<Begin Segment 7>

ME: What was it like in your household then, as far as housework goes?

AK: Oh, well, I was the lazy one. I dashed off to the bathroom to read. [Laughs] And by the time I came out, my, all the dishes were already done. [Laughs] And my sister was very efficient and she didn't mind. And I don't think I would have really minded, except that it was an easy way out. I was kind of happy-go-lucky and very carefree. And my older sister was always conscientious and did things so well, I thought, "Gee, why should I iron, why should I do all these things?" [Laughs]

ME: If she did such a great job so quickly, right?

AK: Yeah, and she never complained.

ME: You mentioned your father did the cooking -- did he, he did all the cooking?

AK: No, not all the cooking. But the big holidays, he did all the cooking. And it was, and we'd invite all kinds of people. It was a full house all the time. It was really nice.

ME: Would you invite people from the community, from the neighborhood there?

AK: Yeah. And then from the apartment and anybody, just come over, you know. And he'd really put on a good, you know, like Thanksgiving, we started out with shrimp cocktail and soup, and all the trimmings. He was a really good cook.

ME: So he could cook all-around, American dishes, Japanese dishes?

AK: Not Japanese dishes so much. My mother did the Japanese cooking. And she wasn't really great at it. She didn't spend that much time cooking. In fact, I wouldn't say she was that great a cook. And as she grew older, she cooked American dishes because it was more convenient and she liked the American dishes. She loved potatoes and she loved her coffee and toast and eggs for breakfast. I still don't drink coffee, I think it's awful. [Laughs]

<End Segment 7> - Copyright © 1997 Densho. All Rights Reserved.