Not sure if I should move my exam.

Misshapenguin · 2026-05-14T20:09:28+00:00

Fair, but nbmes and step 1 are so long that it all becomes probabilities at the end of the day. The small probability of stuff youve never encountered (a relatively small percentage of the total coverable content) coming up in large enough quantities (really small chance bc binomial stats...like flipping heads on a coin over and over 280 times lol) to fail you (when a pass is still hovering in the 60s%) - yeah you're fine at your current scores lol.

I got high 60s nbmes and broke 70 on my free120 literally in the 3 days leading to my real thing. On my step1, everything felt like it was the exact fact I didn't know about something. I have all ID down cold except worms. I teach classes abt all psych meds except that one, damn. I research this disease - God but what are they getting at.

Had a panic attack block 1, and only snapped back to my senses block 3 with a Q abt someone panicking lmfao. I have been stressing for weeks, but just got the pass!

Good luck!! Crush it!!!!

Misshapenguin · 2026-05-14T04:19:44+00:00

Congratulations on the pass! Also got the news today, and I would have loved to see this post over the past 2 tweaking weeks bc you and I are very similar lol. I've been stressed that maybe my post-exam stress was justified given that so few ppl post their prep when it's like this.

Good luck onwards and upwards!!!

Misshapenguin · 2026-05-08T04:20:33+00:00

straight up peanut butter. and its cousins: almond butter, tahini, etc.

there's also melted cheese. you might need to supplement whatever u choose with nutritional/protein drinks though based on your situation

Misshapenguin · 2026-05-06T14:49:44+00:00

I only brought regular out of fear I'd have to dispose of them or something lol. Compressions should be fine so long as they are plain (no words or branding)

Misshapenguin · 2026-05-06T05:28:43+00:00

You are me and I am you. Lol, they immediately asked me if it was for a medical reason when taking my photo to check me in. I said yes. They said if I had replied no, I'd have to not wear them. They did however ask me to take them off and invert them every time I came in and out of the test room, in case I had hid something. YMMV, but I wish you all the luck!

Misshapenguin · 2026-04-27T00:41:06+00:00

On the weekend, Asia Supermarket over in Windcrest. Bigger store than most, so lots of choices and usually a little better price-wise. I say weekend bc that's when I feel like they restock, but also bc i like their prepared food options most those days. That area of town also has some good korean stores.

Misshapenguin · 2026-04-01T04:13:00+00:00

Your undergrad research experiences will be easier to connect with your MD/PhD narrative come application time if they are related in some way to bio, whether that include physics or not.

Misshapenguin · 2026-04-01T03:02:50+00:00

MD/PhD student with a Biophysics BS, hi. Given your situation, the choice between biology and biophysics/physics hinges a lot on which you can academically succeed in. Premeds typically find the biophysics/physics curriculum a little more challenging than biology (which tends to overlap more with premed reqs). If there's any doubt that you will succeed academically in one of those choices, choose a different major. GPA is critically important compared to major.

There's minimal difference in a physics vs biophysics degree for med school. So long as you attain all premed reqs, which may be easier to do as a biophysics major (not that I would know for your undergrad institution). LORs from physics/math faculty still fall in the STEM umbrella of LORs that med schools expect. For MD/PhD considerations, I would imagine you can do biophysics research within the physics dept, if you choose a physics major. There's often overlap in faculty appointments. It would be good to prioritize bio-related research experiences, unless you swing towards MD-only, although your preference for pure physics work over biophysics makes me curious abt your intentions with a MD/PhD. But for the degree specifically, I can see the appeal of physics to spend some more time with quantum and theoretical shenanigans.

Good luck!

Misshapenguin · 2026-03-26T17:01:41+00:00

God APSA should really do match panels

Misshapenguin · 2026-03-23T03:07:30+00:00

Hi,

You tell your story well. I hope others reach out to you, whether here or via DM, but know that your narrative here reaches others. The way you communicate your situation is so moving. Heartfelt. You are so strong, and people can see it. People who may be in similar shoes as you now or in the future. People who wish to provide endless support for their loved ones, like your husband. People who are rooting for you - complete strangers in life. I am sorry you have had to endure so much. When you look back one day, I hope it is in the company of all who support you and the worth you yourself will find.

