<Begin Segment 21>

TI: And so when you finally got to Sheridan, I'm curious, how did -- first, I mean, what were your first impressions of Sheridan? How had Sheridan changed?

EK: I didn't remember much about Sheridan. But I knew that there were more cowboys there with their clinking spurs and so forth. Not too many, but it was like any other small town, you know. And then George Nishi, our friend, lived a very monastic life, and didn't know much about what was going on outside the store. So he suggested we go back to the Rex Hotel, which my father had run. So we went up there, and then as we were walking down the hallway, doors opened and flashily dressed women smiled at us. So even at my age, I said, "Hey, these are not, what shall I say, cultivated women. Probably women of the night, you know." So we immediately moved out, and in a neighborhood, a family which has, what shall I say, been helpful, found us a temporary quarters and so forth.

TI: And in general, how did the townspeople in Sheridan treat you and your mother?

EK: Indifferently. Some with curiosity. And also, when I walked from the, my home, my temporary rented place to George Nishi's store to help, he didn't really need help because they didn't patronize his place. But anyway, couple of elderly women looked at me and said, "Oh, there goes that Indian boy again." So I said to myself, "I'm finally called a native American."

TI: That's good.

<End Segment 21> - Copyright © 2008 Densho. All Rights Reserved.