Author: Anum

last days 

AnumLeave a comment

We’re currently sitting in the airport waiting to board our plane, which is of course late. I’m so glad we took the time to plan this trip and made it out here. This is the only week hubby and I have off at the same time before I start class on Monday. I’m glad things worked out. We spent the last couple days of our trip in Maryland, visiting both our cousins and some friends from college.

I’m definitely nervous about starting second year and don’t really feel ready at all. I still have doubts about whether I really belong here or if I actually learned all that I need to know from first year. But I just gotta power through it until third year when I’ll finally get to do what I love. I haven’t even looked at the schedule for this upcoming week because I don’t want to think about it before I have to. Hopefully it’s not too brutal.

Read More »

marriage and med school 

Anum11 Comments

About a year ago, I started my first year of both marriage and medical school. In the midst of graduating college, wedding planning, getting married, moving three times and starting medical school, I definitely had my hands full but I still made the time (of course) to be worried about whether all these simultaneous changes would ultimately be disastrous. Now, in my second year of both medical school and marriage I’m so happy to have started both of these journeys together. It, of course, was not an easy transition but I’m so happy to have had someone to share this journey with. I’ve been asked time and time again about balancing marriage and a career and after thinking about it for a few weeks and asking hubby’s advice, I’ve come up with the following tips:

Read More »

Fredericksburg 

AnumLeave a comment

For the first decade or so of my life, my family pretty much moved every year. We finally settled in Southern California in 2005 and have been there since. But part of me has always wondered what life would’ve been like if we’d never moved and if I had grown up in a small town. Today I got to experience a bit of that and also showed hubby around one of the many places I grew up. The place I learned to ride a bike, where I ran through sprinklers with my baby brother, where I took walks in the evening to the pond and fed ducks with my aunt and uncle. It’s the place that kept me safe for a year and was somewhere I always came back to visit. It’s the place I began to form my understanding of ‘family’ as a child.

While we were in Fredericksburg, we went to a great vintage store downtown and got a couple things. Hubby picked up some great vintage comic books from an antique shop. Had delicious iced tea.

I’m sad that our time in Richmond ended so quickly. That’s the thing about traveling, you feel like you leave pieces of your heart all over the world. But moving forward also means new experiences and more people to love (and inevitably miss). I’m currently sitting in a basement in Maryland with my nieces and nephew. We’re watching Jurrasic Park and they’re trying not to give away any spoilers (but are doing an adorably terrible job).

Read More »

book review: Body of Work

Anum3 Comments

I wish I remember how I stumbled upon this incredible text, but I honestly don’t. Nonetheless, I don’t think it would be an exaggeration to say that in many ways Dr. Christine Montross’ Body of Work: Meditations on Mortality from the Human Anatomy Lab got me through the first year of medical school.

I’ve been very open about how anatomy lab was and still is one of the most transformative and difficult experiences of my life, both as a subject of study and emotionally. When I first began studying anatomy, I did recognize the great privilege it was to study the human body from this perspective. I was almost unspeakably grateful to those who donated their bodies so that my colleagues and I could become better healers. But when we first started dissections in October of last year, I did not understand how integral this experience was for me as a physician in training. I did not understand why I was learning about how to ‘save lives’ by studying the dead. I felt traumatized. Every time I stepped into anatomy lab, I simultaneously felt grateful, sad and anxious. Everything felt so unnatural. I knew rationally that the cadavers felt no pain during our dissections but that did not prevent me from wincing at the sound of each rib cracking or a saw cutting through bone.

Read More »

july favorites

AnumLeave a comment

When I first started watching beauty gurus on YouTube, my favorite videos to watch were monthly favorites. It’s pretty much how I learned about new products that I wanted to try and they usually worked out for me. So I thought it would be cool if I did the same on the blog. I’m probably not going to do this every month because I mostly use the same products so it’d be pretty redundant but I’ll probably do them every so often.

Beauty Favorites – I have oily combination skin so keep that in mind when reading the reviews of these products!

  • Miracle Skin Perfector BB Cream Oil Free in Light/Medium – This product is a bit of a misnomer because the ‘cream’ has a relatively runny consistency and feels more like liquid foundation. The packaging isn’t the greatest – it would probably be better off with a pump style container. BUT I’ve been using this BB cream as my go-to casual ‘foundation’ for years now, pretty much since I started using make up regularly, and I absolutely love it. It gives me the perfect amount of coverage and is extremely light so it’s perfect for every day use. I use it throughout the year and it can be a bit drying during the winter so I’m a bit more generous with my moisturizer (below) during those months.
  • Botanics Shine Away Mattifying Day Cream SPF 15 – I had literally been searching for a moisturizer for my strange oily but not oily skin for yeaaaars until I stumbled upon this jar of goodness at Target. This is probably the product I’ve repurchased the most in my life (I’m pretty sure I’m on my seventh or eighth jar at the moment). I have to say that I don’t think this moisturizer is actually mattifying BUT after using various moisturizers for years, I’m happy to finally have a product that doesn’t leave my skin even oilier.
  • Essie Matte Topcoat “Matte About You” – I’ve stepped up my nail game recently and I have this weird thing where, despite having many colors to choose from, I stick to the same three or four nail polishes. So I’ve been in this in between stage of being bored with my favorites but also not wanting to try something new – perfect solution: matte topcoat, makes things different but not too different. I picked up the NYC matte topcoat a few years ago but it never really did the trick so I decided to purchase this Essie one. This topcoat is absolutely perfect! It goes well over any color and dries almost immediately. I’ve been playing with my nails all week because I’m obsessed!

