LOL, didn't wanted to bore you guys, but this was fun reliving that experience...

Part Duck: The Cherry Blossom was blooming in the conference room...

On October 15th, 1998, I embarked on a trip that would change my life forever...

up til this point in my life, I haven't really met any other adult TSers that had TS as severed as I did.

I had met a couple of others, but they were either not wanting to talk about it or were in denial, but I didn't blame them...
it's a hard subject and it was even harder to admit to myself that there IS something wrong with me (this is the old moi thinking. I do NOT think that way anymore. )

The convention was held at the Radisson Plaza (now some other hotel) in D.C.

I left early that AM with my clothes and my disguises.

We all had been discussing in the chatroom as to what we should do to help all of us identify each other. Since there were going to
be a couple of thousand attendees at this convention, we needed some sort of sign or signal.

Someone suggested wearing yellow ribbons...of course, I had to suggest that we'd tie it around an old oak tree...although
I wasn't sure if there would be any oak trees there or not...

two days before the convention, I went to the store to get some ribbons and I wasn't sure what came over me, but I decided
to make a HUGE ribbon...then, I went to the gag store and got a pair of fun glasses with the fake eyes drawn in...

It was Autumn in D.C and it was a bit misty and cool that day. But when I pulled into the parking lot at the hotel, my heart was beating profusely fast and I was sweating like a hog...

As I parked, I had to talk to myself into calming down. I was excited and apprehensive at the same time.

As I walked into the hotel lobby and passed a couple of couches by the elevator, I saw two ladies and a gent sitting on one of the couches.

None of them had ribbons on and neither did I so I didn't think anything of if they were part of the chatters or not...

I didn't wanted anyone to see me until I had my big ribbon and disguise on anyways...

So, as I walked passed them, I smiled and nodded at them and they smiled and nodded back.

No one had ever seen a photo of moi nor does anyone knew what I looked like. I had described myself in the chatroom but really, with hundreds of people there, who would've been able to tell me apart from Leonardo Decapitated??

The only thing that would've given me out was that I had dimples...but really...it's pretty common...

as I walked up toward the concierge, I heard someone said: "moi??" (using "moi" for the sake of this post. LOL)

I was beside myself...who would've known I was "moi?"

I turned around and it was from one of the ladies from the couch...

It was Lara...from Australia...

she..."recognized" me....

I was so shocked my jaw dropped as the three of them got up and we hugged each other and just smiled...none of us could stop smiling....

the other lady was sue from Boston and the guy was BradHawk from Seattle.

I couldn't believe my eyes...there they were, standing right infront of me...chatroom names coming to life...putting faces to names on screen was such an undescribable feeling because I had gotten used to seeing them using chatroom graphics and smiley's so that was actually the image I had associated them with. Silly...I know...

I didn't wanted to let go cause I was afraid I was going to check in and come back and they'd be gone...poof...and they'd just disappear...

but they assured me that that wasn't going to happen so I went and checked in.

I got my big ribbon out and put on my funny glasses and took the elevator down.

There were a few people in the elevator with me. They all had big smiles on their faces as they looked at me.

Almost everyone at the hotel was there for the convention, all the clerks and hotel workers were told about Tourette Syndrome and had been educated.

It was as if the TSers had their own country. Nobody stared or looked at me funny....

as I got down stairs to the lobby, more chatters have now surfaced. Some of them had the ribbons, the others just were informed that I was there (a lot of them were there a day ahead for the convention itself).

As I went through the line to hug each one of these TS chatroom folks...I can only tell you that I felt like I was in heaven...

I felt like I was home with my own...

they all had big smiles on their faces and they all hugged me tight...although I had to put the ribbon on my back in order for them to hug me. LOL

then, we all went to the convention...and I met more people...as I was registering to go into the general convention, another chatter was standing at the registration. Spanish Moss was she...(*many years later, Spanish Moss would become my wife. But at that time, we were totally JUST friends!! )

she saw my disguise and burst out laughing and said, "you must be moi"

I smiled and asked who she was...she introduced herself and her daughter to me.

