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Hello. Uh So we're here with the Houston Asian American Archive. Today is November 22nd in 2019. My name is Christina Lee and my name is, and we are interviewing you the name of Chris Cristina. Your name uh Christina. Her name the field?

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Oh, the the the the the Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. 10, 10. Ok. And we're here interviewing. Um First would you, can you write out your Chinese name for us? Oh, of course. I hope so. You make. Ok, that's a fake. My name, what

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does it mean is about uh last name? Ok. Is my first name. So my name is if uh speak the Mandarin, my name is as the student and as the high school teacher I am. Does your name have any other meaning? Huh? Does your name have

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any other meaning? No, that, that, that's just my name. That's it. Your meals love me for, for the name wise. There is no, is just the last name uh that just the name doesn't mean anything just like a different from my husband. The last name is

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uh my name uh maiden name is last name is that's it. Thank you. So we're going to start off with questions kind of about your background. Um So first where and when were you born? I was born. I am province. OK. It's actually these days. OK.

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The same thing. And what did your parents do? Girl? My my father. Yeah. Yes, he was a teacher teaching the Chinese in other city we were living in. But my father went to Wuxi as the uh school teacher teaching the Chinese. And your mother, my mother,

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uh just a housewife. OK. Didn't do anything special. Did you have any siblings? Uh Did you have any siblings? Oh, yes. Uh I have an older sister and I have a younger sister. And what are their names? Uh My older sister's name, the last name is

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Tang. Tang. And uh my younger sister now is living in Taiwan. Uh That's the I use the name. My last uh my, my sister is because before that I was last name but adopted by my aunt. So I changed it from to three. And

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how did your, do you know how your parents met? Oh, that's a good question. I only know my, my uh my father is teaching in Wuxi and our home in and my mother actually is a housewife. Didn't do anything special. Do you remember um things that

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your family would do together when you were young? Bye. My father has two sisters and they were living with us before until, but they both one married to a husband and using. So came back from our marriage, come back to stay with us, the other other

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sister, uh her husband passed away. So uh she has a son. So finally they all live with my father and the family together. I think you're so your daughter wrote about you and something that we saw was that your father was an alcoholic. He drank in

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the morning wine king of wine. Uh So my mother bought a big arm for the liquor, drink a hole underground, bury all the, the, the, the alcohol in there. So he didn't have to drink outside and then kind of a drunk out on the street. People

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carry him back home. So in that case, she was, my father would drink morning alcohol, alcohol, drink alcohol. And even he was drunk, drunk at the home, didn't have to be carried out from outside, they carried him off. Otherwise he will lie down on the street

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drunk, get drunk. Did people talk about that? And did it kind of how did it affect your family? But actually my family in, in Chinese, it's a pretty kind of uh you know, sort of uh uh outstanding family. Uh So did your neighbors kind of talk

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about it or did they just understand? Oh, I don't remember any neighbors some day. But the only way my father, actually he has one wife in other city and my father, father was teaching at the other city. Anything my mother was in, uh, the other one

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is in, it's not the, the other, that another city my father went to w, every week on the weekend and come back to, um, actually I was born as a teen but when I'm 30 years old I have a brother and me supposed to be the

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twins. Maybe in reality. I know it. Actually my brother is really things to me or not. I doubt it. Why, why do you think that he's not your brother or your twin brother? Oh, because at that time we only have girls in the family. We needed

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a boy. So when I was born and then they got the boy. So, so we are things. Ok. So where do you think that they got the boy? Where do you think they got the boy? Where, where did this boy come from? That's my latest kind

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of explanation for it. Actually, I didn't know anything about that, that namely they said that we were born as things, but in reality, the other boy, I don't know who the boy came from. No idea. But they claim we are things one boy and one girl.

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So you also talked about how you were adopted? Oh, I was adopted by, by my aunt because, uh, I have an older sister and me and younger sister and the, the, the twin brother when he was 30 years old, unfortunately, got the, uh, typo uh typhoid

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fever die, died of a fever, I think typhoid. Yeah. Yeah. Um Before you were adopted by your aunt, what was your life like before my last name was Tang and then adopted my aunt. I change from to that. I think the other year I think I

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was uh I think at that time I'm seven years old or something. The wrong time to faith be adopted by my aunt. I think we should move. Ok. Um So we are going to alternate asking questions of different sections. So I'll just start on your life

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after you adopt. You were adopted. Um So how did your parents first tell you that you were going to be adopted? First of all, even I was adopted by faith family only my aunt because the husband of her aunt died a long time ago. They, I

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think they claim has uh born with a, a boy after the husband died or something. I, I'm not, not just uh everybody kind of talking about someone but nobody can prove anything. Uh They claim that we are the teams. Wait, that's the other brother though. Well,

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that's the only brother I have. I know but the brother that your aunt who adopted you, I'm sorry. She had a son also. But he, he has a son too. So how did you first find out that you would be adopted to your aunt's family? Oh,

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I think because the aunt only has one boy, I am a girl. That's why. And among the, my, I have a older sister and the younger thing and then, uh my aunt doesn't have a girl actually, when she picked me up, pick me up as adopted

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by her in her mind to be future wife of her son. But in reality, it didn't happen that way. Um, so how did you feel about going to live with your aunt? So, so you are living in our house. My two aunts, the older one and

