Stephenthedog.com

Sorry it has been a few days since I have posted here. I got in a lot of trouble for putting up the directions to SB^3. My A says it is not safe to put personal information out on the Internet. There are a lot of weird people out there and you have to be careful. I am not saying you need to be paranoid but you do need to be careful.

If the following phrase strikes fear into your heart “Hi I’m Chris Hansen from Dateline please have a seat.” Please stop reading my ODD there is nothing here for you. In fact I find your general existence troubling. There are a lot of great people out there and I really enjoy all of you who stop by and check in on me. It is unfortunate that the 1% is capable of bringing us all down.

I don’t know why my A is so though worried. Our home it totally safe the thing is protected like a fortress. We have this invisible force shield all around the yard. The only way you can get in or out is to use the key on my dog leash. You have to be holding my leash to deactivate the field. I have made the mistake a couple of times of trying to take a walk on my own and let me tell you it is not a good idea. You try to cross that field and all of a sudden your neck starts hurting like crazy.

Since the field is invisible and I don’t want people to get hurt I try to let them know when they are walking by to be careful of the field. I run back and forth just behind the field so they can see where it is and I bark really loud at them to tell them “Hey, danger invisible field don’t get to close” Usually this works.

Sometimes I wonder how my A ever got permission to put in the security field. It seems like if I were not out there warning them a lot of people would get hurt. There are no signs, so if I don’t tell you about the field you are might end up walking into it by mistake and getting hurt.

I have noticed that there is a little bit of a beep that happens just before you hit the field but if you are walking and don’t know the field is there you are not going to be able to stop quick. Probably you will just think to yourself “Hey what’s that beeping” and then walk right into the field. The next think you know there is this awful pain in your neck.

It is nice knowing I am protected but I wish my A would put up some signs or something I am getting tired of having to stay outside all the time to warn people. I really just want to stay inside and sleep on the couch with my people.

All of us who have been using computers for a while know the importance of a good zip program. One of the originals was PKZIP. Yes I was not around then so I don’t remember the original PKZIP but I have used many programs like it.

It used to be that you did not have to worry too much about data security. Today it is a different world you, have to watch out all the time. Now there is a secure zip program out there from PKWare. This is great now you can zip up your files and know they are secure when you send them. Do you really want to trust your email program to secure you files. Um no thanks Mr. Gates I am not about to trust you with my file security. I have a ton of files I want to keep secure. Think about it you probably have some stuff you don’t want to fall into the wrong hands. Well I am a dog with some big ideas I have to be super careful.

ZIP is a great utility. Right now you can download it for free. This is not even one of those demo licenses it is a full single user license. I downloaded it and the process was super easy. Even a cave man can do it.

Do yourself a favor if you are worried about file security download Secure Zip from www.securezip.com

I give it a Stephen rating of 8

I don’t know about you but I am not independently wealth. Yes it is true I can’t retire just yet. One of the scariest and decisions you will probably run into is the decision to buy a home. Almost all of us will need to take out a Mortgage for our home purchase. There are a lot of cool things about Mortgages like the fact that the interest on them is tax deductible.

Although generally I think all kinds of debt are bad, most people make a distinction between good debut and bad debut. Mortgage debt is considered good debt while credit card debt is considered bad debt.

Ok so Mortgages are good things but it is very important to pick the right one. There are tons of different mortgage products out there. You are talking about something that you will be living with for the next 15-30 yrs and is generally financing 3-7 times your annual salary. Picking the wrong mortgage could cost you tens of thousands of dollars over the life of your loan. It is very important to do your research before you sign anything.

There is a great site out there that gives you mortgage rates and some very information articles. You can learn all about sub prime loans, or how to figure out how much of a mortgage you can afford. These are some great articles so do your self a favor and check them out if you are thinking of buying a home. Mortgagelowdown.com is a great resource. I just found out that mortgage insurance will be tax deductible in 2007 how cool is that.

I give it a Stephen rating of 7.

Man it has been raining hard lately. Last weekend my A and R started a secret project. They are calling it a shed but I know what it really is. They can’t fool me. They are building me a huge dog house which they are going to unveil at the SB^3.

I can’t wait to have my own house. There are a couple things I need to get them to change before they complete it. I would really like a few more windows and a fireplace would be nice. I need to get some electricity run out there are well as some cable TV. There is a nice 52” LCD HDTV I have been eyeing at Best Buy which includes free delivery. I am going to throw it on my A’s AMEX I just need to wait for the right month. Hopefully he will travel for work soon so I can slip that charge in without him noticing.

