It is another great day to be alive! I hope this week has gone smoothly for all of you. Thursday is here again and that means it is time for the latest rundown. Here we go…

Carty Developments – I definitely have some new information on the Sean Carty appeal process to share with you. Dr. Rockefeller excused himself from hearing Coach Carty’s case because the two men developed a personal relationship over the years. An assistant superintendent stepped in instead. I have been told that the allegations hastily leveled against Carty from a small group of parents have been completely discredited. The ruling body will not even consider the silly complaints lodged by these people. Instead, if the contract non-renewal is upheld, it will be solely on the belief of the district that the Mead football program needs to go in a new direction.

Of course many people will probably be upset about this. You see, an investigation was conducted as a result of these allegations. District time and resources went into this examination. In the end, it was all a complete waste. Although this is a major victory for Coach Carty, his football job still hangs in the balance. If the assistant superintendent feels that Carty’s overall winning record, GSL championships, and model way of developing young men is not enough, he will take his case to the final level…the school board. Coach Carty will know his fate very soon, perhaps tonight. If we aren’t celebrating his reinstatement, I will make an edit underneath this paragraph encouraging any supporters to e-mail the school board in a show of support for Sean. Stay tuned.

Scroll down to the very end of my blog post to see a very elegant comment left just today that a former blogger on the prep scene left regarding Coach Carty and parents. It is very telling.

********BREAKING: Sean Carty is once again the head football coach of the Mead Panthers. He was reinstated a couple hours ago. Coach Carty would like all of his supporters to know how thankful he is for the role this community played in fighting for what was right. Click here for Carty reaction and my final reflections on the whole ordeal. Congrats to Sean and his family.**********

Letterman Finale – When it comes to show finales, they can be hit or miss. In my opinion, David Letterman hit a grand slam with last night’s final episode of the “Late Show.” I thought his opening monologue set the tone and that his reflection/thank you session was satisfying. However, my two favorite moments came with the top ten list and the ending montage. It was a lot of fun watching the major celebrities walk out one-by-one to reveal the contents of the list. It kept me guessing on who would walk out of the curtain next but mostly I was fixated on what the next item on the list was going to be! Dave going down the line to shake hands with each person before the commercial break was priceless.

When the show ended with that collection of photos while the Foo Fighters played “Everlong,” I felt everything came together. Even though each image appeared on screen for about a tenth of a second, every one seemed to register with me. It really explained the significance and scope of the “Late Show.” An icon left the airwaves last night.

Residence Hall Reveal – When the academic year comes to a conclusion, strong content for social media can sometimes be hard to find. Not this week. Over the next 14 months, we will have four new residence halls opening up on campus (yes, our university is growing like crazy). We wanted to make a splash introducing these new buildings to the community. Deciding to give each new residence hall its own turn in the sun, I showcased each one on a separate day this week. Making sure to reveal each one in a special way across our main social media outlets, our audience loved learning the names of the new halls and viewing the slick renderings of each building. Tomorrow the #CCUResHallReveal will culminate with a video giving the viewer a hard hat tour of all four structures.

Renderings of all four of our new residence halls. They are named Chanticleer Hall, Tradition Hall, CINO Hall, and Teal Hall.

NBA Conference Finals – I am not straddling the fence when it comes to who I want to see come out of their respective conference finals. I am hoping for an Atlanta Hawks vs. Golden State Warriors championship. I just can’t bring myself to cheer for Lebron and the Cavs…no way. When it comes to the Western Conference, I am cheering for a team instead of against one. I really want to see Steve Kerr and Stephen Curry make it to the NBA Finals. Watching the Warriors make it to the grand stage would be refreshing and fun. Once the championship is set, I will be sure to fill you in on who I want to see hoisting the trophy at the end.

Bikefest – In Myrtle Beach there is a major event called Bikefest. Thousands of motorcycle enthusiasts converge on our area every Memorial Day weekend. The city becomes swamped and getting around is very difficult. Last year the event was marred by several shootings and deaths. It caused a colossal outrage in the community and the planning to clean up the event pretty much started the Tuesday after Memorial Day. I kid you not, the efforts to make sure this year’s event is not a repeat of 2014 have been chronicled on the front page of our local newspaper pretty much every single day since last May. Law enforcement from all over the state will be aiding our local police officers to make sure the weekend goes off without a hitch. To say Bikefest is a complex issue is an understatement. There is a big racial element that causes a great divide and many misunderstandings between groups. My only hope is that we will have a very harmonious next three days here in Myrtle Beach.

Bikers take over Myrtle Beach during Bikefest. (Photo courtesy of the Sun News).

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On that Bikefest note, have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend. I will keep you updated on the Sean Carty situation. As always, I am very thankful to all my readers for taking the time to read my ramblings. You all are the real MVPs. Don’t Blink.

As promised, here is a comment that was left today on my initial blog post about the happening at Mead High School: