Sisig Saud

3:30 pm was the call time but we made it at around 3:46 pm under the scorching heat of the sun. Only to find out, after calling out Evan in front of their neat house somewhere in Angeles City, nobody was around except his bespectacled brother. We were supposed to stretch some muscles together using the basketball in one obscure playground within their village.
Minutes passed, two other fellow came in succession before a text message suddenly broke down the silent afternoon. Armando, a guy who loves the 80’s rock music brought with him his ripped off sleeve jersey in a paperbag followed by Corina, a slim lady who seems to haven’t found her way of getting big. It costs a measly 10 pesos to hoist a tricycle from the highway to the house at 29 Guijo street.
Pauwi na ako  read the text message. Evan, who is on top of his corporate career right now with one of the Big 3, will go to Manila by the next 3-5 or so hours and hit the road again in the morning towards Tagaytay Highlands for a team building activity. And so, we took chance of the enough time that was left.
As soon as the sun prepared for its dusk, we geared up and headed straight to the court.
As expected, the place was pre-occupied with ballers in slippers. Several unknown bystanders were there surrounding the benches. It wasn’t a covered court, but it sure is fine to play with. The weather and the sky was good too, without any signs of rain or dark clouds that could melt our heart away.
We sweat. We ran. We hustled. Some of us aimed the basket. Some opted to just run and kick the ball. Evan was exhausted shortly before halftime and never came back. His brother was a warrior. He didn’t get tired of running. It was obvious that we looked terrible in that match, and it seemed that these guys last played the game when Erap was still in Malacañang.
The opponents were not that good either. Maybe two or three were dead serious in defeating us. One of them was seen many times waiting patiently in the backcourt for a sure fast break. Others knows only to shoot the ball and didn’t know the alphabet of a good offense, we stole the ball on several occasions.
The lead was enormous but we got close twice the period. We trailed for just 2 points before finally giving it to them. Final score was 20-15.
It was a great game, even if we paid the losing price of treating them with Coke and Sprite. A great game would definitely mean a great deal of food.
The evening was heightened with the group’s decision of having dinner in a restaurant few meters from Evan’s lot an hour after Carlo, another friend who loves to sleep at daytime, came. It was a typical compound turned into a gazebo of Nipa huts or kubo with dining tables leveled differently from each other. One was even fixed in a tree, like a tree house that is. We were supposed to eat there but decided not to, due to its untidy setting.
We settled and finally ordered. The menu was simple but full of mouth watering promises. Sizzling Salpicao, a mixture of a variety of seafood and vegetables served in a usual hot plate.
Baby back ribs was their specialty, a sweet in the tongue and very tender too. A knife was unnecessary since it came off with ease using fork and spoon. It was a delectable choice since it was surely a low salt food.
Hipon Halabos, a steam set of not so big shrimps. I didn’t eat one though, I’m sure it will tickle ones taste buds.
Initially, we thought of not missing the normal menu every time we dine out, the sizzling Sisig. But this time, Evan insisted of taking Sisig Saud instead. Sisig what?? Saud can be associated for “mamalengke” or “binili” as my Bicolana colleague pointed out. Garnished generously with slices of tomato and onions, the medium chopped pork (size is about a Bigboy chewing gum) Sisig Saud sparked a friendly debate on which is the most delicious meal. It stood for what its name implies. Soon, the plate was emptied and everyone seems to have a happy evening.
We may have lost the game early that day, but Sisig saud helped us regain finesse and definitely took our minds away for a sweet ride in one brief moment.