Family: My wife Leah; our two kids, Shoshana and Han; and Shoshana’s fiancée Courtney.

How did you meet your wife? We were introduced by a friend. I’d said I was looking for a love long term, and an amazing woman who thinks I’m amazing. We’ll be married 30 years this month.

Pets: I have a cat with a big personality, Tiger Lily, who is really good at telling you exactly what she wants, often and loudly. She’s very chatty.

Do you have any nicknames? A lot of my friends’ kids call me Uncle Poopy or Dr Poopy, because kids are prone to constipation and I was always really good at getting them to go to the bathroom. It’s silly, I know, but that’s what they called me when they were little, and some of my friends still do just to be funny.

Work: I am the owner of Whole Healthy Family here in Newtown. It’s an acupuncture practice, and I am the principal acupuncturist and Chinese herbalist.

Are you an active member of any organizations, clubs, and/or communities of faith? The biggest is my work with Ann’s Place. I can’t say enough good about that place. People should know about it as a resource. I provide acupuncture one day a week, free of charge, to people who wouldn’t be able to get care otherwise. It’s just such a lovely, lovely group of people. The staff is remarkable, and the services are also quite remarkable.

What did you want to be when you grew up? An actor or a comedian. I was addicted to making people laugh, and I started acting at an early age. I enjoyed that, being able to take people on a journey with me. When I was younger it was about the attention, and when I was older it was about “How can I make this believable?”

Do you have a favorite author? Umberto Echo and Iaian Pears are my favorites. Both of those guys are really great historical fiction writers. For a guilty pleasure, Lee Child’s murder-mysteries or fictional crime novels are fun.

What is the most recent book you’ve read? Right now I’m reading The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson. It’s sci-fi, which I also like, about a UN-type agency focused on climate change and how to stop its progression.

Favorite actors? I know it sounds cliché, but I love Meryl Streep. She becomes different people all the time. I’ve also always liked Kevin Cline because he can be completely outrageous but he can also be very serious. He can play the baddie as well as the affable goofball. There’s also the entire cast of The Pitt, particularly Taylor Deardon. She makes me cry every week. It’s really remarkable how she’s able to capture that so completely. Her dad’s no slouch, either.

If you could spend the day with one person, living or deceased, who would you pick and why? There are several, but at the top of my list is my brother. I miss him terribly and it would just be great to have a day to hang out, to ask questions. I would also like to spend a day with two or three of the famous Chinese physicians in Chinese medical history. It’s amazing what these guys did thousands of years ago, understanding nerve blocks with needles, and energy manipulations to reduce pain. This stuff is documented from 1,500 years ago, so as long as the day includes built-in translation service, I’d love to ask how they thought of this.

What is your proudest accomplishment? My family. I am very proud of the relationship I’ve built with my wife, and that she’s also built with me. It’s respectful, we are partners, we’re of one mind, which I really love. I’m very proud of my relationship with my kids, and who they are. They’re good people and they want to do good things — and they are doing good things.

Also, I was the primary caregiver for my in-laws, who passed away within six weeks of each other. It was at the same time I was finishing my doctorate. I said to one of my professors “I just need a two- or three-day extension,” after I had to take my father-in-law to the emergency room. When I told her they were in their late 90s, and dying, and I was the one taking care of them, she asked “How are you getting anything done?” At the time it was just something I did — we take care of our loved ones; that’s what we do — and then after that I remember thinking “Wow, that was something.” We just took each minute as it came and oftentimes what I was left with was a deep love.

What is your favorite thing about Newtown? I love the people here. Everyone I’ve met has been so nice and welcoming. It feels like a small town but there’s a lot here — Edmond Town Hall, art and culture, the brew pubs, and you can get a good bagel here. As a New Yorker, Bagel Delight is the best bagel I’ve found in Connecticut. As others have said, it has a small town feel, but it’s like small town cosmopolitan.

Do you have a personal credo? It depends on the day. I often default to the Hippocratic oath: Do no harm. The other one is: There’s nothing to worry about until there’s something to worry about.