Having canceled their last biennial meeting in Buenos Aires, ISER headed to Australia this year and gave us an opportunity for a family trip Down Under. Due to time zone changes, Westley spent his entire 7th birthday aboard our 15-hour direct flight from SFO, complete with party hats, cupcake, music video, and a loaded Kindle Kids. Our arrival in Sydney was traumatizing when the customs dog sniffed out apples and cheese that Melody had failed to declare. Fortunately, we adapted quickly to driving on the left side, despite struggling with the tight hotel garage. After unpacking, we marched to Happy Chef for seafood and laksa noodles, past Hyde Park to Flour & Stone for fig tart and panna cotta lamington, then through the Royal Botanic Gardens to Circular Quay. We cooled off with gelato on the ferry to Taronga Zoo over views of the Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge. The heat kept the zoo animals sluggish, so we hurried back for XLBs and called in early ourselves. We awoke early Saturday for oysters, sashimi, aburi scallops, and lobster noodles at the Sydney Fish Market, which fueled our visit with dugongs and shovelnose sharks at Sea Life, followed by souvenir shopping and lunch of egg tarts and seafood paella at the Rocks Market. Next, we drove south to hike Fitzroy Falls, then visited Kangaroo Valley for solid pub food and the wild wombats of Bandeela. On Sunday, we headed to the Blue Mountains for the Three Sisters and Katoomba Falls walks, followed by the railway, walkway, cableway, and skyway at Scenic World. For lunch, we ate 3 things at 8Things, with pork rolls, taro boba, and a shot of Josophan’s famous hot chocolate to put us in near-coma on our drive to Featherdale Wildlife Park. We perked up to koala petting and wallaby feeding before dining on the sushi train at Makoto. Still jet-lagged, we awoke early to stroll the Queen Victoria Building, then scurried to return our rental car. Our flight to Alice Springs was delayed, leaving bad lunch options and necessitating a grocery run prior to check-in. We cooled down at the pool, then sampled emu tartare, kangaroo rolls, and barramundi ceviche at Saltbush before a nocturnal tour at the Alice Springs Desert Park, where we spied golden bandicoots, malas, bilbies, bettongs, curlews, and swarming echidnas with our red headlamps. We returned to the park next morning for howling dingos, feeding birds, and more nocturnal animals. Westley could not stand the heat, so we left early for brunch at Page 27 and an iced latte to fuel our 5-hour drive on Red Centre Way. We stopped at Standley Chasm, Ellery Creek Big Hole, and Ochre Pits, then drove the unsealed Mereenie Loop, complete with wild horses, lizards, and piles of poop. We collapsed into our glamping tent at Kings Canyon Resort, briefly suffering a power outage and fly swarms before enjoying bar food and jukebox BTS at dinner. We began the South Wall walk at Kings Canyon before dawn on Wednesday, and was thankful to have forgone the full Rim Walk as temperatures climbed and Westley complained. We returned to raid the breakfast buffet, then drove to Yulara to share kangaroo skewers before settling into our hotel for Legos and AC. Our Field of Lights evening tour was otherworldly with a beautiful view of the Milky Way. We continued our pre-dawn routine with Kata Tjuja’s Valley of the Winds and Walpa Gorge walks, followed by a sexist didgeridoo workshop, and meat pies at the Kulata Academy Café. Our sunset camel tour was interrupted by rain, but showed us how lighting starts wildfires. Dinner at Arnguli was a unique but heavy sampling of kangaroo steak, emu kofta, and wallaby shanks. We could still see fires burning when we returned to Uluru before dawn, and chose the Mala Walk and Kuniya Walk in lieu of the entire base walk to make time for a visit to the Cultural Centre, a wooden animal painting workshop, and lunch. The first part of our Australia trip was action-packed, but definitely eye-opening for us all.