I wonder what color they are going to paint my house. I like blue but I think it would be even cooler if they painted it glow in the dark. Glow in the dark solves multiple problems. When I call the pizza guy I can just say it’s the glow in the dark house.
If I take a walk at night it will be easy to find my way back I will just look for the huge glowing house. Best of all I won’t need a anymore nightlight

Yes I am afraid of the dark. Look I’m not proud of it but we all have fears right. Some of us are afraid of spiders or snakes. Some people I know roll down their car windows before driving over bridges. Then you have those really insane people who believe if they don’t read the seat back safety cards on airplanes then the whole plane is going to crash , Weirdos!

Hopefully it will be nice this weekend so we can finish the “Shed”

P.S. Don’t tell my A and R I know about my new house.

Currently I don’t have a business but I have been trying to think of ways to become more profitable. Stephen INC is really just in the process of getting off the ground. We have our idea, “Nut Silo” now all we need to do is get out and sell it.

As you probably well know the key to effective selling is lead management. One of the better lead management systems out there is aimpromote.

Aimpromote is a great customer relationship management tool. Their goal it to help you grow you business by helping you leverage your contacts. Aimpromote provides you with a low cost alternative too other lead management products but does not sacrifice features. You get a full blown customer relationship management platform for very little upfront cost.

Really just ask yourself the question “Do I want to make more money?” if they answer is yes you owe it to yourself to check out aimpromote.

As all of you who have been visiting this site know I recently sent a letter to United Airlines asking some questions about their boarding policies.

Matthew,

Thank you for you response to my inquiry of 3/26/2007 and please feel free to call me Stephen, Mr. TheDog is a little bit too formal for my taste. I would like to keep this friendly.

I am a little confused I received you response on April 13 and then got the response below about 40 min later. Is it the practice of United Airlines to send multiple messages or were you just being through? I definitely appreciate the multiple follow ups but am a little concerned. It took about 3 week to get a response from your company. I bet if you went to a single follow up system you could cut that time in half. Although I appreciate the attention I would rather get a single response in half as much time than two responses in twice a much time.

I am sure United Airlines receives quit a few letters. What is you average turn around time on a letter? I am had pretty much given up on you guys. I am sure you have been busy with the awful weather we have been having lately and I am sure a lot of time has been spent thinking up Jet Blue jokes. Should I assume that every time I write United, I should expect a 3 week turn around time. I am a dog, I don’t have a job or a car so time to write letters .

I appreciate you taking the time to fill me in on your boarding procedures. They seem well thought out and logical. I think I disagree with how gate 36C is being handled in Denver but I will just arrive early next time. It seems like 36C is a rogue gate. I am sure with all the gates United has sometimes you end up with a rogue. Remember the movie Jaws. I am sure glad rogue gates don’t eat people like rogue sharks.

Would it be possible to schedule a brief meeting with one of your customer service agents to discuss boarding procedures with me next time I fly. I appreciate the invitation to speak with any of them in your letter but I feel scheduling a time for me to speak with one might be more efficient. I know how busy the gate area gets during departure time.

Out of curiosity what do you guys thing of the open seating policy South West employs. Your boarding policy makes sense theirs well they don’t really have a policy. Is South West just lazy? Do you think some person sat in a meeting and said I have a great idea let’s let the people pick their own seats. Or were they thinking if people pick their own seats we won’t have to assign them seats. Do you think it was a bet. I wonder if the guy in charge of boarding procedure at South West was a fall down drunk and never did anything until the day before the procedures were due. To me watching a South West plane board is like waiting kids chase after a fowl ball, or watching a flock of ducks chase after bread, It is just absolute madness.

Well Matt Thanks for your time and I hope to hear from you soon. Would you like to come to the SB^3 it is going to be a good time

