//The Bruce Lee in All of Us

Charles is of a different breed. In a nutshell, which his small frame could easily fit in, he is japanese but born in LA and later moved to NY. He studied architecture but worked as a photographer. Now, we work together in the office.

He dresses billowy white shirts and walks with bowed legs, slightly hunched like a short japanese version of bruce lee.

Two nights ago, we were chilling in his dungeon, a walk up apartment in a manegy street off Little India. It was close to 11, with a party in the background,  but he was still working on a project, focused in the haze but calm. Always calm, yet he has the work ethic of a dog.

Consider this as an ethic: Charles does wrong things the right way. Charles's raison d'etre is to stick it to The Man in a proper fashion. "Did you know, there is such a thing as the Big Boy Club, Len-nard", he preaches on the subject of star-chitects. Accordingly, his comments are seasoned with "dirtyy", "thrashy", "under...ground" and "cog" to taste.

Sometimes, I'm not sure if he is serious or a caricature. And its hard to take it all in full on. But he walks his talk. It may be the year of the Dragon, but Charles is a mutt through and through.