Powerful rainstorms led to a string of power outages last month, the longest of which lasted nearly 24 hours. Melody was away for an APGO conference at the time, so Westley and I spent that weekend mostly without electricity, playing board games, painting by numbers Seurat-style, and embarking on a Puyo Puyo Tetris adventure on the Switch, all while learning to cook with headlamps and shower with a flashlight. The experience prompted us to invest in more headlamps and a power station. With heavy rains flooding most of California, we spent most of our January weekends indoor, which gave me time to discover the mystery of the Prometheus in 1899, wrap up House of the Dragon and Umbrella Academy, and finally storm past Stormveil Castle in Elden Ring. For food, we smoked ribs and char siu, and made lots of congee, soups, and stews. Westley enjoyed partaking in song and dance at the DHS Jazz Choir workshop over MLK weekend, but felt sick after a Chinese New Year party at a CRNA Melanie’s home. For my birthday weekend, we drove to Stockton for a crab feast with my in-laws, and unexpectedly scored dinner reservations at SingleThread. Chef Kyle Connaughton’s Cal-Japanese-inspired menu drew on seasonal ingredients including Dungeoness crabs, duck, and lemons, with some dishes appearing more like works of art. Some 3-Michelin-star-level attention to details like clear cocktail ice cubes and butt-warming bidet seats were unfortunately offset by inconsistent timing between courses and accidentally pouring sparkling water into our cups of still water. Overall, we appreciated the lavish meal, but probably not worth the 2-hour drive to Headsburg and returning home at 1 am. We spent this weekend packing for our trip, fertilizing and herbiciding our back lawn, and cutting our hair. Westley also did his part to successfully reach level 5 at SwimAmerica, just in time for snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef. With just days before our trip, it’s a race to tuck away as much work as we can.

In preparation for Australia, we decided to enjoy a short holiday in Hawaii over New Years break to relax, test-drive my new camera, and prepare Westley for the ocean. We were lucky to catch our Southwest flight to Honolulu and avoid the thousands of cancellations due to weather, but instead suffered a 3-hour wait at Hertz to get our rental car. The delay made us miss our boat tour at Pearl Harbor, but we were glad to make the last standby group to visit the U.S.S. Arizona memorial. Exhausted, we settled into our AirBnb in Waikiki after slurping hearty udon from Tsuro Ton Tan along with some mango sticky rice and sugar cane juice from street stands. On Friday, we drove early to queue in line for our 7am timed entry to Hanauma Bay, where both Melody and Westley overcame panic to snorkel among the colorful reefs. We celebrated with hot malasadas from Leonard’s bakery truck, followed by porchetta and hapa fried rice from Mud Hen Water, then returned to Pearl Harbor to watch a documentary, visit the exhibits, and buy the B29 Superfortress that Westley was eyeing. After relaxing at the condo and assembling the toy bomber, we returned to Tamafuji for a crispy tonkatsu dinner. On NYE, we awoke even earlier to revisit Hanauma Bay, where we found fewer fish and more ankle scratches on the right side of the bay. We recovered with another round of malasadas before spending the afternoon with Jeff’s family at Kapa Hale at the Kahala mall followed by ShareTea boba. The dinner line at Marugame was surprisingly short, so we filled on udon on the way to the Honolulu City Lights display before bedtime. Our alarm woke us just before midnight to enjoy a perfect view of the Waikiki beach fireworks from our balcony. We managed to find a whale watch cruise on New Year’s Day, which gave us only brief glimpses of a mother whale and her pup while Westley kept busy with coloring. Afterwards, we went to Ala Moana for tan tan ramen from Goma Tei and mochi hot dogs from Mr. Cow, then brought poke bowls back for dinner. We checked out on Monday to embark on the Manoa Falls trail, where we trudged through rain to survey ferns, bees, and snails, which left us hungry for kalua pig, squid luau, and chicken long rice from the Waiahole Poi Factory. We were glad to order ahead, which saved us time to enjoy a Sweet Lady (haupia ice cream & kulolo taro dessert) on the way to the airport, where the IASS lounge gave us a chance to refill and recharge for the flight home. It was tough landing at midnight and returning to work next morning, but our trip was short and sweet, as we prepare for our trip to Australia.

