text:
Boulders Inn & Suites Manning Is Officially Open
Carroll Broadcasting Company:
The Manning Chamber of Commerce congratulated their newest business, Boulders Inn & Suites of Manning, on their first official day of business with a ribbon cutting on Monday, Oct. 3. The 32-room hotel is the 12th Boulders Inn built in the state of Iowa and the first property constructed in Carroll County. Builders incorporated unique local elements into the design, including wood from Templeton Rye barrels in the lobby and barrels decorating the front entryway. This Boulders is also built to cater to guests at the German Hausbarn next door with four suites, one of which is a honeymoon suite with a hot tub. A community-wide open house is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 12.
Link to story and picture
As construction dust settles, Manning hotel prepares for Oct. 3 opening
Carroll Daily Times Herald, Rebecca McKinsey:
There's still plenty of work to do.
Manning's Boulders Inn & Suites, located west of the German Hausbarn Konferenz Centre, is buzzing as final touches are completed on the hotel in preparation for its Oct. 3 opening. The hotel's construction started April 1.
Beds are being put together, carpet laid — with a layer of concrete beneath some of it to help with soundproofing. Bathrooms are being put together. The lobby is being outfitted.
That will be a particular point of pride, Main Street Manning Board President Ron Reischl said, as it will feature Templeton Rye-themed decor: a fireplace made from strips of whiskey barrel wood, barrel light fixtures, Templeton Rye furniture and more.
The hotel, which will have 32 rooms, has offset doorways leading from the hallway to each one, rather than flat walls.
"That's a nice architectural feature," Reischl said.
An American With Disabilities Act-accessible room on the first floor includes a connecting door to the next room.
Room prices range from about $100 to $175 or more. Rooms include standard king or two-queen-bed options, rooms with a king bed and a handicap-accessible tub or shower and several suites, including a honeymoon suite with a Jacuzzi.
The road leading up to the hotel will lose its name of 311th Street and will be dubbed Heritage Drive, celebrating both the German Hausbarn and the Freedom Rock nearby.
Organizers expect the hotel will be a popular site for wedding parties, given its proximity to both the German Hausbarn and Trinity Church, Reischl said. More than a dozen wedding parties already have booked rooms at the hotel next year.
Updated landscaping outdoors will provide a scenic spot for wedding photos and include an outdoor patio.
"I see this as a place where you can relax in the evening with a drink," Reischl said.
Eighteen west-central Iowa investors collectively have a $790,000 stake in the $2.25 million hotel. Boulders is an investor in Boulders Inn Manning LLC. Debt-financing through local lending institutions is expected to be part of the financing mix.
"We're excited about the partnership with the City of Manning," Boulders co-owner Tim Stuart previously said. The Denison-based company, which opened its first hotel there in 2008, now has about a dozen hotels.
Link to story and pictures
New Construction, New Street, New Address For Hausbarn In Manning
With all of the construction taking place on the new Boulders Inn Manning, the community put out a call last May for suggestions on renaming 311th Street that runs to the east and west as access to the new hotel and to the historical Hausbarn. Residents were asked to vote on three selected options, Heritage Drive, Heritage Parkway and Veterans Parkway. The overwhelming winner was Heritage Drive. Now that paving has been completed on a portion of the roadway, from the East Street entrance to a little past the Hausbarn entrance and parking area, the Hausbarn has made an official notification of their change of address to 130 Heritage Drive. Boulders Inn Manning is still under construction with an estimated opening in October of this year.
Boulders Inn Manning Breaks Ground For October Opening
Carroll Broadcasting Company
Boulders Inn Manning LLC hosted a ceremonial groundbreaking on the building site to the west of the Hausbarn Konferenz Centre last Friday afternoon. Tim Stuart, a member of the development and ownership group for Boulders Inn and Suites of Denison, said they are all pleased to be seeing this project get underway in such a progressive community.
The process started with an analysis done by the community, which provided results that favored moving forward with the proposal. Stuart said when they look at various cities, they want to align with opportunities to work in conjunction with other properties and projects, such as the Hausbarn. The 32-room Boulders Inn Manning will be their 12th hotel within the state. Boulders currently has 10 that are operational and one that is to be completed late this month. They are also looking forward to another project this spring that will be their first out of the state, in the Maryville, Mo. area. Boulders Inn Manning has an aggressive, six-month construction schedule with an October opening. Stuart says they feel comfortable with this date because of their relationship with their long-time partners; who will begin groundwork in mere days. Stuart said he is fairly confident the construction schedule will go as smoothly as the process of recruiting investors.
Stuart said they target 30 plus percent equity compared to total development cost and they were able to exceed that for the Boulders Inn Manning, their first property in Carroll County.
Link to story, graphic and audio
Groundbreaking Friday For Boulders Inn Manning
Carroll Broadcasting: The limited liability corporation, Boulders Inn Manning, was formed to oversee the construction and operation of a new 32-room hotel to the west of the Hausbarn Konferenz Centre in Manning. Board member, Ron Reischl, said they will be hosting a ceremonial groundbreaking at the site Friday, April 1 at 4 p.m. to kick-off the start of construction.
Reischl said the Boulders team has done a phenomenal job of listening to the proposed uses of the hotel and providing amenities that are aligned with the operational goals and vision.
There will also be hot breakfast available and four suites. Two will have king-sized beds and two that have two queen-sized beds. One of these is a honeymoon suite with a hot tub. Reischl, who is also the president of Main Street Manning said they have worked hard ahead of the project to determine the viability and the need.
They will also partner with the Hausbarn Konferenz Centre to promote the site as an area for corporate retreats. Again, the ceremonial groundbreaking for this project will be at 4 p.m. Friday, April 1
Link to article and audio
Manning Residents Invited To Help Pick Name For Hausbarn Road
It is certainly no secret that the small community of Manning has been blazing many new trails as of late, and now they are asking community members to come together in naming one of them. The city, in conjunction with officials from the Hausbarn-Heritage Park foundation and the limited liability corporation, Boulders Inn Manning, have created a survey giving residents options in renaming the gravel road that runs east and west in front of the Hausbarn and the land that will soon be home to a 32-room Boulders Inn hotel. Main Street Manning Board President, Ron Reischl, explains.
Reischl encourages everyone to get online and vote for their favorite, just as he has already done with his vote for Heritage Drive. The survey will be open through the end of April and is available through links on the Manning Chamber of Commerce and City of Manning websites or by clicking on this link.
Link to story, picture and audio.
Manning Boulders hotel targets fall opening
Carroll Daily Times Herald: Local investment campaign reaches goal
By DOUGLAS BURNS, Staff Writer
Investors and economic development leaders expect an Oct. 1 opening of a 32-room Boulders Inn & Suites in Manning.
Construction is expected to start in April on the two-level hotel complex on 1.5 acres to the west of the Hausbarn Konferenz Centre.
Eighteen west-central Iowa investors collectively have a $790,000 stake in the $2.25 million hotel. Boulders is an investor.
Debt-financing through local lending institutions is expected be part of the financing mix.
"I think this is just typical of a Manning project," said Ron Reischl, president of Main Street Manning.
In late November, about 40 people, the majority from the Manning area, attended a meeting of prospective investors at Manning's Timmerman Shelter House where Tim Stuart, a co-owner of Boulders, and Reischl presented information.
Over the next three months, Boulders Inn Manning LLC developed the successful capital campaign.
Reischl announced the completion of the local investment package last Thursday. All investors have at least a $25,000 stake in the hotel, which will be managed by Boulders.
"There's a lot of excitement in the community to finally have a hotel," Reischl said.
Advocates see the hotel turning a profit for investors.
But there's more to it.
They view the hotel as essential to 1,500-resident Manning's population-defying growth spurt, an amenity that will serve local organizations like Puck Custom Enterprises, Manning Regional Healthcare Center, Ag Processing Co., Plastico, Struve Labs, Spies Fur Co. and Char-Mac Assisted Living facilities.
"We're not reliant on one sector to get these rooms filled," said Manning City Administrator Dawn Rohe.
The 32 rooms will include four suites. Guests will find high-definition televisions and a hot breakfast built into the rates. The nightly rate is expected at $99, although that will change with demand, and Boulders is planning to put together weekday packages for area businesses.
Nate Houston, marketing director for Boulders, said the hotel wants to capitalize on the demand in area communities. With new development expected around Templeton Rye Spirits, Boulders spies opportunities to be the hotel of choice for that complex.
"We hope to become the hotel of choice for weddings that are at the Templeton Community Center," Reischl said.
Additionally, Reischl and Rohe are looking to draw from Des Moines and Omaha, Nebraska, and beyond with businesses looking for a retreat center.
The City of Carroll is within reach for the Manning Boulders, too, company officials and investors say.
The Hausbarn committee is considering strategies to leverage its role as an events center in the region once the hotel is operating.
Denison-based Boulders Inn & Suites, which opened its first hotel in 2008 in the Crawford County seat, now has 10 hotels in Iowa, stretching from Holstein in the northwest to Fort Madison in far southeast Iowa. The hotel group plans to start construction in Maryville, Missouri, in April.
The hotel in Manning will employ seven to eight full-time equivalents.
Link to article and pictures
Boulders Inn Manning LLC Formed And Hotel Project Moving Forward Aggressively
Carroll Broadcasting: On Wednesday evening, March 3, the Boulders Inn Manning, LLC was officially formed and a board election was held. From Manning, Jeremy Puck, Jim Muhlbauer, Kevin Struve and Ron Reischl were elected to sit on the board. Mike Siemer from Boulders Inn will also be an active member. The limited liability corporation will now aggressively proceed with the land purchase and financing for a planned groundbreaking in early April on a $2.25 million, 32-room hotel positioned adjacent to the Hausbarn-Heritage Park Konferenz Center parking lot. Plans and elevations have been developed and Reischl said the Boulders Inn management team has truly listened to their requirements. To accommodate large wedding parties and family gatherings, the hotel will have four suites, including one that has access to an adjoining room. One of the suites, designated as the honeymoon suite, includes a Jacuzzi tub. The community of Manning is as excited as the investors are, Reischl said. The hotel is a needed addition to Manning's tourist and wedding industry and its continued economic growth. With construction getting underway in April, it is estimated that the hotel will be scheduled for completion in October of this year. Plans also include providing access to the city for a hiking/biking trail connection to the existing trail on East Street. The building has been designed with two American Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant rooms. The development of Boulders Inn Manning begin in 2014 with the formation of an ad hoc committee of interested citizens soliciting market studies for the feasibility of the project. After reports from the Small Business Development Center, then later in 2015, from Iowa State University and Drake University, contacts were made with various hotel chains about their interest in pursuing the project in Manning. In October of last year, the committee entered into negotiations to purchase the land and committed to Boulders Inn as a partner. Shortly thereafter, in November, the first investor's meeting was held. Boulder's plans for the building can be found below.
Link to article, picture and graphical representations
Manning eyes fall 2016 hotel opening
Boulders Inn & Suites seeks local investors
Carroll Daily Times Herald: Local backers of a Manning hotel Monday night formally launched an investment drive aimed at raising $900,000 toward an expected $2.25 million Boulders Inn & Suites for the southern Carroll County city.The goal is ambitious: attract $900,000 in the next two weeks and begin planning for an April 1 construction start and fall 2016 opening of what would be a 32-room hotel on the east side of Manning connected to the Hausbarn-Heritage Park events center...
Manning Team Working to Make Hotel Happen
Carroll Broadcasting: Earlier this year, the community leaders in Manning commissioned a hotel study to evaluate the feasibility of bringing lodging into the city as well as to determine the size, scope and business models that would be most appropriate to meet the communities lodging needs. The report, contracted with the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Value Added Agriculture Program, has been completed and presented to Manning officials for review. The report reveals there is no one compelling reason for overnight travelers to come to Manning, rather many things that would attract travelers, business individuals and those wishing to attend local events. The study highlights...


