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The legendary Letty Jimenez Magsanoc was the reason I became a food writer. I had applied to write in the Inquirer, referred by a dear friend JM2 (this was after a short hiatus in the US), as an opinion columnist but LJM thought I was too young. Nevertheless she gave me a shot but at food writing instead. This was in 2004. She assigned me to then-Lifestyle editor Chelo Banal Formoso who gave me my first few assignments as contributor until I was considered for a column in 2006 in the revamped Sunday Inquirer Magazine. My column was entitled Menu and it ran for almost 10 years, until SIM was retired. Then my column was moved to the Lifestyle section with the same name until LJM moved me to the Business section where I was to have a new column entitled Business Class. Except she 'upgraded' me and so my column became First Class.