We scheduled a new paint job for my lab this month, which gave us an excuse to have our holiday outing at Dumpling House followed by bowling and billiards at Memorial Union. We also had our department’s first in-person holiday party since 2019, which got my lab members cutting up the dance floor. At home, we spent most of our weekends hibernating from the cold with big pots of beef stew, bun rieu, and spam soup. We did a little shopping in Natomas for craft supplies from Michaels and sweets from Cost Plus, filling on pork adobo and lumpia from Roline’s along with massive halo-halos. Last Friday, we joined Liam’s family at the Theatre of Lights show downtown. I arrived late from clinic to inhale a few dumplings before taking in the exciting showdown between Santa and Jack Frost, followed by hot chocolate and a rowdy mini train ride for the kids. Since Melody and I were both on call, we spent our Christmas holiday weekend mostly at home also, except brief outings for hot pot, dim sum, and pastries. Westley was content diving into his new Lego Boost robot and Speed Champions racer sets, while I immersed myself in HBO’s House of the Dragon and FromSoftware’s acclaimed Elden Ring game. Between collecting runes, discovering sites of grace, and painfully dying again and again, I was both humbled by the combat challenges yet addicted to the wonder and discovery in the beautiful open-world setting. We left my poor wife wrapping dumplings and baking sticky buns all by herself. But between Westley’s Lego-building, Melody’s cooking, and my gaming, we felt like we each got a chance to enjoy our Christmas break in our own favorite ways.

With colder weather setting in, we spent most of Thanksgiving at home over spicy hot pot with in-laws and World Cup games from Qatar. We set up our Christmas tree and lights as usual, but instead of Black Friday shopping, immersed ourselves at the Immersive Van Gogh exhibit downtown followed by lunch at Saigon Alley and treats from Ginger Elizabeth. I did take advantage of online deals for a mirrorless Sony camera, Tamron lens, and Hoya filters for upcoming travels. I also ordered a humidifier for our bedroom, microwave for our kitchen, and new appliances for our rental unit in Boston. We solicited several quotes for a new HVAC system, but decided instead to expand our solar panels to prepare for the new EV I ordered. Melody and I snuggled under our fur throws to watch the Umbrella Academy battle the Sparrow Academy and Korean artists mic drop in one take on Take 1, while I indulged in the finale of the Walking Dead and premiere of The Peripheral – a mind bending new sci-fi series from Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy that managed to be even more confusing than the last season of Westworld. Westley developed a fever last weekend while Melody was at a conference in Baltimore. So we hung out at home playing Azul and RC cars, cooking curry beef stew, and watching MasterChef Junior, which inspired me to let Westley handle a real kitchen knife for the first time. We ventured out only briefly for fresh pineapple buns, piano lesson, and a dentist visit. Melody’s car battery died over the course of her absence, which was ill-timed as my car was also in the shop, so I had to chair my first NEI review panel from home. Sadly, my own grant proposals to the NEI, RPB, FFB, and Thome foundation did not receive much love, but I was glad to score a $2M Multicampus Research Programs & Initiatives award from UCOP, based on my proposal to develop a teleretinal imaging program across UC health campuses to expand eye care access in California. While I work with my institution to broadcast the good news, it seems that my other research has been gaining publicity also, including a radio show on goji berries and TV spot on ABC10. As 2022 draws to a close, we reflect on how fortunate we are as a family as we prepare our gifts and donations.

With Westley now fully-boosted, we renewed his passport and began finalizing travel plans for Hawaii, Australia, and Tokyo. At work, I bid farewell to my ACC office as I packed up for the new TEI building. My new office is smaller, so I had to part ways with drawers and cabinets to make room for my couch. I kept my trip to the Retina Society short, taking most of my meals at the Langham in Pasadena where the conference was held. I ventured out only briefly for a chirashi bowl at Osawa, and a reception at the Rose Bowl, where my impromptu foot race with my colleague Jesse had me skidding on my wrist and knees down the famed stadium field. I returned home in time for the fall time change which gave us an extra hour to visit Seaquest in Folsom. The interactive exhibits sported cabybaras, sloths, porcupines, and marine life, but felt more profit-oriented than typical aquariums. Westley spent his two free tokens feeding a tortoise and getting a small plastic toy. At home, I tried to teach him super Chinese checkers, but he seemed more excited about the board game Azul, where he seemed to be developing some strategy to our pleasant surprise. We spent the past few weekends playing hosts to our retina fellows, cousin Pamela, and in-laws with grilled lemongrass pork rolls and gourmet hamburgers. The weather got cold early this year, so we were glad that our fire pit was operational. We also attended Westley’s classmates Sofie and Liam’s birthday parties at Pioneer Park, where we hung out with other parents while watching our offsprings engage in tug-of-war and ninja-themed activities. With holidays approaching, I look forward to more time at home.

