Only in small towns can you get to enjoy the forest and lots of green in your front and backyard! The above is the view from my aunt's friend's front yard. We were there to help flower her plants as she and her husband were away on vacation.

Inside her house, she has a wall that's dedicated to my aunt's cross stitch pieces! In fact, there are a few other of my aunt's work on the mantle.

 Check out the garden! It's larger than I imagined it to be and there are loads of plants!

 I recognise the corn plants in the middle.

Look! Green tomatoes! A few more weeks and they'll all turn red - meaning that they're ready to be eaten!

 Some herbs grown together (top and bottom).

Flowers are starting to bloom! Soon, there will be insects and bees coming to help pollinate the flowers and then fruit will come! In this case, squash!

A pumpkin is starting to grow and sink to the ground.

Random berry that I found near the driveway and thought that it looked quite nice. I'm so envious. I too want a garden and grow my own chilli, onions, carrots, pumpkin, tomatoes, herbs and other veggies. Unfortunately, I don't have a garden and I don't have a green thumb either.

My aunt too has a small garden of sorts and it's really growing very well in the summer!

Look...a melon/squash! Funny thing is that my aunt doesn't know what this is supposed to be. She just took the seed from her friend and planted it. Looks like it'll be a surprise!

Her sunflower is also blooming and attracting a lot of bees and even a resident bird who keeps picking on the seeds.

See that flower? That is the start of a bell pepper! I'm so jealous!! Few of my fruit plants ever get to this stage!!

Really laid back culture here with my aunt. Gardening...cooking...knitting. You'd be surprised to know that my aunt used to be in charge of a regional outfit. So domesticated now.

Me and my aunt

Went to a small town (small to me anyway) named Stevens Point in Wisconsin to visit family. It's about 1.5 hours away from the state capital, Madison. Took a bus from Chicago to Madison and that's where my aunt and uncle picked me up from!

The neighbour had a really cute bischon-poodle puppy and it's in its teething bitey bitey mood. So adorable, right? Made me miss Baileys a little. Ah. My substitute dog.

What am I gonna do for the next 2 weeks? Hang and laze around, send off my cousin to Uni and just relax.

I also collected my Vivienne Westwood x Melissa shoes which I bought online moons ago! So pretty, right?? Not that I'll be traipsing around in them here but back in Singapore, I'll definitely find opportunity to do so!

Judging from the heat map analytics, I think some of you are hoping to read a blog post about the famous baby Zed's 1st birthday party. I've been contemplating whether to post this or not but I reckon since my cousin has posted some photos on her Instagram account, some of these photos are 'safe' to be out in the public. But please do not copy/paste/download and reuse without prior permission. Actually, that goes for all photos on my blog. So...enjoy!

Wall of balloons

The prince's cake - crown and all

Zed was distracted by the carousel

Blowing out the candle

Door gift of cupcakes and buttons for all the guests

The bro asked whether we wanted to watch the latest musical in town "Singin' In The Rain" and I said yes. So...off it became a family affair where we hoped to be splashed with fun!

Cast for the evening

Couldn't take any photos/videos of the performance so you'll have to make do with the stage. I think it was quite a good use of the stage where the centre portion is where it 'rained' and then the parameter is the pavement.

I have not watched the 1952 film which starred Gene Kelly but I do know the famous songs "Good Morning" and "Singin' In The Rain" which came out from the musical so I was really excited to watch some good dancing and singing. However, I think I've been spoilt. By Phantom and Les Miserablé.

Although I do know that the film was a musical, it was essentially still a movie and so when transported onto stage, certain elements that were mostly like done in the film (close-ups, "swirls' to indicate imaginations etc) were kinda lost and as a result, most of us appreciated mainly the great acting, dancing in the rain and when the dancers were fooling around by splashing water at the front row audience members. All of us really laughed out loud at the hilarious and outstanding performance by the actor (I've been told that it's rude to call proper female actors "actresses") portraying Lamont.

