Michael Bailey/The Minority Eye

Fall is homecoming season and this past weekend I returned for the second gathering of Carolina Bloggin’.  CB is an annual gathering of bloggers from across South Carolina.   It felt like homecoming reconnecting with bloggers from UncomonlyU, Make Me Over Eb, The Fat and Skinny on Fashion, Life is Pichey, Angelfish Creations, Musings of a Gallivanting Boy and That Teowanna.  

The luncheon was held at Gervais and Vine and Firefly Vodka returned as a sponsor.  As we dined on great southern cuisine and sipped Firefly cocktails Alphonse FM shared tips on podcasting, Brad Warthen gave insights from a “compulsive blogger” and Mr. Goodwill Hunting shared how being authentic has led to a large and loyal following along with appearances on “The Nate Berkus Show.”  

This year the program also featured the Carolina Weblog Awards and Pee Dee Foodie was named blog of the year.

Being a part of this network is invaluable.  I remained in contact via Facebook and Twitter with the bloggers I met last year and now I have new friends to follow.    Last year I met Kaela Harmon (UncommonlyU) and this semester she visited me on campus and spoke to my PR students. She brought along Michael Bailey (The Minority Eye) to join the dialogue with the students.   I would not have made any of these connections had I not introduced myself to Teowanna at Blogging While Brown two summers ago in Washington, D.C.   She asked a question during one of the seminars and stated that she was from South Carolina, which was the catalyst for our meeting.  

 Once again I left Carolina Bloggin’ inspired by my fellow bloggers.  I’m so glad to be a part of this community with y’all.

Air Kisses,

Professor Diva Mac

P.S.  Check out the Carolina Bloggin’ album on Facebook.

veezzle.com

Yes, yes, yes . . . today is Professor Diva Mac’s birthday so I decided to recognize her beauty, knowledge, and pure diva-ness. She is truly a gem and we all have love for her.

Let’s start off with the basics. She’s obviously a Virgo, born and raised in beautiful South Carolina, is a true metropolitan, loves to shop and read,  travels all over the world, and still has time to drop knowledge on her students.  She is a daughter, sister, niece, aunt, and friend to say the least. The first time I met Professor Diva Mac—hmm? I really can’t recall because we have been friends for that long. I do know that a mutual friend–actually one of my BFFs–the lovely LA Beauty–introduced us. The interesting thing is that she and my husband attended the same college so I guess our paths were bound to cross eventually.

When I first heard that she was going into the world of academia, my first thought was “WOW!” She has an invaluable amount of knowledge from her days as a producer at NBC plus not to mention she is just plain smart. She undeniably is an asset to the college where she teaches and I imagine her peers and students look to her for sound advice. The fact that she recently proposed and will moderate a media panel this October at South Carolina State says enough.

So I lift my wine class and virtually toast her birthday. Professor Diva Mac you are a true friend, I luv ya like cooked food, and wish you many more birthday blessings!

Smooches,

Professor Diva Cali

My earliest memories of my Aunt Anne are of her emerging from the car after a 12-hour trip from New York to South Carolina and still looking radiant.   She always traveled chic, no sweats allowed.   When she arrived in Washington, D.C. for my graduate school graduation this past spring those memories came to mind.  More than 20 years later she was still the chicest traveler.

Anne traded South Carolina for NYC in 1968. She dove into city life; always looking fabulous, attending Broadway shows, and dining at hot restaurants.  She was the most glamorous person I’d ever seen. There were many suitors that tried to “Put a ring on it” but she was the original “Miss Independent” and preferred holidaying in the Caribbean to domesticity.  

Although she was living the glamorous life she loved visiting her family in South Carolina and hosting them in New York.  Her siblings provided her with an army of nieces and nephews that she doted on.  When I was little, I’d help her unpack when she came to visit.  I loved her clothing’s fabric, especially the furs!  I’d ask why there was an LV on her brown luggage when her initials were AW.   It was diva training!

During my trips to New York she introduced me to her city.  When I was interning in New York every Sunday she gave me subway tokens, made me dinner, and styled my hair into a chignon or French twist that withstood the summer heat.  Her closet was my “Bag, Borrow or Steal.” I borrowed Louis and Gucci.  Years later I was so proud to introduce Anne and my mom (her older sister) to my then city of Washington.  We shopped, saw a play, and dined at Zola and B. Smith’s.

Anne retired at the age of 52 and returned to South Carolina.  She reconnected with old friends, learned to drive, and bought her first car: a Mercedes. If I had become really busy and didn’t call her, soon I’d receive a voice mail message laced with love and encouragement. I saved her messages and listened to them several times.

When I returned to South Carolina this summer we were both excited that we could now spend more time together.  She quickly corrected anyone that called me a teacher and said “she’s a professor.” All year she had been experiencing mysterious health problems.  She endured test after test with style and grace and in heels.   She was a woman of faith and was confident that she would beat this mystery illness.  Two weeks ago she was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease and the prognosis was bleak.   Anne made all the decisions about her treatment although she could only communicate through written notes now. On Monday night she returned to her home instead of going to a hospice facility. Her siblings rallied around and prepared to care for her. Tuesday morning she made her transition.

I’m devastated.  We wanted to go to California together, holiday shop at the Saks outlet, and one day I’d have a daughter that she would be a great aunt to.  At 62, my original diva exited too soon.

For more information on Lou Gehrig’s disease (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis), please visit http://www.alsa.org/.

Professor Diva Mac