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the younger one, they all live with us because my older aunt, husband was a y'all user. So right after he came back to stay with us, then other aunt, he was, he was uh kind of self educated, become teacher teaching the, the as the, as the

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uh junior high school or something or elementary school teacher. So in reality, two aunts, one is uh uh because the husband using the, so came back the other aunt because her husband passed away. So come back to live with us too. And uh even with uh

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uh her son come, they all live together with my father. Ok. So you were all in one house, right? Oh, we were all living together, right? Ok. Um, so were you still able to talk to your original parents? Uh Yes, we will because the aunts, they

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all, the two aunts live with us in the same house. Ok. Um I just wanted to add that. Um I think I wrote it that her aunt though did not allow my mother to call her own mother, real mother ma anymore. Yeah. At, at that time

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uh I have to because adopted me my name last time we change it from. So therefore the the aunt becomes my mother. So uh I cannot claim my own mother anymore because my own mother still the last name is like me. I only change it from

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to. Mhm. So were you angry about that? Oh, what a little, what can I do? And I also were living in the same house. Just different rooms. Yeah. Ok. So how did your life change after you were adopted? You? That's a good question. We still live

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in the same house. It doesn't make any difference either. Uh uh My last name is Fei or my last name is uh doesn't because my mother, uh my father has several wives, the other wife, they didn't give any Children. I'm, they have for my mother. They

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have the Children and those two other one and the husband was O PM. So come back to stay with him the other and the husband passed away. So he came back to live with us too. He has a son. Ok. And um, so I think your

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biography said that you got along with the, the son, did you um get along with that son? We were in the same house and doesn't make any difference? Um, so did they, did your parents explain why you were being adopted? Did your parents explain why you

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were being adopted? My parents, I don't know it. Oh, did they, did they try to talk to you about why they were, uh, why you were being adopted? Yes. Or because they don't have a girl? So, at the, at the, among the, uh, we have a

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older sister and a younger sister. But mother, didn't you tell me one time? I'm sorry that, um, your father was playing? Was he playing? And he lost the money? No, no. Wasn't that the reason he owed her because he was drunk, he gave her away when

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he was drunk. Right. Right. Drunk, drinking alcohol all the time. Sometimes, uh, drunk out of the, laying down the street, the people will carry him home. So my mother laid alone at the yard and then, ok. Um, ok. So did you, uh, start going to school

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around that age? Around seven? When did you start going to school? Which school? High school? Kindergarten first? No, no, just the elementary school or the elementary school? Yeah, I think it was elementary school. And the first, the second day I was junior high school. I was

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still in and then because my last name is from, and the family, my brother moved from that place to, uh, to. So because my last name is Fei. So I also went to, to, to stay with my mother and my brother and my aunt become my

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mother because I was changing from last name to, because, yeah, that's it. Uh-huh. No. Um, do you remember any, like, really significant memories from, uh, elementary school? Oh, elementary school. That's very simple. And, uh, because both of my, as a mother, uh, she was a elementary

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school teacher too. So, um, did you enjoy studying? Oh, that's a good question. That when I was in junior school or something in the class. Um, I wasn't really listening to the teacher. Well, I, this is the podium for the teacher. The teacher was writing something

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on the blackboard and I was the first role of student. I was in the middle who the teacher was writing what I just, uh, stand up behind the podium and make faces to all the rest of the students. So you were distracting them. Yeah. But, uh,

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anyway, so because of my last from, so we have to buy for the year. It will buy new text books. Unfortunately, I bought the wrong one. So I wanted to buy a right one. But my adopted mother wouldn't let me. So, you know what, when the

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classes started about the testing, everybody is standing outside and reading the book, I stick it out of my neck. Reading other people's because of my adopted mother. Let me get a new, but I already paid for it. I'm not going to pay you for that. Again.

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Um, so what did you enjoy doing in your free time? You mean? No, er, as a child, as a child? Uh, well, that was the, the, I don't, don't really remember, what did I do when I was that young? I have no memory of it. Um,

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so this is kind of a strange question. But who do you, who do you consider your real family? We all live together no matter, name wise. I am uh other people's daughter or my own mother's uh daughter, actor were living in the same home. Of course,

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after I change the name from the, the a wouldn't let me talk to my own mother because uh supposedly my last name is not anymore, but we actually live in the same house. Um And I just, you know, the traditional Chinese house is a courtyard house

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is a complex. So, so it's not like one house, it's like a different part of a complex. So not right on top of each other. OK. There is the, there is a kind of in between patio or something separated, but actually that the whole house is

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the whole family. But both of my aunts live with us. My father was uh the home was in, but uh he was teaching the Chinese at the x other city only awakened, my father will come back home. OK. Um And then, so your biography also referenced

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the Japanese invasion um which made you and your aunt flee to Hong Kong. Yeah. All because in that case, because my life changes from so my aunt was working for uh a diplomatic car. Yeah. So they all moved to uh to. So otherwise I will left

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behind and my aunt when she was in Hong Kong suddenly think about my life is so she came back to get me to go with her. Go to. That's how the after that from the we went to the junior high, senior high. Then we have the

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whole the, the when you graduated from high school, we have a kind of four universities all together, get the new student. Then I was admitted by university, then I went to university. But my aunt says the girl didn't need to go to the, the uh go

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to the more as long as I graduated from high school. But because I was accepted by university. So my best friend, they donated the money to me as the, the the expense for me to move from one place. Then anyway, so we finally get to university

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because the first year in or something then from there. So we anyway, so I, but I went to university. Um So you talked about your friends who gave you money so you could go to college but the hill will be out. Did they go to um

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after I got the money I stick in between that I have living on the card and there is a, that's it. The mattress mattress, under the mattress, I the money and the mattress. But my face, the, the brother, he was looking for something they found out

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and the mattress, I have the money. Who did you get the money? Then I said, uh, my friend gave it to me so I can go to university because my adopted mother think the girl high school graduated enough. You don't have to go to the university.