Our neighbors organized a block party earlier this month, where we realized how few of our neighbors we actually knew. While Westley played with his friends, we took notes of who lived in which house and which medical specialties were represented on our street. At his school’s fall festival, many faces were unfamiliar, and I was embarrassed to not know that my high school classmate had lived down the street for the past 6 years. Melody and I took turns volunteering at the limbo station, while Westley mastered plunger-cart driving but struggled at rock climbing. Too bad the haunted house was not as impressive as the $9 price tag on hot dogs. At home, we replaced more dead plants, installed a side-door electric deadbolt, and replaced our undercabinet lights to better match the warmer color of our kitchen lights. We also caught up on new seasons of Stranger Things and SYTYCD, and ate waffles and mochi while watching Waffles and Mochi. Netflix’s new Cyberpunk Edgerunners anime was a refreshing take of the excellent PC game, and Miles Morales’ endgame was a satisfying reminder of the PS4 Spiderman game. My car needed both windshield and bumper replaced, which prompted me to test drive the Mercedes EQS and BMW i4, before placing an order for the latter. The outings gave us a chance to try Jamaican goat curry and beef patties at Dub Plate Kitchen, chicken fingers at Raising Cane’s, and steamed buns at Dah Bao. I also got to relive undergrad dining at the Segundo commons with my lab. On Halloween, we joined the neighborhood gang for trick-or-treating. Westley went as a ninja, which made Melody his armorer preparing his costume, and I his blacksmith fashioning nunchuks and ninja stars. Joining the swarm of children and families was exhausting but exhilarating, as we got to bond some more with our neighbors. 

Feeling overworked recently, I kept my trip to AAO in Chicago fairly simple this year. Despite vowing to avoid red-eyes, I was also keen on avoiding connections, and ended up flying Wednesday after clinic to land in ORD Thursday morning. Fortunately, I made the smart move to book an extra hotel night which gave me a few hours of shut-eye before lunch. The sketchy walk to Chinatown rewarded me with hearty Slurp Slurp Noodles and baked goods from Chiu Quon Bakery to fuel the pig eye injection wet lab at UIC. For dinner, I unwittingly opted for fish at a steak house for the Adverum steering committee, but enjoyed my colleague rapping on the cab ride back. I managed to attend most of the first Retina Subspecialty Day, with only a break for dim sum with ex-fellows, and ended the day with industry functions, the Michels reception, and a dip in the hotel pool. Saturday included investor lunches where I spent more time waxing poetic on clinical trial data than ingesting food, my talk on gene therapy inflammation, and catching up with friends at the MEEI and UCD alumni receptions. After my OCT course and shooting an EyeTube video on Sunday, I headed for some Qing Xiang Yuan dumplings which were definitely worth the wait in line and another visit in the future. I managed to avoid socializing with colleagues and residents on the return flight, giving me time to catch up with work before another work week begins. 

