Blink Book Review #7 – Travel Books
July 20, 2023
By Reba Hull Campbell I’ve long been a collector of travel guides. There’s a stack on my bookshelf of books about Spain, Mexico, Italy, Thailand, France, England, Scotland, Israel…
Read MorePosted in: midlandsbiz Category: life, on-the-move
The Day The Sky Fell
July 19, 2023
By Tom Poland A beautiful blue-sky afternoon it was. As I walked back from my mailbox a freshly killed squirrel with half its head missing fell right in front…
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Robinson Room to host “Gatsby Gala” grand opening celebration on August 10
July 17, 2023
Robinson Room, an upscale cocktail, tapas, and dessert bar, is excited to announce their official grand opening event, Gatsby Gala, on Thursday, August 10th, at 7p.m. Previously tucked away beneath…
Read MorePosted in: midlandsbiz Category: food, life, on-the-move, restaurant
Local Favorite, Cayce Fall Fest, returns October 7
July 14, 2023The City of Cayce is excited to announce the return of the Cayce Fall Fest! Fall Fest will be held on Saturday, October 7, from 12 pm – 6 pm…
Read MorePosted in: midlandsbiz Category: conversations, entertainment, food, government, hospitality, life, marketing-and-communications, media, music, on-the-move, the-arts
A Favorite Place
July 13, 2023
By Tom Poland Each spring I write of three places, three beautiful places where colonies of rocky shoals spider lilies bloom. One is quite accessible; one is perhaps the…
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What is really most important
July 13, 2023
By Jeff Becraft So I am trying to reform my diet… One thing is I am trying to cut down on processed sugar. “You’re a type I diabetic… you…
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Blink Book Review #6 – “Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine” by Gail Honeyman
July 13, 2023
By Reba Hull Campbell This book caught my eye at the library on a book display for Mental Health Awareness Month in May. The cover and the title drew me…
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Ted & Holly Rollins Scholarship Awards latest recipient
July 11, 2023
The Ted & Holly Rollins Scholarship Organization announced the recipient of its Fall 2023 scholarship, Audrey Smallwood. This scholarship— in honor of the late Ted Rollins and his wife, Holly—is…
Read MorePosted in: midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: education, life, on-the-move
When A Church Dies
July 6, 2023
By Tom Poland Some linger in woods. Some stand, for now, at the end or side of a dirt road. Some hide behind other buildings, and some haunt the…
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Take me to the closest Subway
July 6, 2023
By Jeff Becraft On Saturday, I was on my way back into town on I-77. I was really tired. I pulled into the parking lot of this one burger…
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Eight years later: The yellow bike is semi-retired
July 5, 2023
By Reba Hull Campbell When I made an impulse purchase of a shiny yellow bike eight years ago, I had no idea how much I’d learn from those 30 pounds…
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Historic Columbia announces July 2023 events
July 3, 2023
Historic Columbia is excited to announce programming and events for July 2023. See the full list of July events below and be sure to leave room in your calendar to…
Read MorePosted in: midlandsbiz Category: life, on-the-move
Blink Book Review #5: Newsroom Confidential – Lessons (and Worries) from an Ink-Stained Life
June 29, 2023
By Reba Hull Campbell As a lifelong news junky, I love reading about the machinations of a newsroom – How do news stories actually get to the front page? Who…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc Category: life, on-the-move
Making The Sea Bountiful
June 29, 2023
By Tom Poland Artificial Reefs & Memorial Fishing Grounds Early 1980s, it was. We put out to sink a ship. Waves tossed us about as we headed seaward to…
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North Columbia project to unite communities with returning summer block party series
June 29, 2023
Serve & Connect and the North Columbia Youth Empowerment Initiative (NCYEI) have reunited with the City of Columbia and the Columbia Police Department to host their annual Be Safe Summer…
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Mini-vacations
June 28, 2023
By Jeff Becraft I was speaking at a camp for a children’s home last week. This particular camp happened to be at the beach… at Garden City Chapel. And…
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Relic Room to be open on the Fourth of July
June 26, 2023