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But I accepted the university. I wanted it to go. So I, my friend gave me money. Then your brother said he, he gave you the money and you gave the money back to your friends, right? Then my my brother was looking for something for who did

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you get that money? I said my friend gave it to me so I can go to university because my high school graduated, that's enough. You don't need to go to the university. That's how I get to the to the university as a student. Why did you

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want to go to university? Why did you want to go to university? Because I need a boy. Otherwise only high school graduate student. What kind you living by your life? So anyway, so I I because of uh we we have a world wide four university have

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an examination. So I was admitted by Chiang University. So I collected the money from my friend. Um Yeah. Also I just wanted to add that um when she got there, she didn't have money for a lot of things, like personal items and so her friends all

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kind of helped her out. Yeah. So, these were your friends from university or friends from high school? Have to, let's see, I think that's from the university. And were you the only girl, like at the university where there are a lot of other girls? I don't

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know what the question is. The, um, let me just say that. What I know is that of the 40 chemical Engine majors? Um There were two, there were three girls all told there were two other girls who stuck to each other. So she was left out.

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You remember, you told me about the two girls, they would look at your test scores thinking well, yeah, because they helped each other study and then my mother scored 100 and they were like shocked that she did so well with three girls. So the engineering, you

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know, other than after the test or something because we have uh each has one slot but there is no door just so open. You can put the things in there out of there. So after the test, I put the, the professor will return your, your paper

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to see how many points you got. I got 100. So put in my slot. Those are the other two girls. They are good friends doing everything together. Only three of uh girl chemical engineer student. Those two are just like one person and except me, I'm all

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by myself. So after the test, the professor will return the paper to you. So there are like each has a slob without the window. Ok, just open. So I after the time I return the paper to, to my slot and then those 22 girls always work

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homework together, doing everything together, be only by myself after I was walk out, they check out my found out my paper, return them with 100. Hm. That was, uh, the first few years in university. Why did you want to study chemical engineering? Actually, originally, I wanted

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the physical uh physics major because that teacher was so good in high school. Unfortunately, that teacher passed away. So originally I want to be with that teacher but he passed away. So I change it from, uh, from physics to chemistry. Was there a war during your

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time at college? E in the college? I think that was the third year of uh college that the, the, the war started? They said at that time, hopes all the students to become the soldiers. 10, 100,000 students become 10,000 soldiers, encouraging the students to become the

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soldiers. So at that time, I think it was the third year for my college. So we have a call at that time because we have a, for a college student, we have a original, has a six day student to become for all of the army to

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fighting with them. Yeah. Originally supposed to have a six day student. Finally, they only accept 10 of them. I was one of them, 10. I was one of them become this is serve the people inviting. So we, we were like, uh, entertain to play them, the

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play for them and the is doing plays, plays and the teaching soldiers sing, uh, write the letter for the soldiers doing that kind of thing. So you stopped going to school right at that year, that the third year of my college, then afterwards they said you

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don't have on the back to University of the, and this, the, you can go take the, uh, last year of college. So for the third year, you don't have to do it. I said I come here just to learn something not to become a piece of

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paper. I have to stop. The was the third year and then the fourth year. So, so my college graduation one year later than other people because I was signed for the, the, we, we serve that was that not dangerous. Uh, well, you know, at the first,

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that's good because we have 10 people, technology student with that. The, do you think so? That's it? Um, the 1 93 was like the battalion like that, that, that bunch, she went with that bunch wherever they went, she marched along with the soldiers by foot. Ok.

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We will follow following him. We saw the leader of that one battalion. You follow the battalion. Number 1 93 wherever they went. Yeah. Yeah. So with the, the, the called the, I remember that I stay with the, the, the, the whole army. We walk, I walk

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with them every day. So many miles until finally we stuck some, my, both of my foot hardly could even touch the ground every day. Walk, walk how many miles each day walk with the soldiers. And also there are injured, the soldiers, they have a toast frozen

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or something. But the way each day, I think we have hundreds of miles to walk until we got some stop by both of my feet, touch the ground. So I have to put in the hot water for a long time. So that, that was uh something

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during the World World War Two. I still remember we have 10 students follow that. The uh 1 93. Yeah. Yeah. The, the, the, the last name is, is so I just found out this morning that meanwhile my father who was also a chemo engineering major at

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the same university. He volunteered to learn to be an English Chinese translator. He, he was stationed in Yunnan where it's known for its ham smoked ham. He was so sick of eating smoked ham by the end and by the time that he finished his training, the

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war was over. So he was living it up eating ham. While she was out there, my husband was lucky to find a tire. How did you meet your husband? Because when we have same chemical engineering class with three girls, sit front, he was sitting right behind

