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I had only been in the Western Tap once, in 2009, but Pancho, the bartender, second from left, still remembered me. Granted, there couldn't have been too many Vietnamese in this long-time Polish bar, now frequented mostly by Puerto Ricans. In 2009, I talked to sixty-something Manuel, not photographed, and, sure enough, he was perched at the same stool this time. As we chattered, Enter The Dragon came on TV, so we talked about Bruce and Brandon Lee, and I told him about my recent travel. Manuel had only been to New York once, for two months, and had returned to his native Puerto Rico a handful of times, and that's it for his traveling. Too busy working, he had never even been to nearby Milwaukee, St Louis or Detroit. Manuel had worked in all types of factories, and even in a Chinese restaurant. "There was so much work back then. You could always find work, not like today." Manuel worked so hard, he never got around to getting married.


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