What stuck out to me throughout the whole performance was how times have changed. I can imagine how this was considered good fun and a clean romantic movie in the 1950s and it was the start of the world's obsession with celebrities and fame. Another thing that made me feel ancient was that I was sitting next to a little girl who was probably about 6 and she was there with her brother who was probably about 9. It was her questions that made me feel particularly old. When the light bulbs on the old cameras were flashing on stage with the distinctive sound, she asked her brother what they were doing and what were those sounds. Oh dear. Gone are the days were we heard flashes from the camera ending with a somewhat loud 'bang' and the flashes themselves aren't as harsh as before. The sounds from our phones while we snap photos are somewhat silent too.

Which brings me to my next train of thoughts...was this musical less than appealing to me because it was hovering between modernity and imagined past (Phantom and Les Miserablé are the latter to me)? Or was it because of the flow of it? There were parts where I couldn't get what that scene had to do with the whole storyline and it felt like just an excuse to put in a song and dance routine. Moreover, the movie had ended with the leads kissing in front of a movie poster entitled "Singin' In The Rain" which was a cheeky way of telling the audience that they're watching a movie within a movie but in this live performance, it merely ended with them kissing.

Nonetheless, this gnawing slight dis-satisfaction makes me want to watch the original movie and perhaps understand truly how this musical gained its legendary status.

I'm usually the one whom friends come to whenever they need a listening ear, advice or referee. However, in the last month, I experienced a mini meltdown and if I had not recognised the signs, I would've probably gone into the super troughs of depression or gone into an anxiety attack.

Why? Simply because I was too stressed out although I am the sort who is able to handle a lot more stress than usual. Post-meltdown, I realised why it had happened in the first place. It wasn't because I couldn't handle stress nor was it because I took on too many projects voluntarily. It was an accumulation of deadlines and demands from several parties, pulling me at all sides and I had no control over the pace of my work and work trolls were not helping.

Like a volcano, the eruption happened and I did a rare rant to my boss followed by me just walking away before I broke down in tears in the office. What made things worse was that my period came 3 times within those 3 weeks. Meaning that I was really under Too. Much. Stress. At the end of the day, I simply felt like doing this:

Sometimes you just want to take your teddy bear into the pool and drift away from all your troubles.
Posted by Ramona Humane-Society on Saturday, 28 March 2015

I needed comfort. I didn't really need someone to hold my hand and say that everything will be alright because I know that I'll eventually sort things out. I needed to just feel a lot less lonely when I was experiencing that mental state. I needed to motivate myself before I crawl into a dark pit.

And also, to warn people that I wasn't in the best of moods, I thought about it thoroughly before posting the following on Facebook and Instagram:

On the verge of a meltdown and wanting to escape really bad. Took a moment to be quiet and be by myself, alone with my thoughts. I think I need more time. I have to keep telling myself that "This shall soon pass" and that it's a matter of circumstances. I need to reset and focus in order to leverage on my strengths.

A photo posted by melfann (@melfann) on Apr 22, 2015 at 9:44am PDT

I was really surprised at the response that I received after the posting was done!

An ex-colleague privately messaged me via FB asking me what happened; my JC friend whatsapped me from the hospital as she visited her new nephew asking me how I was; the topper was a colleague who passed me a mixed tape CD of songs in the morning to help me get through the day. Really brought a smile to my face because I could also remember those days when we painstakingly made mixed tapes but nowadays, it's just drag and drop...nonetheless, it's the list of songs that were super thoughtful.

Sing treated me to a foot massage that Sunday and then we had a Sunday roast which I treated her to. For the longest time since I've ever remembered, both of us just hang out as 2 friends and chit chat. No babies, no husband of hers and no rushing around.

After this meltdown and receiving the response that I did, I can only conclude that I am so grateful and blessed to be surrounded by people who love and care about me. It's often easy to know that but to actually feel the love is really not easy and just like how you wouldn't know what light is without the dark, I wouldn't have known the extent of my friends' warmth and how many of these precious human gifts God gave me if I didn't experience this low. I'm really quite bad at showing how much I love my friends and I hope that they know that I do (eg. I do think about the presents that I buy for each and every one of you so that it's not a *ahem* photo frame).

