You know that friend that you always knew was around but you never really got to know them properly? For me this was Thien.

Thien and I knew eachother from our highschool days playing a small online game called Vindictus. We knew each other as we'd see eachother in the main town of Colhen. Occassionally we would raid together and we had eachother on our friends lists but nothing more than that.

It was only until 2020, approximately 7 years after being acquaintances we chatted;

Thien: "You wanna go fishing?"

Me: "Sure."

We met for the first time ever, late night down at the local wharf for a night of fishing. It was so dark we could barely see eachother's face but I'm so glad we did.

We both share a love for food and cooking. Some nights we'd be chatting on discord for hours just about ideas of things to cook, videos we've seen, restaurants we'd like to go to. Him being a professional chef, I have learned and am continuining to learn so much about cooking everytime he hosts us over for lunch or dinner. The stuff he cooks is epic and he's always exploring and trying new things.

I think this is what I like the most about Thien, he just gives things an honest go and figures it out during the process. I find that I tend to overthink the process before even starting and it's people like Thien that remind me not to take things too seriously. He always, always ends up making something delicious and unique, perhaps the magic is a blend of both his skills and his half winging it attitude.

"I don't know what I'm doing" is something he always says while cooking but it always ends up amazing... I swear, he's pretending!

But above all he's generous. He's always one to share. Whether it's the big cook ups he does or the random DIY project supplies, he's always so welcoming to his home and gives whole heartedly.

For whatever reason we had not crossed paths earlier, but now I'm glad you're here Thien! Love you bro.

Thien and lamb belly stuffed with farce for the rotisserie. Look at that smile.