<Begin Segment 25>

BF: How did you manage... I mean, I have a six-year-old right now, only one. But I don't, how would, how did you manage the studying, the housework, the child...

AS: Yeah, I did all of those things. Well, as soon as I'd get home -- I mean, I'd just... I would start dinner, go to the books. [Laughs] I remember one time I was going to make baked potatoes, and I remember cleaning the potatoes and getting them ready to put in the oven. Then I went back to the books, and I thought, "I don't remember a light being on in our oven." And so I went and looked, and they were not in the oven, they, put 'em in the refrigerator. So you can see that trying to do a lot of things, it's... but anyway, that didn't happen that often. But I worked all the time, and then at night after the kids went to bed, I would just... so it was a lot of work. [Laughs]

BF: Were, during that timeframe, were very many women getting their degrees?

AS: Not at that time. I know one of our friends was inspired by my being at the university, and so she started going. She had, I think she had already had two years -- this is at another university, but anyway, and so that inspired her to go. I, I think I met two other women that were, had families, and that were in school, but that was it. And then later, I guess, they've done these special programs for women, that came all later. But that didn't bother me. I mean, I don't have to association with them. I mean, they're fine, but they're young people, so... and I remember one, I guess it was an English class that I took. And the instructor was probably, maybe in his early thirties, and he kept on looking at me as if, "What are you doing here?" [Laughs] He seemed just shocked. And, but otherwise, I mean, there were, in smaller classes, the instructor or professor would talk to me, and realize I'm an adult. Well, I mean, they're adults, too, but I'm an older adult. [Laughs] But it was, it was fine. I mean, go to school, go back home, start the routine. And I did very well, also. It was just great.

But the thing that was so shocking to me was that I didn't know how I was gonna do, because it had been years. I remember I took one class, I had to take a class in statistics, because I was majoring in sociology, and then I added the, getting the teaching certificate. And, and again, I don't know whether he was an instructor or a professor, but anyway, he said, "Any, if it's been more than four years since you've had a math class or an algebra class, you might as well drop out. You're not going to be able to make it." Well, it had been, like, thirteen years for me, and I hadn't needed that for, to stay with my major, and I wanted it. [Laughs] So I came home and said to my husband, "You know, you're going to have to help me with algebra because for statistics, I need it." And he, he was not sympathetic. He said, "Well, I have my college algebra book, it's down there on the bottom shelf. Go ahead."

BF: "Teach yourself."

AS: Yeah. So I did, and it didn't take that -- I didn't have to review that much to understand the equations. It didn't take that long. And I got an "A" in statistics, and it was a small class, there were other students, I remember one other student was just having a terrible time. She begged me to tutor her. Well, I didn't have time to tutor. [Laughs] I'm sorry. Further, I didn't have the confidence in myself, because just so happened I was doing it right. But I didn't know whether I was doing it right until I found out. So that, that was kind of interesting. Yeah, so it was, yeah. I can honestly say I would have never done it if I didn't have somebody to reinforce, to make me think, to really open up my mind, so, "If you want to do something, you can do it." Seems, something so simple, but there were a lot, there was a lot of junk I had to work through.

BF: It doesn't seem simple to me at all. Very courageous. Do you, do you remember feeling -- I mean, as a woman, do you remember feeling sort of as, like a pioneer, or sort of being aware that women sort of, there was different expectations put on them?

AS: Oh, yeah. I was aware that... tell you another little story, really made me very angry. But I was at a, I think I was, my husband has always been very active in the University Rotary Club, and we went to some Rotary function, husbands and wives were there, at that time it was only men who belonged. And so I don't know how it came up, but... I'm not sure how it came up. But anyway, this man I was talking to asked what I... or, it came out that I was going to the university. And he says, "Oh, that's so wonderful. You're so lucky your husband encouraged you to do that." And I didn't tell him my husband did not encourage me to do that. [Laughs] But there was that expectation. The woman doesn't have enough sense to know to go to the university on her own; the men have to tell you.

BF: When did your husband come around to...

AS: How long did it take? [Laughs] I think after I... probably after I started working full-time and bringing in a paycheck. And, because he would say, "Oh, you're spending so much on, going to the university." And really, of course, tuition wasn't that large when I went. But still, we didn't have that much money, so... but I says, "Well, it's going to pay off. This is an investment."

BF: Good for you.

AS: And then worked for many years. And yeah, so then it was more, I think there was more respect when I went, started working in the high school. And I was working with my clientele, he didn't think that was so great, I don't know.

BF: Now, didn't he see the ad for that first program and say --

AS: Yeah, he was, he did. It was a newspaper article, and he saw it and read it and he says, "I think this is something you'd be interested in." So yes, thank you for reminding me, because I didn't see the article in the newspaper.

BF: But he knew that that was...

AS: Yeah, so he knew.

BF: ...that was in your heart.

AS: Yeah, yeah.

<End Segment 25> - Copyright © 2004 Densho. All Rights Reserved.