The summer heat wave reached temperatures up to 116F which kept us indoors for most of Labor Day weekend. I spent the cooler evenings installing solar yard lights while Melody tried her hands at smoking ribs. We also ventured out for dumplings at nearby Yang Kee’s soft opening which was respectable for the driving distance. We otherwise spent most of the long weekend lazing about with fuzzy sherpa pillows from Target and a Le Pouf bean bag for Westley. The relaxing weekend helped us rest up for our drive to Monterey the following Saturday for our first lab retreat since the pandemic. After picking up my post-doc Carol, we stopped by Fremont for Taiwanese breakfast crepes and sandwiches at Cafe Mei. In Monterey, we studied caterpillars at the Frog Pond Wetland Preserve, stopped for disappointing fried seafood at Sea Harvest, then met up at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. We were wowed by the new “Into the Deep” exhibit which introduced us to psychedelic jellies and giant isopods that looked like football-sized roly-polys. At our spacious AirBnb, three generations of junior specialists coordinated a grocery run and pizza making that included teams for prepping dough and toppings. Westley joined in for some toy fort building and a round of Uno before we cracked into our Pandemic board game. We awoke Sunday to pancakes and omelettes to finish off our pizza toppings, then headed to Carmel beach where we grooved to Vulfpeck while playing badminton and volleyball. Westley tired himself out digging a hole and fell asleep on our drive home. We stopped for lunch in Sunnyvale with excellent dumplings and noodles at Dumpling Depot, but our Moomo Tea might not have been worth the 30-minute wait. This weekend, we tried out a new piano teacher, toured the new Tschannen Eye Institute building, then revisited the California State Railroad Museum where Westley kept busy building a thingamajig while getting over a non-COVID cold. Melody and I spent the rest of our time researching our Australia trip in February as our excitement grows for our upcoming travels.

I had the fortune of being invited this week to Roche’s Vabysmo launch in Singapore which made my wife jealous of my second visit there while she prepared for Westley’s first day of grade school. I opted for a car ride over flying to SFO where the United Polaris Club opened my eyes to luxuries like made-to-order dining that I had to forgo having filled on airport ramen.  Flying business class aboard Singapore Airlines’ A350-900, which at 15+ hours is one of the world’s longest commercial routes, proved to be well worth the hype with AYCE fresh noodles, noise-canceling headphones, and Penhaligon’s amenities. After checking into the hotel, I traversed the muggy weather to Sungei Road Laksa where I realized I had no cash. Having forgotten my ATM pin, I made my way to Mustafa Center to exchange money and stock up on Prima Taste kits before returning for my savory $3 laksa bowl. I hopped into a cab just in time to avoid the monsoon rain and reach the ArtScience Museum for their immersive Future World and Patricia Piccinini art exhibits. Afterwards, I roamed the Marina Bay Sands mall and food court before joining my friend Daniel at Spago overlooking the hotel’s famed infinity pool. My talk at Roche headquarters made me miss out on Tian Tian’s Michelin-rated chicken. So I resorted to chicken rice and bak kut teh at a nearby food stall which I worked off at my hotel’s roof-top pool before bedtime. I awoke Wednesday for my talk and tour at Tan Tock Seng Hospital, returned to Chatterbox for a decadent set lunch, then visited an upscale retina practice and its founder for a second lunch. The official launch event took place with fanfare at the Flower Dome at Gardens by the Bay, bringing back memories of the Macula Society meeting 5 years ago which I reminisced upon with my friend Gemmy and her fellows over drinks afterwards. I gave my talk virtually at the Singapore National Eye Centre next morning, which gave me time to check out the hotel breakfast before touring SNEC in person. A satisfying nasi lemak and chendol dessert at the Coconut Club fueled my post-lunch hike through the Southern Ridges. Hauling peanut-free moon cakes from VivoCity’s Mid-Autumn Fair, I made the treacherous climb up Mt. Faber Park across Henderson Waves, through the Forest Walk at Telok Blangah Hill Park, then past Alexandra Arch to HortPark, where I tapped out of the 10km trail for a cab back to the hotel. I concluded with an afternoon tour and talk at NUH, then sampled peranakan fare and white rabbit ice-cream sandwiches at Coriander Leaf overlooking the Singapore Polo Club for dinner. The lavish breakfast at the SilverKris business lounge put me to sleep through most of my flight and car ride back, but the nap did not make Friday afternoon clinic any easier to get through. We celebrated the end of my parents’ half-year stay over Korean BBQ before their flight out on Saturday, as we prepare to care for Westley by ourselves again.