AutoText and Other BlackBerry Tips

BlackBerry AutoText

One of the greatest features on the BlackBerry is the AutoText feature. Not sure what it is? Start composing an email and try typing in the following:

cant

then press the space bar.

Did you notice the apostrophe was automatically put in there for you?

Try typing wer and press the space bar.  It should have changed to we're automatically.

So AutoText is great to help you with shortcuts when you're typing out emails. But, you can also go in and set up your own AutoText words or even whole emails.

So you may be asking, "Why would I ever need to create my own AutoText?"

Here's one that I use a lot:

Anytime I go visit a potential customer for the first time, as soon as I leave their office, I immediately want to send them an email thanking them for meeting with me. I have an AutoText set up with the word meetme. When I type meetme in the body of an email it automatically enters a pre-typed email that thanks the person for meeting with me. The email also gives them some websites to view as well as a couple of current customers contact info that I use as references.  I can usually have an email sent to the person I met within three to five minutes after leaving their office. I've even had a couple of people call me and ask how I was able to get them an email so fast. It creates another opportunity for me to talk about BlackBerry and another face to face meeting with them.

To set up your own AutoText do the following:

• Go to Options
• Go to AutoText
• Press the Menu Key
• Select New
• Fill in the "replace" and "with" fields however you wish
• Press the menu key
• Select Save

Other BlackBerry Tips

Did you know you can add up to 10 email accounts to your BlackBerry smartphone? This means you no longer have to log into your hotmail, gmail, or yahoo accounts ever again. With push technology your emails will find you and staying connected has never been easier. The phone provider you use will determine how you need to set up your email accounts on your BlackBerry. 

When scrolling through messages:

• press space to move page up

• press shift and space to move page down

When typing an alphanumeric phone number (ex.1-800-FLOWERS)

• hold down the alt key to input letters into a phone number

Friday With Jamel

Jamel was out of school last week for spring break so we hung out for a while on Friday. 

We started out by having lunch at Bandana's BBQ and then we went over to the Columbia Daily Tribune for a tour of the printing facility. They are one of my customers and Roger was kind enough to take Jamel and I through the plant and showing us how they print the daily paper and get it ready for delivery.

After that, I had to go visit a customer in Jeff City. We had a little time to kill so we went inside the capital building and took some time to look around. Jamel had never been inside before and to see inside the rotunda for the first time is a cool experience. There is a lot of artwork inside and the murals are fantastic.

After my customer visit, we ended our visit to Jeff City by enjoying a scoop of ice cream at Central Dairy. Central Dairy is another cool Jeff City experience that everyone should try sometime.

It looks like we'll be heading over to Loaves & Fishes on Thursday evening to help the Ballou C-Group serve dinner. We did this back in January and Jamel asked me last week if we could do it again. We've also got a trip planned to KMIZ-TV to watch them do a live newscast. We don't have a date for that yet, but it will happen sometime in the next couple of weeks.

My AIG Quandry

For the past day or so every time I turn on talk radio the only thing everyone seems to be talking about are the AIG bonuses. I've been confused on why so many congressmen are so upset about it, when they agreed to these bonuses as part of the AIG bailout. If there is one thing I can't stand it's someone who is wishy-washy on issues. I even heard Senator Chuck Schumer say today that he was going to get the law changed so that these bonuses could be taxed at 100% if the recipients did not give them back voluntarily. (This is my loose paraphrase of what he said.)

I have been totally against these bonuses, but when I heard his comment today I started thinking that if congress can do this with AIG bonuses, what would stop them from taxing my quarterly bonus at 100%? Then I started thinking, these folks that got these bonuses, did they earn them based on some contract they had and lived up to? No one on the news has answered that question.

Basically, what it boiled down to by the end of the day was confusion. Then this evening I watched Glenn Beck on TV. He broke the whole thing down in a very logical and easy to understand way. This video is not his complete presentation, but it explains a lot about this whole mess.

  The last half of his presentation, which unfortunately is not included here (maybe it will be on his website later), drove the point home that the $165 million for bonuses is a drop in the bucket compared to the billions of dollars the government has given to AIG, including billions that were funneled to other countries through AIG. So the government is using this bonus fiasco as a diversion to keep our eye off the real issue of the AIG bailout debacle.