text:
Arp Comics
Fried Cheese Balls
Short Comics
The Rapper's Foot
Arp Laszlo
patreon alternative
#26: We're not selling used cars
Hey – I've been writing weekly newsletters for 6 months straight today! That's a record for me. In the past when I've decided that I 'want to blog regularly' I've lasted maybe 3 weeks at best. Looks like making a sort of ritual and routine works for productivity. /// The only advice, and this is business advice for the business end of it, you've got to take off your creator's hat and put on your businessman's hat or publisher's hat and you've got to figure a way to market yourself, apart from what you are creating. Like, when I was … Continue reading
Categories My Newsletter Leave a comment
#24: Digging deeper into Patreon
This week I discuss Patreon and an interview with it's co-founder, Jack Conte. /// Membership is about that stronger relationship between a creator and their most important fans and the belief in that creator and their ongoing artistic expression. The creators who do best are the creators who deeply love their fans and whose fans deeply love them back if there's a really strong connection. Jack Conte I've spoken at length that creatives need to look at marketing as building relationships (I echo this a lot in one-on-one interactions too). That removes the feel of trying to make someone buy … Continue reading
#14: My latest comic & Patreon wannabes
A link to my latest comic, thoughts on every platform turning into Patreon, and 3 reading recommendations. /// A writer is someone for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people. Thomas Mann I forgot where I got this but I am so feeling it this week. I haven't made a lot of progress on my myth story outline re-write. There's something wrong with the story that I can't quite place (that's usually the case with anything that seems like 'writer's block'). On the plus, I FINALLY finished the 5 page dry run of the graphic memoir, … Continue reading
#6: Neil Gaiman, Authenticity, Patreon & Social Media
Good morning people! Our ranks are growing, and it's nice to know that I'm not shooting missives into the ether. It would, however, be nice to hear from you sometime! I'd like to have a conservation rather than just spout (though it is helpful to get some stuff off my chest). /// Neil Gaiman & Authenticity I've been watching Neil Gaiman's masterclass on The Art of Storytelling this week, on & off. It's not a binge watching type of thing for me, where I'm trying to suck it all in fast as possible to Become a Better Writer Immediately. So … Continue reading
Categories Creative Marketing, My Newsletter Leave a comment
Subscribing to a newsletter is a FREE and EASY way to support a creator.
Social networks like Instagram won't let everyone see our posts, or they can be bought & ruined like Twitter. Email is old school but it makes sure that you'll hear from me when I have fun new stuff to share :)
Hi, I'm Arp! I make comics and write about life as an Indian-American with late-diagnosis ADHD. I'm a self-taught and self-employed creator so I write a lot about art, learning, and entrepreneurial stuff that I've picked up along the way.
My stories are kinda weird, because that's just how I am. My formative influences are Indian mythology, Batman, Tintin, 70s Bollywood, Ray Harryhausen, and Monty Python. There's no way anything normal could come out of that, right?
My posts, reviews & recommendations may contain referral links! If you buy something through such a link you won't pay a penny more but I will get a small commission, which helps keeps the lights on. Thank YOU!
Click here to check out to my Newsletter.
My Comics
Community Guidelines | Cookie Policy | Exchanges & Returns | Privacy Policy | Shipping Info | Terms Of Service
© Arp Laszlo. Built with WordPress, GeneratePress, Paid Memberships Pro, WooCommerce, DigitalOcean & the Webcomic plugin.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Members—Appointment—Terms.
Each horticultural pest and disease board shall be comprised of five voting members, four of whom shall be appointed by the board of county commissioners and one of whom shall be appointed by the director. In addition, the chief county extension agent, or a county extension agent appointed by the chief agent, shall be a nonvoting member of the board.
Of the four members appointed by the board of county commissioners, one of such members shall have at least a practical knowledge of horticultural pests and diseases, and the other members shall be residents of the county, shall own land within the county and shall be engaged in the primary and commercial production of a horticultural product or products. Such appointed members shall serve a term of two years and shall serve without salary. If no such qualified candidate resides in the county, a nonresident that owns property in the county and is engaged in the primary and commercial production of a horticultural product or products may be appointed as a member of the horticultural pest and disease board.
[ 2009 c 96 § 1; 1988 c 254 § 7; 1969 c 113 § 3.]


Have you hired Patrick's Locksmith Service ? Write a review and earn our First to Review badge.
Patrick's Locksmith Service has not added any photos.
Serving the Niagara Region for over 50 years. Residential, Comercial & Auto Lockouts. Sales, Service & Installation Of Security Products, Locks & Hardware. Visit Our Website For More Information.
Looking for Locks & Locksmiths pros in St. Catharines?


The backwaters of Alleppey could be described as a mirage of what heaven must look like on a tranquil day; only, it's not a mirage but very real.
Kuttanad has the distinction of being the 'rice bowl of Kerala'. It's known far and wide for its huge spreads of green paddy fields against the backdrop of placid backwaters.


As one way of empowering more women in 2019 elections as well as other polls in future, Salima North West Parliamentarian Jesse Kabwila has advised political parties to introduce affirmative actions such as putting more women in crucial positions and use a deliberate policy when selecting leaders to allow more women to excel in parliamentary seats easily.
Speaking on Friday during the workshop of promoting women's participation in decision making in public institutions at Gannt Lodge in Salima, Kabwila said: "Parties should create an environment by putting women in crucial spaces in political parties as one way of empowering them. This will make it easier for them to excel into parliament.
Kabwila further advised government to give the girl child education a priority in a budget, saying this will help them stand up strong and contribute fruitfully and that will increase participation and involvement in decision making of women in politics in future.
According to Women and Law for Southern Africa (WLSA Malawi) National Director Mzati Mbeko says his organization is very disappointed to see that most parties have legal framework that aims to empower women in decision making positions but are unable to implement these laws.
Mbeko asked all political party to complement what the civil society is doing in empowering women in decision making position by exercising what is stipulated in the already existing laws in the country's constitutions and parties manifestoes to achieve 50-50 representation of women in top positions.
Wilsa Malawi is implementing the program of promoting women's participation in decision making in public institution in six districts namely Salima, Dedza, Mangochi, Mulanje, Mzimba and Karonga.
We have been talking about women empowerment since Gable education program that was targeted at girls/women only. Remember? Now after more than 20 years we are still singing the same old song of women empowerment? No way let's look an inclusive approach where women and men should compete with a ratio of 60:40 and not 100 women. We can't deliberately pick women in order to fill a void. No way.
At this juncture, Kabwila should also be concerned about her political future, as she's no a lone ranger left, and out favor with the new dictator in making, oChakwera. She can't just sit phwii and think that oChakwera will go easy on her: Kabwila has to start getting busy, acting busy and looking busy. Or else, she could be out of politics next year.
KIkiki Still kukakamira chibwnzi pamene mwamuna ati sakufuna!


text:
Government Science College, Jabalpur is an educational institute situated in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India. It was established in 1836, making it one of the oldest colleges in India. It has been accredited with grade 'A' by NAAC. The University Grants Commission (UGC) granted it autonomous status in 1990 and heritage  status in 2015.