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me. Four day, four day student, chemical engineering. And we have three girls sitting in front and those two girls, they are all doing everything together, even homework doing together. Me only by myself. So, were you guys friends at first? Were you friends at first? Um, you

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and your husband? Did you become friends? I, that's a good question. I think that, that, uh, even before I could remember. Well, 11 thing if I may, I said, um, she told us a story a long time ago when they would go out on quote dates

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and he would walk in front of her. She's walking behind and he wouldn't even talk to her. And she finally said, if you're not gonna even talk to me, we're not dating anymore. Yeah. And at that time, her father didn't say anything. I was seeing all

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the time and then he keeps walking ahead of me. So I was hiding behind the stone to see if he discover anymore. I'm not away to him because he kept walking, walking, walking. And I was hitting there to see before how long he would discover I

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was disappeared. Then finally, I waited too long. I think I was to him. Otherwise, I don't know who, who I will, will, will get lost. And the other piece that we were talking about this morning after the war was over, she went back to her home

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and he went back to his home and then he, they were still communicating during that time. But all of a sudden he stopped writing to her and she was wondering what happened. He came down with tuberculosis and he didn't want to uh make her, you know,

00:40:39.399 - 00:40:56.350

he, he wanted to avoid having her be sad. So he just stopped writing, but she was determined to find out what happened. So she took this long boat ride for hours without a bathroom. And she was determined to find, she, she went to his hometown which

00:40:56.360 - 00:41:12.179

you can only get to by boat. She remember that her, his father worked as an accountant and a pawn shop. She got there and she asked where the pawn shot was? She found the father and then found him to find out, why did you stop writing?

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II, I tasted him over there. Then he told me I don't want to give you the two that the b Yeah. So how did you end up getting married? What year did you get married? Oh, that was uh after we all graduated from university, the chemical

00:41:33.840 - 00:42:01.679

engineering, I was teaching assistant at the university for the chemical engineering and he was working for the Chinese petroleum company. So then after the uh six years of practicing then he came back from Chinese petroleum company, come to, to see me. Then six months, six months,

00:42:01.689 - 00:42:26.750

then I was still the teaching assistant at the university. But uh but uh and they were in between. We got married. So it's like 1948 right? So your husband worked for this uh oil company, petroleum company, a petroleum company. But I think it said in your

00:42:26.760 - 00:42:56.629

biography, they didn't hire you because you're a woman. Oh, at, at that time uh after we, and then we, we, we, we have five of five or six students. Um two, I don't know to whom. But anyway, to see if they can find a job for

00:42:56.639 - 00:43:24.659

us or something. And the, but there are five people. Oh, because I am a girl even my grade is the 1st 1234. My, my husband, husband, of course he was the first, I was the fifth. So, but anyway, so finally we were accepted the job by

00:43:24.669 - 00:43:48.219

the, the Chinese petroleum company. But the question is there is one guy I know he was uh but low or greater than me and others. But they think I am a girl then they didn't accept me too to become the engineer for the, the petroleum company.

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So finally I become the high school teacher. Were you angry that you couldn't work at that company? Because you're a woman. The who can you protest to? There is no way you can no no way to find out this. They put into the list with the

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55 graduate one was uh but among all those four day students, that person, a guy, I think he was uh from bottom up five fifth of them, that means not very high grade. And because I'm a girl, they wouldn't accept me. So therefore I didn't do

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the chemical engineer work and finally ended up as a high school teacher. I teaching that the uh for the senior high school as a, as a chemistry teacher. So, uh what was your dream job once you graduated from college? Yeah, actually, but somehow I was working

00:45:14.840 - 00:45:39.659

on the computer software, computer programmer. So lately I was working for Signal Oil, the gas company. That was much later. That was, yeah. But anyway, so, so I was uh working as a program on the computer computer program. So I think what you, she wanted to

00:45:39.669 - 00:45:58.169

know when you finished college was that was working as an engineer. Your dream job? Is that what you meant? No. After, after that, I was uh the teaching, I know that you want to be an engineer. You wanted to be an engineer. Right. Right. Right. I

00:45:58.179 - 00:46:22.560

was actually, I was walking on the platform for the oil later on, later on, later on. She did finally do it. Yeah. But after I got the, so I have the helicopter, I ride a helicopter to the, the platform. I was writing program for you. Um,

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your biography also talks about how, um, your husband and you ended up in Taiwan later and then you couldn't talk to your aunt or your adopted mother. The question, um, the question is what happened, um, that you could talk to your old family again. Uh, if

00:46:48.969 - 00:47:06.399

I can explain. Yes. Ok. That, when I wrote that it was when she was still living in the compound with her adopted mother, her adopted mother forbade her to talk to her mother. Oh, ok. When they moved to Taiwan, the communists took over the iron curtain

00:47:06.409 - 00:47:41.669

came down, there was no further communication period at all. So that's the end of it. Um And then after you lived in Taiwan, you moved to the United States. Hm. Ok. Oh, sad to hear, I was still teaching assistant at the university and then my husband

00:47:43.449 - 00:48:09.580

working for the petroleum company half a year. Then he came back to the, the uh and then we got, um not, we don't have a, we just, just at that time we got married. I was at, at that time I was a, a chemical engineering teaching

00:48:09.590 - 00:48:34.149

assistant for a year. And then my husband came back from his Children company working with for half a year. That's uh so he can come back to, to see me before we get married. Ok. So I'm gonna start asking about uh how you immigrated to America.

