RP Convention

Next week I am heading to Kansas City to attend a conference for the Foundation For Fighting Blindness. It starts on Thurs. and ends on Sun. I will be going with another woman who also has RP but who has never gone to a convention before.

The first time I went to a convention, it was 1994 in San Francisco. It really opened a whole new world for me. For years, I had been told by doctors not to go to college because I will notbe able to work, don't have kids, etc. Very hard stuff to take as a 20 year old.

But, I went to college and got a degree and was working full time and had gotten married. Now at age 28, we were talking about kids but I wanted to go to this convention first.

I was so surprised....it seemed like most people who had RP, had families, had jobs, and lived their lives. The conference had sessions where I could learn more about my specific eye disease (Ushers type 2) which also includes a hearing loss. The best part of the conference is the networking session where you get to gether with other people who have the same condition as yourself. I have gone to two more conferences and that is always the best part. We are a feisty bunch!

While in San Francisco, my husband and I stayed a few extra days for sight seeing. We went to Alcatraz and met a guy who actually stayed there and had writtan a book which I purchased. We also went to see 'The Phantom of the Opera" and took a wrong turn walking back to our hotel and met some very interesting characters.

Another thing I remember is seeing homeless people for the first time. We were sitting in a restaurant and a guy off the street came in and took food from a table where people had eaten and left.


There was one good thing that came out of this trip, nine months later our first child was born.