I'm so frustrated that these guys in Washington can make decisions that are bad, and then cover them up by turning our focus to something else. Just listen to Barney Frank over the past year. He's flipped-flopped so many times I'm surprised he can keep everything straight. They don't even seem to feel bad that they don't take responsibility for their actions. I just don't get it! What have we become that this behavior has become acceptable?

Community Services Advisory Commission

A couple of weeks ago I accepted an appointment by the mayor of Columbia to serve as a commissioner on the Community Services Advisory Commission. So what exactly does that mean? 

The City of Columbia gives close to $1,000,000 a year to local non-profit organizations to purchase services that those organizations provide which mainly focus on low-income residents. The commission puts together a proposed budget on how this money should be spent and then they send it to City Council for approval.

Part of what we have to do is meet with these non-profit groups in our monthly meetings and listen to their proposals on why we should fund their organization. In order to approve their plan we have to determine if their service fits a need the city is looking for. The important thing I have to keep in mind is we don't do this to support these non-profit groups, we approve their proposals because they will fill a need the city feels is important and it's something the city doesn't have the resources to provide.

Whew! I'm confused just trying to explain this. The bottom line is this: I have been given an opportunity to help make a difference in our city. I met with Steve Hollis yesterday. He is the guy that works for the city's Health Department, and he is the guy that is responsible for overseeing this commission. According to him, he feels like this commission is the most important one in the city. This is due to the number of people we're able to help based on the dollars we give to these non-profits.

Needless to say, I'm excited about this opportunity. My first meeting is this Tuesday evening, and between now and July is the busy time of year for this commission, as we have until then to get the budget sent to City Council. I have been appointed to a 3 year term, so this is a long-term commitment.

If you'd like to learn more about this commission click here. This will send you right to the city's web-page that gives all the details. So if you're having trouble sleeping one night, just read some of this stuff and before long you'll be sleeping like a baby.

I'll try to keep everyone posted as the commission meetings progress and I try to get up to speed with exactly what I'm doing.

Bowling for Kids' Sake

Today was the biggest fundraiser of the year for Big Brothers Big Sisters; Bowl for Kids' Sake. My Match Support Specialist Chris Keller asked me earlier this week if Jamel and I would come and bowl the first balls to kick off the Saturday afternoon round. I was honored that he asked us and when I mentioned it to Jamel he got really excited.

Once we bowled the first balls we started our game, and a few minutes later a bunch of Mizzou football players showed up and started bowling with us. What a surprise that was! They couldn't have been nicer and we had a great time hanging out with them. Jaron Baston even spent time giving Jamel some pointers on how to bowl.

When we were finished they took some pictures with us and even autographed our t-shirts. They also invited me and Jamel to come join them at the Spring Black & Gold Football game next month. During the event they bring the little brothers down on the field and run them through some drills. Jamel is excited about going to that.

Thanks to Big Brothers Big Sisters and Chris Keller for putting on a great event and for inviting me and Jamel to take part. Thanks also to the Mizzou Tigers Football Team for supporting Big Brothers Big Sisters and for coming and hanging out with me and Jamel. It will be something Jamel will never forget.

Stimulate Columbia MO Press Conference

We kicked off our Stimulate Columbia project yesterday with a press conference held at Harbor House. I have posted some photos from the press conference as well as a transcript of my opening remarks below. We're excited about bringing some great local non-profit groups together that already do a great job of helping people in our city. Our goal is to stimulate our local economy by investing our money in people who just need a little help. By helping get these people to a place where they can be self-sufficient will help our economy in the long-term as they become contributing members of society.

KOMU came to the press conference and they did a great job of getting the message out to the city. You can see their report here.

Here are my opening remarks from the press conference:

Good morning, and welcome to the kick off of the Stimulate Columbia Project.  My name is Tom Seagraves. A couple of months ago, President Obama spoke these words at his inauguration:

"What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility...(one) that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task."

This new era of responsibility that President Obama spoke of is one we should take seriously as citizens of a nation that is made great, not by a government, but by its people.  This responsibility should begin in our homes as we raise our children to be people of character.  And from there it should be focused locally as we reach out together to help people in need.  Helping people in need is the root of our project, and we believe that by helping people in need, right here in Columbia, we can stimulate our local economy for the long-term.   

As one of the organizers of the Stimulate Columbia project, I speak for all of us when I tell you that we are passionate about loving our city and we only want the best for it.  That’s why we hand-picked a few local organizations that already do a great job of helping people right here in Columbia.  We thought that by bringing them together, they could help and influence more people. These non-profit charities that we have chosen focus on three very important groups of people: at-risk youth, low-income families and unemployed workers.