History

Timeline

 1836  –  Established in the Year 1836 at Saugor (Sagar, Madhya Pradesh)
 1860  –  Collegiate School at Saugor started
 1873  –  Transferred from Saugor to Jabalpur
 1896  –  Degree Courses in Science started
 1916  –  Named as Robertson College
 1947  -  Moved to the present campus as the previous campus was allotted to the Jabalpur Engineering College's Civil engineering department
 1947  –  After Independence the college was renamed as Mahakaushal Mahavidyalaya. Post Graduate Studies started.
 1962  –  Bifurcated into 'Govt. Science College' and Mahakaushal Arts & Commerce College.
 1985  –  Declared Model College by the Department of Higher Education, Government of Madhya Pradesh.
 1990  –  Granted autonomy by the UGC.
 2002  –  Declared "Centre of Excellence in Science Education" by Government of Madhya Pradesh.
 2002  –  Accredited "A" Grade by NAAC.
 2004  –  College with Potential for Excellence by the UGC.
 2011  –  Selected for FIST grant by the Department of Science & Technology.
 2015  –  Received Heritage Status from the UGC.
 2018  –  Declared institute of excellence in higher education (iehe): Government of Madhya Pradesh (02-07-2018).
 2019  –  3rd cycle NAAC accredited "A" grade.

Affiliations
 1860–1890:    Calcutta University
 1891–1922:    Allahabad University
 1923–1946:    Nagpur University
 1947–1956:    Sagar University
 1957–present: Jabalpur University

Academics
Government Science College, Jabalpur (MP) India has undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral programmes; offering Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Computer Applications,Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy degrees in natural sciences, formal sciences, exact sciences and applied sciences.

Teaching Departments
 Botany and Microbiology
 Chemistry and Biochemistry
 English Language
 Environmental Science
 Geology
 Hindi Language
 Mathematics and Computer Science
 Military Science
 Physics, Electronics, Computer Application and Computer Maintenance
 Zoology and Biotechnology

Alumni
The notable alumni of the college include:
 Kunji Lal Dubey
 Veni Shankar Jha
 Ashok Kumar
 Bhawani Prasad Mishra
 Kusum Nair
 Ramkumar Verma
 Prem Nath
 Yogesh Mohan Tiwari
 Ravishankar Shukla
 Jagmohan Das
 Dwarka Prasad Mishra
 Chandulal Chandrakar
 Shiv Prasad Kosta
 Sharad Yadav
 Prahlad Singh Patel
 Rakesh Singh
 Om Prakash Dhurve

References

1836 establishments in India
Universities in Madhya Pradesh
Universities and colleges in Madhya Pradesh

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


I missed the 'son of a millionaire' reference?
From which country you are? What is khoreshteh seeb?
I'm from the U.S. but my father is from Iran.
Sorry, I neglected to say it is a Persian dish (meat and apples cooked with rice)!


"Trade like a casino" sounds like an awesome idea, right?
After all, what do casinos do? They have a system/strategy to ensure that they are going to have an edge over the long-run.
If you have been trading Forex for a while, you probably noticed the, sometimes, big spikes in the price of certain currency pairs. As a matter of fact, news reports are released almost every single day and the market tend to react strongly to them.
Some background on Dr. Andrew Menaker?
In episode 40 of the Desire To Trade Podcast, I interview Michael Toma, a futures trader who is also the author of The Risk of Trading: Mastering the Most Important Element in Financial Speculation .
In episode 39 of the Desire To Trade Podcast, I interview a stock & Forex trader I really admire named Dave Floyd, the founder and head of trading at Aspen.


text:
Пего ()  —  муниципалитет в Испании, входит в провинцию Аликанте в составе автономного сообщества Валенсия (автономное сообщество). Муниципалитет находится в составе района (комарки) Марина-Альта. Занимает площадь 52,85 км². Население — 11208 человек (на 2010 год). Расстояние до административного центра провинции — 97 км.

Население

Примечания

Ссылки
 Официальная страница
 Ayuntamiento de Pego
 Índice estadístico municipal de Pego
 Federación Valenciana de Municipios y Provincias — Guía Turística
 Liga Futbol Sala Pego

Муниципалитеты Аликанте


Take a through-the-keyhole tour of the magnificent country estate of Chequers, where British prime ministers through the decades have spent time relaxing. Stroll through the rose gardens, enjoy the private art collection and admire the ornate rooms and magnificent interiors furnished with fine antiques and steeped in history. Featuring both period and modern photographs, specially commissioned and taken by leading architectural photographer Mark Fiennes, this is a full-colour book.
In addition to the visual pleasures "Chequers" provides, Norma Major offers an expansive account of the house itself, which details numerous events and experiences and adds colour to the overall story of this beautiful house's occupation by renowned political figures.


text:
"""
.. module:: dj-stripe.tests.test_contrib.test_views
    :synopsis: dj-stripe Rest views for Subscription Tests.

.. moduleauthor:: Philippe Luickx (@philippeluickx)

"""

from __future__ import unicode_literals

from decimal import Decimal

from django.utils import timezone
from django.conf import settings
from django.contrib.auth import get_user_model
from django.core.urlresolvers import reverse

from mock import patch, PropertyMock
from rest_framework import status
from rest_framework.test import APITestCase

from djstripe.models import CurrentSubscription, Customer
from djstripe import settings as djstripe_settings

if settings.STRIPE_PUBLIC_KEY and settings.STRIPE_SECRET_KEY:
    import stripe
    stripe.api_key = settings.STRIPE_SECRET_KEY

class RestSubscriptionTest(APITestCase):
    """
    Test the REST api for subscriptions.
    """
    def setUp(self):
        self.url = reverse("rest_djstripe:subscription")
        self.user = get_user_model().objects.create_user(
            username="testuser",
            email="test@example.com",
            password="123"
        )

        self.assertTrue(self.client.login(username="testuser", password="123"))

    @patch("djstripe.models.Customer.subscribe", autospec=True)
    @patch("djstripe.models.Customer.update_card", autospec=True)
    @patch("stripe.Customer.create", return_value=PropertyMock(id="cus_xxx1234567890"))
    def test_create_subscription(self, stripe_customer_mock, update_card_mock, subscribe_mock):
        self.assertEqual(0, Customer.objects.count())
        data = {
            "plan": "test0",
            "stripe_token": "cake",
        }
        response = self.client.post(self.url, data)
        self.assertEqual(1, Customer.objects.count())
        update_card_mock.assert_called_once_with(self.user.customer, "cake")
        subscribe_mock.assert_called_once_with(self.user.customer, "test0")
        self.assertEqual(response.status_code, status.HTTP_201_CREATED)
        self.assertEqual(response.data, data)

    @patch("djstripe.models.Customer.subscribe", autospec=True)
    @patch("djstripe.models.Customer.update_card", autospec=True)
    @patch("stripe.Customer.create", return_value=PropertyMock(id="cus_xxx1234567890"))
    def test_create_subscription_exception(self, stripe_customer_mock, update_card_mock, subscribe_mock):
        e = Exception
        subscribe_mock.side_effect = e
        data = {
            "plan": "test0",
            "stripe_token": "cake",
        }
        response = self.client.post(self.url, data)
        self.assertEqual(response.status_code, status.HTTP_400_BAD_REQUEST)

    def test_get_no_content_for_subscription(self):
        response = self.client.get(self.url)
        self.assertEqual(response.status_code, status.HTTP_204_NO_CONTENT)

    def test_get_subscription(self):
        fake_customer = Customer.objects.create(
            stripe_id="cus_xxx1234567890",
            subscriber=self.user
        )
        CurrentSubscription.objects.create(
            customer=fake_customer,
            plan="test",
            quantity=1,
            start=timezone.now(),
            amount=Decimal(25.00),
            status="active",
        )

        response = self.client.get(self.url)
        self.assertEqual(response.status_code, status.HTTP_200_OK)
        self.assertEqual(response.data["plan"], "test")
        self.assertEqual(response.data['status'], 'active')
        self.assertEqual(response.data['cancel_at_period_end'], False)

