Mount Pleasant Magazine Sept/Oct 2016

avingdifferentopinions,

viewpoints and preferences than

your significant other can make

life interesting. He likes Italian

cuisine, you prefer Thai. He wants

to see the latest action-packed

blockbuster at the Cineplex and

you long to see a documentary that took home accolades

at Sundance. These are things

you can work around. But what

happens when you differ about something essential to

your being? Do you calmly agree to hear the other per-

son’s rationale or do you put on your war paint and stand

your ground?

We’re talking about rooting for rival college teams,

people! In the South, this is serious. Come game day

at many Lowcountry households, certain members are

draped in opposing colors, aggressively waving their

school’s pompoms while exuding a shrill battle cry. We at

Mount Pleasant Magazine

have searched high and low to

find Gamecocks and Tigers living in the same house. Luck-

ily, they have opted to stop pointing that oversized foam

finger and live harmoniously – most of the time.

These are the stories of those brave enough to reside

under the same roof in a

house divided.

“When my husband

asked me to marry him

in 2004, he had only two

requests,” said Michelle

Calhoun, a graduate of The

University of South Caro-

lina and a lifelong Game-

cock. “The first request

was to convert. It was not

my religion that needed

converting. Oh no, it was

much bigger than that! He

needed me to become a Tiger fan!”

The second request was to learn to cook up his

Clemson Versus Carolina in mount Pleasant

TheFamilyFeud

michelle and Johnnie Calhoun.

By Kalene mCCort