We avoided holiday traffic by traveling to Lassen National Park a week before Labor Day. Unsure of charging station availability, we took Melody’s car to the Kohm Yah-mah-nee Visitor Center early Saturday morning to see if any ranger tours were available but found no luck. So we stopped by Emerald Lake and Lake Helen before hiking to Bumpass Hell to check out the sulfurous steam vents, hydrothermal springs, and mud pots. We shared banh mi and kimbap at Kings Creek for lunch, then hiked to the Cold Boiling Lake. I fell asleep on the drive to the not-so Hot Rock, but awoke for the Devastated Area trail that illustrated the volcanic activity that resulted from the 1915 eruption. We completed the highway loop at Reflection Lake, where we followed the Lily Pond Interpretive Trail, but without the leaflet to interpret the posted landmarks. Exhausted, we retreated to our mid-century bungalow in Anderson which featured scenic views of Mt. Shasta and a bunk bed custom-built inside a bedroom closet for Westley to curl up in with his books. After enjoying a homemade Oreo cream pie from the local market and dining on Costco kalbi and mul-naengmyeon, we relaxed on the mosquito-free patio and hammock chair before calling it a night. We awoke Sunday to hike the Kings Creek Falls trail, swear in our Junior Ranger at the Loomis Museum, and scope out Manzanita Lake. We ventured into Redding for Laotian and Thai fare at Champa Garden, then checked out Matrix Cards & Games which inspired us to an afternoon of Uno, Mancala, and Azul before another Korean dinner spread. On Monday, we returned to Manzanita Lake for Westley’s first attempt at kayaking, then Redding for Smokin’ Joe’s BBQ ribs and tri-tip sandwich, and then to Turtle Bay, where Melody squeezed in a Zoom meeting while Westley and I explored the museum before checking out an interactive Cats & Dogs exhibit, the expansive playgrounds, and an aviary that featured ground-hugging and neck-biting lorikeets. We strolled across the Sundial Bridge, only to realize that we were too hot and dehydrated to complete the botanical gardens, and decided to drive home. Our Lassen trip taught us how ground squirrels differ from chipmunks, and that grasshoppers can make loud clicking sounds. It also let us relax on Labor Day, and instead do some bonsai and furniture shopping, defeat Malenia, and welcome Liam and Aiden for Westley’s first sleepover over Korean BBQ, s’mores, and backyard camping. I hope I got enough rest to prepare for student applications, grant writing, conference travel, and study section over the coming weeks.

My trip to ASRS in Seattle this year was short but action packed. I headed straight from my red-eye to beat the breakfast line at Bacco Cafe, meet with industry folks, stop for Pike Place Chowder, and join an IDMC work lunch, before registering for the conference, presenting my case, and dining seaside at Aqua by El Gaucho. Traveling light with no luggage, I squeezed in 9 meetings after my presentation on CRISPR’d monkeys on Sunday, then sampled spicy shabu shabu solo at Qiao Lin Hotpot before my flight home. Last weekend, we visited High Hand Nursery, where we failed to get a maple tree, but scored some gelato for Westley and fabric and gourd art for Melody. We passed Roseville on the way back to shop for a rug and couch for our second-floor landing. Sadly, the buffet at Mefhil no longer served goat curry, and neither the chicken n’ waffles at Sarom’s, or pizza n’ pasta from Mamma were worth writing home about. Westley upgraded to a 20″ Trek bike from Facebook marketplace, and advanced his board game skills to include chess and Killer Bunnies. He also overcame his movie fears to enjoy Arrietty, Pom Poko, and the Super Mario Bros. movie, while Melody and I wrapped up the final seasons of His Dark Materials and Picard, which nostalgically reunited the TNG cast for a final mission. On weekends, we caught up with my old classmate Allen’s family over burgers, then shared leftovers and a movie with Liam’s family as we counted down the last days of summer before second grade begins.

