Minus Food

My friend Bill is fond of referring to me as an Orientalist - a label I may or may not deserve.

As far as this post is concerned, I haven't proved my case against the latter.

I write a lot about Chinatown and have so since I started this blog. I love the place and the food and the people.

In fact, I loves me some Chinese people.

My first, and thus far, only male role model from childhood was Bruce Lee. I know I wasn't the only one with that famous poster of him in the yellow and black track suit getting ready to jump bad with the matching yellow/black nunchuks.

Only recently did I find out that Bruce Lee was born in San Francisco. While he didn't live here long, I still find myself in awe that not only do I sometimes walk the same streets as Jack London, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, Carol Doda, William Burroughs, Janis Joplin, the Grateful Dead, Emperor Norton, Jello Biafra, Emma Goldman, Alexander Berkman, and so many, many other heroes of mine, but that I also may have touched a few spots that he touched.

I realize this isn't about food and, because it's not, you may be thinking "why am I here?", but allow me to diverge and say that this video of Bruce Lee discussing his future and philosophy is priceless, not only to a Bruce Lee fan, but to any proud San Franciscan.

You want me to spell out the love? Well, here's a quote from the video:

Interviewer: "D'you still think of yourself as Chinese, or do you ever think of yourself as North American?"

Bruce Lee: "You..you, know what I want to think of myself?

As a human being.

Because, I don't know what it sounds like, 'as Confucious say', but under the sky, under the heaven, man...there is but one family.

It just so happen's man that, people are different."

It makes me proud that, even at an early age, I could pick the winners.

You go Bruce! My hero still.

k.

(Editors note on the morning of Saturday, March 18: Oh my pounding head! Uh, this post was written under the influence of too many drinks and the smoked duck and ma po tofu from Brandy Ho's. Forgive me. I'll go back to writing about food...when this headache clears up.)