Day 35: 3/25/22 10:08pm (central)
Today was cool! We woke up at Cracker Barrel and then went straight to Henderson Beach State Park to walk with Auggie. It was $6 for entry to the park, and she wasn’t allowed on their beaches, but we were allowed to walk on the nature trail with her! We had access all day after we paid, so we could leave and come back at our leisure. The nature trail was all dunes and trees, and it really made me miss hiking. I’d love to go back to the AT with Zak and Aug to finish up what I missed.
After our walk I was feeling a little sweaty. I’ve been dealing with this darn pimple on my back too and I’m so annoyed with it and yucked out by it. I think it’s a mix of hormones and not showering quite as much as usual. I’ve also been wearing the same clothes for 3 days so that contributes, I’m sure. (Gosh, just reading this I feel gross!) While I was brushing my teeth and trying to make myself feel less yucky, Zak cooked breakfast, we played with Auggie’s ball a bit, and then we headed to Panera to work.
I called Iowa today about application feedback but they didn’t answer so I left a (mildly awkward) voice message. I sat there after that and tried to figure out what it is that I want to do and how I need to reapply to medical school and I became very overwhelmed. I know I want to be a doctor. I want to teach patients about their ailments. I want to provide comfort in a patient’s darker, more unsure moments. I want to be an accessible resource for people that are generally overlooked in today’s society. However, the medical school application process seems so much more complicated than making sure a candidate is mature, resilient, able to handle the course work, and has sound, compelling reasons for becoming a physician. In every rejection letter I got, there was undoubtedly a sentence that read: “Unfortunately, there are far more qualified applicants than there are seats in this year’s medical school class…” and here we are facing a physician shortage. According to the US News, about 53,000 people applied to medical schools in 2019, and about 22,000 people matriculated. Each person, on average, applies to 17 medical schools per year. It is not as if people do not want to become physicians. To me, it seems that there are too few spots.
We ended up leaving Panera a few hours later and headed back to Henderson State Park. While we were there, I was in a bit of a sour mood on account of feeling so dirty and also feeling so overwhelmed about med school. However, after we were there for a little bit, I sat down and did some great work! I figured out my goals and I followed my first step, which was to update my letter recommenders. This first step has been weighing on me for a long time– perhaps because I did not want to give them the bad news that I was only waitlisted at one school. I also emailed Iowa about feedback just in case my awkward voicemail didn’t go through. I am now at the step of finding the schools I can email to ask about feedback. Part of me wants to only do the schools I was very interested in, but part of me wants to send a letter to everyone.. can it really hurt?
This evening Zak and I went to The Craft Bar and got some apps and beer and got to watch the St. Peter’s Peacocks beat Purdue! It’s been cool to root for the underdog since our whole bracket was messed up. While we were at the Craft Bar, Auggie got a lot of pets and treats. After dinner, we went to PetSmart and got Auggie more food. Since we were the last in the store, though, Auggie got to eat a WHOLE BOWL of treats and ~4 Jerky sticks and now she’s all tuckered out. And I am too.
Oh also, today was the most visitors to the blog ever! 7 people lol! We are getting there though. Consistent, quality work!