July marks the arrival of new students and trainees. This year, I took on a new role as Associate Director of Davis-based Medical Student Research, for which I will help UCD med students in Sac find labs in Davis. This meant summer BBQs and pool parties with new MD-PhD and ARC-MD students, and reconnecting with the vision science folks at Ed & Marie’s vineyard in Winters. Even Westley joined in the fun in his swimsuit and got to compete in cornhole. In lab, I took on a pair of high school students from the Young Scholars Program, which along with my niece brought some youthful energy. At home, we kicked off the month celebrating Westley’s friend Shaan’s birthday at the Rocknasium, shared snacks and a chaotic game of Uno with the Dea’s at the July 4th fireworks at Community Park, then hosted our retina year-end gathering to celebrate the incoming and graduating fellows over burgers, wings, and kulfi popsicles to beat the heat. We sent Westley to UCD Youth Camps to buff his athletic and swimming skills, despite having to pack lunch and snacks every day. He tried to show us his bowling skills at Memorial Union afterwards, but we forgot to bring socks and broke out our cue sticks for some 8-ball instead. Despite record temperatures, we kept up pruning our Japanese maples and propagating the kurapia, although my 8-year-old ficus bonsai did not survive the heat wave. We shared our loss with Melody’s family at her Aunt Audrey’s memorial this weekend, which gave us a chance to visit her parents and old stomping ground. At work, we successfully dosed our first human patient at UCD with ocular gene therapy last week, which hopefully will pave the way to our eye center becoming a center of excellence for regenerative therapy.

My first invitation to present at the SOE meeting took me back to Prague. Despite being nearly a decade since my last visit, my memories of the streets and people of this romantic city still seemed fresh on my mind. After blasting through morning clinic, a burger, lobster roll, and Frankfurter (my new term for running through Frankfurt airport), I settled into the hotel next to the conference center. I missed dinner plans with colleagues, and instead headed to Kantyna for delicious cafeteria-style meats, including a juicy slice of beef tongue. On Friday, I registered and uploaded my presentation, then headed to the Klementinum for a nerdy tour of the astronomical tower and Baroque library. I explored Old Town Square, passing the astronomical clock and a tower of books at the Prague Library, then made my way to Nase Maso for their dry-aged cheeseburger and beef tartare. Our afternoon discussion panel went smoothly, and we dined afterwards on excellent linguine and octopus at Brick’s with a sunset riverside view of the Charles Bridge. Saturday morning included an early visit to the Zizkov Farmer’s Market. The stands were still being set up, so I worked on a grant proposal while enjoying a fluffy croissant from La Caveau and foamy latte from MamaCoffee. From the market, I walked to Palace Lucerna to check out David Černý’s statue of St. Wenceslas riding an inverted horse, as well as his nearby kinetic sculpture of Franz Kafka’s Head. I tried out some chlebíčky from Lahůdky Zlatý kříž, then returned to the hotel to rest my feet before heading back out to Vysehrad. The historic fort included a beautiful cemetery that is home to Dvorak and Smetana’s graves, as well as the Basilica of St. Peter and St. Paul where a wedding was just finishing. I dined on Ferdinanda’s goulash and fries which had enough calories to put me to sleep all night. I flew back next morning via Frankfurt and Dulles binging on Season 6 of Black Mirror, arriving home to spend the last minutes of Father’s Day with Westley. Lucky I have an extra day off on Juneteeth to recover at home.

After 4 years with BlueHost, I’ve migrated Xephalon.net to Hostinger. The website was in need of updates, so I also took the opportunity to simplify the layout for version 4.0. My BMW i4 also finally arrived at the dealer last week. This was my first time purchasing a new vehicle, and while I managed to turn down all the extended services and warranties, missed the theft deterrent device included on the bill which set me back an extra $1K. The blue color felt like it was manifested from the RC car that Jeff and Melody gifted me 20 years ago, and I was quickly enamored by the smooth yet powerful ride. Too bad it didn’t arrive in time for me to try it on my drive to SF for the Pacific Retina Club last weekend. The Mission Bay Conference Center was a nice venue to enjoy interesting clinical cases and interactive talks, but I ultimately ducked out early and headed home to teach Westley how to play Monopoly and celebrate the end of the school year. This past weekend, I flew to Utah for the Clinical Trials at the Summit conference. The industry-focused meeting was hardly worth the fancy hotel or drive from Salt Lake City, but I at least got to catch up with my friend Christina over dinner. I had the ambitious goal of waking at 4am to photograph the Bonneville Salt Flats at sunrise next morning, but ultimately made the saner choice of sleeping in and catching an earlier flight home. With my being away from home every weekend this month, I want to squeeze in what little time I have with family.

