<Begin Segment 8>

FK: So as far as everyday life in camp, then, what was that like for you? You were doing these, this job, but as far as everyday life there, what, how was that for you?

SO: You mean life in the center?

FK: Yeah, in Manzanar.

SO: Well, I guess it was kind of interesting. I mean, I'm sure sociologists would tell you this, but the Bainbridge Island group of twenty-two hundred some odd was kind of fish out of water because they didn't really mix with the California population. And I can remember some derogatory terms, some yogore, you know like they were the zoot suit kids, and we were the nice guys, goodie goodie two shoes. That's the way, I think, we presented ourselves because, I think, we, our upbringing on the island probably determined how we were going to respond to our neighbors. There's nothing wrong with those neighbors. I mean, my gosh, they were living next door to you, and they didn't go out and kill anybody, anything like that. But I think our own perception was inaccurate. And showed... I wonder what would've happened if we had embraced the California population and said, "we're in this together," rather than seeing ourselves as maybe somewhat apart. But I can remember then, when the island group moved to Idaho, I'm sure it was a totally different picture, because the California zoot suiters weren't around and now the, there was no blame kind of business. I don't know what it was, but it was an interesting time. But so in addition to working, I, in terms of my own personal work, worked in a hospital, which is newly built and so forth, and there I think I not only my own kind of relationship with some of the people who, within my work, because to me that was a whole new world that was opened up to me. I could remember when I finished high school teachers would always ask, "What do you want to do?" Oh, I want to do, work as an accountant someplace, and that was my vision, but it was totally incorrect, but that's that's what I was thinking about. So all that kind of passed by, and the camp experience was something that later on I took advantage of, because having worked in a concentration, incarceration camp, I was able to get positions or work and so forth. So there's a plus side to being cooped up and told what to do.

FK: Did you keep in touch with people back on the island at all when you were in the camp?

SO: As a matter of fact, historically I was one of the, one of the editors of the Review when Paul Ohtaki went to, on furlough for sugar beet farming, he asked me if I would fill in for him, which I did for about, I think two or three months, reporting what's happening. But the funny part is I can't really recall anything about what I did to do that. Paul asked me one time whether I, we're talking about this project that he was involved in, I said, "Paul, I don't know. I don't remember." Because I don't really remember what I did to produce the thing that appeared in print, so obviously I had something to do with it, but I can't really remember the little details of that, so that, anyway, that's...

FK: Were you able to keep in contact at all with any of your high school classmates or your teachers while you were there?

SO: You mean have I kept in contact?

FK: No, during that period of time, was there, were you able to keep in contact with any of your students or friends?

SO: Oh yeah. I think I pretty much kept in touch with Catherine Ellison, the teacher who was trying to encourage me to go on and so forth, and I remember also writing -- excuse me, the flip side is equally true. There are articles, excuse me, letters to the editor that our high school friends wrote on our behalf to point out many of the errors that were being circulated in terms of who, what we were about. In answer to your question about did I keep in touch, yes, to a limited extent. When I say limited, our lives changed and, for example, you ask about keeping in touch, when we all went into the service you had a different group with whom to keep in touch. Your high school friends maybe were not that critical because you established relationships with other of the people who were interned in the centers. I can remember when this occurs. I'm sure everyone can tell you, you become familiar with girls and the girls become your friends and you write to them because they were willing to write to you, and it's a whole different situation.

[Interruption]

FK: Okay. You were mentioning that, as far as contact, it was mostly through the Review, but you did have some contact with some of your, your friends and things, too. Was there, did you actually correspond with them or write letters back to the island?

SO: Did I?

FK: Yeah.

SO: Yes, I wrote a couple letters to the editor, and at that point maybe I awakened to some of the legal aspects, and I said we haven't done anything wrong, why are you doing this? That was kind of, some of what I wanted to say.

<End Segment 8> - Copyright © 2008 Densho. All Rights Reserved.