The Allure of Barbed Wire & Cedar

  January 6, 2022
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   Out in the country skinny metal fence posts rule pasturelands nowadays. I seldom see old cedar-barbed wire fences, but when I do they unleash a flood…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

No Gas, No Batteries, No Electricity Required

  December 16, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   All it requires is a steady hand. It doesn’t disturb the peace on Saturday mornings. So quiet is it, I doubt it’d suffer banning in ever-vigilant…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

S.C. Arts Commission selects five for Emerging Artist Grant

  December 9, 2021

Up to $1,500 grant includes mentorship, more A ceramicist, a dancer, a painter and fiber and installation artists make up the five #SCartists receiving South Carolina Arts Commission Emerging Artist…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: on-the-move, the-arts

A Vanishing Coastal Icon

  December 8, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   Photographers love to shoot them at sunrise. Riding a glittering golden sea, shrimp boats strike a classic silhouette with that orb of fire rising behind them.…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

That Legendary Everlasting Plant, Rabbit Tobacco

  November 30, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   She smoked it as a kid. Said she smoked grapevines too but it was Pseudognaphalium obtusifolium, one of the everlastings, she talked about most. She and…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, the-arts

Grandmom’s Fabulous Fried Pies

  November 17, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   She dried sliced apple, peaches, and pears on a slanted wooden table facing the sun. Nails prevented the fruit from sliding to the ground. Once it…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

Elusive Butterfly Of Fall

  November 4, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   December 1965, that’s when a catchy tune debuted. Bob Lind’s “Elusive Butterfly” used a butterfly as a metaphor for love. Some of you survivors of these…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

Star Light, Star Bright

  October 27, 2021

By Tom Poland   Back in the late 1980s and early ’90s, I’d leave on a Friday afternoon and head for the mountains, the Blue Ridge species. My monthly drives…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, the-arts

Magic In Some Alien World

  October 21, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   On a hot, windless Sunday, I found a place where wind swept up and over a cliff to pour through pines. The cooling torrent felt like…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, the-arts

Tall Tales—Truth Can Be Elusive

  October 6, 2021

By Tom Poland   The last time I wrote about the nightlife, my late mom gave me a reading. She upbraided me about the evils of alcohol and told me…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, the-arts

You’ve Got To Feel the Food

  September 29, 2021

By Tom Poland   A few years back on a fall day I attended a wild game dinner on the grounds of Hobcaw Barony’s Bellefield Stables. I sat among folks…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

The Good Old Days Are Gone

  September 22, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   Last Friday night some grandparents went to watch their grandson play in a high school football game. They were in for a shock. Paying for the…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

Acclaimed 30 Americans headed to the Columbia Museum of Art

  September 22, 2021

Hugely popular and historically important exhibition opens October 9 The Columbia Museum of Art announces its major fall exhibition 30 Americans, a dynamic showcase of contemporary art featuring many of the…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: on-the-move, the-arts

Freeway Music School celebrates 10-year anniversary

  September 20, 2021

South Carolina’s fastest growing music school continues its commitment of delivering high-quality music lessons and giving back to the community Freeway Music —Columbia, South Carolina’s locally owned, premier music school…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: education, music, on-the-move, the-arts

Who’s The Queen Of Flowers?

  September 15, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   Orchids. There were days I wore them in my lapel for formal events, but those days are gone. I’ve not seen many in the wild, but…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

Where They Sleep, While They Sleep

  September 8, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   I visit old cemeteries quite a bit. Lest you think death thoughts consume me, understand that readers tell me of near-forgotten cemeteries. It’s my duty to…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, the-arts

A Southern Writer

  September 2, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   Mississippi’s Willie Morris Several years back, I attended Edgefield’s Camellia Tea. As I was leaving, a lady in a red blazer walked up. “You’re that fellow…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, the-arts

Long Lost Treasures, Heirloom Seeds

  August 26, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   Metal detectives seek old coins and treasure, and many folks look for arrowheads. A rare breed seeks long-lost seeds. Old coins and arrowheads won’t make you…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: food, life, the-arts

A Haunting Postscript

  August 19, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   Missing Caskets Recently I wrote about finding my great granddad’s old farmhouse, but I left out an eerie aspect that would be suitable for a Halloween…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, on-the-move, the-arts

My Family Quest

  August 12, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   Discovering a Homeplace The past means much. As family property goes, however, no one or anything remains from my childhood. Fires, real estate deals, and a…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz   Category: life, the-arts

For The Birds

  August 5, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   This makes the second time I’ve used “For The Birds” as a title. “Contacting the dead through a Ouija board? That’s for the birds.” No flippancy…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, the-arts

What’s The Big Rush?

  July 28, 2021

By Tom Poland   My back-road trips of late have been good but not as pleasant they usually are. Too many people. They drive like madmen. They pass on hills.…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, the-arts

The Parking Lot Of The Dead

  July 21, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   Even in death they cling to dignity. Left to rust, they bless the rare visitor with awe and mystery. Just how did old trucks and cars…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, the-arts

PURE Theatre announces return to live performances

  July 16, 2021

After more than a year of producing theatre virtually, PURE Theatre will return to live performances for the company’s 19th season. Performances in the 2021-2022 season will take place at…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc   Category: on-the-move, the-arts

My Mother’s Bible

  July 15, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   After Mom died, my sisters and I began to go through her and Dad’s belongings. Quite a task that surprised, amused, and puzzled us. Lots of…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, the-arts

Ospreys—Nature Never Quits

  July 8, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   Noon sharp, a hot, humid Monday. Just twenty yards away a tremendous crash like a rock hitting water got my attention. There sat an osprey with…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, the-arts

Hemp & Kudzu, A Good Summer Combo

  June 30, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   It was like stepping back into the 1960s, sitting in that cool, refreshing gazebo up North Carolina way. Its vines and emerald green leaves, translucent and…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, the-arts

Years Lost To Time, The Silent Thief

  June 24, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   Growing up I could hear the tick of my church’s old Regulator wall clock. I can’t hear it today, but my hearing’s good. All that keeping…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, the-arts

S.C. Arts Commission announces FY2022 fellows

  June 22, 2021

South Carolina artists exhibiting hard work and exceptional ability in visual art, craft, and media production and screenwriting are recipients of fiscal year 2022 South Carolina Arts Commission fellowships. The…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: on-the-move, the-arts

A Space to Heal (ASH) – July 10

  June 19, 2021

A Space to Heal Lowcountry July 10, 2021 @ 10:00AM — 2:00PM Eastern Time (US & Canada) A day of dialogue, advocacy, and movement created for Black, Indigenous, and People…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc   Category: education, health-care, non-profit, on-the-move, philanthropy, the-arts

History Surrounds You

  June 10, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   History really does surround you. You just have to slow down a tad and open your eyes. It will help if you turn off the TV…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, the-arts

The Gibbes Museum of Art announces new hires

  June 8, 2021

The Gibbes Museum of Art is proud to announce several new hires and promotions made over the past year. Please see below for the new additions to the team bringing…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc   Category: on-the-move, the-arts

Artist Minute – Taylor Faulkner, Visual Artist

  June 7, 2021

The Who’s on the Move, Artist Minute is a quick, two-minute interview in support of the undeniable impact that the arts and local artists have on our communities. One of the…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc   Category: podcast, the-arts

Every State Needs A John Mulhouse

  June 3, 2021
Tom Poland

By Tom Poland   Every state needs someone to record what it’s lost. Every state needs a John Mulhouse. I’ve never met John but we’re in touch and we share…

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Posted in: lowcountrybizsc, midlandsbiz, upstatebizsc   Category: life, the-arts