When I was a child my father was a lawyer with the Judge Advocate Unit of the Philippine Constabulary. His job took him to many military installations around the country, and he met up with people from different backgrounds. Because of this we learned not to ask him too closely about what he did. One morning though, after he had returned from a dinner meeting with a Japanese journalist, I opened our refrigerator to find some unusual leftovers --- they were pieces of nigiri and maki sushi that he didn't eat because the fish was raw, but was too polite to decline when Harai had ordered them for him. This was the start of my love affair with Japanese food. I sometimes make sushi rice, salmon teriyaki, and tamago (egg omelet) for my family, and the rice toppings I found in Asian stores are a godsend when I don't want to deal with toasting nori and sesame seeds. But what I really like is eating sushi, especially mackerel and tuna. They remind me of the sea and in turn, of home, si...