00:48:34.629 - 00:49:07.719

Um So your husband immigrated to of Wisconsin. What to do when we got married? We have a, when, let's see, Harriet, when Harriet was four years old, I was six years old. Then, then your boss will to Wisconsin to get the, get the phd degree. Remember

00:49:07.800 - 00:49:29.300

that? I think I was about three because I have no memory of him. Like you were, you were very little with three kids. My husband went to the country to get the phd. Ok. So, uh why did he decide to do that? Why did he decide

00:49:29.310 - 00:50:05.100

to go to the US to study? Oh, actually the, the year before he went to Wisconsin one year because of something, maybe or something. And there's one university, the university, the student went to Wisconsin to got the degree. Then my husband just follow that also went

00:50:05.110 - 00:50:28.709

to Wisconsin to get even with the, with the three kids at the home. So, ok. So how old were all three kids at the time? At that time? Harriet was a, no, David was uh six. What do you, what's the question? How old were, how old

00:50:28.719 - 00:50:49.229

were you and your siblings when your dad moved to Wisconsin? Oh, I was, as I said, I was very young, two or three. So my brother was six years older. My sister was four years older. Ok. Um, at, at that time I, I was a high

00:50:49.239 - 00:51:15.419

school teacher teaching chemistry. Uh, the, uh when did you move to the States? The United States. You six. They won. 19 6. They won. And where was the first place in America? Oh, that, that was because my husband got the, got the, the, the phd DD.

00:51:15.429 - 00:51:36.830

We hired the Vice Clair Clair. Then we all came to United States in 1961. Did you know how to speak English at that time? All I have is, uh, when I was in high school there is a English class, you know who, that the class teacher

00:51:36.840 - 00:51:58.439

teaching, who the teacher was teaching us English. I was counting how many the basket that the that the guy played basket for. I, I didn't, I didn't listen to him. So the, but actually that the teachers, English is fortunate that I didn't learn from him. I

00:51:58.449 - 00:52:20.320

was counting the basket for the people play basket ball over there. That the English teacher, I don't think that really English that the Chinese English and you know what, when he was writing something on the black black. But I, this is three places I was sitting

00:52:20.330 - 00:52:39.459

in the middle. Then I jump up behind the podium and make a visit to the student while he was writing on the black one. Very not student. So you didn't know too much English. And at that time in English, that's why my English in the first

00:52:39.469 - 00:52:57.500

place. You know, the teacher was sitting, I was cutting for the other. How can I learn something about the English? No. So when I come to United States. I just write it down. I want to go to Tulsa, Oklahoma. I write that because when I say

00:52:57.510 - 00:53:18.239

it, people wouldn't understand what I'm talking. I'm talking about, then I just say I want to go to Tosa Oklahoma. That's all I can do. Um So were you excited about coming to America? Oh, yeah. First come to America, then I would go to school again.

00:53:18.250 - 00:53:39.540

I want to get my masters degree. So in the meantime, I have a, I had to learn how to uh wash the clothes and you know what? My maid usually wash the clothes use, start for the clothes the clothes can standing on the floor. Then later

00:53:39.560 - 00:53:56.669

on that, that the girl didn't work for me. So I have to do everything myself to learn how to use the iron to iron the or something. I remember in Tulsa she even brought a washboard with her. She used to actually use a wooden washboard with

00:53:56.679 - 00:54:11.659

a bar of soap to wash the clothes. And then she would starch the sheets, the bed sheets when we get into bed. It's like, but she didn't know she knew nothing about housework, a lot of work. But the in the meantime, I go to get the

00:54:12.520 - 00:54:32.590

go to Tulsa University to take the classes. Uh So I want to get my uh at least got some master degree or something. But then, oh, then my husband said, uh he wanted to be, to be teaching you then said, ok, if you want to be,

00:54:32.600 - 00:54:56.919

become the professor and I, I let you do it three years if you still want that job. So we stay there. You say, you know what? He first promised 63 years and the fourth years supposed to get, get something like promoted from something to something. But

00:54:56.929 - 00:55:16.754

because he thought that to be professor, you don't have the uh socialize with anyone. So he was uh every Saturday and Sunday sitting in the classroom uh help a student out. And the dean of the, the chemical engineer didn't know who he was. He never know

00:55:16.764 - 00:55:37.044

he become the professor. You don't have the social with nobody. So therefore the other guy was constantly in front of the, the head of the, the, the uh chemical engineering got promoted but not, not him. He was so upset, he didn't know that you had to

00:55:37.054 - 00:55:56.919

schmooze to certain extent too. And so he was a very good teacher dedicated, but he didn't know the system. So um anyway, so he went to the, every Saturday and the Sunday help a student. Not very, but uh he's uh didn't socialize with the dean of

00:55:56.929 - 00:56:14.860

the the department so that you never know. He working so hard over there. Only the other guys every day is talking to the, the boss of that guy, got the pro think about it. Um For that my father who is an immigrant to get a professorship

00:56:14.870 - 00:56:28.489

at UCL A was pretty astounding to begin with. Um But what I was gonna say was at the same time, the company my mother was working for, moved to Houston and my father came and got a great job here at the same time. So it all