    @patch("djstripe.models.Customer.cancel_subscription", return_value=CurrentSubscription(status=CurrentSubscription.STATUS_ACTIVE))
    @patch("djstripe.models.Customer.current_subscription", new_callable=PropertyMock, return_value=CurrentSubscription(plan="test", amount=Decimal(25.00), status="active"))
    @patch("djstripe.models.Customer.subscribe", autospec=True)
    def test_cancel_subscription(self, subscribe_mock, stripe_create_customer_mock, cancel_subscription_mock):
        fake_customer = Customer.objects.create(
            stripe_id="cus_xxx1234567890",
            subscriber=self.user
        )
        CurrentSubscription.objects.create(
            customer=fake_customer,
            plan="test",
            quantity=1,
            start=timezone.now(),
            amount=Decimal(25.00),
            status="active",
        )
        self.assertEqual(1, CurrentSubscription.objects.count())

        response = self.client.delete(self.url)
        self.assertEqual(response.status_code, status.HTTP_204_NO_CONTENT)
        # Cancelled means flagged as cancelled, so it should still be there
        self.assertEqual(1, CurrentSubscription.objects.count())

        cancel_subscription_mock.assert_called_once_with(
            at_period_end=djstripe_settings.CANCELLATION_AT_PERIOD_END
        )
        self.assertTrue(self.user.is_authenticated())

    def test_cancel_subscription_exception(self):
        response = self.client.delete(self.url)
        self.assertEqual(response.status_code, status.HTTP_400_BAD_REQUEST)

    def test_create_subscription_incorrect_data(self):
        self.assertEqual(0, Customer.objects.count())
        data = {
            "foo": "bar",
        }
        response = self.client.post(self.url, data)
        self.assertEqual(0, Customer.objects.count())
        self.assertEqual(response.status_code, status.HTTP_400_BAD_REQUEST)

class RestSubscriptionNotLoggedInTest(APITestCase):
    """
    Test the exceptions thrown by the subscription rest views.
    """
    def setUp(self):
        self.url = reverse("rest_djstripe:subscription")

    def test_create_subscription_not_logged_in(self):
        self.assertEqual(0, Customer.objects.count())
        data = {
            "plan": "test0",
            "stripe_token": "cake",
        }
        response = self.client.post(self.url, data)
        self.assertEqual(0, Customer.objects.count())
        self.assertEqual(response.status_code, status.HTTP_403_FORBIDDEN)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Have a low credit score? Need a way to raise it up fast? Don't fall for online scams that will promise you instant credit score increases. The most efficient way and the most time-tested way are these 5 methods. Take each step at a time and you'll see your score go up.
Even doing one of these steps today will help you get started on improving your credit score. It'll take only a few minutes but it'll be totally worth it in the long run. Be serious about improving your credit score as it impacts very important aspects of your daily life.
1. START PAYING YOUR BILLS ON TIME - late payments, collections will have a major negative impact on your credit score.
2. KEEP A LOW BALANCE - keep your credit card balances low will start to help raise your credit score. High outstanding debt can keep your score low.
3. STOP OPENING ACCOUNTS - stop applying for new credit cards or loans. Only apply and open when needed.
4. PAY OFF THE DEBTS - pay off any outstanding debt will raise your score.
5. PROTECT YOUR IDENTITY - protecting your identity now will keep your account from being used for fraud.
If you haven't done so yet, first you'll need to check your credit score. Or if you've done the steps above, also take this time to check your score to see how it's improved.
EXPERIAN: Experian gives consumers quick and easy access to their credit reports. It is the leading provider of online consumer credit reports, credit scores, and credit monitoring. Experian provides credit monitoring products to more than 3.1 million members and has delivered more than 20 million credit reports online.
MYFREECREDITSCORENOW: MyFreeScoreNow.com is an industry leader in providing free credit scores to consumers in a secure environment. With this service, customers will receive a free credit score and score report, access to ScoreTracker to keep track of their credit score, and email alerts of significant changes to their credit report. Our customers get peace of mind knowing that their credit report is being monitored every day!
LIFELOCK LifeLock provides a proactive identity theft service, specializing in the prevention of identity theft rather than the reporting of it.
CREDITREPAIR.COM When you're dealing with something as important as your credit, you don't just want someone good on your side. You want the best. That's what CreditRepair.com offers. It's a process that has been developed, refined and proven over many years and thousands of customers. It's people who are not only experts in the credit repair field but also experts at helping individuals meet their credit goals. We're ready to put industry-leading experience and technology to work for you. We're ready to develop a game plan for your situation.


text:
The Food Charter offers effective, publicly-supported ways to improve all Minnesotans' health through changes in food environments and furthering collaboration within our food and farm economy. By implementing strategies outlined in the Food Charter, we can ensure a healthy, safe food supply—and support the state's future prosperity, including reducing healthcare costs, increasing worker productivity, and supporting a robust food and farm economy.
Minnesota is a food and farm economic powerhouse; we're the fifth largest agricultural economy in the United States, and ranked the eighth best state for business. We can build on this legacy to ensure that providing access to healthy food for all Minnesotans also grows our food and farm economy. Implementing Food Charter strategies that strengthen technical assistance and financing options for food and farm entrepreneurs is an important way to accomplish this aim.
If implemented, these strategies will create a robust, well-integrated system of food and farm technical assistance and financing. Many leaders and organizations across Minnesota have been leading the way in this arena and are now poised for further strategic collaboration. The Minnesota Food Funders Network (MFFN)—a group of Minnesota-based funders who make informed, coordinated, and strategic investments to improve key facets of our food system—has convened many leaders in food and farm financing to explore how to implement relevant Food Charter strategies and leverage their shared influence. MFFN has a common commitment to the vitality and prosperity of our state's communities and resilience of our landscapes, which inspires their collaboration.
On April 30, the Minnesota Food Funders Network hosted a strategic event, "Our Common Table: Creating and Financing a Healthy Food System." Participants in this daylong session identified existing and needed assets to ensure robust food and farm financing and technical assistance with the aim of strengthening local and regional food supplies. With an emphasis on the interconnections between food, hunger, health, and agricultural issues, this diverse group of funders worked together toward concrete policy and systems changes that would ensure a healthy, robust food infrastructure for the state.
"One of the most powerful moments was the opportunity to understand our finance and technical assistance resources to support the food system through asset mapping. Participants were highly engaged in how these resources support our work, resource gaps around the state and fully appreciating what they were unaware existed. This was a wonderful learning opportunity which allowed everyone to be highly engaged."
– Pam Bishop, Vice President of Economic Development, Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation
The meeting has already catalyzed work in our communities—including investments in a number of upcoming projects to be announced later in 2015. The Minnesota Food Funders Network is already planning ongoing conversations to further develop plans for this work.
Interested in learning more about healthy food financing initiatives?
Oran Hesterman, President and CEO of the Fair Food Network, was the keynote speaker at the April 30 gathering. In his speech, he addressed the challenges and opportunities of developing a coordinated network of healthy food financing initiatives, and walked the group through the structure of the Fair Food Network and Michigan Good Food Fund, as well as highlighting other key food funds and financing initiatives nationwide. Here are a few examples of cross-sector, collaborative healthy food funds in the U.S.:
Pennsylvania Fresh Food Financing Initiative (FFFI):
A statewide financing program, designed to attract supermarkets and grocery stores to underserved urban and rural communities. Developed as a public-private partnership, FFFI served the financing needs of operators in communities where infrastructure costs and credit needs were not met by conventional financial institutions. The initiative used market analysis, leveraged capital, and public policy to stimulate supermarket development and increase the availability of fresh food in low-income neighborhoods. The program, which began in 2004, ended six years later when all of its funds were deployed.
88 new or expanded stores led to 5,000 jobs, increasing access for nearly 500,000 people.
The California FreshWorks fund (CAFWF):
A private-public partnership loan fund that was designed to: increase access to healthy food in underserved communities; spur economic development that supports healthy communities; and inspire innovation in healthy food. The fund has raised $272 million to invest in financing for grocery stores and other forms of healthy food retail and distribution by providing flexible capital to eligible applicants. CAFWF was modeled after the Pennsylvania Fresh Food Financing Initiative (above) and was developed to align with the National Healthy Food Financing Initiative (HFFI).
Three retail locations led to $40 million initial economic impact with expected $30 million annual recurring impact.
The Michigan Good Food Fund:
A public-private partnership loan (with a $30 million target) that provides financing & business assistance to good food enterprises that benefit underserved communities across Michigan. The Michigan Good Food Fund is working to: Increase Access to Healthy Food; and Drive Economic Development and Job Creation. They're doing this by promoting equity, environmental stewardship, and local sourcing. Eligible grantees must focus on healthy food production, distribution, processing or retail and benefit underserved communities.
By 2020, 20% of food consumed in Michigan will come from Michigan.
To learn more about the Minnesota Food Funders Network, click here.
« Food System Innovators Convening on the U of M Campus » Bolstering Butcher Licensures


Katy Perry didn't waste any time getting a new look after wrapping American Idol earlier this week.
The singer is kicking off the European leg of her Witness world tour with a bold hair color change.
Perry's colourist Rick Henry of Nine Zero One Salon in L.A., who has worked with the star for all her tour hair looks, took the star from her icy platinum hue to a vibrant violet right before her first show stop in Cologne, Germany.
"First show of the European Leg…. introducing Blueberry Crush ✨💜," Henry captioned a photo of Perry's Instagram debut.
To create the striking colour, Henry applied Joico's Color Butter in Purple for just 10 minutes before rinsing, which gives her a temporary pop that lasts for up to 10 shampoos.


text:
: La Quatrième Dimension (  « La zone crépusculaire ») est une série télévisée américaine de science-fiction en vingt épisodes d'environ  basée sur la série La Quatrième Dimension () créée par Rod Serling en 1959, et diffusée sur le service . Il s'agit de la troisième relance de la série, après La Cinquième Dimension et La Treizième Dimension.

En France, la série est diffusée depuis le  en simultané sur Canal+ (en couleurs) et sur Canal+ Séries (en noir et blanc). À cette même date, la première saison est disponible en intégralité sur MyCanal à la demande dans ses deux versions (couleurs et noir et blanc). Au Québec, elle a été mise en ligne le  sur ICI TOU.TV, et en Belgique, elle est disponible depuis le  sur RTLplay.

Histoire de la série
Dans cette incarnation de  qui est hébergée par Jordan Peele, chaque épisode détaille des sujets différents tels que des incidents bizarres, des événements surnaturels, le racisme, les problèmes sociaux, les fausses nouvelles, les invasions extraterrestres et l'immigration avec une tournure inhabituelle et inattendue dans chacun.

