Wyethless (and Pfizerless) Day One


Hi Friends! How is everyone's Thursday? I'm having a great one, because I no longer need to wake up early to go to work... LOL

Yes, yesterday was my last day at work, and so it begins... a new chapter, a new phase in my life. How does it feel? Fantastic :)

Well, I'm not going to spend too much time here on a beautiful Thursday... Instead I'm going to exercise, go shop for groceries, perhaps get a new hard drive for my computer, and so on and so forth... wooohooooo!

Of course, I'll be getting ready for the interview at the U.S. Embassy for my VISA application this coming Monday, as well as getting ready my things to bring to U.S. and things to send back home. I'll still need to get some more jabs too to complete my vaccination process. I'll also need to send my car for servicing, and to collect my car grant or ownership certificate. Just finished paying the loan a couple of months ago! Woohoo! Another reason to celebrate!

Anyways, I will end this post with the farewell message that I sent out yesterday to all my colleagues in Wyeth before I left :) Bye now, and have a blessed Thursday!



Hi ALL,


It is my last day after a wonderful 5 years, 2 months & 26





GOLDen days with Wyeth. I would like to sincerely thank each of you for every experience shared, friendship made, opportunity offered and good times had during this time.


I have thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of being part of the Nutri team, especially during my early years in Wyeth. Although I was very "green" and the youngest in age during then, everyone in the team treated me like I was part of their family, and helped to nurture, train and shape me into a better person at work and in life. I couldn't thank you more for the great amount of patience you had showered me in withstanding my sudden outbreaks of insanity, wrong words or actions said or done, and always seeing the best in me of who I can become.


I will never forget how you all had cheered for me as I sang "She Bangs", helping me to win the very first Wyeth Idol in 2005. I will also never forget all the time, effort and success in obtaining LUTEIN content and function claims approval from the MOH, with the support of Marketing and Corporate Affairs. And how can I forget the time when I fell backwards, blindfolded, from a raised platform into the loving and trustworthy hands of my team members (Blue team boleh!), safe and sound! Who can forget the incentive trip to Italy?


In short and sweet, thank you so much for all these years of the best of everything, the opportunities to work with the best people, and for the chances to be a part of interesting experiences. I think nothing is more fitting but to end my parting message with the lyrics of my song that I sang to all of you at this year's NSM.



Friends For Life

Friend, you put a smile on my face
Friend, you fill my heart with joy
I will give thanks to Him my Lord
For by His grace
We are friends

He has joined us together
Walking side by side
And I know we'll be together
Friends for life

Though many things
Try to take us apart
But I know...
We're gonna make it through together

He has joined us together
Walking side by side
And I know we'll be together
Friends for life

Last and best regards,
John

PS# If anyone wants to keep in contact, you can email me @ johntan1979@gmail.com (or see you on Facebook!).

FFF

Hi Friends! How are you doing? I had just got back from a Fabulous Fourth Farewell :) Thanks to Wei Luen and Sarah, two good friends of mine for more than 6, 7 years. We had Japanese steamboat... very healthy and yummy food, with lots of fiber and greens :)

I truly appreciate moments like these, because when I look back 10, 20 years later, I'll know that I had friends who cared, friends who loved, friends who took time off their busy schedules to spend time with me...

Friends who understood what I am going through, friends who supported my future plans, friends who sincerely wanted to know how I felt going through all these major changes in my life (i.e. marriage, quitting my job, moving to the States, taking up MBA, et cetera), and friends who offered me invaluable advice and words of wisdom that are much appreciated :)

I might not have a lot of money in my bank accounts (yet). I might not drive a Merz or a BMW (yet). I might not own a lot of lands or properties (yet). But one thing I do know is that I am ever so richly blessed, because I have FRIENDS :)

Yes, friends come and go. But some stay longer. And it's those friends I'm truly thankful to God for. Someone asked me once, why did I remain friends with that person for so many years? I answered him, it takes two hands to clap. Both has to put in the effort to stay together. But I also said that, when the friendship seems to be slipping away, that's the time when I have to decide if I wanted to let it fade away into utter oblivion, or put in the extra effort to keep it going. For most of the time, I fanned the dying flame. Just for what? For my own benefits? For something I want out of it? Nope. It's for FRIENDSHIP. I cared enough. I loved enough. As simple as that. I believe that friends who came into our lives definitely didn't happen BY CHANCE. It's definitely God-given. And just like so many things God placed in our hands, we have the power to CHOOSE... either to keep it and nurture it well like gold, or let it go like rubbish.