00:56:28.500 - 00:56:50.639

worked out well. Um So just going back a little bit. Do you remember your first, the first day you arrived in uh Tulsa the year 19 6? Do you remember the day? What was it like? Were you like? Were you surprised? Was it um that, that

00:56:50.649 - 00:57:07.060

was because my husband got the degree and then got a new job? But the, the, the, the signal. Yeah. Uh If I, if I may ask her, so what they want to know is when we first got here after we got here, how did you feel

00:57:07.070 - 00:57:19.590

when you first got here? You know, I, I remember, I mean, I'm not being interviewed but I just remember being a six year old thinking we were on a big adventure, a big vacation. After three months. I miss my best friend and I would cry every

00:57:19.600 - 00:57:38.659

night because I didn't know what was happening. But as a mother, you knew we were moving here. So they want to know. How did you feel when you, after we got here, how did you feel? Oh, who will move from the first when you first got

00:57:38.879 - 00:58:01.159

to? And the United States. How did you feel that? I don't know. What, what do you mean? How I feel? I'm so glad to, to come to United States. So, but because my English is very, so all I can do is write. I want to go

00:58:01.169 - 00:58:25.189

to Tulsa, Oklahoma. Hold my hand because all the English you learned during the high school, I was counting the best other people. Did you, did you, after you moved to the United States? Did you miss China or Taiwan? Oh, actually it's a because even in Taiwan

00:58:25.199 - 00:58:51.629

for 11 years, I was uh anyway, I was a high school teacher, teacher for a, all the time in, actually, that was my job over there too. But come to United States, of course, is a completely different world for me. Was there anything that surprised you

00:58:51.639 - 00:59:20.139

about America? Well, not really because of that. Of course, it's different than the way I, we were living in Taiwan. Ok. That's different. But you come to the new place and uh actually we were lucky we were living towards our home or the neighbor is very

00:59:20.149 - 00:59:40.000

nice to us. They were really reaching out to help us get a quick back. Well, the three kids are coming back to school across the street and the neighbor, they're always carrying us Children to the school very nicely carry. Now they, they, they gave them the

00:59:40.010 - 01:00:00.419

right. I mean, well, I don't remember that but we were because Tulsa was a very uh homogene. I mean, there were, we were in the newspaper, a Chinese family moved to town. I was trying to find the article for this. Today. We were so like exotic.

01:00:00.429 - 01:00:14.290

This is how unusual it was. And so I didn't have it in English, but there's a picture of me with a painting and it said an engineer, blah, blah. Anyway, described each of us. And by the time it got to me, I was a friendly first

01:00:14.300 - 01:00:30.850

grader because I couldn't talk. I couldn't, but I could draw. So anyway, but my brother was 12 poor guy. He started seventh grade, which is hard enough with no English. No cultural. He, he, he was just thrown into, my sister was in fifth grade and she

01:00:30.860 - 01:00:46.129

was 10. So I had it the easiest but we were just plopped in the middle of, of totally strange land. Um, so anyway, so I don't want to hijack your interview, but it's sort of, I, she probably was all she could do to keep us going

01:00:46.139 - 01:01:02.719

day to day. So she probably has no memory of the, you know, except we just, I remember uh people who came by our house to try to proselytize their church. A lot of church people like, oh, knock, knock, knock. Oh, no, don't answer the door. You

01:01:02.729 - 01:01:25.679

know, they were trying to no trouble. I saw the people coming in. I know they have tried to come to me to, to become Christian. So I, I'm Buddhist. So save them the bread. Are you a Buddhist? No. Ok. She's not. That's what my mom does.

01:01:25.739 - 01:01:53.389

Oh, yeah. She, that actually the hottest year is the first year when I was in, in United States. I have to learn how to do everything, uh, cooking and ironing and some. And anyway, in the meantime, I was, uh, taking the class at the university and

01:01:53.399 - 01:02:15.820

I try to get some uh uh master degree or something. So they, they were cheating me because I was so busy. So I almost put both of my shoes inside the ice box. I, that's exactly. I hold my horse just want to because they are waiting

01:02:15.830 - 01:02:39.574

for me to cook something. So when I wear the shoes, just walk straight to the refrigerator, I put the, the actually that was, I think la later when we moved to Los Angeles and you started your job at um oil because she was working downtown Los

01:02:39.584 - 01:03:05.909

Angeles. So, yeah, when, when did you move to Los Angeles? 1965? Who? My father, yeah, her father English English considering he's an immigrant only been here for a few years. And, um, so that, but we didn't know what we were getting ourselves into. I remember driving

01:03:05.919 - 01:03:22.350

in on I 10 heading into L A in this wall of smog, this brown wall in the air and I thought we're gonna go live in there. It's like shocking and then the other thing was my father, um, he was driving 40 miles an hour on

01:03:22.360 - 01:03:55.879

the freeways and we got pulled around driving too slowly, driving miles an hour. Um, did you like living in California more or did you like Oklahoma more? Uh, Tulsa, Oklahoma is a kind of a small city. Los Angeles is a big city. That's the difference. Did

01:03:55.889 - 01:04:18.790

you, did you like it differently? Uh, oh, so the, uh, well, what's the question? So like in Los Angeles, obviously, there's a Chinatown. So we were able to get Chinese food, you know, we could go to the Chinese China town and get the kinds of food