Another conclusion? This whole incident (I still do not like to think of it as ONE incident as it's really a pile up of circumstances) has also cemented my resolve to take steps such that my life is moving at MY pace. Another sign from above was when I came across this article on Yoga and how it taught the writer that it does not matter whether you can do all of the poses or even how well you can do each pose. It's about being joyous in the moment of doing the pose, no matter how perfect/imperfect it may be. As long as you keep on practicing, you'll eventually get stronger and better! Life is a bit like a long marathon but it's not a race. Run at your own pace. Speed up or slow down as per what is suitable for YOU.

I keep going back to last September where I took the whole month off because it was during that period of time where I felt that I was returning to the real me. Where my body was healing itself and going back to what it should be. I was happy.

How apt it is then that my friend and I have planned WellnessYogi RESET. When we planned it, both of us were mere sleeping volcanoes and I had not expected myself to have erupted but I have. I definitely need to reset my mind and body so as to please my soul.

If you're single in your 20's, people don't give you that much pressure and the usual thing you'll hear is "Oh...don't worry, you're still young. The One is still out there." But when you enter your 30's and you're still single, it's the reverse that's happening and suddenly you're pressurised to feel like you've got some sort of 'use-by' date labelled across your head.

Here is a list of things that really irk me and my fellow singles who are in their 30's. Psst...the list isn't exhaustive.

1. You must be fussy

Uh...no. To be fussy means that there's a whole long queue (or line for my American readers) who are beating against my door waiting to go on a date with me but I tell all of them 'No thanks'. OR I've got a long list of criteria for my perfect other half so I do not accept anyone who comes my way. Truth is that I've simply have not met anyone with enough chemistry that I want to go out on a date with. Am I too busy with work? Probably. However, I have been going out with friends to group events but have I met anyone whom I've made a connection with? None.

Oh...this statement is usually a follow-up to the question, "You are still single/not married?"

2. You're not getting younger anymore
Duh...no joke Einstein. Hmm...I didn't realise that when my age increased with each passing year. Maybe I've found the fountain of youth and am not sharing the secret.

I do know that with age, chances of me getting pregnant gets lower and conceiving a healthy baby also decreases. And I do want to have children. The maternal instinct is getting stronger especially when friends and cousins are popping babies left, right and centre. But...would you rather I go find somebody who I can put up with remotely and get married just to have babies? Uh...I think I'd rather go to a sperm bank for that. Maybe that's just what I will do...if I really just want to have a baby but I think a life partner goes beyond that.

3. You mean there isn't anyone around you whom you like?
Yup. This isn't the same as making platonic friends you know. Hey...you married person, you ought to know this better than me! Did you settle for someone whom you had no romantic feelings for? (-_-)

And before you accuse me of friend-zoning all the nice guys...friend zoning is a 2 way street too. So there may be instances where a female likes a male but he friend zones HER. In my case, I've only told ONE male friend that I only see him as a friend. Nobody else has expressed interest in me romantically. Said friend moved on and went on to pursue other women.

4. Aren't you worried?
About what? Being lonely and unwanted until I die? Turning desperate? That all you judgemental people will not stop commenting about my life and making me feel lacking?

Well...I've got a bunch of good friends and family members plus their offspring(s) to keep me company until I find the RIGHT one.

Paraphrasing my bestie, I'd rather settle with someone who's right and it doesn't matter when I meet him. Another friend also told me that with medical technology these days, we need not worry so much and he married late and his wife was 35 when they married and they now have a 2 year old. So yup...I'll leave it in God's hands and I'm doing my best to meet new people too. So...anyone? ;P

Ever since I took the challenge of quitting complaining for Lent, I must say that it was an interesting Lenten endeavour. I didn't know about the existing 21-day challenge by www.AComplaintFreeWorld.org so I set my own simple rule: don't rant, voice problems out only to release a bit of stress and get a solution either from thinking out loud or from friends/colleagues/family.