We spent our anniversary and Mother’s Day relaxing at home exploring the Altus Plateau.  Melody was not keen on revisiting Napa. So after dinner with my friend Yao and a visit to Communicare to discuss collaborations, I drove solo to our department symposium at our usual hotel in wine country. Our new case discussion panel was well received, which we celebrated over lunch with fellows at Hog Island Oyster. Unfortunately, my afternoon plan with Kareem to visit the Petrified Forest was foiled by a private event, but gave me us chance to catch up about life and career over ping pong and darts before dinner with the invited speaker at Tarla. Last week, we celebrated my Public Service Award at the Academic Senate presentation, as well as my student Sophie getting into an MD-PhD program. I also took advantage of my early finish in the OR on Thursday to watch John Wick Chapter 4 in the theater. The stunts and choreography were incredible as expected, and motivated me to promptly rewatch it again with Melody back home. Our Memorial Day weekend was fire – literally – when our barbeque brunch with the Dea’s was interrupted by a grease fire that necessitated our second fire extinguisher discharge. We shared the sizzling story with our in-laws on Sunday and my work friends over dim sum on Monday, as I prepared to do some serious cleaning of our poor grill.

Between pruning, weeding, and replacing plants, springtime spells the return of allergy season, but at least provided warm weather to enjoy our neighborhood. Earlier this month, Westley joined his first Easter egg hunts at the local park and church in between batting pinatas at his friends’ birthday parties at Pioneer park. We also did some spring cleaning with our windows washed, car detailed, and outdoor counter sealed. By the time I was boarding my flight to New Orleans for ARVO, I was too tired to be productive, and instead binge-watched all of Netflix’s Beef. I was impressed not only by Allie Wong’s acting and Steven Yeun’s singing, but also the traumedy’s delicate blend of emotions and dark humor. My conference trip was short, sweet, and efficient. With the exception of my first night’s mediocre Cajun dinner with my lab and ex-post-doc, my subsequent meals were hits – including fresh gulf oysters at Peche, fried oysters at Herbsaint, and oyster po’boy at Felix’s. I also made a solo run for Cafe du Monde beignets on the way to cheer on my two students at their talks before my flight home. Sadly, my whole family fell sick shortly after my return, and despite initially testing negative for COVID, turned out to be the real thing. We quarantined at home for the remainder of the week over seaweed soup, bun rieu, hot pot, and ramen kits from Tokyo. I even made a solo grocery run to 99 Ranch to stock up for our continuing journey through the Lands Between, as we await with excitement our next video game adventure.

