Door creaks loudly open

BioGuy2008: Whats up
twerkface: i dunno
BioGuy2008: Hows it going?
twerkface: just walked on the moon. you?
BioGuy2008: Cool
BioGuy2008: Working on apps ... booo
BioGuy2008: I'd much rather be playing tennis with Felix or taking bad pictures with my completely gratuitous digital camera, you know? I miss having a life ;)
BioGuy2008: Felix is so lucky he's just doing consulting

[four minutes pass]

BioGuy2008: Man
BioGuy2008: these apps are rough!!!
twerkface: er, what apps
BioGuy2008: You know, for research
twerkface: ...
BioGuy2008: You did them too right? When you were in my poor little premed shoes? Haha
twerkface: um .. i don't think so
BioGuy2008: huh? How did you send out ur research proposals?
twerkface: what research proposals
BioGuy2008: For working in lab over the summer, getting ready for med school apps
BioGuy2008: You're in med school, you know the drill :)
twerkface: i didn't work in any labs. i just worked at a magazine that summer
BioGuy2008: Hahahah you didnt do any benchwork?? Then what did you do?
BioGuy2008: No offense, but how did you get into med school?
twerkface: i guess i just slipped by
BioGuy2008: Strange

[eight minutes pass]

BioGuy2008: hey............
twerkface: ?
BioGuy2008: How is med school going?
twerkface: shrug. it's school. i'm tired of it
BioGuy2008: Arent you on rotations this year? must be busy?
BioGuy2008: i've read some horror stories on the premed forums
BioGuy2008: Melvin Chuang said it was like God was frowning at him every day, even though he was technically helping people the whole time
twerkface: no, i'm actually taking the year off
BioGuy2008: ahhhhh
BioGuy2008: Making up for the benchwork?
twerkface: no, i'm doing humanities research and taking art classes
BioGuy2008: Woah ..... what does that mean? Are you going to connect it to your medical career?
twerkface: no, i just like it
BioGuy2008: Cool
BioGuy2008: i bet residencies love well rounded people. You are really smart dude :)

[three-and-a-half minutes pass]

BioGuy2008: Hey, So I'm actually driving up there with my mom next week to check out the campus.
BioGuy2008: Who on the committee do you think I should definitely try to talk to?
BioGuy2008: Also, can you recommend any good books on current medical issues for me to peruse? Like, to get to know the field a little better? Not just the basic science side since i just ordered my subscriptions for JAMA and NEMJ, but also how scientific breakthroughs are applied in life, and raise really interesting issues
BioGuy2008: I figured it'd be good to have some working knowledge about that in my pocket..
BioGuy2008: What was your experience like when you interviewed there? I'm not there yet obviously, but this should be a good practice run
BioGuy2008: Did you have a key phrase or sentences that you used to sum up your personal interests, or did you just guide them through your resume?
BioGuy2008: For me, i was thinking about bringing up the benchwork, but since the lab I'm working in right now is ultra hardcore, I thought I'd maybe bring that out a little later in the conversation. Hit em hard
BioGuy2008: Maybe the volunteer work would be a good starter. What sort of volunteer work did you do? And how many hours?
BioGuy2008: And when you told them about your interests, how did you make them want to accept you? Seems like you have to have a really interesting combination of things or a good personal story
BioGuy2008: Like, maybe a SLIGHTLY less than perfect physics score, but then explaining that it's b/c you actually spent too much time learning about quantum dynamics and string theory. You know, all that stuff about turning each negative into a positive
BioGuy2008: Actually, it's pretty interesting that the lab I work in is located in a pretty slummy area of town, with a lot of minorities who can't seem to get to a good place in society..... It's so sad. I could probably talk about that!
BioGuy2008: Did you relate an interesting anecdote about you and a medical experience, or did you focus more on where you were at that point with medicine?
BioGuy2008: Yeah, so I'd really appreciate any insights you might have on how to broaden my perspective on medicine, offer a solid background while maintaining an interesting profile, and maybe even make super early contact with the head of admissions ;)
BioGuy2008: If you could send me an e-mail with your enumerated thoughts, that'd be great. Would you mind also attaching a copy of your med school essay? Thanks so much, I could really use your advice
twerkface: I am away from my computer.
BioGuy2008: I'm starting to think about rec letters too

Animals That Live in the Mirror

One night, however, the people of the mirror invaded this world. Their strength was great, but after many bloody battles, the magic of the Yellow Emperor prevailed. The Emperor pushed back the invaders, imprisoned them within the mirrors, and punished them by making them repeat, as though in a kind of dream, all the actions of their human victors. He stripped them of their strength and their own shape and reduced them to mere servile reflections. One day, however, they will throw off that magical lethargy.

--Jorge Luis Borges, The Book of Imaginary Beings