As I walked into the convention with Spanish Moss and her daughter , another TS chatter appeared, it was Tam from Wisconsin. She was Spanish Moss's roommate. (Tam passed away 5 years ago...a dear and special friend that I would love to write a memoir about one day..)

She grinned a huge grin and whispered to me. "I know you are moi...I love your ribbon!"

some of the other chatters have now joined us as we walked into the convention area, I all of a sudden bursted out:
"I hope my Tourette doesn't bother anyone..."

They chuckled and Spanish moss said to me: "moi, you know this IS a TS convention????"

"duh" as I smacked myself in da head and laughed...oh yeah...I forgot...

during the events and the speakers, there were a lot of Tics happening...people barking, making noises, cussing, saying inappropriate words and phrases that would otherwise get them into trouble, foot stomping and table banging or repeating words or sentences to themselves...and I was joining in on the FRAY!!!! I made my noises and just let loose...

ahhhhh, it felt soooooooooooo good...to be able to do all that in public, infront of hundreds of people and not feel weird....

I had always had to control my tics in public before and that was a unique experience...to twitch and shout in the open like that with at least a few hundred TSers...it was a sight to behold and experience...I only wished someone would've directed us and made us ticced in sync or matched the animal noises together or have the humming tics in the background or something. Imagine, a TS Symphony. LOL

I started picking up some of the more interesting tics already...and my own tics were intensified...but it was all good...

it was all good...

after the meeting was over, us TS chatters borrowed one of the conference rooms and had our little own conference...

19 of us...in that room...and we all decided on pizza...

I decided to go get pizza cause I was the one of the few that actually drove there.

Tom from Houston, another TS chatter with severe ADD decided to go with me.

He was one of the most awesome person I had ever met. We bonded immediately.

He was a little older than I was. His wife was 8 months pregnant. He worked for a university developing UNIX. As smart as he was, he was a child at heart. We drove and we just laughed and joked as we went to pick up pizza and drinks. In that short time, I felt as if he was my long lost brother...it was very hard saying good bye to him when it was all over....

What was interesting was that I actually ran into one of my high school classmates at the supermarket where we went to get the drinks. But I didn't tell her what I was there for. She just thought I was visiting D.C for the heckit of it....

I couldn't imagine telling her that I was there for a Tourette Syndrome convention and I was meeting people that I've met on line in person. If my little town found out.....heheheheheh...

after we brought the pizza back, the evening was simply filled with fun...it was really weird as well cause I felt like I really wanted
to get a computer and chat with them even though they were right there...so, I brought it up and all of us started to crack up because each one of us felt the same way! We all wanted to have our computers there to chat with!! LOL

I excused myself from the room and used a computer lingo: BRB

And not sure why, but everyone thought that was hilarious...

and we all really wanted to use the computer Lingoes like "LOL" only to find out some of us would say it "L-O-L" and some of us would say "Lowell"

And while some of us said "R-O-T-F-L" few of us said "ROTFUL"

later on, we all gathered at BradHawk's room because he brought his laptop and was able to get us onto the internet using AOL through the hotel's phone line. It must have had cost him a bundle...but we all logged on (He actually signed all of our user names and logged all 19 of us onto the TS chatroom and we were in the chatroom with others that couldn't be at the convention...it was pretty funny seeing all 19 of our names together in that chatroom, I thought we were going to crash the chatroom. LOL

everytime he typed, we'd have to scroll down to read what was said. LOLOLOL

so, there we were, the 19 of us in this tiny room, everyone of us looking through the tiny screen of the laptop that connected all of us through electronic highway that linked us all...far and near...

there was something in the air...it was one that was fulfilling...it was one that was complete...it was blissfulness...

*this is a photo of Tom(ietnd) and me; guess which one is moi?

( I don't want anyone to think I would use their photos without their permission. This photo is on a public webpage designed by one of the TS chatters )



(to be cont. If you're still interested, I'll have to tell you about our little midnight adventure! )