<Begin Segment 15>

TI: Let's talk about the jobs you had at Tule Lake. So most people had jobs when they were at Tule Lake, especially your age, so what jobs did you have?

FS: When I first went in, got in Tule Lake, I got a job as a carpenter. The sheet rock, you know the sheet rock they put inside the house? A lot of places, they didn't have anything in there yet, even when they moved, people moved in they didn't have anything, so we went in and block by block we were putting up the sheet rocks. Then after that, after that was finished... what did I do after that?

TI: Now, I'm curious, when you got that job, sheet rock, even though you only did it for a few months, did that training with the NYA, did that help you have skills that were useful for things like sheet rock?

FS: No, not exactly. We just got to measure the top and make sure it fits when you push it up there, sheet rock. There's some bar coming down this way, so you got to make sure you're gonna fit in there. So that's the only thing that was any hard about it.

TI: Okay, so after the sheet rock, you're finished with that, then what did you do?

FS: I think I worked in a mess hall. I think I got in first as a dishwasher, then I got to be a cook, cook's helper.

TI: And was there anything in particular you remember about being a cook's helper, like what, I'm trying to think, when you have to serve so many people, like, how would you measure to figure out how much --

FS: I didn't have to measure out the... all the head guys, like the chief cook, they were measuring out everything for you, so we just followed the direction.

TI: So what were some of the, the things you had to do as a cook's helper? Like, yeah, what would be a typical help that you would do?

FS: No, not, it's not that, it wasn't that difficult I know. If it was difficult I wouldn't have been working. [Laughs]

TI: So after a cook's helper, then what was the next job you had?

FS: After that was... what did I do? Maybe that's, maybe that's when I went to the motor pool. No, no, no. Maybe...

TI: How about typing? I think you did some typing?

FS: Yeah, I didn't work too long there, but it was typing out the... to pay the people. There was a three seventy-five -- no, three seventy-five a week? No, three seventy-five a month for, not up to the sixteen dollar, but it was supposed to be... I don't know what it was for. That was, that was the...

TI: Maybe like a clothing allowance or something like that?

FS: Yeah, must be something like that. Or something with a, buy like toothpaste or things like that, so maybe that was the money that they gave you, extra.

TI: Okay, and then after that you went to the motor pool and start working?

FS: I went to motor pool as a, working in the, lubricating cars, trucks mostly, mostly trucks.

TI: Okay, and we'll get back to that.

<End Segment 15> - Copyright © 2010 Densho. All Rights Reserved.