Les épisodes notables incluent Sanaa Lathan en tant que femme qui découvre que son caméscope peut remonter le temps, Chris O'Dowd en tant qu'anthropologue qui étudie une arme étrange, Morena Baccarin en tant que gérante d'hôtel qui trouve tout le monde autour d'elle immobile, et Damon Wayans Jr. en tant que bricoleur d'église qui trouve qu'il peut changer de ville en utilisant un modèle plus petit.

John Larroquette, Donna Dixon, Eric Keenleyside, Kristin Lehman, Ryan Robbins, Peter Kelamis, Ethan Embry, Gil Bellows et George Takei ont également travaillé dans des projets précédents de Twilight Zone.

Alors que  suit un chemin différent de celui de , l'épisode  est lié à l'épisode classique .

L'épisode  est le premier épisode métafictionnel de la franchise dans lequel Mark Silverman reprend son imitation de Rod Serling de l'attraction Tour de la terreur de la zone crépusculaire.

Distribution
Jordan Peele reprend le rôle du narrateur, tenu auparavant par Rod Serling (La Quatrième Dimension), Burgess Meredith (La Quatrième Dimension : le film) et Forest Whitaker (La Treizième Dimension). Il apparaît à chaque début et à chaque conclusion d'épisodes.

Première saison

Deuxième saison

Développement

Le , Bryan Singer est annoncé comme prêt à développer, produire et éventuellement réaliser une troisième relance de  pour CBS Television Studios. Il restait cependant à engager un scénariste, trouver des réseaux de diffusion intéressés pour les droits de diffusion et obtenir l'accord de la famille Serling. Le , un scénariste est annoncé en négociations pour rejoindre la série. En 2016, Simon Kinberg et Craig Sweeny rejoignent la production et CBS s'interrogeait sur la possibilité de vendre le projet à d'autres réseaux ou des services de diffusion en continu, voire de le diffuser sur sa propre plate-forme, . Kinberg finit par quitter le projet pour l'écriture et la réalisation du film , suivis par Singer et Sweeny.

Le , CBS relance le projet pour leur service de diffusion en continu . Jordan Peele est alors en négociations pour produire la série par sa société Monkeypaw Productions et Marco Ramirez, qui a travaillé sur , est envisagé comme auteur-producteur. Le , CBS annonce la production de la série. Peele et Ramirez sont confirmés comme producteurs exécutifs avec Simon Kinberg, Win Rosenfeld, Audrey Chon, Carol Serling et Rick Berg. Peele, Ramirez et Kinberg collaboreront sur le premier épisode de la saison. Les sociétés de production impliquées dans la série se réduisent à CBS Television Studios, Monkeypaw Productions et Genre Films.

Le , CBS annonce que la saison comptera dix épisodes, tous à des différents stades d'écriture. Si la série n'a pas d'auteur-producteur attitré, le réalisateur Greg Yaitanes est chargé d'assurer la continuité entre les épisodes. Le , Jordan Peele reprend le rôle du narrateur et hôte de la série.

Le , il a été annoncé via une vidéo promotionnelle pour la série que Gerard McMurray dirigeait un épisode avec Mathias Herndl en tant que directeur de la photographie. Le , il a été rapporté qu'Alex Rubens écrirait un épisode de la série.

Le , la série a été renouvelée pour une deuxième saison. En , CBS All Access a révélé des informations d'épisode sur six des dix épisodes de la deuxième saison. En , des informations sur les quatre derniers épisodes de la saison 2 ont été révélées.

Le , la série est annuléeIl n'y aura pas de troisième saison.

Tournage
Le tournage de la première saison a commencé le  à Vancouver, en Colombie-Britannique et s'est terminée le .

Les producteurs ont choisi de faire la série en couleur plutôt qu'en noir et blanc. Le producteur exécutif Simon Kinberg a déclaré que l'équipe . Cependant, la série a également été réalisée pour regarder en noir et blanc. Pour la séquence d'ouverture, le producteur exécutif Simon Kinberg a déclaré que les images ont été choisies pour refléter la série télévisée originale, quelque chose utilisé à la place d'un jeu de couleurs noir et blanc.

Le tournage de la deuxième saison devait commencer du  au  à Vancouver.

Épisodes

Première saison (2019)

 L'Humoriste ()
 Cauchemar à  ()
  ()
 Un voyageur ()
 Le Prodige ()
 Six degrés de liberté ()
 Pas tous les hommes ()
 Origine ()
 Le Scorpion bleu ()
 L'Homme flouté ()

Deuxième saison (2020)

 Rendez-vous à mi-chemin ()
 L'interruption ()
 Qui je suis ? ()
 Ovation (Ovation)
 Parmi les incultes ()
 8 (8)
 Un visage humain ()
 Miniville ()
 En boucle ()
 Autre suggestion ()

Marque fictive
Dans le deuxième épisode apparaît une compagnie aérienne fictive, la  dont le vol 1015 va connaître des événements inattendus. Dans le sixième épisode, Six degrés de liberté, l'un des passagers du vaisseau joue avec un avion miniature arborant  sur le fuselage.

Whipple: nom de la base arctique épisodes 5 saison 2

Whipple: marque de café américain épisode 6 saison 2 cité par le personnage principal

Whipple: whipple aeronautics, le nom du constructeur de la fusée marqué dessus épisode 6 saison 1

Références

Voir aussi

Articles connexes
 La Quatrième Dimension : série télévisée originelle de 1959.
 La Quatrième Dimension : le film : film à sketchs de 1983 réalisé par John Landis, Joe Dante, Steven Spielberg et George Miller.
 La Cinquième Dimension : série télévisée de 1985.
 La Treizième Dimension : série télévisée de 2002.
 Twilight Q : animé japonais de 1987 reprenant le concept de La Quatrième Dimension.
  : attraction des parcs Walt Disney Parks and Resorts prenant le thème de La Quatrième Dimension comme décor.

Liens externes

Série télévisée créée en 2019
Série télévisée disparue en 2020
Série télévisée américaine des années 2010
Série télévisée américaine des années 2020
Série télévisée de Paramount+
Série télévisée de CBS Studios
Série télévisée fantastique
Série télévisée américaine de science-fiction
Anthologie à la télévision ou dans les séries télévisées
The Twilight Zone
Série télévisée en anglais


The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid take steps to support Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi in response to Hurricane Nate. Medical Waivers, patient hotlines and amended guidelines are implemented to assist with the public health emergency in those four states.
Kindred Healthcare provides an estimated third quarter impact of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. At press time, the financial impact for the hospital system was $20 million. Kindred Hospital has 16,000 employees and 18 long-term acute care hospitals in the affected areas. This includes a link to the PDF report findings.
Six ways the healthcare industry can protect itself from cyber-attacks. The article includes specific tasks for HCOs so they may create a cyber-resilient organization. Includes both a link to Congress's Task Force 88-page report on Improving Cybersecurity in the Healthcare Industry and a high-level summary of the findings.
Funny (but True) News: A pumpkin spice scented wall plug-in became so overpowerful it caused the evacuation of a Baltimore High School this week. Five students and employees were hospitalized due to the overwhelming fumes coming from a rouge plug-in air freshener.


The Taste of Manila draws thousands of festival-goers to immerse themselves in Filipino merrymaking as well as traditional food and unique culture from the nation's more than 7,000 islands.
The street-wide event covers the length and breadth of the area now known as Little Manila and features sampling of Filipino delicacies and fiesta food. The famous "street food" is also available for purchase.


cdc-48.3 RNAi suppresses the emb lethality of air-2(or207ts). Other Cdc48 homologs and associated cofactors do not suppress air-2(or207ts) lethality. Genes tested via RNAi that did not suppress include: F59E12.5, F59E12.4, F19B6.2, Y46G5A.14, C05C10.6, ZK353.8, F23C8.4, F48A11.5, H06H21.6, cdc-48.1, cdc-48.2 and cdc-48.1/cdc-48.2 (double RNAi).


