Meet Storme, my inaanak, a Huk (Hukbalakup, or Hukbong Bayan Laban sa Kupal) progeny, destined to kick ass someday.

She is Cheng's clone. And she has her own Multiply.

We had dinner at their house, and, as always, the food was great. Daddy -- in this case Cheng's dad -- is a great cook. I say great and I do not use the term lightly. He is the reason I learned how to cook. The first dish I have ever mastered was his fried chicken recipe, which I got to know once upon a Christmas I spent with their family. The chicken was so good I had to learn how to do it. And it was a big jump from my one culinary expertise then: boiling water.

For this dinner, Daddy prepared Sinanglaw, the one Pen and I were craving since forever. Sinanglaw is the Ilocano Papaitan, but Daddy's version is more vinegary than bitter. It's the best! This dish we only get to have once a year, because we don't know if anybody else serves it, and anyway we only like Daddy's recipe.

I already know how to make it. In theory. But I haven't turned it into practice yet, I'm too intimidated to try. Maybe someday. In the meantime, we get to lambing Cheng's dad once in a while, and when we're lucky we even bring some home.