<Begin Segment 18>

AM: How would you describe the monetary rewards of being a barber?

JS: Well, at least it's a living. It's a comfortable living, that's about it. I mean, you're never gonna get rich, but...

AM: And what would you say were the most important factors that kept you being a barber, and kept you staying in Japantown? What were the important factors?

JS: Well, that's about the only thing I knew at the time, and it was comfortable living, and that's what kept me there.

AM: Well, you talked about meeting a lot of people, nice people, good people.

JS: You meet lots of people, yes, uh-huh.

AM: And, and then you ended up doing things with them, activities.

JS: Yes.

AM: They kind of became your friends, too?

JS: Yeah. Well, you know, when you're barbering, why, everybody's your friend. I mean, that's the way it is with barbering. You get to know a lot of people, and you consider them all your friends.

AM: What were some of the things outside of poker that you did with these...

JS: [Laughs] Well, we did a lot of fishing. We did a lot of fishing.

AM: Okay, and in your -- well, we're talking about leisure time again. Who were the people you spent time with? Mostly your customers?

JS: Yeah, mostly, mostly the customers. It's the same people, and as you get older, why, it's all retired people.

AM: What are some of the stories that come to mind when you think of those good times when you were having, going places with these people, doing things with these people, and listening to stories? Do you remember any good stories you could tell us?

JS: Not, not really. I mean, not out of the ordinary.

AM: Okay. And did you ever seriously think of selling your business or doing something different?

JS: No, I never, never thought about that. After you're in it for so many years, you can't change. It's pretty hard.

AM: And how many years altogether would you say you...

JS: I, it was barber for forty-two years.

AM: Forty-two.

JS: Yeah, uh-huh.

AM: You told me that making a living was a huge focus for you. How do you think it affected your desire to get more education?

JS: About what?

AM: Did, you had to think about making money and making a living. Did that affect your thoughts about going to school at all?

JS: Not really, no. That was, anything besides farm work, that was the main thing.

<End Segment 18> - Copyright © 2004 Densho and The Japanese American Museum of San Jose. All Rights Reserved.