text:
Managing Marketing: The Power of Curiosity in the Commercial World
By Darren WoolleyPodcasts March 18, 2022 November 24, 2022
Adam Murphy has an extensive career in research, insights and innovation, particularly focusing on the brewing industry. This has led him to founding Curioso, to champion a culture of curiosity in the commercial world. Adam shares his belief in the importance of fostering curiosity within organisations as an essential skill. Yet many organisations are dominated by counter-curiosity beliefs and practices that are putting their survival at risk.
You can listen to the podcast here:
Follow Managing Marketing on Soundcloud, Podbean, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Stitcher, Spotify, Apple Podcast and Amazon Podcasts.
Darren:
Welcome to Managing Marketing, a weekly podcast where we discuss the issues and opportunities facing marketing, media, and advertising with industry thought leaders and practitioners.
Today, I'm sitting down with Adam Murphy who, after an extensive career in research insights and innovation, particularly in the beer industry, has founded Curioso, to champion a culture of curiosity in the commercial world. Welcome, Adam.
Thank you, Darren. Thanks for having me.
Curiosity, the old cliche is it killed the cat.
But it's actually a really important part of the human condition, isn't it?
Yeah, indeed. For every cat that it may have killed, it's done some wonderful things in terms of putting us on the moon and giving us jazz music, and any number of things that have come from humans being curious.
And I really believe that almost all great discoveries and progress has come from one curious person following a hypothesis or a hunch that they might have, and following that through and seeing where it led them until something great has happened. And that could be something small, could be something huge. But I think it really is a core part of innovation and progress in many ways.
Yeah. Well, everyone says that curiosity is just a natural part of human beings when we are born, but we sort of seem to lose it along the way, don't we? I know Ken Robinson – so Ken Robinson, the great British author and educationalist said that the education system has a lot to answer for.
Yeah, well, I definitely would agree with Ken there. I think we are all born curious, it's how we survive. If we weren't curious, we couldn't figure out how to make it out of being a baby or a toddler. But I definitely think that the education system as we go through starts to teach us that there is a right answer to things.
We learn that one plus one is two, and it will always equal two which occasionally, I've challenged. So, if you think of, if you're looking in the sky and you see one cloud and another cloud and the wind blows those two together, how many clouds are there? In that case, one plus one equals one. And of course, people always talk about one plus one equals three when the sum of the parts is worth more than the whole.
But we do start to learn in school that there is a right answer to every question. And to a certain extent, or to a good extent, that's also then perpetuated in a lot of corporate cultures where young people come into businesses and we train them the right way to do things and the right answer, and the way that the company thinks about a given topic.
And so, we in many ways, start to discourage people from letting their natural curiosity lead them and start to steer towards things like … that we suggest that the all-knowing leader is what everybody should aspire to be, the sage that's been in the industry for so long that they know everything that there is to know, and people start to mould themselves on that.
It's interesting because you actually see that in small children where especially when they're drawing and they first pick up either a paintbrush or a crayon or something, and they just start to draw, and then there's that sort of criticism about, well, what is it? And it doesn't look like the thing it's meant to be, and here's the way you should draw a person, and here's the way you draw a house.
And so, I absolutely get this thing about it's where we bring a perception of what things should be, the way they should be, that starts to mould and reduce that curiosity. Or is it just part of naturally developing our skill sets by learning from others?
No, I think by all means, we need to grow and that the whole point of curiosity is actually to learn, but not stop at that first answer, I guess.
So, in that example that you're giving, which is all too common: I often start training sessions around design thinking and ideation, asking people to draw a house. You have a large group say, draw a house on a post-it note. It's funny how many of them are a little square with a triangle on top, and then a rectangular door and window on either side of the door, because we've kind of been taught that that is the right way.
I think that the curious mind then says, well, why is that a house? Why can't houses also look like this? And that's where kids are — I find that one of the things that bring me back to curiosity when I get lost a bit is just spending time with my kids and talking to them about things and the way that they see the world, because they approach things with more questions than answers, and then try to connect the answers together and build on the answers.
I think one of the behaviours you see in the corporate world that we could do better at is not taking the first answer: having questions about the answers. But often, because of the hustle and bustle, the urgency to move projects along, we have a question, we find an answer, and an answer's better than no answer. So, we kind of run with the first answer there. And often, there are reasons why we might want to question that answer and try to get beneath it and start to understand more of the complexity around that answer.
Because particularly in advertising, there's a belief that curiosity is the source of creativity, the creative department in an advertising agency. The sheer fact that they're called the creative department means that that's the place where creativity happens and that those people are naturally curious. That's the source of their creativity that doesn't seem to occur anywhere else, either in the agency or in the client body.
Yeah. It's funny how often any discussion around curiosity ends up inevitably talking about creativity as well. And there is a huge amount of curiosity required, I think, to continue to be truly creative. Because if we think of creativity as a practice, trying to generate things that are new and things, which violate people's expectations in a way, then we have to be willing to look at the world through a different lens and ask questions about why things are how they are and how else could they be.
A lot of creativity is asking the question of what might be rather than how are things. But I think that if we leave curiosity only to the creative disciplines — I've worked in marketing departments in massive CPG or FMCG organizations, and if we just leave curiosity for when we're trying to be creative, we miss so many opportunities. And it shouldn't also just be the gamut.
In some other organisations, they may say, "Well, we leave that to the insights people" which is great. Insights teams should be the champions of curiosity within organisations and open the organisation's eyes to the things that it doesn't know, or the beliefs that may not be true. Or what I call the organisations' blindly accepted truths, where we say something is real but we actually, when you dig down, people don't have a lot of evidence behind that.
And that could be because it was true 20 years ago and it's not true now, or it could be because the CEO said it one day, so we've all hopped on the train behind that idea. But curiosity can really help people do a great job wherever they are: the supply chain, the finance team, wherever it may be to say, "Well, why do we do things the way that we do? Why do the bookkeeping that way, maybe there's a different way?"
So, I'm getting from the way you're talking about this, that you see curiosity as the source of innovating, of changing things, of creating things. So, in a way, it is the source of change, it's the source of creativity.
Yeah, I think we often box innovation in a particular mindset, especially I've worked in the consumer goods industry for so long. I think we often kind of box innovation around thinking about new product development or service innovation.
But when you think about innovation in process, or as you said, it's really about change, changing the way that we do things, changing our processes, change even in things like employee policies and things like that. The starting point for so much of that is asking either the question about why are things how they are or as I said, how might things be different or how might they be better? And taking that moment to pause and look at how else that ecosystem might play out or how else that landscape could look.
And that's one of the challenges that are very real for organisations to work through. If you're trying to be a more curious organisation, does your structure and your processes allow people the time because curiosity does take a little bit of time? It's easy to take the answer we have, it's harder to take a moment to look at what other answers might there be, but in my experience, it pays off in the long run.
A little bit of time spent at the front end to make sure that we are talking about the right problem and that we've got the full extent of information and knowledge and perspectives that we could handle that problem means that you can move much more rapidly at the back end as you to try to solve that problem, wherever it might be in the organisation.
Adam, do you think part of this loss of curiosity in organisations is a factor of size? Because we often hear about — and everyone points towards startups and when something is small, they're often innovative, they're agile, they're constantly evolving, they're finding faster and different ways of doing things because it's nice and small.
But I think it's anthropologists have defined that once you get to, I think it's around 150 people in an organisation, that it becomes incredibly difficult for people to just interact with each other in that loose way. And that's why we have to have these processes and structures and things that in some ways, become counter to curiosity and innovation.
Yeah, I think size is certainly … or bigger organisations would have a harder time be because as you said, there are more people, but I also look at it from the sense of there's often, once an organisation gets bigger, more layers between decision-makers and the problem — be the problem understanding consumers or how things work going through the factory or whatever it may be, we start to end up with layers in between and people become a bit more distant from the source of new knowledge.
So, in the consumer marketing world, you mentioned that I've worked in the beer industry for a long time. It becomes more challenging for the people who are in decision-making roles that maybe aren't involved in our consumer insights work or spending a lot of time with consumers. And maybe not spending a lot of time with the category outside of having their whatever it may be: CEO hat or GM of marketing hat or whatever it is on.
And so, you start to see the world only through a certain lens, and it's harder to absorb all the things that are going to happen, especially the change, which is there. I have a lot of empathy for people who have been in an industry or an organisation for a long time and find themselves in a leadership role, because as they've been progressing, the industry's probably been changing a lot.
And I think one of the important tenets that I attach to curiosity is it has to be never-ending. So, curiosity is not just the strong desire for knowledge as the dictionary entry would say. But for me, it's the ongoing, or the perpetual desire for knowledge because the world is complex and we do celebrate sometimes simplicity. And we say, "Hey, I love working with that guy because he can really make the complex simple."
For me, that's important, but I see a big difference between having a deep understanding of a topic because you've curiously explored it and inquired it, and then being able to convey that simply is very different to having an overly simplistic view of that topic or ecosystem.
So, just going back a step, I think some of the best leaders in organisations are the ones that will say they regularly get out of their office and walk around the coal face, the work face because it's the people doing it on a day-to-day basis, they have the best insights. Whether it's the factory floor to say there's a better way of reducing waste or improving productivity or improving quality, or whether it's the sales team who are giving direct feedback about the customer interactions and the type of feedback they're getting.
It's really important for the decision-makers that can make things happen to actually be open to those insights and innovations that are coming from the work front, isn't it?
Yeah, indeed, and that's been my experience. I love working with leaders that are willing to commit to that. And in my time in the beer industry, I was lucky to work with a lot of CEOs and the other chief sales officers and chief marketing officers through my career that were willing to spend that time, not just with the teams to understand what was going on, but also getting out and connecting with consumers and pressing the flesh, so to speak, and talking to people and observing people and seeing people live.
And we tried to drive a strong culture of consumer closeness where we said, well, we have so many opportunities. And I think lots of businesses, where instead of … we used to go out and do market visits if we were travelling to one of our markets when I was in the global team of a beer company. And we'd often just walk around and look at trade execution on those visits.
And we changed that to start to try to find opportunities to talk with consumers, to interact with consumers while we were there, to observe them and see the way that they interact with stores. Because it's one thing to kind of see our things, how the planogram says they're meant to be, but it's another thing to notice that consumers are actually having a hard time finding what they want in that planogram.
So, I think that that makes a huge difference and I think it can be very empowering for the leader as well then because I think as much as we all love and I think that the great leaders are also very decisive, so you don't want to be curious forever and not actually take action. But I think you can take much stronger actions when you feel that that's based on a really strong grounding.
Well, I think what it gives them is some stories to take back into the C-suite and the boardroom, which is actually stories from where the sales are occurring. You know, it's great looking at P&Ls and balance sheets, but when you can tell stories of what's actually driving that and ways of improving it, it makes it infinitely more compelling.
The other point you made is this idea of taking the complex and making it simple. And I think the quote and everyone says it was Einstein, but it's this idea of making it simpler, but not necessarily simple. Because the danger with simple is that it invariably loses the nuance that is what's required for feeding that and answering — or feeding the hunger of curiosity. It's the nuance of a problem where the solution lies, not in the simplicity of the solution.
Yeah, indeed. I really believe as I mentioned before, this idea of having deep understanding is conveyed simply. I think that's really what we crave. If you have someone with an overly simplistic view of a category and the ecosystem around it, the idea that you'll find rich opportunities in there for innovation or for growth is going to be much less likely.
But if you have somebody who actually has spent the time and developed a deep understanding of that ecosystem and then can convey it simply so that the opportunities are very clear and very rich, I think that that's what we appreciate because having someone explain that inner detail is not great.
And the analogy I often use with people is of your GP. So, if you go to the doctor and the doctor actually has what you would hope, fingers crossed, a very rich and detailed understanding of human anatomy, but they rarely say to you, "What's happening is your pancreas is not producing enough insulin in order to convert the sugars in the food that you're eating."
They'll say "You have diabetes." And they might say, "Diabetes is a problem where your body can't process sugar well." That's a deep understanding conveyed simply. It's enough information for you to understand, okay? I hear what you're saying-
Oh my God, you haven't even mentioned the Krebs cycle there. We could go through all the parts of the Krebs cycle for the breakdown of glucose into energy.
But look, I absolutely get the point. I'm just wondering though, that is part of this because human beings really struggle with complexity? Have you heard of the Cynefin framework? It was developed in IBM a few years ago and defines these domains of simple, complicated, complex and chaotic. And how human beings love the simple, because it's all about cause and effect.
If you shout abuse at someone and they come and punch you in the nose, there's direct cause and effect. But as we move into complicated and complex, suddenly cause and effect are completely obscured from it. We can at best guess or make a hypothesis, but even then, trying to test it because there are so many variables, it becomes incredibly difficult for us and chaotic — well, we all know about chaos theory, it's impossible to actually predict.
So, human beings love to exist in that simple, because we don't like thinking, contrary to popular belief. Yes, we do have this massive brain, we just don't particularly like using it because it takes too much energy. Is that part of the problem here, that it's easy to follow the rules because we don't have to think about it?
Well, for sure, Darren, I think we are cognitive misers. We are evolutionarily inclined to try to minimise the use of our brain because we want it to be ready and aware of that sabretooth tiger that might come around the corner that our brain is still worried about, even though they've been long extinct.
So, we do want simplicity. There is a reason things like the K.I.S.S. principle and these kinds of things do apply. We do find it easier to make decisions. We do find it easier to make forward progress when we can have a simple view of the world. But I think that applies to all of us in some way, but there are maybe you call them the few, the curious that can do a great job of actually understanding what's going on behind that for us, and digging into that and helping us then to translate what is a complex ecosystem in a simple way that most people can process it.
And if you translate that to a company, I think that's where providing the right room within the organisation by which I mean space, not physical room: but the right space in the organisation, putting the right people there to go and understand the complexities, understand the depth, but be able to bring that back to the decision-makers and the action takers in a way that presents it at a simple level that breaks it down into the parts that are really important for the decisions they're going to make.
I think that's where you can be really successful as an organisation because you don't get tripped up by the stuff that you're pretending isn't there. Like it's very easy to pretend that there's not a health issue in your segment or that the pricing of your segment is not intermingled with another alternative that people could choose to satisfy that need.
