What's in a name?
I started OnThePharm back in May of 2006. The time has gone by quickly, and my writing style and content that I write about has changed drastically. I've gone from covering industry news to more personal takes on just about everything. Pharma news = Zzzz.
When I started writing, I wanted OTP supplement my income through ad revenues. It has done that, and continues to grow, albeit at a relatively slow rate. I wanted it to become "respectable", and I suppose it has become that, too. That stopped being a priority around January of this year for reasons I can't really articulate.
As you all know, I've decided to go to med school. Therefore in sometime in the (relatively) near future, OTP will more or less go the way of the dinosaur… (<3 Dr Dino) Trouble is, I've been wracking my brains for a good name for a pre, during, and post med school blog. "On the pharm" was a phrase I first heard my roommate use back when I was a third year in pharmacy school, and I thought it'd made a great name. Generic enough to encompass anything pharmacy-related, and also unique enough to be remembered. (Is that presumptuous of me? 
)
As Dr Hwang has found, one can outgrow names when they're not chosen with growth in mind. That is, personal growth and situational progression.
Early on, I used to blog more about social things: who won the hockey tournament, who threw up in their car on the way home from the bar, what I did in Montreal with the other family med applicants, who wiped out spectacularly while skiing. I find that now my posts tend to be much more introspective. Maybe that's a logical progression, but in some ways I feel that "Med Valley High" doesn't really fit anymore.
Naturally, I could use my name in some fashion — I am not likely to outgrow my own name. But then I wouldn't be anonymous, and while I don't hold anonymity near and dear to my heart, I'd prefer not to shout my name from the rooftops either. I am the only person on the planet with my name. Adding a level of abstraction between myself and my readers appeals to me.
I've been thinking of choosing an avatar, like Flea and Panda, and I think maybe I've finally come up with something that I like. When I've got it figured out enough to start writing, I'll post about it here, so those of you that enjoy my writing can add that feed to your RSS readers if you like. I will be up-front, though — it's likely to be somewhat personal in nature at first as I plan to chronicle my experiences with applying to, taking the MCAT, and ultimately getting accepted to, med school.
And I will probably continue to post random pharmacy-related items here along the way as well.
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