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LH: Well, you talked a little bit about how you used your family to, you know, get closer to them when you first went to Tule Lake, and get to know them better. But what was it like actually meeting, you know, this new group of Japanese Americans, this new Nikkei group from California?

FF: That's interesting you said that because I think the Californians thought we were living in the boondocks, you know, they thought we were from the mountains. And they also thought differently of the Oregonians, and then they were actually almost anti, or not anti, I shouldn't say that, they, they were leery of Northwesterners. They weren't too sure where we're comin' from. They weren't too sure whether we were as hip as they were, and I like to think we were, but you had to sort of prove your point, 'cause they were the majority. The whole camp of 17,000, I think, I'd say three-fourths are Californians. And I felt from that angle, it was tough to adjust, but once you did, it was... but I think to assimilate into that community, I think it developed your character, 'cause you had to -- maybe for my age level of twelve -- you have to get beaten up once to be accepted, that kind of a situation, especially being a boy. And there were gang-ism -- the Dirty Dozens, the Termites, the San Pedro group -- and then there's a... the Northwesterners didn't have gangs. They were pretty upfront, wholesome people, I like to think that. Not that I'm putting down the Californians but I think it's, it's the nature of maybe where we're comin' from and... but like I said, I was able to really learn a lot in terms of sports, 'cause that was my main goal was to just be good in whatever I did, especially in athletics. And with my brothers being good, and seeing all these real outstanding players, it just, it really made it for me. I was enjoying every minute of it. I'm not going to say that, "Hey, camp was a nice setting and I enjoyed it." I knew there was a lot of sad moments and seeing my mother cry in the barracks. And I didn't quite understand that, but as I got older, I began to realize how, you know, where you're at. Because when the war wind, wind down, and you kinda say to yourself, "What's happening? The war's over, what's going to happen?" And Dad and Mom wanting me to come out and leave camp to finish school, and I left in December 7th from Tule Lake to Seattle, and that was devastating. December 7th -- of all the dumb days to come out. And I was on a train with military people.

<End Segment 14> - Copyright © 1997 Densho. All Rights Reserved.