Spring break in Tokyo was Westley’s first trip to Asia, but beyond the language and culture, we learned about patience. After the 4-hour SFO layover, 12-hour flight, and 2-hour immigration line, we were glad to have an extra night of our Shinjuku Airbnb to settle into before breakfast. We celebrated our Ghibli tickets from Lawson, introvertedly slurped Ichiran ramen, shopped at Don Quixote, then made our way through Keio’s food hall and Shawn the Sheep exhibit to Zauo Fishing where we shared self-caught sea bream and abalone for lunch. We battled hipster crowds in Harajuku to snuggle with minipigs at MiPig and hedghogs at Chiku Chiku Café, passing Miyashita Park along the way, to shop rather than dine at Shibuya Crossing. On Tuesday, we lined up for onigiri, tamagoyaki, organ stew, tuna skewers, and unagi don at the Tsukiji Outer Market, admired exotic goldfish displays at Art Aquarium, shopped containers at the Muji flagship, then ate Kagoshima pork shabu shabu at Ichi-nii-san, before going barefoot at teamLab Planets’ dazzling exhibits. We went to Tokyo Character Street for Ghibli merchandise, Tokyo Banana treats, and an Almond Days drink, then returned for oversized udon at Tokyo Mentsudan to put us to bed. We arrived in Yokohama early next morning with time for a geocache on the way to the CupNoodles Museum, where our Momofuku Ando lesson ended with a small bowl of his original Chikin Ramen. At the Shin Yokohama Ramen Museum, we remembered to order mini bowls, but not to avoid lunchtime crowds. Our 2 hours of queuing got us ramen from Ganso Najima-tei, Nogata Hope, and Rairaiken, which recreated the first Japanese ramen founded in 1910 with historical accuracy. We next visited bustling Nakameguro, where popular snacks were mostly sold-out except for a pineapple sando and strawberry taiyaki. Luckily, we snagged seats at Kushiwakamaru for yakitori with locals before enjoying the lantern-lit sakura by the river. Our delayed start at DisneySea Thursday was saved by Westley barely missing the 117cm height requirement for some rides, leaving us enough time for 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Big Band Beat, Toy Story Mania, Nemo’s Searider, Aquatopia, Sinbad’s Storybook Voyage, Venetian gondola, and an impressive Believe! Sea of Dreams finale. The poor phone app and reception made us miss some rides, but at least left time for lunch, dinner, and many popcorn flavors including matcha white chocolate, soy sauce butter, and curry. Not having learned our lesson on timing, we missed Misojyu’s opening next morning, which cost us another line-wait for soup and rice-balls for breakfast. After mastering shurikens and katanas at Ninja Café, we snacked our way around Senso-ji with 7-levels of matcha gelato, melon pan, age manju, curry bread, warabi mochi, dorayaki, candied strawberry, and silk pudding before sharing hot and cold soba at Namiki Yabusoba. We tired our legs shopping for ramen bowls and a Kamata knife on Kappabashi Dougu street, and opted for Menya Musashi’s tsukemen over more sightseeing that evening. Our long journey to Nikko’s Edo Wonderland on Saturday was rewarded as we donned samurai, swordswoman, and ninja garb, watched geisha and ninja shows, destroyed things at samurai and shinobi training, completed archery and shuriken challenges, and escaped claustrophobic trap rooms and an outdoor puzzle maze in the Edo-themed village. We returned by shinkansen for Tokyo Station Ramen on the way home. A breakfast of ochazuke fueled our visit to Ghibli Museum on Sunday, where we watched an animated short of human-made sounds and Westley climbed the stuffed Cat Bus. We returned to Kichijoji for quality Inishie steaks at Satou but missed the last Shiro Hige cream puff en route to MEGA Donki for tax-free shopping and more queueing and wagyu at Gyukatsu Motomora. On Monday, we visited Odaiba for Sapporo ramen, Takoyaki Museum, and Gundam Base shopping, but found the life-size Gundam transformation underwhelming. Both the cherry blossoms and Doraemon pancake balls at Ueno Park were unimpressive, although we were lucky to find an opening at Sushi Kintaro Honten for dinner. We returned to Tsukiji our last morning for custard taiyaki, corn-fishcake fritters, tamago sandwich and nog, grilled squid and eel skewers, toro sashimi, and strawberry daifuku mochis. Our street food tour set us back 30 spots in line for Happy Pancake, so we went for Original Pancake House’s fuwafuwa pancakes instead, which along with KAL lounge snacks, kept us full for the flight home. Despite the long lines and sold-out signs, Tokyo showed us many wonders – a chirping child Suica card, a female-only subway car, sidewalk guide tiles for the blind, corn potage vending machines, and public restrooms with bidets and no hand soap – but most of all, Japanese hospitality, attention to details, and deep respect for rules, nature, and … patience.

We had little time to unpack before Melody had to leave for her redeye that same evening, leaving Westley and me to fend for ourselves for several days. Fortunately, I was able to make the Pioneer School assembly to watch him get the Perry’s Pride award for reading the most books in 1st grade during their recent Read-a-thon. Still overcoming jetlag, I spent the past few weeks editing the plethora of photos and videos from Australia, while also preparing for our upcoming trip to Japan. We went to Davis High School’s Japan Day event and practiced origami and hiragana to get us hyped up for the trip. Unfortunately, we could not book some attractions in time, like the Ghibli Museum, despite our efforts using a Tokyo VPN and recruiting a local friend to get tickets. At work, I was excited to learn that we got both the FFB Translational Research Acceleration Program and USDA NIFA grants on our second attempt. Between preparing manuscripts, talks, and posters, I met with many eager students looking for summer research opportunities while juggling busy call nights and clinical trial shenanigans. I found some respite on weekends disappearing into Liurnia of the Lakes while Westley worked on Legos and his Mega Cyborg Hand. I also started season 2 of the White Lotus, which with a mostly new cast, felt refreshing like a new vacation. At home, we finally completed our new SunPower project and Wallbox installation, just in time for my i4 that was assigned a production number today. After waiting nearly 6 months, I’m looking forward to finally getting the new car.

