AAO takes place in Chicago biennially and this year, I was able to squeeze all my commitments into a short, two-night stay. Having filled on a breakfast burrito before my 7am flight, I avoided hangriness over catching an Uber to the wrong Hyatt before settling into my actual hotel. For dinner, I left early from an investigator meeting to join Zeiss management at two-Michelin-starred Smyth, where the unique tasting menu was superior to the dinner conversation. I made my way to the Cornea Society party afterwards, but again felt myself aging out of the event. On Saturday, I met with industry colleagues for research updates, then lunched with past UCD fellows at Burger Bar. I returned in time to give a booth talk and laser course before wrapping the evening at the Harvard reunion and an Allergan dinner. On Sunday, I trudged through rain at 6am for an early ad board, then returned to the conference center for my OCT course and poster presentation. I took advantage of happy hour pricing for ramen before joining my co-residents at my friend’s apartment for a baby gathering. I picked up a yogurt parfait for healthier sustenance for the return flight Sunday night. Despite keeping the trip short, I returned to work feeling exhausted, having gone for 3 weeks without a day off. Fortunately, I was able to hang onto Premier status with an Economy Plus upgrade, so I’ll at least be done with air travel for the remainder of the year.

I kicked off October with a visit to the Bay Area to give grand rounds at UCSF. To avoid rush hour traffic, I asked them to put me up at a hotel, which was conveniently located at the Japan Center and gave me a chance for some Daiso shopping and noodle slurping at Kui Shin Bo and Hinodeya, in addition to the hosts’ dinner. I spent the rest of the weekend with family, trying out Fish’s Wild Island Grill, petting farm animals at Grandpa’s Barn, and introducing Westley to his first movie – My Neighbor Totoro. Despite occasional scares from the makkurokurosuke and big totoro, he was glued to the screen. With my parents in town for a 3-week visit, I kept myself busy with grant applications, fellowship interviews, and Paul Hom, while Melody attended several meetings. I finally succeeded in changing our fellowship lunch location, but the back-to-back weekend commitments left me little time to spend with my folks, with only a few opportunities to dine out for hot pot, poke, and pozole. Fortunately, Westley has become much more verbal now, and is keeping them plenty entertained.