Last week, the execs at downtown-based independent record store Millennium Music announced that they'll close their doors at the corner of King and Calhoun streets for good on Thurs. May 1 and move their operation to another facility in order to concentrate on expanding their online venture, FeedYourPlayer.com.

The Charleston County School District's projected budget for next year might look like a forecast for doom and gloom, but Superintendent Nancy McGinley says she's committed to fortifying schools and continuing their good work. School officials are projecting a potential $27 million shortfall in its estimated $341.9 million budget for next year. ...

When he first surfaced in 1998, singer/songwriter Gary Jules wasn't given much of a chance by his recorded label, A&M, So his major label debut, "Greetings from the Side," was a commercial flop. But when Jules self-released his sophomore effort "Trading Snakeoil for Wolkftickets" in 2001, critics and audiences were given a second chance to discover Jules' delicately rousing voice and simplistic songwriting.

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SUMMERVILLE — Dorchester County was one of the fastest-growing counties in the nation again last year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The report is sure to renew the debate about overcrowded roads and schools, but the recent housing slump has complicated the situation. ...

ZION NATIONAL PARK, Utah — Late each winter, when the snow gets sloppy and the streams get muddy, the same thought begins creeping ever more insistently into my mind: I need green. I need warm. I need spring. That feeling often demands beaches. But when it hit last winter, a different vision commanded: desert, slickrock cliffs and sheer monoliths. That meant southern Utah. ...

With baseball wrapping up spring training and beach season just around the corner, it's time for locals to fine-tune their half-rubber skills. ...

South Carolina ranked among the top 10 states in the nation last year in providing publicly-funded preschool programs to 4-year-olds, but state funding has not achieved the same high rating. The National Institute for Early Education Research's annual report, released today, placed the state 7th in the nation for its preschool access for 4-year-olds during the 2006-07 school year. ...