It was really not easy because once you've made a promise to yourself, you WILL become more conscious about it. So...for the whole month, I was super conscious about whether I was complaining or was I stating a problem while asking for a solution. Of course, it also felt that Murphy's Law was having a field day with throwing obstacles in my way. However, it could be the hyper awareness that made me feel that way.

How has this challenge changed me?

1. Less friction/gossip caused
I became more choosy about how I phrased my words whenever I talked to my colleagues about issues that popped up during work. Instead of saying "So and so was so stupid and irritating. Don't they know how to do stuff properly?", I held back and voiced out "So and so doesn't seem to know what he/she is doing. Was my communication unclear? Do I need to spell things out from Step 1 to 10 in a clearer fashion?"

In the past, I wouldn't have thought twice about saying the 1st statement and this would incite biased views and comments from others. They probably would've replied, "Yeah...he's such an idiot. Can't even follow simple instructions." And that my dear readers, is pure gossip with no resolution whatsoever. If that subject matter heard what I had said about him/her, it wouldn't be a nice scene.

2. Graciousness
Once I started thinking about rephrasing any potential outbursts, it made me more reflective about the situation. Perhaps it wasn't even a problem to begin with as I may have misunderstood/misread the person's intention or email. I realised that I was more willing to give people the benefit of the doubt and try to resolve the bigger work issue rather than quibble over choice of words/supposedly idiocy of others.

3. Patience
After a few tries at this, what could've potentially set me off into complaining session withered into nothingness. I grew more patient and when others need not react to any irritation from me, I need not care about coming across as a bitch nor care about hurting other people's feelings with my words. I only needed to care about finishing my work and focus my energy on trying to cope with stress and diffusing oncoming anxiety attacks.

This challenge was NOT easy. I have been guilty of complaining a few times throughout this period but then I'd stop myself halfway and go "Oops...". The quote above is really important because it was this main thought that helped me quieten down and be thankful for what I do have rather than all these pesky problems that will soon pass. Hence, I will continue on this challenge. Try it. Who knows how you'll change for the better.

Went to Jumbo Seafood Restaurant at their flagship restaurant at East Coast Park to celebrate the parents' birthday early (thanks to my bro who'll be overseas for a month). The last time I ever ate at Jumbo was at their Riverside Walk branch about 5 years ago.

I am thoroughly amused by their bibs and it's great because we all know how messy Chilli Crabs can be. They provide gloves too but hey...we're Singaporeans...where's the fun in eating crabs without the sauce all over your fingers and licking it off?

We ordered the Baby Squid which were fried and tossed with a sticky sweet and savoury sauce. I haven't had this in ages and it brought back happy childhood food memories.

Above is the famous Singapore Chilli Crab, 'invented' by Punggol Seafood Restaurant but made further famous by Jumbo. Below is another famous fish by both seafood restaurants - Mee Goreng. It's traditionally a Malay dish but in both Punggol and Jumbo, this dish has a slight Chinese Singaporean take on it and of course, they dressed it up with expensive seafood such as scallops, prawns and squid.

Firstly, the Chilli Crab sauce and the sauce used to fry the Mee Goreng tasted strangely similar. Hmm...I wouldn't be surprised if they were really the same. Not that I'm complaining because it really does taste good. We did order a steamed crab, steamed fish and stir-fried vegetables but as my hands were too dirty from the Chilli Crabs...no photos taken.

However, when I tasted the Chilli Crab on its own, I was no longer surprised that Jumbo lost this dish to Gordon Ramsay during Singtel's Hawker Heroes challenge in 2013. The sauce tasted different from the one that I had at the Riverside Walk branch. It lacked that wok-flavour that most Chinese chefs attain when they're at that level. The punch from the chilli was lacking (although it was present in the Mee Goreng) and it tasted as if they replaced fresh ingredients such as lime/lemon juice for store bought UHT version or the tau cheo (fermented soy beans) that they used were not of the highest grade.

