I asked Dave to set up this thread as a way to help us transition from the listserv. One of the fun things about the listserv was the way that we all got to read the different conversations - we didn’t have to pick and choose between “pre-med” and “med” topics for example, and we could also throw in amusing / annoying family or work anecdotes, or whatever else we felt like sharing with friends.
(and for those of you who’re relative newbies to OPM, you can get a sense of how our conversations have ended up kinda random if you look at the “archives” section. Those posts are being sorted by the topic title and you can see from the follow-ups to original posts that we are not very good at staying on-topic!)
Anyway, here’s what we’ll do with this one:
Feel free to write about whatever you want. If we end up in a conversation that IS med-school related in any way, someone - a moderator or other interested party - will suggest a place where the topic conversation might continue more fruitfully.
Be patient, as this is a bit of an experiment, but please do write!
Hey Mary,
I was thinking just the same thing. Sometimes we just get stuck on something that really isn’t applicable to pre-med or med but is an interesting topic of conversation like JP’s fondness for “all things” that are sharp. 
I am sitting on call today in Charlottesville. It is pouring rain but my sleep room is not cleaned yet or otherwise I would be getting some good zzz’s before I pick up call for cardiac and thoracic. My patients are very good today. I am bored with reading. I have one patient to put in discharge orders and dictate otherwise I can nap. 
The listserv was great for those random topics or announcements.
you two are brutal…just brutal.
I too think this was an excellent idea…shoulda thought of it myself! I never want to loose the “family” that we have grown on the list-serve. For that reason, we are not dismantling it…it will be kept around to allow folks to access the archives. Besides, I learned long ago to not burn bridges, esp when it is not necessary.
Hi! These are all good ideas…I’d miss a spot to discuss no-med life with OPMs.
For Dave, Nat, and Mary, et al., I want to suggest a “pre-med --> res. --> and beyond” topic that could certainly go on some other forum. Here goes: I’ve got a good idea about the process of getting into med school…then the Match and residency. What I’m slightly fuzzy about is internships, sub-internships, fellowships, adding another degree b/w med school and residency (e.g. MPH, MS and the like, if one was not already in a combined program), etc., and when I, or anyone else here, needs to get their non-fuzzy ducks in order to proceed.
Also, it would be helpful if we had a spot regarding medical licensure. I realize the details vary from state to state, but an overview of timing and components of the process (of what’s in common) is welcome. Whatdayall think? Who do we have that has been all the way through who can address this? Betsy?
Thanks! Mary (in PA) 
Both excellent topics. Please post these questions in the MD & DO residency forum and I, among several others, will attempt to clarify the immensly complex world of internships, residencies and fellowships!
I'll be glad to talk about licensing. It belongs in the residency section, because that's when you should be applying for licensing.
I also added something I recently learned that I think is important about what is thought to be practicing medicine without a license and what the law says to the medical student section. I strongly recommend that everyone read that post.