remote cards

He is big. He has apple cheeks and tousled hair; women are always seducing him and blokes try to beat him up. He registers both with amusement.
Here are the two things you must know, should you ever meet him: Time has no meaning for him, and he is trouble.
Nobody knows what he does for a job, so I ask him myself when he arrives, two hours late.
"I am enjoying la dolce vita", he says with a wink. He watches with sympathy as I frown. "I own part of a software company."
"What kind of software?"
"Oh, military systems."
It's the same offhand tone he employs to explain the reason for his slight delay: His watch stopped while he was making love this morning. "You know. No shock resistance."
He winks again.

Labels: people portrait