<Begin Segment 10>

TI: Any other prewar memories about growing up that you wanted to share? Like a story or something, growing up in Renton? Something that, when you think of your grandchildren that they'd want to know about grandpa in terms of maybe how he played, or an adventure in the woods or anything like that?

TO: Well, speaking of adventure in the woods, I had this hakujin buddy, a guy named John Lendman, he was the same age and he was in the neighborhood. But when you talk about neighborhood in those days, it was still a mile away. But we'd get together and there was a guy named Cougar Martin, that he would go out and capture cougars. Dogs, you know, he had some dogs that would chase the cougars to the woods and then the dogs would tree the cougars, and then he'd take this long loop and bring the cougar down off the tree. But anyway, this Cougar Martin asked us if we wanted to go with him. So we were young, small kids, you know. And, of course, we had to follow the dogs, the dogs would be barking. Then when the dogs were barking in one place, we knew that. But I don't... we just went on and on and on, and really small, you know, climbing over logs and stuff. Finally we got to where this cougar was treed, you know. And this Cougar Martin, he was kind enough to wait 'til we got there and he showed us how he got this cougar, cougar down. And that was a real adventure for us, I distinctly recall, and that was a real fun thing for us at the time. I remember we were really pooped out trying to keep up with, the short-legged guys, you know, and these dogs are running. But that was... and, of course, he penned these cougars, and he had a bunch of 'em around his house. And I don't know whatever he did with 'em, whether he sold 'em to a zoo or something. But that was kind of his hobby, I guess, I don't know.

TI: Well, it's interesting, growing up, because there were cougars around there, did you have to be careful? I mean...

TO: Oh, no. We never saw a cougar other than this treed cougar. They were out there in the woods, but they would never show. Bears would come around looking through garbage and stuff, and, of course, coyotes, there were lots of coyotes out there at nighttime you could hear 'em howling. But that was just something that... you didn't give much thought of. Ever since you were babies, you heard them.

TI: So describe one more time where in Renton your place was. How would you describe it?

TO: It was, it was, the headwaters of the Soos Creek, you know, and that's between Renton and Kent off the... I think it's 108th or Benson Highway, east of the Benson Highway, and the little valley where the Soos Creek ran through. And I think the headwaters of the Soos Creek was a big swampy area. And I understand it's a park, park now. But in any event, along that creek, a little ways beyond the headwaters, there was a valley there that was very rich soil. And that's where my, the Oyama family and my dad were farming, next to each other. And for some reason, the lettuce was really big, really grew very, very well. And my father, for some reason leeks were very, his specialty. He was able to grow leeks, and for some reason, his leeks, the white part was real long because he'd keep piling soil on it. It must have been real labor-intensive, now that I think about it. His leeks were always real, most of the leeks you see, the white part's real short. His was real long, and so I assume he piled dirt. But I wasn't too interested in farming. I'd go out there and help him when he made us go out there, but it wasn't my thing. [Laughs]

<End Segment 10> - Copyright © 2009 Densho. All Rights Reserved.