The South Carolina Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum will be open on Independence Day – and will offer special hours over the preceding weekend: • OPEN 10 a.m.-5 p.m.…
Read MorePosted in: midlandsbiz Category: life, military, on-the-move
Don’t be afraid to be the first one on the dance floor
June 22, 2023
By Jeff Becraft Back in my Youth Corps era, one of my favorite sessions was dance night. The reason for that was because there were so many valuable leadership…
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Moody Spring
June 22, 2023
By Tom Poland Rounding a curve on Highway 107, I saw water spurting from handsome stonework set in a mountain. Moody Spring, I knew we’d stop. I had no…
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Relic Room presents something amazing – photos of Revolutionary War soldiers
June 21, 2023
Photo credit Image courtesy of W.C. Smith III Have you ever seen photographs of Revolutionary War soldiers? Well, you can do just that at the South Carolina Confederate Relic Room…
Read MorePosted in: midlandsbiz Category: life, military, on-the-move
Wingard’s Market selected for June feature in National Publication
June 21, 2023
Wingard’s Market’s Backyard Nature Center and innovative gardening concepts has been selected for the June edition of Garden Center Magazine’s “Spotted” feature. Tucked inside the newly expanded Wingard’s Produce Center,…
Read MorePosted in: midlandsbiz Category: business-services, conversations, environmental, hospitality, life, local-industry, marketing-and-communications, media, on-the-move, retail
Blink Book Review #3: “Daisy Jones and the Six” by Taylor Jenkins Reid
June 15, 2023
By Reba Hull Campbell My dream has long been to quit life and join the band. While I’ve taken up music lessons in recent years, this book allowed me…
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Your Continental Divide
June 15, 2023
By Tom Poland Something trendy comes along that’s annoying and you resist. Some manager at work decides to implement a new work procedure. You don’t like it. “C’mon now,…
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Nothing ever happens the same way twice
June 15, 2023
By Jeff Becraft One of the great principles in life I learned from Aslan in one of the Chronicles of Narnia movies. Aslan is by far my favorite character…
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C.W. Bowman was a ‘tunnel rat’ in Vietnam, hear about it at the Relic Room
June 13, 2023
In some parts of Vietnam, the Viet Cong lived for months at a time under the Earth, in elaborate tunnel systems so sophisticated that they included hospitals, training areas, and…
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Rescuing Buster
June 8, 2023
By Jeff Becraft One day last week I was driving to work and as I came to an intersection in our neighborhood, there was a bulldog out in the…
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Blink Book Review #2: Life in Five Senses by Gretchen Rubin
June 8, 2023
By Reba Hull Campbell Is there anything that we take for granted more than the power of our five senses? Gretchen Rubin’s new book, “Life in Five Senses, How…
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Life’s Healing Elixir
June 8, 2023
By Tom Poland A Sunday sojourn found me at Healing Springs near Blackville, South Carolina. There I stood on Gods Acre, property deeded to God. Palm Sunday it was,…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc, laurenscountybuzz Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts
Myron Harrington, recipient of the Navy Cross, to tell story of the Battle of Hue
June 6, 2023
Retired Col. Myron Harrington, USMC, hasn’t visited the new Vietnam exhibit at the South Carolina Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum yet. But when he does, he’ll see something familiar…
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If something is free
June 2, 2023
By Jeff Becraft Every summer I get to do a camp with a children’s home at Garden City Chapel. One of the main reasons that Garden City Chapel (GCC) was…
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Drumming Up White Feathery Memories
June 2, 2023
By Tom Poland Long before I moved to South Carolina, family vacation trips took us over Charleston’s “New Cooper River Bridge.” To be accurate, we drove over the Silas…
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Blink Book Review #1 – The Art of Calm by Roger Hutchison
May 31, 2023
By Reba Hull Campbell Roger Hutchison’s recently released book “The Art of Calm” is the perfect mix of thought-provoking, immensely readable, practical and insightful helping bring new awareness to our…
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The perfect place to play & stay
May 31, 2023