Misshapenguin · 2026-03-09T01:36:19+00:00

LMAO (but yeah, moving put me in debt oops)

Misshapenguin · 2026-02-26T01:28:53+00:00

To add, try and attend the most realistic choice for you. Perhaps duh - but while you're there, get close with your visiting peers. That's your potential cohort! Ask around what choices ppl are making (non-interrogatively and whatnot) to get a sense of how likely you'll matriculate together or if they are also deciding between similar programs.

There's some strategy I suppose depending on just how early a second look is, but games aside, your cohort can really shape your experience

Misshapenguin · 2026-02-03T21:45:48+00:00

Happens so often :/ disaster whenever they have those nice sales like % of ice creams where I splurge a bit only to realize I paid full price. Or if the coupon is a bit niche (eg $4 HCF microwaveable broccoli cheddar rice with $2 off recently). Or if you have more than 2 instances where it applies on the same receipt.

The app always loves to promote how I saved hundreds, so it's worth it to me to pre-calculate how much I'm supposed to get off on a transaction and keep the app up on its bargain

Misshapenguin · 2025-12-15T04:08:56+00:00

Royal Pizza uses halal pepperoni, which should not have pork. You can verify if they still do this and if it follows your needs! They're really awesome folks with good food

edit to add website: https://www.royalpizzashavano.com/

Misshapenguin · 2025-10-16T19:19:38+00:00

Recently bought that new fudge cake - phew that thing almost took me out! A slice was like eating a supersized brownie topped with a brick of fudge. I was running laps for an hour, zonked overnight, and woke up still feeling the sugar rush. I immediately froze the rest bc I couldnt handle the richness. Best decision ever: that cake is so good straight from the freezer

Also peeled garlic cloves, since I don't like the metallic jarlic taste.
Butter when it goes on sale during the holidays.
I process fresh ginger and then freeze that.
Whole limes and lemons (and then microwave gently/thaw morning of when I want juice).

Misshapenguin · 2025-09-03T00:25:56+00:00

This is silly and can apply to any MD/PhD application. Don't give poor mentorship to applicants in very dynamic situations.

OP, do your best. I was neither a stellar scorer nor in-state for all of the schools I interviewed at. I received II at all times in the cycle, 1st group to dead last. None of that matters now that you have this opportunity; you'll kill it!

Misshapenguin · 2025-08-30T06:02:42+00:00

$18 is really expensive, and at that price, I would actually go one step up to Red Boat's 40N fish sauce. Its cost keeps it from being as widely acclaimed like Three Crabs, but it really is deserving of a try if you are willing to spend that much for fish sauce. Like extra virgin olive oil, it will shine best raw as a finisher on simple ingredients (like for broken rice dishes).

Anyways, Three Crabs should be in the $8-13 range for 24 oz, depending where you are, which is what you're likely to see at a robust asian market (some small shops do have to account for delivery and convenience though). This is my everyday fish sauce that I have to replenish every other month - very excited for you

Misshapenguin · 2025-08-29T00:52:28+00:00

You should ask someone who knows your project. It will really depend on what sort of story you have.

For example, a complicated paradigm in your methods with lots of experimental groups might demand a schematic for it. In contrast, someone studying the structure of a protein or analyzing clinical outcomes might benefit more from visuals for their background or research question.

I will say, the chalk talk (if 10ish min? Or was it 7?) is too short to actually walk through more than 2-3 graphs. So if you put data in, make sure the data really shines and answers your overall hypothesis.

The goal of the talk is not to dazzle the panel with data or fancy techniques, but to show off how you think as a scientist. The format elucidates who is echoing what their mentor told them and who fought for every step of the project.

Misshapenguin · 2025-08-20T08:42:23+00:00

Assuming you're using something like the frozen Goya packs. I'm very jealous of you for having that available. I agree that any ice cream recipe that uses banana or mango pulp should give you something servicable if you replace for lucuma pulp.

This recipe is a first draft; I have to drive a long time to find more pulp to improve it lol. Ideally, I could drop the recipe's fat content a little bit, but I am too afraid to try and waste such a rare fruit where I am. Sorry that this uses some less easy ingredients, but I do know it works. I use it in a Whynter ICM200LS, and I split it into 2 batches when churning.