Stephen

Dear Mr. TheDog,Thank you for contacting us again. We are currently experiencing a high volume of emails, and I offer my apology for the delayed response to your message.Mr. TheDog, I see I have responded on April 13. In case you did not receive this reply, I have copied it for you.Thank you for choosing United.Regards,Matthew KasturiaUnited Airlines Customer RelationsThis message is intended only for the use of the Addressee and may contain information that is PRIVATE and CONFIDENTIAL. If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any dissemination of this communication is strictly prohibited. If you have received this communication in error, please erase all copies of the message and its attachments and notify the sender immediately. Thank you.Dear Mr. TheDog,Thank you for contacting us. We are currently experiencing a high volume of emails, and I offer my apology for the delayed response to your message.Mr. TheDog, I apologize for inconvenience. Here is the information you request. United’s goal is to meet your and other customers’ expectations to depart and arrive in a safe and timely manner. To accomplish our on-time goal united staff follows specific procedures.Thirty minutes before a flight’s scheduled departure time (45 minutes for international): Release any unclaimed pre-assigned seats. Confirm seats for customers without seat assignment.All reservations of passengers not checked in and in the boarding area are released.Stand-by customers are accommodated. Consider the flight in its final boarding process five minutes before the scheduled departure time. Customer service staff completes the final closeout procedures.Separate baggage check-in times apply so always plan sufficient time to clear the departures lobby and get to your gate. We suggest 60 minutes for domestic and 90 minutes for international flights. Your cooperation and understanding are appreciated.Our boarding process assigns a seating area to each customer that allows for the most efficient boarding times. The standard boarding sequence is as follows: those passengers needing special assistance, United First, United Business, and then followed by passengers in Seating Area 1 – premium members of Mileage Plus and Star Alliance. Boarding continues for those in Seating Area 2 – window seats; Seating Area 3 – middle; and then Seating Area 4 – those with aisle seats. When you next travel, if you have any questions about the process, please see a customer service agent who will be glad to assist you. Your feedback is important to us. We will include it in a report to our operation groups who will make any necessary changes that impact your travel experience.Mr. TheDog, we have airport terminal map on our web site. We do have a web site customer support staff you may contact for assistance. For issues concerning your password, please call 1-866-209-3323 (within the U.S. only) between 7:00 a.m. and 12:00 a.m. CT, 7 days a week. If you are outside of the U.S. or in Canada, they may be reached at 1-605-348-0011.We appreciate this opportunity to be of assistance and look forward to serving your travel needs.Regards,Matthew KasturiaUnited Airlines Customer Relations

The weather here has been awful lately so I have been spending a lot of time indoors. This stinks I have not been able to any walks at all lately. If this keeps up I am going to have to relocate. If I do relocate I am thinking of Las Vegas.

Las Vegas is a really cool city. We all know about the Casinos and the night life but it is also a nice community. Did you know Andre Agassi is from Las Vegas? You can’t beat the weather in Vegas warm and Sunny almost all the time. Sure if gets hot but that is what Air conditioning is for right. Also Remember it is a dry heat so it is not like being in Atlanta where hot days are unbearable.

In Las Vegas you can keep your pool open all year round. To me that is a huge selling point I hate scooping dead frogs and worms out of the pool in the spring.

Vegas is also a really convenient location. It is such a huge draw that it brings in people from all over. This makes it easy to get to and easy to get out of. There is great Skiing in Colorado and Wyoming just a short flight away. You can drive over to LA etc, really when you step back and stop thinking about just the casinos Las Vegas has a ton things going for it.

If you are thinking of moving to Vegas check out some of these great New homes and remember always bet on black!

Woo Hoo it’s Friday. I am pretty excited. That means I get to play with my A and R all weekend. Week days are kind of boring because I am stuck at home and there is not really all that much on TV.

I have figured out how to turn the TV on but my A has put some kind of parental lock on the PPV channels. I tried calling the cable company but they told me that they could not help me if I kept barking. I am not sure what they want me to do I can’t actually talk I can only bark and type. Don’t they realize I am a dog. Currently I am writing them a letter.

Speaking of Letters United Airlines got back to me today. Yeah it only took like a month. Way to go United!! You are a multibillion dollar company. Really if you can’t respond within a week what is the point in responding? I feel the letter deserves its own post so I will get something up on it tomorrow.

My Birthday was pretty sweet, I got a nice rawhide bone and a Iditarod racing harness. Yup the same one designed by 3 time Iditarod champion Jeff King. I don’t know exactly what I am going to do with this thing. I have a feeling my A has some crazy idea that I am going to pull him around the neighborhood on his skateboard with it. That is not going to happen if my R won’t pull him with the truck there is no way I am pulling him.
I do look really cool in the harness though and it is reflective so I can use it when I walk at night. Being black I am extra conscious of what I wear at night.

There are some pretty crazy drivers out there and I want to make sure they can see me.

Today I was wondering around the internet and discovered this site of Black Personals called Blackscene. I though to myself hey I am black this might be something I should check out. Unfortunately for me the site is a dating site for black people not dogs. However it is a pretty cool site. You can create a profile and send members emails. There is even a chat room where you can talk to other people on the site.

I was tempted to create a profile but I was too busy today. I did browse through some of the pictures and the one where the guy had a stack of dollar bills in his mouth made me laugh. I wonder what audience that guy is shooting for? Most of the people seemed nice though I think there are a few in there I would let take me for a walk.

This is sort of a niche site but is seems tastefully done and has some good features. It is way better than that who wants to date a millionaire site Drew was plugging a while back. I am thinking of contacting the people from Blackscene and asking if there are any plans for a site for black dogs. Now that would be really cool.

Check out the site see what you think. Remember to always be careful there are some really nice people out there and then there are some not so nice people. Blackscene requires you to fill in a bunch of information when you create your profile show that should weed out some of the weirdos. You can also report abuse to the site admin. I give this site a Stephen rating of 6.