner on the table for families in need by volunteering or contributing to Feeding America’s “Fill a Bowl, Feed America campaign.” Trust me, you’ll feed good about it. I know I did. J

Crowds hit Walmart to Buy Lich King

Thu, 13 Nov 2008 18:05:58 GMT

We refer to this title as WOW and WOW it is... check out these fans that lined up in our Bentonville store to get a copy of Lich King! It is ironic that the fans are lined up next to milk, because this game will out sell 2% milk today! This is not my type of game, so I am interested to hear what the gamers are saying.