It's really easy to overlook those things. What's smarter is to be able to go, "We know those are there, here's how we're going to make it simple for people to take action on those."
One of the other things that I've noticed in that process is that the rise of what I call the false dichotomies or of the false dilemmas, that it's become very popular, especially as a sales technique, whether that's internally, when you're making recommendations or externally when someone's trying to sell something to your organisation — to reduce all the choices down to you either go for A or B because they're the only choices. And the danger obviously, with that, is have you really considered everything else? Can every problem be reduced to two? Now, it's clear why it's two because that makes it very simple.
Yeah, we do have a tendency to … reinforce through culture, even the idea of everything being binary. Like very complex discussions, like race, for example, or abortion, all these, they get reduced and politics gets reduced to Liberal and Labour, Republican and Democrat.
We reduce these super-complex systems down because as I said, we are cognitive misers, and we don't want to have to think about it too much. The challenge which you see, if you take those kinds of political examples that I used is that then in culture, self-fulfilling echo chambers form around each of those poles of that idea.
And if you take the classic example in the US, Republicans listening to Fox and Democrats listening to alternate channels, which just keeps-
CNN.
Yeah, to CNN — those echo chambers just keep reinforcing and actually pulling the poles further away from each other.
And that can happen in organisations as well. If you break everything down into A or B, you actually set up even at the board table then, an arm wrestle to decide how are we going to resolve this between A and B, when most issues are so complex and have so many positions between A and B that we could take not as compromises, but in understanding that, well, actually, there's far more points of view here and perspectives on this than we need to take than simplifying it to A and B.
But it does make for in many organisations, quick decision-making because you have another kind of unspoken rule, like the HIPPO (the highest-paid person's opinion). So, well, if I go into rooms A and B, and I think the CEO is on A, and I'm betting on A, I might as well boil it down to A and B because we'll quickly get A decided and we'll move on. So, there are reasons that they exist.
So, it's expedient.
It can be very expedient, whether it gets us to the best answer. If C was actually the right answer, is a different question.
Or W, because-
Yes, yeah.
And that's the thing that annoys me, is that there are often infinite solutions just as there are infinite strategies, and strategy is defining a solution for a problem or opportunities. So, when there's an infinite, this reductive process of reducing it down to its simplest choice of A and B is always for me, counter-intuitive. And it could be because I have a science background.
Yeah, I think that kind of scientific method is a big part. Like scientific method in a way is the codification of curiosity. It tells you how to do it, but just to your point about how frustrating it can be when we take the A and B when it could be W, the other thing that's forcing things to be a binary that people then place a bet on, and we plant the flag and say we've chosen A, is that it also doesn't leave room for adaptation.
It often forces you to say, we believe whatever, raspberry is going to be the flavour of this summer. And now, we've locked in on raspberry. We're not willing to evolve and we're not willing to see when a new superfood pops up over the horizon that actually, we should also be talking about that. It forces us to double down.
And as human beings, we're psychologically inclined so when confirmation bias kicks in, we start to only see reasons why we should keep sticking with A, when in actual fact, as a company, we might be better off pursuing A, but also looking at W and also experimenting and doing a test with B because any or all of them might be the right way forward.
I like that. And thank you for acknowledging the role of the scientific method. A lot of people, when I talk about the scientific method, their eyes glaze over and they start thinking, oh my God. But in actual fact, practiced properly, and it's full of curiosity and even creativity, the observations are made, the hypothesis is created, which is a creative process based on observation, empirical evidence.
And then you put it to a test, you design a test using design thinking to actually create a way of testing how valid that hypothesis is, and it's either proven, disproven, or uncertain. And so, you just keep going through that process. And yet in business, you hear people talking all the time about 'test and learn', but it just doesn't seem to be part of the culture of organisations.
Yeah, I think that there are some organisations where that true test and learn exists. And I think with the advent of a lot of kinds of services and information businesses that are purely digital, it's so much easier to control tests and do things. So, you do see some of those big companies having a very test-based approach. And I've talked with some folks that work in both … even promotion testing for consumer goods and retail in the grocery sector, where now, in the digital world, you can put lots of tests out there.
But they have a challenge, there are some clients that are well and truly entrenched in it, others that don't so much. And I think often because test and learn can be treated as prove me right or else … like let's do a test. As long as the test says we made the right choice — whereas test and learn, you should be assuming that you don't get a complete answer the first time.
Test: you learn a bit about that, you say, well, now let's change this condition and go through. And it is funny how AB testing which I'm a huge supporter of, is a human-centred design which I teach to people as well — they're centred on the scientific method. They all in some way come back to that, which is when you look at the span of human history, that's how we got to where we are now.
So, we shouldn't forget about it. We shouldn't put it to the back of the room. That's how we ended polio and how we put rockets into space. And that's how the internet works: it was people following that approach.
The scientific method from the time of the enlightenment has actually improved the living standards of the human race, unbelievably. If people want to deny science, then go back to the dark ages and low short lifespans and high infant mortality rates. We've created an incredible world that is increasingly dealing with all of the problems we've created for ourselves as part of that.
Yeah, for sure. And that journey of time is one of the examples that I use when I'm talking about that idea of the blindly accepted truths that might exist in your organisation, every organisation has them.
But one blindly accepted truth in culture and humanity more broadly was that mouldy bread is bad and you should get rid of it and destroy it. Except some smart person thought, I wonder what the mould's all about. I wonder if there's anything good about the mould. And now, we have penicillin. You get a cold, you go, they give you some Amoxil and away you go. All that came back to someone being curious about, well, what is the mould on bread? And I wonder if there's any upside to the mould in bread.
Well, it was actually an accident. He left the plates out, I think the story goes, but that could be apocryphal. Anyway, look, Adam, I'm really curious about how you … because you've set up this practice, this business to help organisations embrace curiosity, right?
And what I've seen in the past is large organisations getting an innovation department, which as you say, ends up focusing on new product development rather than using it. It must be more than just having a group of people focusing on this. How do you go about building a culture of curiosity?
Yeah, it most certainly has to be an organisation-wide commitment to be a more curious organisation. You mentioned innovation departments being set up: you also see incubators, disruptive growth organisations — different companies call them different things where companies will set up a … if you want to call it a side business in curiosity or innovation.
To a certain extent, that can work. And I think that that comes back to your earlier points about we do seem to naturally feel that there's more curiosity and creativity and innovation in startups where people are closer to the consumer still, they're closer to the problem, still they're doing something new. So, there aren't a hundred years of patented knowledge and behaviour to base it on.
But I think the challenge if you do that, and I did work in a big organisation that had that approach, is that it starts to kind of become, as you talked about, the creative department that people say, "Well, that happens over there. I don't need to be curious, those guys over there look after that. This is one of those problems, we'll let those guys worry about it."
But as we talked about the ability to create and innovate and do things differently exists all throughout the organisation. And as I've started to work with companies talking about this, it's really clear that there's two levels at which we have to have the discussion. The first and most important is we have to have leadership who's on board with the idea of being a creative culture.
Because if it's from the top, if the values and beliefs of the organisation don't encourage curiosity (and even if it's unintentional, many of them sometimes discourage curiosity), then there's no point me or someone like me coming and training teams within the organisation to be more curious and follow the scientific method and to inquire before they take action, because people will then … their ideas won't make it through the decision-making levels.
So, I talk to lots of people about values and beliefs, and then also, the rituals and the behavior and even the leadership style of the organisation: is it one which encourages curiosity, or are there certain phrases or big rituals that you have, or even with one organisation looking at the awards that they give. Do any of the awards recognise experimentation failure, curiosity, or do they only focus on results?
But when I talk about phrases, having been an insights person for a long time, you hate hearing the phrase, "I don't need research to tell me that …" That tells a curious person who might have been trying to move your organisation a little bit forward, or in a little bit of a different direction, or to discover option W that you were talking about to say "I won't try anymore if that's the case."
So, it can be really small things sometimes, but if culturally, it's not there, then once that is bought into by leadership, then you can look at structure and process. Do people have the right time to apply the process? To experiment, test, learn, experiment, test, learn? Do they have the right resources to do that?
And then finally, capability. Do they actually have the skills because it is trained out of us in school and we might have been in different companies for 15 years, and it has been trained out of us. It's not an innate thing that just pops back like breathing or riding a bike. You do actually have to reapply yourself, train yourself out of some of the things that have happened.
So, I think that those are the things that are important in making the change and what organisations need to make all of that happen is some kind of champion or inspiration for what could be better, whether that's someone internal or external to excite them about, yeah, we could actually be better if we follow this way.
It's interesting what you say about top-down, because part of it is redefining what success looks like. And success is not just doing the same thing over and over again. Success is, in many ways, the Toyota Motor Corporation, their idea of Kaizen, constant improvement, this curiosity to constantly find better ways of doing things.
And one of the things they do is that they move people around the organisation into different jobs because part of curiosity can be just giving someone a different perspective. You know, often, people that have the one job for 5, 10, 20 years, that's the only way they see the organisation. You move them into different parts and suddenly, they're seeing a different perspective and that can, in the right culture, trigger new ideas and innovation.
Yeah, I think for sure. And I was lucky enough to live that first-hand. So, I had had a long career at Nielsen in different research roles and Anheuser-Busch InBev, the world's largest brewer offered me a role to move in there and establish the shopper insights practice.
And after a couple of years of doing that, the chief sales officer at the time Bernardo Paiva, said to me "I want you to move into revenue management." And I said, "But Bernardo, I don't understand. I'm not a financial guy at all. I don't understand much about pricing and margins and profit pools and these kinds of things." And he said, "But no, but I've got a whole bunch of people in revenue management who know that stuff, but what you get that they don't get is people and how people make decisions."
And so, he said, "You go in there and learn all that stuff you just said you don't know from that part of the business, but also bring what you know, your perspective on pricing, which is how people react to it, to those guys." And it was two of the most enjoyable and best growth years of my career and did change the way that we did promotions around the world.
So, I think there's a lot to be said by just bringing a different perspective and inviting people's perspectives rather than thinking, "No, we know how to do revenue management. I'll leave that to those guys." Inviting a new perspective, change the way that those guys approach things as well.
It's interesting you should say that because one of the things I say in this data-rich world is that data can tell you what people are doing, but it rarely tells you why or what the motivation is, you know. And that's why when people say to me, "Oh, it's all in the data," no, it's not. That can only get you a certain distance, but to really go beyond that requires a totally different way of thinking. It's an interesting conundrum that I think the world faces.
And I think they're trying to answer it with AI. It'll be interesting to see how sophisticated AI can become to solve that problem.
Yeah, I definitely have a special thought in terms of the way that that goes, because I think there's going to be a lot of challenges to train AI to be able to see a lot of insight comes from the violation of expectations. So, it takes a human mind to be sitting there going, "Wow, that is not how that intuitively would've gone, would've been. And now, that I see that happening a lot, what is this pattern about it?"
And so, I think AI so far is very good at recognising patterns. I think recognising the violations of patterns and digging into those, there's always going to be a human component. But I also have this part of me that says, I hope we can. I hope we can. I think it'll be good for progress if we can start to teach AI to do that.
But right where we are today, regardless of how much big data you have or thick data or how different people call it, different things, there's no match for having a curious human being, looking at that and seeing/reading between the lines, so to speak, of the data and saying, "This is interesting. A lot can be informed by just reading the data as it is. But what's really interesting is this piece over here where this doesn't make any sense, we decreased the depth of this promotion, but it went five times better than it did the week before. What was different? Was it something contextual? Was it the way that we promoted the promotion? Was it the way we worded the promotion? Was the weather different? What was it?"
I think that this is where there's a role for a curious human to make sense of this sea of data that we have.
Well, a curious human sitting in front of a huge data lake with a terrific algorithm, answering all those questions based on the data.
Yeah, indeed.
And that's where we get that perfect match. One of the things that we constantly run into and I'd love your point of view on this, is the concept of best practice, because it always drives me crazy. At some point, a client will have designed a number of different models for them, for instance, their roster of agencies. And they'll say to me, "Which one's best practice?"
And I'll say, "Well, what do you mean?" They go, "Well, who else is doing this?" So, I suddenly realise what they mean is common practice because they just want to know, well, who else is doing it? How do you answer that one?
Well, look, I actually think when we talk about best practice and I try to avoid that term and talk about great examples because often, people take one example of something that worked and say, well, this is best practice.
But I think it ties back to the earlier conversation that we were having about simplicity and complexity because I think you can generalise something as best practice if you overgeneralise an industry or a category or a type of decision about agency rosters in terms of saying, well, all agencies are more or less the same. They more or less are trying to do the same things. They've more or less got the same internal expertise and capability.
If you generalise all those things and ignore the simplicity — not understand the simplicity and convey it simply, but ignore the simplicity and try and make all agencies the same, then you can probably say, "Well, best practice would be this." Because if everybody was the same, then what worked for that agency is going to work for this other agency.
But I think it's overlooking some of the complexity. Whereas, the best thing is to look at trying to match examples of which agency looks the most, like it was dealing with the same things that you are going through, has the same track record, the same similar objectives, and what worked with them is probably better than the common practice because you may not fit the average … if we assume that all agencies are average, that's not a world I really would want to hope for.
And in a complex world, taking every variable into consideration, that would be next to impossible. At best, you're doing an approximation. And so, I think it's really about alleviating the individual's fear about, oh my God, perhaps doing something unique or new for the first time.
So, accept that every problem in many ways is unique and every solution could be exactly what's always been done before, hoping for a different outcome, or trying something completely new.
Look, Adam Murphy, this has been a terrific conversation and one that I would enjoy extending for more time, but unfortunately, we've run out of that time. Thank you so much for coming and having a chat about managing marketing.
Thank you for inviting me, Darren. I really enjoyed the conversation and was happy to chat with anybody that wants to talk about curiosity anytime.
Fantastic. Look, I've got one question before you go, and that is of all the companies that you know of or you're working within this practice, who do you think is doing it really well?
Ideal for marketers, advertisers, media, and commercial communications professionals, Managing Marketing is a podcast hosted by Darren Woolley and special guests. Find all the episodes here
August 12, 2022 November 9, 2022