It's still good...but not as great as it used to be. No wonder some ex-colleagues of mine prefer Long Beach/ Melben/ No Signboard/ Palm Beach for their Chilli Crab fix. Hmm...maybe it's time for me to flex my cooking muscles and go Into Chef Mode and try cooking this dish at home!

So it's now Lent, that lovely time before Good Friday and Easter, where we examine our lives and consciously try not to sin and remember the ultimate sacrifice that Jesus gave. As such, we are also encouraged to sacrifice something during this period. Normally, it involves something that we really love, which is why it would be a sacrifice. However, this Lent, I am going to challenge myself by giving up complaining. Here's a few reasons why:

1. It's a waste of energy
If you're upset, it is cathartic to vent and complain a little. My friends and family have heard me complain about a certain few people and they even know the nicknames of the various characters involved. However, there came a point where I was simply tired of complaining to them about the related problems. Complaining once or twice was good enough to vent and just hear their perspectives of things. Complaining about the same thing over and over again is not going to make the problem disappear or resolve itself. Better to save the energy used to complain to do something about it instead.

2. It blinds you from the blessings in your life

Let's put things into a slight perspective: there will always be people who have better days/items/luck than you and the opposite is also true - there will always be people who have crappier days/items/luck than you. Rather than focus on the problem or the shit that happens, always remember that what doesn't kill you will only make you stronger. Be grateful.

3. It's a waste of time
This is kinda related to the 1st point about complaining being a waste of energy. So...not only are you wasting energy complaining, you're also wasting your precious time AND your friend/family member's time. Unless you're seeking advice on how to tackle the issue. I'd rather spend the time used to complain to catch up with my friend's life, especially in this day and age where I see more of my friends' lives on social media than face-to-face. Also, the time used to complain could've been spent on trying to see the issue from other angles/perspectives. Only then are you able to know how to resolve the problem(s).

4. It encourages negativity
Do you find your blood pressure suddenly rising when you're in the midst of complaining? Can't imagine that's very relaxing and helpful for your mental health. What if you're listening to someone complain? That's not a conversation. It's just a one-sided verbal barrage. That said, I must emphasise that the occasional rant is helpful because this helps relieve stress BUT if you catch yourself complaining about the same thing over and over again, you do need to know that you're not exactly the life of the party and in fact, you may be draining the energy from others. It means that you:
a) have not gotten over the issue
b) have not taken steps to resolve the issue
c) like the sound of your own voice
d) are victimising yourself and this does not encourage you to take charge

This is going to be a huge challenge because it goes against my base human nature. Nonetheless, it is Lent and if I'm going to make a sacrifice, I might as well make it a real challenge and hopefully, this will go beyond Lent!

I saw the photo below on my Facebook newsfeed today and I'm glad to see more and more of such movement(s) in the world.

Needless to say, I shared it and I wrote, "There are tons of 'invisible' illnesses out in the world. We should not judge others by what we have/ don't have, learn to accept that these illnesses are a struggle and that it takes a lot of self control for people to NOT whinge and whine about their illness(es) to others constantly."

As someone who has endometriosis and clinical depression, which is linked to my endometriosis (I shall now shorten it to 'endo'), I can really relate to how it is a struggle to smile to the world while your insides are just eating away at you. Don't get me started on the head trip that goes with every low when depression hits you nor the extreme pain I go through sometimes whenever Mother Nature visits.

The worst thing is that these illnesses are chronic. They will reoccur again and again, with almost no cure. Just prevention of symptoms or just making these symptoms milder so that they do not become stumbling blocks.

I get a bit offended whenever people talk about my weight and my weight gain. It is a side effect of endo (people with PCOS can relate) and it takes me 3x the effort to lose the weight. I'm already happy that I've maintained my weight without it ballooning further. I can't stand it when family, friends and some colleagues talk about my food intake as if I'm consuming 2,000 calories a day. I've checked. There are days and weeks when I meticulously note down all the food that I consume and guess what? I clock in at 1,500 calories on average! Sometimes 1,200 calories too! However, nobody sees this and whatever they assume, they believe. I still can't get over the fact that one of my directors skipped me when she was offering biscuits to everyone in the office.