Some people treat friends like commodities, like toys. When they get bored, they find a new one. Some treat friends like the toilet. Out of convenience, they will remain friends with them. And when things change, e.g. they are moving further away, it is no longer convenient (or economical) to stay as friends. Have I met people like that? Unfortunately, yes. And yes, I did try to fan the flame, to keep it going, but alas, if you are the only side trying to make it work for numerous times, it does not take too long for me to decide to LET IT GO. Why does this has to happen? Did we do something wrong? Something wrong with us? Absolutely not. It is unfortunate that some will decide not to remain friends, or close friends with us. And when that happens, no matter what reason, whether valid or invalid, there is nothing else we should do but to MOVE ON. Sometimes, that's the best thing to do.

I know I had done this before, so I'm not going to do it again... to name names. So this time, I will just thank God for all of you, all the friends that God has blessed me with. You have no idea how much you mean to me, and how much you have impacted my life. And I definitely look forward to many more years of friendship together with you all.

And I especially want to thank God for my baby, my wife, my best friend FOR LIFE. And yes, God always saved the best for last :) And she is THE BEST. EVER. FOREVER. Thank You Jesus!

2 Headhunters and 1 ½ Farewells


Hi Friends! Hope you are having a great Tuesday! I had one of those mixed up days... half happy, half angry/sad, whatever.

But firstly, let me share with you about what I had been experiencing recently. I want to thank God because, even though my current boss (CB) does not appreciate me, others do VALUE me highly. Others, as in my other colleagues that I had been working with together for more than 5 years, AND people in other companies.

So far, 2 different headhunters (not literally) called me up to offer me positions in other companies, even though they know that I have plans to move to the States in about a month's time. Phew... I'm actually THAT much in demand huh? Thank God for that, because although CB doesn't think that I had done anything much or worth much, others know my contribution to the company and my job aptitude and attitude for the past 5 over years. I'm not trying to be proud, but I'm just trying to show the contrast in the way CB treats me, as compared to others. I can empty out all the trash of how-CB-is-treating-me here to all of you, but I think that's not a professional thing to do. What's done's done. And I'm moving on (THANK GOD!). Too bad, and I feel that it's his loss, not mine. So long..... sucker (LOL I just have to inject that word in...)

On the other hand, I feel sad and happy at the same time, because of all the farewells that my friends and colleagues (ex- or current) will be organizing or had organized for me. Sad because of all the friendship and experience that we had gone through together for so many years, happy because they cherish this friendship and took up the initiative to hold farewells for me.

Since the first farewell more than a couple of weeks ago, I had the privilege of attending another 1 ½. The second farewell is all thanks to Geraldine Lee, an ex-colleague, who also did a wonderful job in holding a small farewell for me - 5 persons including me. And she invited just the right people to the farewell :) We ate yummy Chinese tai-chao food and drank 1 crate of Tiger (Now how many bottles was in 1 crate? Sorry, I'm not a drinker.....). Didn't get drunk, but we sure had a great time, catching up, eating good food, and didn't spend a lot at all. And oh, what a revelation I had that night on CB. Didn't know how that surfaced in our conversations, but somehow, it did! And I wasn't the one who initiated that topic. Weird huh? It's just like a nasty piece of shit. No matter how many times you try to hide it or flush it, it will surface again and again, automatically. And you know that it sure stinks like hell. Somehow, I thank God that I'm not the only one getting such treatments from him.

The 3rd (which is considered a ½) farewell was just this afternoon, a so-called Nutrition Division farewell lunch for me, yet again, tainted with CB's shit. Now you understand the nasty shit analogy? It just has to show up EVERYWHERE, invited or uninvited!!! I just wish that my last moments in Wyeth, my sending off..... could have been more happy and pleasant in nature. Sigh..... give me a break.

So what's the shit this time? Well, it was originally planned, more than a week ago, to be a farewell dinner in a nice Italian restaurant somewhere a little far from the office, about 15 mins or so driving. And everyone, including me - the VVIP, the reason why it is being held at all - had committed to it. SUDDENLY, I just have to stress that

adverb... just yesterday, the day before, SUDDENLY, CB wanted it to be lunch at a restaurant nearby the office, like less than 5 mins away. Just for whatsoever dumbass reason, I really don't know, but it did create a lot of confusion among all my colleagues, because many had, like me, thought that it is supposed to be a dinner. And also

because of the fact that i had wanted it to be a dinner. So who's

leaving now? It definitely did come across my mind to boycott the lunch, since there was no respect at all for my feelings and my colleagues' feelings. At the very least, he could have asked if I'm ok with the change. Now wouldn't that be something? Boycotting my own farewell..... LOL!