Merry Christmas! I hope you are all done with the Christmas shopping for all your loved ones. I must admit it, I absolutely hate all the hassle at the mall around this time of the year. It is very stressful. On the other hand, I adore all the wonderful Christmas lighting and decor on many homes – it's simply magical.
I have been sitting on this post for a while now because I always find it hard to write about Christmas. This has got to be one of the most joyous yet difficult time of the year for many people. I know a lot of people that have lost their loved ones recently, or they lost their loved ones a while back and they are celebrating Christmas without them, while others are simply in the hospital with their loved ones that are seriously sick. All these reasons have been holding me back from posting about all the joyous things surrounding this holiday.
There's a little boy named Jack. He's my little angel that always used to love following me everywhere I went. He loved hanging out with me and I never wanted anyone else to hold him. I always remember him wearing his red and white striped shirt. He was too good for earth so on December 25, 1991, God took him home to be with him and made sure it was on Christmas day so we'd never forget him.
Christmas is all about the Son of God that was given to save mankind. If you are going through a hard time this season, I only have one advice - keep your eyes fixed on Jesus. He's the only one that can help you through it all.
I did this shoot a few weeks ago during my mini vacation in Atlantic City. This was my third holiday outfit idea for you guys. I wore the same over-over-the knee boots I had on in the previous post and just paired it up with a more glitzy black dress (this was a gift) that has a sheer back. Instead of a wearing a coat over the dress, I had on a suede stole from Forever21.