Columns

The holiday season is upon us, which means the calendar is bursting with things to do and see. We’ve selected 13 events for the month of November that allow you to give back and support your community, enjoy the waning fall season and marvel at the creative talents of others. Our picks for December will...

America’s food culture reflects the people who arrived on its shores and made a contribution to its many culinary traditions. The food traditions of enslaved African Americans have had a profound and lasting influence on America’s culinary heritage. Centuries later, that impact is finally garnering the attention it so deserves thanks to a book and...

Hinkle’s Restaurant in Columbia has served customers for more than 124 years. Saved from the brink of closing by Don and Becky Murphy, the new version of this iconic landmark, which is now operated by Robin Ortman, John Sipe and Tom Davis, is a mix of old-fashioned charm and modern décor. The remodeled restaurant features...

Whenever I travel with my family, we make sure to visit one or two museums. Whether it’s small, historic homes in colonial-era towns or grand testaments to architecture housing some of the finest art in the world, museums are as much part of how we travel as are dining, lodging or the weather.  Apparently, we...

Photo by Nick Gould Gardening and Nature at Fairmount Situated in a rural setting and with many farmers and folks with green thumbs among our residents, Fairmount is a great place to continue “playing in the dirt.” Many residents plant and care for vegetables and flowers off their patios or on their balconies. For those...

If your idea of camping is opening the hotel window for some fresh air, an RV adventure may not be for you. But for four media professionals, a girls-only glamping getaway was the perfect way to unplug. The foursome quickly learned that a womenpowered RV is a rarity among campground guests. “Whenever we arrived anywhere,...

It’s the perfect time of the year to take a joyride through the countryside, where you’re bound to discover hay wagons sitting along roadsides filled with beautifully shaped pumpkins and brightly colored gourds for sale. However, if you truly want to enjoy the season, I’d like to recommend a trip to Cherry Crest Adventure Farm,...

Few other trees and shrubs can compete with the sheer exuberance of the crepe-myrtle’s flower display, which comes in late summer when few others are blooming. Its colorful ornamental bark is a highlight of winter. Add good fall color, and you’ll understand why the crepe-myrtle is a first-rate, four-season ornamental. In response to last month’s...

I always go a little crazy after New Year’s and reorganize closets, drawers and kitchen cabinets, discarding anything that no longer fits or, in the case of medicine or food, is expired. This year, I found a bottle of Carolina Swamp Sauce that bore a 2006 expiration date! It was lurking in the back corner...

At age 3, when most children his age were still learning to talk, Randy Miller was singing in front of a church audience. That was 58 years ago; today you can still find Randy singing gospel … and loving it as much as ever. Randy remembers his father carrying him up to the front of...