<Begin Segment 15>

[Ed. note: This transcript has been edited by the narrator]

TI: So I'm going to switch gears a little bit and go back to your family life. You mentioned earlier how the store was open every day except for maybe New Year's Day. So I'm curious, did you as a family, did you ever get to have outings like picnics or anything like that?

SA: Well, when my father was home, like on Sundays, weekends, then my mother, that's why my mother was active at church. She actually was heading what we would call the Fujinkai, which is like (the) Presbyterian Women's (Group) today (...). And she actually was heading it because she could write, and she could read, (so she led in faith).

TI: So your father would be at the store --

SA: Would be at the store.

TI: -- and your mother would be able to go to the church.

SA: (Yes). Or they would take turns because during, the fun things for us were the prefecture meetings as they have still today, which is where you come from. Like it would be what state or what area, the Fukushima-ken (for us). And then at Japanese school, though I only went six months or a year, maybe, at the most, my brother and sister were going. So we would have, every year they'd have kind of an annual event in which they would have kind of a picnic and they would have awards, sometimes promotions. (...) I think (they) used Jefferson Park. Lincoln Park was used for the other (kenjinkai), bigger picnics. And then we had the two big banquet halls, which we called (Kinka) Low, and the other one was Gyokoken. And I still have a menu that I (kept). Things were so inexpensive (then). [Laughs]

TI: And so generally which parent would you go with to these, to these functions?

SA: Well, whichever one was available. (...) My father really was kind of farsighted. He wanted us to get out in the summer, (during summer) vacation time. So I don't know how he ever did it, but he had us going to Alki beach. We took the trolley car, my sister, my brother and I and several of the neighborhood children, and we would take this trolley and go to Alki beach. And when we got there, he told us to go to this gasoline station. And, you know, (Alki) beach has no shade at all. He had this great big umbrella, beach umbrella, and on it he put Tanagi Grocery. It was an advertisement (but it was a property sign, too). [Laughs] And he had it, had the person at this garage (or) this gasoline station, (who) kept it for us there all summer. So we'd get off (the trolley) and we'd get our big umbrella and we'd push it into the (sandy) ground. We just stayed there.

TI: Oh, that's interesting. So it was a form of advertising.

SA: I thought so, but I didn't know it at the time. I thought he did it, well, maybe he did it to just have an ownership label on it so it would be our umbrella. But I thought, later on I thought, "Hey, that's pretty good advertising," except it's really far (from the store). But we loved that trolley ride because it had a trestle, and we could look down. So we went (to Alki beach), and then we'd ride the logs. I am not a swimmer, (so) we'd ride the logs.

TI: What's "riding the logs" mean?

SA: Well, there was all (those drifting) logs -- and you don't have it now, but it would be floating out there, and we'd just sit on (them). Of course, we're in the shallow end, (we also had) Lincoln Park. Lincoln's (water) was cold, but Alki beach's was warm, I don't know why.

TI: Oh, I think they're both cold, I've been out there. [Laughs] So you're riding, so just sitting on logs.

SA: And we're sunning, which is why I'm so wrinkled (now). We used to be out there, (and) we tried to get as tanned as possible. It's just a crazy thing. But my mother thought that the sun was great for us, so we were out there, (tanning).

TI: And you're out there during the day, what would you guys eat during the day?

SA: Oh, we had a little lunch packed, generally sandwiches. And because we had a store, we always had fruit. I thought we ate very well, at home, too. Except half the time we'd be making our own because we're eating in shifts. I know I'd take cans of salmon and make -- I like salmon patties, so (that's what) I was making, I don't know what my brother pulled off (the shelves).

<End Segment 15> - Copyright © 2008 Densho. All Rights Reserved.