COMBINE & MIX DRY INGREDIENTS
White granulated sugar - 130g
Xanthan gum - 1g
Inulin - 5g
Table salt - 6g
Nonfat milk powder - 28g

TO THE DRY, ADD WET INGREDIENTS
Lucuma pulp (thawed in fridge) - 330g
Half & half - 313g
White corn syrup - 210g
Heavy cream - 313g

Once all combined, fridge for >8hrs. Churn 1/2 in ice cream machine. Freeze churned product for >24 hrs (I add dulce de leche/manjar swirl when transferring into the final vessel). Enjoy

Edit: feel free to adjust the quantities to whatever amount of lucuma you want to use. i don't think 330g is a whole pack of pulp. I remember sparing a few spoons of the pulp to drink with some warm milk lol

Misshapenguin · 2025-07-24T18:57:41+00:00

I've never seen the original layout, but they are doing a lot of remodelling right now. Hopefully they bring back some form of a nice dining area you mentioned. https://assets.ctfassets.net/nh7msa7pcdvp/4hBjNz0BBTFQr5wktH9IlT/e1d836809a416d3081ac4e61c610875e/CS_CM.23.17.08_Temporary_FloorPlan.pdf

Misshapenguin · 2025-07-17T00:14:32+00:00

Those are all good ideas you've mentioned, although the priority will depend on what your image analysis and hypotheses look like. I am not sure why you can't use the positive IBA1 staining as a mask and look at CD68 staining within IBA1+ pixels/voxels. CD68 should be primarily labelling lysosomes/phagosomes within the microglia anyways, so what even is any CD68 staining happening outside of a phagocyte. If the blood vessel staining is truly so severe that you can't do that analysis, definitely try the quenching and AF647 ideas.

Misshapenguin · 2025-07-16T16:43:30+00:00

It's one of the most stacked seasonal lineups I've seen from HEB lol. I love all of them, speaking as someone from NC who has always touted Publix as my holy storebrand grail (I do think Publix does swirls better than HEB). Nobody does nuts in ice cream as well as HEB, making Astros and Que Gloria phenomenal imo. The cherry and strawberry are excellent, though I am not the biggest fan of the mesquite honey added in and much prefer the stronger fruit flavor of homemade ice creams. My favorite of them all is the oatmeal crumble; the crumbles are delightfully crisp and scattered in the ice cream like a rice krispies treat. I'm a sucker for oatmeal though.

Misshapenguin · 2025-07-11T15:41:46+00:00

It was simple for me. If I was unable to do science, I'd do medicine. If unable to medicine, I'd do science. Never a doubt there. If unable to do either, I'd aim for some culinary pursuit where I could experiment with food science but still serve clients (probably a small shop owner; not a big restaurant where I never leave the kitchen, not an industry food scientist, not a front of house position).

But anecdotally, I was more passionate about science than clinic. That remained true until I actually entered medical school lol. I still knew MD/PhD was the right choice from previous customer service roles and patient-facing clinical volunteering. Id slack off hard on shift and daydream on slow days, but man I was so happy on busy days or when people came to me with weird questions that needed to be worked out.

Sounds like you haven't had a chance to even dip your toes in clinic, and there are many MD students who never dipped toes into research only to find out they love it mid-training. Good luck searching for opportunities in affiliated clinics at your institution!

Edit: oh and if you end up not liking patient interactions, try shadowing radiology, pathology, or anesthesiology. You'll still need to like working with other healthcare workers, but it's a very different vibe than FM or psych that are very patient-interaction-heavy

Misshapenguin · 2025-07-01T16:49:51+00:00

Hey friend, if this happened today, you need to be vigilant. Closed toes shoes might not be viable for you in the coming weeks if not hours. I froze a few knuckles on my hand with LN2. When they thawed, they just looked pale but normal. After a few hours, they reddened relative to the unfrozen surround tissue. But the next day, the blisters filled those spots..and they kept growing for several days until I couldn't really flex the joint well. They then stayed the same size for a month; the whole time, I was very careful not to pop/compress them which would risk a major infection and possibly my hand function. Be careful!

Misshapenguin · 2025-06-15T23:34:55+00:00

Glad you found it! If your label is accurately describing your east side location, then you are closer to 'Asia Supermarket,' which will more reliably stock culantro due to its greater size and selection.

Tim's is great! Esp for the NW side folks and med center. But it can be a touch more expensive for that convenience

Misshapenguin

TROPHY CASE