Whatever! And enough of this shit.



Thank God (seriously) that I'm leaving! I just have to bear with it for another 2 weeks or so.



This post was supposed to be a happy sharing. You know..... being headhunted, farewells..... sigh.....



Hope that you are having a better day than I am. As for me, I'm heading home now, back to bed :) Good night, all, and take care!

And so it begins...


Hi Friends! Hope you're enjoying a great weekend! I am!

Just a few minutes ago, I went to get my MMR shot - vaccination for measles, mumps and rubella. This will be the first of a few vaccines that I will be getting before flying off to the States. Next on my list are Hepatitis B and Tdap - tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis. There are many other vaccines that I should get, but these are the priorities.

If you are not aware that adults should get vaccination, neither did I! Until I came across CDC's page on Adult Immunization Schedule (anyone over 18 years old). No doubt, most of us are immunized as a baby, but I'm sure many do not know that we should get vaccinated again after the age of 18. I think these are called booster shots. Here's the LINK to download the Adult Schedule. And here's the schedule extracted from the file (NOTE: You many click on the picture to view the full size):



As you can see from the schedule, after the age of 18, you need to go for Tdap (once) and subsequently Td every 10 years. If you are female, you'll need 3 doses of the HPV vaccine. But it seems that the age to get this is between 19-26, so does that mean that if you missed this, you don't have to get it at a later age?

You'll also need 2 doses of varicella (chickenpox) if you had never gotten chickenpox in your life. For those 60 years old and above, you'll need 1 dose of zoster. 1 or 2 doses of MMR between 19-49, and another optional dose at 50 or above for those with prevalent risk factors. Since influenza or flu hits the world population every year with new strains, you'll need influenza vaccination annually, especially if you are 50 or above. And the pneumococcal (polysaccharide) vaccine at 65 or above.

Depending on the risk factors present, you may need the pneumococcal jab once or twice before 65. The same applies for Hepatitis A (2 doses), Hepatitis B (3 doses), and meningococcal (1 or more doses).

So how did I prioritize which vaccines I should get first?

It is by looking at the prevalence of the respective diseases in the States:



I got chickenpox when I was 24, so I'm immune to varicella. And I was given BCG as a baby, so I don't need TB vaccination. Therefore, my top priority will be Tdap, Hepatitis B and MMR. The rest to follow.




Make sure you get yours, and don't tell me that I didn't tell you. Prevention is definitely better than cure, in terms of the suffering (or in some cases, death) that you can avoid, as well as the costs of treatment if you contracted the disease(s). And this is definitely biblical, since God gave man the insight and wisdom on creating vaccines to prevent these terrible diseases.





Take care and have a beautiful week ahead!

Wooohoooo! I got 106 out of 120!


Hi Friends! Yes, I did it! I have received the score for my TOEFL exam, and I think it's great!!! 106 out of 120. It's not a superb score, but good enough to meet the minimum requirement of top business schools in the world like:

Chicago Booth (104) - ranked #3 by The Economist, Economist Intelligence Unit 2008
Stanford (100) - #4
Cambridge Judge (100) - #7
Cranfield (100) - #13
INSEAD (105) - #19
Michigan Ross (100) - #22
Warwick (105) - #23
Ashridge (100) - #24
Virginia Darden (100) - #25
Cornell Johnson (100) - #28
Yale (100) - #30
Carnegie Mellon Tepper (100) - #35
UCLA Anderson (100) - #41
Manchester (100) - #60


For the school that I intend to enrol in, which is the Trulaske College of Business of the University of Missouri in Columbia, the TOEFL requirement is only 80. Ahahaha...

Anyways, there is another reason I'm very happy about, that is, I scored FULL MARKS for the Reading section... 30

out of 30. You see, there are altogether four sections of the test - Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing, each carrying 30 marks for a total of 120. So scoring full marks for the Reading really made me very very happy, because as you may recall, I was worried about my inference skills, as per my previous post. Getting this really tells me that, I have no issue with inference at all... hahaha! Thanks for all your tips... they are much appreciated, Donna, Inge' and Mys Lyke Meeh! Thanks as well for all those who prayed for me :) And I thought during the test that I would not score that well, since I hardly had enough time to read and complete the questions! What a miracle! Thank You Lord :)



You may view the full details of my score below :) Next up: GMAT