01:04:18.800 - 01:04:32.020

that she likes that, you know, as opposed to what we did in Tulsa, I think I wrote that she made her own tofu. I mean, you didn't have to make your own tofu in Los Angeles. So there were more Chinese things going on. So in Tulsa,

01:04:32.620 - 01:04:58.899

Oklahoma, we only two Chinese family, one is us, the other was one, the other Chinese. He claimed his father has uh $70,000 in bank or something. Actually, he was living on people donated the food to them. But he claim uh my father has so much money

01:04:58.909 - 01:05:24.590

in the bank actually. So at that time, only two Chinese family in there, one is us. Who is that that the person claim uh his father has so much money religious actually that the family so much food like we always buy the food for them, like

01:05:24.600 - 01:05:57.679

a vegetables or meat or something to help their mother. Otherwise they, they are very, very title of money. The only, the other one, last name is a, a unit in Chinese which is 10,000. So she gave him a nickname, Yuan 7 70,000. That's not really his

01:05:57.709 - 01:06:16.520

name. That's, that's, yeah, I gave him the nickname. Yeah. So uh we had, it was good when we moved to Los Angeles, there were several other Chinese families that were from the same university connection or from the oil refinery. And we would take turns having like

01:06:16.530 - 01:06:29.739

pot luck at different people's house. So we grew up. So once we went to Los Angeles, we had a, a much bigger Chinese community where we thought we had friends. So that was much better where we were part of something as supposed to be alone. I

01:06:29.750 - 01:06:52.000

think. So that's what we were trying to get. Uh Yeah. Um So I need help to open it. Uh Now I for the grouping something, it's very hard. Um So speaking of food, how did you feel about American food? At first? At least, let let me

01:06:52.010 - 01:07:10.250

say one thing I didn't uh uh American for the hole made American food. I was still doing my Chinese. Do you remember the only American dish she ever made was I think I was 15 at the time, one day we came home on a Saturday. I

01:07:10.260 - 01:07:27.879

was so surprised she made us a BLT sandwich. That's the only American dish she ever made one time. I was so surprised. I really, you made a BLT. I just remember that we didn't understand the concept of salads because Chinese is always cooked. So we would

01:07:27.889 - 01:07:44.350

go what's especially in those days, only iceberg lettuce which tastes like aluminum. And then we didn't understand the concept of dressings. So we didn't touch that. We would just eat the sound going. Why are Americans eating this? It tastes terrible. So we didn't understand that at

01:07:44.360 - 01:08:07.540

all. It took years to figure out, you know what it was supposed to be. So that was, remember when we force the force the, uh, to Tulsa Oklahoma that the guy treat us with the steak? Oh, I don't remember remember. But the youth, three Children, they

01:08:07.550 - 01:08:25.390

don't like the stink. We probably didn't know how to use a fork and knife either. That's why we couldn't eat it because we didn't have very nice steak. The, the three Children, they don't know, it's like Chinese food. Everything is already precut, right? Asian food. But

01:08:25.620 - 01:08:46.899

when you go to American food, it's like, what, what am I supposed to do with this chunk of meat? You know, they, they don't, they don't like, that's a very explosive. Oh, at, at that time I only two Chinese family. But the other thing was that

01:08:46.910 - 01:09:03.439

we had our actually in which is 50 miles away. From Tulsa. Our best friends from Taiwan moved there because there was he the father there worked for Phillips oil. And in so we would, every weekend they would come to us or we go to them 50

01:09:03.450 - 01:09:21.899

miles each way. So we had our friends also to help us. And we, we got to the United States first and we were able to help them a acclimate to um understand American culture. And so we stayed very good friends. She talks to, um, every week

01:09:27.379 - 01:09:49.319

you ended up getting a job in California though. Um When you went to Los Angeles, you worked for Signal Oil. Yeah. Um How, how difficult was that? Was it hard to get a job in California? I got, I don't think I have a difficulty to get

01:09:49.330 - 01:10:16.299

the job at that time. And it was because my husband was teaching the night classes and there is a student work for this company. That's what my husband asked the ask him and I was the computer programmer from 1967. I think so because he was teaching

01:10:16.310 - 01:10:44.700

the class and uh 11 of the manager was uh in his class. That's why he asked him. Who was that? Uh do, do I didn't know the story at that time. He was that that class student, your father, your father talk to him. But because at

01:10:44.709 - 01:11:05.000

that time I was in the computer school sort of thing. So he learned to network, you learned some networking. Um But you went from being, you stayed at home and then in California you decided to work again. Um Why did you, why did you decide to

01:11:05.009 - 01:11:25.990

go back to work at the first? I was, uh, let's see, at that time, I tried to get my master degree when we were in Tulsa. So I already took a four, class, three or four. Almost get the, the master degree. Yeah. But my husband uh

01:11:26.049 - 01:11:50.359

was uh uh from work for a signal Oil Company. Tried to be uh professor for the UCL A Sinclair. Yeah, he was. Yeah. Then he said that he promised only three years. Actually, he worked more than three or four years until one day. He was six

01:11:50.370 - 01:12:11.250

years. Seven years. Yeah, because after four years, you are supposed to go to this kind of kind of thing. Yeah, if I may say um my mother loved working. She has no hobbies or interests. So we can say why did you want to go back to