Another thing about endo is the incredible amount of pain it brings and it's not constant. It comes and goes like a bad diarrhoea that visits you without the accompanying runs. You're so exhausted despite not doing much and you just can't concentrate on anything else except a good book/mindless games/how soft your pillow is. Whenever this happens, I can't help but take a sickie. But of course...a lot of colleagues think that I'm skiving or complain that I'm "always not around/always on medical leave". Some colleagues even go so far to say that I only work 3 days a week (I wish!). Best that I've heard so far: "she has so many days of medical leave meh?" Nope...I still have the same amount of leave as anyone else in the office and I do 3x the amount of work in the same amount of time. That's for efficiency y'all naysayers!

Honestly, people like me aren't asking for sympathy nor empathy. We just want all of you to be less judgemental and more understanding.

My dad read an article in Sunday Times recently about Alt. Pizza and he got all excited about it because the owner of Alt. Pizza (Matthew White) had helped to launch Extra Virgin Pizza and I had brought my dad to Extra Virgin Pizza once and he was so impressed by the pizza there that he remembered the name. Long story short, we finally went to Alt. Pizza for dinner.

Located at a tiny corner of Suntec City, Tower 4, it is no wonder that this place is not as popular as Peperoni downstairs. It is on Level 1 and is next to the taxi stand. It is outside of the main shopping area and because of that, it does have a few tables located outside for al fresco dining.

The place is decorated with very bright neon colours and I love the puns - Love with Slice us Apart/ Everyday we'll be trufflin' etc. The pop art decor isn't what one would normally associate with artisanal pizzas but it's quirky and it explains the funky names given to the various pizzas.

Dad ordered their Tangerine Wheat Craft Draft Beer (S$10++) and this is one of the 3 craft beers to choose from. I recommend the Tangerine Wheat because it's a little more unique and true to its name, you'll get a citrus after taste with the first notes of fruitiness. It's a light beer so ladies will like it too.

For starters, we tried their Calamari Fritti (S$10++) which is fried with rosemary and another herb and served with a chipotle lime aioli. Loved the aioli and the calamari was well seasoned. I prefer the smaller type of squid though because although the squid was soft and cooked well, this large squid tends to have this band/vein through it that makes it hard to chew through.

First up is their Truffle Shuffle (S$14++), which has a white sauce base and comes with fennel sausage, caramelised onions, roasted mushrooms and truffle oil - all on an 11" thin crust. In fact, all their pizzas are thin crust and at 11" and you start to make the Extra Virgin Pizza connection since EVP also fixes their pizza size and type.

Ok...taste test! I was expecting a heavy aroma of truffle to bombard my nose when I picked up a slice and alas, I was sorely disappointed. The onions were good and the mushroom was tasty but...truffle? :( Other than that, it was a good pizza.

Next was the Crabby Ninja (S$18++) and it comes with a red pepper cream sauce, blue crab meat, cherry tomatoes, basil and smoked cheddar. Now THIS tasted a lot better than the Truffle Shuffle and it delivered what it promised. The basil was a nice contrast to the crab and cuts back on the oil from the cheese. The fresh tomatoes were sweet and juicy, adding a little more depth to the pizza. Each slice had a generous serving of crab meat so one can't complain there.

2 pizzas are more than enough for 3 Asians but if you're really hungry, you can have a whole pizza to yourself. If you don't fancy their standard pizzas, you can even build your own! The full menu can be found here. They do have daily special pizza flavours so do check those out too! They are taking orders online but it's currently meant more for takeaways since they only deliver within Suntec City and Millennia Walk. Now...will they ever have set lunches?? Only time will tell.

Alt. Pizza
Suntec City Tower 4
#01-602
Singapore 038983

Tel: +65 6836 9208
Website: www.altpizza.com.sg
Email:  hello@altpizza.com.sg (reservations only for parties of 8 pax and above, dinner only)
Opening Hours: 11am - 10pm, daily