Chianti

A Studio Ghibli film with a glass of wine, calling a friend, walking around the city, or sitting in a cafe with a coffee and people watching.

This is a late response, but yes. I and my friends all submitted in-progress theses to our prospective programs. If the program wishes to read the finished product they will let you know.

I do not study physics, but I'm going to go out on a limb here (joking) and say you have very strong scores. You should be just fine!

As long as your other sections are strong a 5 on the essay should not be a problem. Professors I have talked to think very little of the GRE (a necessary evil if you will) and value the rest of your application.

Bill O'Reilly...with the white hot intensity of a thousand burning suns. (Points if you get the reference. )

Friends are always telling me "Mangia mangia!" because I have had no interest in food, and sustain myself off espresso shots and vino (for reading of course). I have the bad habit of not eating until I feel like I am about to pass out/start jittering. Not the unhealthy habits I was expecting to pick up at all.

I will paraphrase what a good friend told me when I was having a similar dilemma: "Have you considered that you are trying too hard? You seem to hold yourself to impossible standards and then if you don't achieve it, you are profoundly upset." I have found yoga /meditation (at any level) to be helpful in centering myself, and silencing the crippling guilt I feel for not achieving a goal. Yes, most days the guilt comes back, frequently for events far past, but I try to list the good that I have done even without perfectly achieving my goals. GradHooting, I see passion in your posts and I believe that you can overcome those fallacies in your mind!

Your format includes a specific on the professor/their research so that shows that you have done some research on them which should help elicit a response.

Many of my family, friends, and myself included have transferred with no negative repercussions in being accepted to a wide variety of professional/graduate schools. There are so many reasons for transferring, and as long as your SOP briefly touches upon it there should not be a problem.