Our Queensland visit began inauspiciously with notices of a hotel change and rainforest tour cancellation due to weather, requiring us to rearrange our plans and drive instead of shuttle through treacherous rains from Cairns to Port Douglas, where we shared seafood pasta at Wrasse & Roe before retiring to our substitute apartment. Our new itinerary took us aboard the Sunlovers instead of Quiksilver cruise to the Great Barrier Reef, where our Dramamine staved off seasickness to let us enjoy the glass-bottom boat, semi-submersible, and guided snorkel tours of colorful corals, giant clams, friendly wrasses, a turtle, and moon jelly kisses for me and Westley. The buffet aboard was better than expected, although the Ganbaranba ramen at dinner was not. Sadly, our rescheduled rainforest tour of Mossman Gorge and Daintree river cruise was cut short by flooding, so we ate Dave’s fish & chips and returned to the apartment where I prepared my talk, Melody napped, and Westley built a crocodile. We trudged through rain for a peek at Four Mile Beach on the way to seafood and gelati for dinner. Our next stop at the Gold Coast began with more fish & chips at Burleigh Heads Fishmonger prior to checking into our beach-view AirBnb. After registering and uploading my talk at ISER, we hiked from Miami to Burleigh across squeaking sand and under rainbows to reach Goukai ramen for dinner. Next morning, I met my friend Sara for breakfast before my talk, then regrouped with family for pho on the way to Springbrook National Park for panoramic views at the Best of All Lookout, Twin Falls, and Purling Brook Falls. We camped in our car to NPR until nightfall, when we could gape at glow worms at Natural Bridge, then went for take-out before bedtime. On Wednesday, we shared pastries on the beach and stocked on banh mi for our visit to Lone Pine Sanctuary. Despite a near miss on tickets, we secured a koala hold and platypus encounter before entering the massive enclosure for kangaroo feeding, then headed to Brisbane for pasta from Enoteca 1889 and ice cream from Cowch. Our last stop to Melbourne was delayed by Uber’s multiple Collins St. listings, where our CBD condo was located. We enjoyed delicate fish dumplings from Shandong Mama then explored vibrant street art along Croft Alley, Coromandel Place, Meyers Place, Strachan Lane, AC/DC Lane, Duckboard Place, and Hosier Lane on the way to Federation Square. We found respite with AC at a Children’s pop-up library and lychee juice from Flinders Street Station before crossing Yarra River past the Arts Centre and NGV to the Children’s Garden at the Royal Botanic Gardens. Our proximity to Chinatown meant easy access to Supper Inn noodles and Instea boba for dinner. Tired of driving, we opted for a bus tour to the Great Ocean Road on Friday, with stops for morning tea in Torquay, scallop pies in Apollo Bay, and myrtle beech trees at Maits Rest on the way to iconic Twelve Apostles and Loch Ard Gorge. We awoke early Saturday for more street art at Union Lane and Presgrave Place, grabbed a “magic” coffee on Guildford Lane, then passed more graffiti on 436 Queen St to Queen Victoria Market, where we sampled cheese toasties, boreks, croissant, and hot chocolate before passing the picturesque Royal Arcade on our back for another Go West tour. Our bus to Philips Island stopped for colorful bathing boxes at Brighton Beach, a wildlife show at Moonlit Sanctuary, and seal and penguin viewing at the Point Grant Nobbies boardwalk, before we took our rainy front row seats to the penguin parade. I made a late-night run for hearty Master Lanzhou noodles afterwards, and returned to Chinatown again in the morning for Tim Ho Wan yum cha and Breadtop pastries for our flight home. Despite covering so much in 2 weeks, we felt that Australia had still more to offer and look forward to returning to this lush, beautiful continent.