Do you remember vacationing as a child? Remember the freedom and excitement of exploring a new location with tantalizing adventures around every turn that kept you wanting more? From sights…
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Reservations for Purple Martin Tours are officially open for the 2023 season
May 30, 2023Wingard’s Market announced the official opening of the 2023 Purple Martin Tour Season on beautiful Lake Murray in Lexington, SC! The 2-hour guided boat tours will take place every Tuesday…
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When we are thankful
May 25, 2023
By Jeff Becraft Sorry there was no Friday email last week… was scrambling to get out of town to speak at a camp for a children’s home. I got…
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Highway 61 Revisited
May 25, 2023
By Tom Poland From 22,000 miles high, a satellite dropped an uncanny merging of highway and music into my path. XM Radio played the comedic ACME siren whistle that…
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State Museum announces MARS 1001 planetarium show and new summer events
May 18, 2023
Guests Are Invited to Disability Pride Day, See Laser Light Shows, Enjoy Baseball Day and More The South Carolina State Museum is set to celebrate summer with a variety of…
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Choosing to be entusiastic
May 18, 2023
By Jeff Becraft Back at a student session several years ago, after I had announced that snack break was over and it was time to get back at it,…
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Memories Of Zebco Reels & Red Wrigglers
May 17, 2023
By Tom Poland I drive west, Georgia bound, and pass it yet again, a place that pulls at my heart. My father had a worm farm, and my grandfather’s…
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Blue Star program provides free summer admission to military and their families
May 15, 2023
The South Carolina Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum is all about honoring those who have served in uniform since our nation’s beginning. So we are once again proud to…
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Keep your shoulders pointed forward
May 10, 2023
By Jeff Becraft Just yesterday, I re-watched some film clips of Earl Campbell. If you don’t know who Earl Campbell is, he was a running back in the NFL for…
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Behind The Lens
May 10, 2023
By Tom Poland Thirty-seven years ago I wrote “Worth The Wait,” a feature on photographing wildlife. South Carolina Wildlife magazine photographers Ted Borg, Robert Clark, and Phillip Jones gave…
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20 Lessons Learned: From Diploma to Today
May 10, 2023
By Reba Hull Campbell ‘Tis the season for college graduations. USC’s recent graduation weekend makes me realize I walked across the Carolina Coliseum stage 40 years ago to pick…
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Desi Banks announces the Purpose Chaser Tour
May 8, 2023
Tickets Go On-Sale Friday, May 12 at 10 am local Comedian Desi Banks announced today he’ll bring the Purpose Chaser Tour to the Koger Center for the Arts in Columbia, SC on…
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We’re Sending You To …
May 3, 2023
By Tom Poland In the 1960s my father visited the Central State Hospital in Georgia. He may have gone to visit a relative. I recall a heated family gathering…
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The glories of “no”
May 3, 2023
By Jeff Becraft The “no’s” of life can also be glorious. None of us like a “no.” There is the feeling of rejection, dejection, deflation, frustration, and extreme disappointment. (And the…
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Blink Book Review: “It. Goes. So. Fast.: The Year of No Do-Overs” by Mary Louise Kelly
April 28, 2023
By Reba Hull Campbell The books I enjoy the most typically sit unfinished with one chapter to go. They deliciously hang out in my reading stack or on my…
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Automatic faucets
April 27, 2023
By Jeff Becraft Have been on the road a lot this week and have hit quite a few rest areas and quite a few truck stops… and quite a…
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The Joy Of Scholarships
April 26, 2023
By Tom Poland After high school I hoped to land a scholarship to play football. I played first unit on the junior varsity team and started three years on the…
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The Home Place
April 19, 2023
By Tom Poland It’s a scene Normal Rockwell would have liked. We see an old hand-dug well, a corncrib, and an outhouse. A fine old cedar leans back as…
Read MorePosted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz Category: life, non-profit, the-arts