Fashion Favorites

  • LOFT Jumpsuit – This jumpsuit has definitely been one of my favorites this summer. It’s such an easy outfit to ‘put together’ because you literally just put on shoes and you’re done. I love the color and that the fabric is super airy. Unfortunately, it’s no longer available on the website but I did see them in a couple Loft stores in the past few weeks so check it out if you have the chance!
  • H&M Booties – These booties have been getting a lot of love this summer too! I love pairing them with leggings and oversized shirts (that’s exactly what I wore today…). It’s such an easy way to make any casual outfit a bit dressier and I know it sounds weird but I actually like wearing these in the summer. The California sun has definitely done it’s number on my feet over the years and wearing these booties helps protect them from further damage.

Random Favorites

  • Necklace stand – Until recently I thought of myself as someone who didn’t really wear jewelry much until I realized that I’m actually just really lazy. Ever since we moved to this apartment, my jewelry has been stashed away in a box under the sink where I never give it a second thought. I realized that I would actually wear it somewhat regularly if I actually remembered it existed… so I purchased this lovely necklace stand for my necklaces. Most of my necklaces are quite long so this tall stand was perfect and it goes really well with the stand I recently purchased for my bracelets. I’ll be doing a post on home decor/organization some time in the future so I’ll share more on those things in the future.

I hope you all enjoyed a bit on some of my favorite products this summer! We’ll be leaving on vacation in a few days and then I’ll start second year as soon as we’re back so things will probably slow down a bit around the blog. I just want to say thank you to everyone who’s joined me this summer and I hope that you all stick around for the long haul! As usual, if there are any posts that you’d like to see specifically, please share!

For more regular updates, follow me on instagram!

Hope you’re all enjoying your summers!

birthday weekend!

Anum3 Comments

It was hubby’s birthday this Saturday and we celebrated at dinner with family and friends! It was really great to celebrate with almost all the people he cares about all in one place, which hasn’t happened in a while. We went to this amazing halal Chinese restaurant and definitely ate too much heh.

For my outfit, I wore one of the other jumpsuits I got during the Loft sale a few weeks ago. It’s this really pretty army green color and is so incredibly comfortable. The fabric is relatively thin but still opaque and because it has longer sleeves, I don’t have to worry about layering!

Read More »

imagine dragons

AnumLeave a comment

Went to my first concert in over a year last night! It was supposed to be hubby’s first concert ever but he’s had a cold the past couple of days so one of my friends came along with me and my cousins instead. It was nice having a girls night and just catching up on life and such.

I was a terrible blogger last night and didn’t take many photos but sometimes you just gotta be in the moment, you know? For concerts I usually try to dress super comfortably so I don’t have to worry about anything and can actually enjoy the show. I wore an oversized denim shirt over a striped tank top and my gray joggers from my finals outfit post. Shoes are definitely the most important thing to consider, especially if you’ll be standing for most of the night. I always go with closed toed shoes cause there’s always someone who spills their beer or is super wasted and tramples all over your feet. We were in the seated section but I knew I’d probably stand for most of the night so I wore my red chucks. Hubby dropped me off to my cousin so that she wouldn’t have to come all the way to my parents’ to pick me up. Read More »

vintage 

Anum12 Comments

I’ve been wanting to do this post for so so long and finally got a chance! This is an OOTD with one of my favorite pieces: this mustard yellow midi vintage skirt! One of my good friends runs the cutest online vintage clothing store. She finds all these one of a kind pieces herself and sells them at such affordable prices! I’m all about supporting small businesses and Ladies Who Lunch is definitely one of my favorites. Hafsa does a phenomenal job finding pieces for women of all sizes and styles. You can also check out their Instagram here for more regular updates on all new pieces! I’m currently gushing over all their midi skirts and dresses. 

Read More »

faith and medicine, not a contradiction

Anum2 Comments


I’ve been pretty open about my faith on this blog and while I don’t owe anyone any sort of explanation, I do realize that science and faith aren’t often seen on the same side of the equation. And while I respect peoples’ right to believe whatever they choose to believe, I thought I’d take a shot at explaining why my faith is so important to me and how it got to be that way.

“The wound is the place the Light enters you.” – Rumi

As many stories of ‘finding yourself’ begin, mine also starts at when I was lost and in a state of extreme despair. I grew up in a practicing Muslim family. My parents moved to the U.S. from Pakistan, where the official religion of the country is Islam. The vast majority of the people my parents grew up with were all Muslim. They never questioned Islam as a way of life because it’s all they ever knew. It was ingrained into every fiber of their being.

Read More »

anatomy lab reflections part two: hands

Anum2 Comments

This piece is the second in my series about my experience in anatomy lab during my first year of medical school. The first piece in this series can be found here.

I wrote both these pieces as a means to reflect on and normalize what I was feeling on the first day of anatomy lab and during a dissection I found to be particularly difficult, emotionally. Now that I’m finished with my first year of medical school, I look back and I’m even more grateful to have had this experience. Death, ironically, will always be a part of life but being in this field we have to work even harder to healthily cope with this reality. While the point of anatomy lab was to teach us about the human body in a tangible way, all the cadavers were the ultimate teachers about both life and death. From them, I learned what a heart, my heart one day and likely the hearts of future patients, looks like when it’s no longer beating. From them, I felt the weight of a cirrhotic liver. From them, I saw what a ‘smoker’s lung’ actually looks like. But from them, I also learned the muscles I use to type this sentence. They are the reason I can feign x-ray vision and imagine my muscles, tendons and bones working together as I hit each key. They are the reason I marvel at all my nieces and nephews as they grow and learn to walk and speak and think. They are the template for every patient I will see in my career as a physician.

It’s been just over a month since we finished anatomy lab and said goodbye to our cadavers. Thank you, great teachers, for your final sacrifice. I hope that you have finally found rest and ‘burst into light.’

Read More »