We already know that Columbia is a giving and generous place to live.  A recent survey done by the Voluntary Action Center found the following:

116 local agencies said that 90,324 people volunteered in Columbia last year.  Those people gave over 2.7 million hours.  Had these agencies had to pay for those hours the cost would have been over $53 million.

As amazing as those facts are, there is still more work to be done, and there are still people here in Columbia who are sitting on the sidelines who need to get into the game. 

Allow me to share the vision that the organizers of Stimulate Columbia have put together:

These unprecedented times have citizens and politicians alike searching far and wide for ideas to save our economy.  The government, for months, has been wrestling with how to spend our money, and in the mean time, people are losing jobs, families are running out of money, and the next generation is losing hope.

Instead of waiting for Washington or Jefferson City, organizations across Columbia are banding together, working to save more than the economy; working to save our community.

As local layoffs increase, we’re giving our money freely to non-profit groups who work to rehabilitate those who have lost their jobs.

As low-income parents struggle to provide for their children, we’re giving money freely to local charities who work to make sure no one is left without the bare necessities of life.

And for those in the next generation, our children, who are losing hope, we’re giving our money freely to organizations who work with at-risk youth.

We believe the answer is not government; it’s small communities of people banding together to take care of their own.  People like you and me right here in Columbia.  We are responsible for our city, so let’s take this burden together and help lighten the load that many are now carrying.

I challenge every citizen in Columbia to give in one of three ways in the next 30 days:

1.  Plan to give a portion, or all of your tax refund to one of our partner organizations.

2.  Give 10% of your next paycheck, or your next 2 paychecks, to one of our partner organizations.

3.  Give some of your time to one of our partner organizations.

We have set up a website where you can easily learn more about our partners, and also donate to them directly.  The website address is stimulatecolumbiamo.org.

We are also hosting the Stimulate Columbia MO Expo, this Saturday, March 14th from 9am to 1pm at the Cherry Street Artisan in downtown Columbia.  The Artisan is located on the corner of 9^th and Cherry.  This will be an opportunity for Columbia residents to meet our partners face to face and ask them directly, “How will a donation to your organization stimulate the Columbia economy.”

One thing I can tell you with certainty; the people standing before you this morning love this city and the people in it.  They work hard every day to make a difference here.  They only want the best for the people they help and their goal is to help change these peoples’ lives so they can move on and be contributing members of our community.

Each one of our partners will now take a couple of minutes and give you a brief overview of how a donation to their agency will stimulate the Columbia economy.

Flight of the Concorde

It's no secret that I'm an aviation enthusiast. So, when I came across this video I had to put it on my blog. Mainly so I would always have it to see whenever I desire. The Concorde was the only supersonic passenger aircraft that has ever been in service. It was flown only by British Airways and Air France. The few that were in service were grounded and retired a few years ago after one of the Air France Concorde's crashed during takeoff in Paris. 

This airplane was on the top of my list of airplane's I wanted to fly on, but now that will never happen. So, the next closest thing is watching some video from the flight deck. Even though this aircraft flew at supersonic speeds, the cockpit was anything but advanced. It was designed in the 60's and was never really updated over the years. It flew with a 3-man crew until it was retired.

This video starts at 57,000 feet over the Atlantic Ocean with the Concorde flying supersonic. It shows the crew slowing the plane down and descending into New York City for a landing at JFK. It is very cool video and a great piece of aviation history. Enjoy!

Stimulate Columbia Goes Live This Week

After much planning and many changes, we're going live this week with the Stimulate Columbia MO project. Our partners are ready and so is the media, so Wednesday at 9am we will kick the project off with a press conference at the Harbor House, one of our partner locations. The press release went out on Thursday, and on Friday I had a few calls and pre-press conference interviews on the phone. So far the media is reacting well and I think we will have a strong presence there for the event. 

The website is almost complete. Chad will be putting a few final touches on it this afternoon. Take a look and see what you think.

On Saturday from 9 to 1 we will be having a Stimulate Columbia MO Expo at the Cherry Street Artisan in downtown Columbia. This will give the public an opportunity to meet our partners. The partners will be able to tell people exactly how a donation to their organization will stimulate our local economy.

So come out on Saturday and support your community and stimulate the local economy by grabbing a hot cup of coffee and by giving some of your time and money to some great local charities.