01:12:11.259 - 01:12:40.529

work? She was never meant to be a housewife. She was always meant to be some kind of professional. I think that was her. Uh she just taking classes but I haven't because my husband want to change it, become professor instead of uh we work with a

01:12:40.540 - 01:13:09.629

Signal Sinclair. Yeah. So anyway, my, my plan wasn't completed before I can do with masters because of the move. So, but anyway, then I went to the, the computer school or something and, uh, learn a punch card or something and at that time, become the computer

01:13:09.640 - 01:13:34.120

program since then. Then at the last I was using oracle language or something. Uh, doing the database business. Yeah. Um, she came to Boston one time to go to the oracle and she also learned how to work with laptops when they were first came out, she

01:13:34.129 - 01:13:50.430

was helping people with their laptops. So she went from the old machines with and punch that. She only retired when she was 75 because my father had Parkinson's otherwise she would have kept on working. So, you know, that the, that the guy so that if we

01:13:50.439 - 01:14:13.189

could do this, I will hiring that the guy then after he let me do something and then I, I create a website, a web page right over there that, so he hired me. So I, so at that time I beginning to become the computer programmer. Did

01:14:13.200 - 01:14:39.640

you like computer programming? Oh, yeah. I was a whole my life as a computer programmer. Whole my life. Oh, you also did programming for MD Anderson? Oh, at that time? Yes, because I was for the, the children's, oh, all the Children so young died off. So,

01:14:39.649 - 01:15:03.609

finally I couldn't take it anymore. So, so I quit from the, the job to do something else in other places because for all the Children got the cancer that died of it. Look at the program. It's really very, you know, emotionally, it's very, very hard. So

01:15:03.620 - 01:15:22.359

only a year then I quit the job doing something else because the other company, the other guy asking me. So why don't you come work for me? Why don't you come work for me? So finally, because the head in charge of this section, the new guy,

01:15:22.370 - 01:15:45.750

that's the new guy. I don't like him so far. Ok, I quit. I will, I will go with you. So I go to the, the, the oil, the program was that, did you go to MD Anderson? Because of, was that becau because at that time, so

01:15:45.759 - 01:16:03.450

my sister, oh, was that at that time or is that later rather than after, after my sister, doctor, she passed away from cancer at the age of 32? I think that motivated her to go work in cancer for a while. But then she couldn't take it.

01:16:03.720 - 01:16:22.779

So I was a working program for all the Children. So finally, I think, I don't think the sister that the was chief resident when she died. She had, she had a baby. She was very frustrating. But also because the guy in charge was in searching is

01:16:22.790 - 01:16:48.779

a very good guy and the other guy replaces him. I, I don't like him. So that is one of my father because I work with, she was in pathology and she was Chief resident. She had major reconstructive surgery and she went back to work. She was,

01:16:49.299 - 01:17:04.140

uh, very good at organizing people. That's what she says. And then her back started hurting her and was metastasized. So, so that's part of the reason she worked at MD Anderson for a while. But then she then left. But that was so, yeah. Anyway, but that's

01:17:04.149 - 01:17:24.879

the, the story of the MD Anderson part. Yeah. Yeah. Also because the, the, the good guy loved the other guy. I don't like him. So I quit, promise, loved her. They, they just thought the world of her work for me at, at that time, I like

01:17:24.890 - 01:17:44.165

that because that the, that the person in charge of like the lab to the other person. I don't like it. OK. Yeah. So then she and my father both worked at oil and they, they, they were both really uh appreciated and really revered there for uh

01:17:44.174 - 01:18:01.290

both of them. And my father was a Texaco fellow which is the highest honor you can get the little. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Uh he was, uh you know, anyway. And then just as an aside, my father, uh when he was a professor, he wrote this, the,

01:18:01.299 - 01:18:21.419

the handbook on chemical engineering, the chapter on thermodynamics, which is like the Bible. He wrote that chapter. So that's, but uh her father was really very brilliant, didn't talk to you during your dates. But he was, and, and just as another sign, my father was also

01:18:21.430 - 01:18:41.689

an artist. He always liked painting. Yeah. So he said, when I, when he finally retired, he said now I'm gonna really prove I'm an artist. Um So one final question about career, great. Uh What do you feel is your, was your greatest accomplishment during your career?

01:18:47.290 - 01:19:09.200

What an accomplishment? I don't know, I accomplish anything. Of course, you have to accomplish. I'm just the computer program and learn all different kind of language. When I was seven, I still learn new computer language called the Oracle. When I was seven, I still become a

01:19:09.209 - 01:19:31.569

student to learn some new, called the oracle language. So my whole life is a computer program and always learning new things. Yeah. And I learned how to use the database or something. And then actually, when the company started, we, we, I was working with the company,

01:19:31.580 - 01:19:58.850

I, I put at the beginning, we, we uh for the, the uh oil, the, this company I did that. So the whole of my life is a computer program from to oracle. What's your most favorite language? Well, at the first of the, everybody is used for

01:19:59.859 - 01:20:31.950

and then later on, uh later anyway, the last, when I was seven, I learned uh that the uh or new language when I was 70. Did you win? So actually that uh uh company begin with the web page website, I saw that at that place. Um

01:20:31.959 - 01:20:55.390

So now I'm gonna move on to more personal questions. Um So right now, like after you've retired. What do you spend your free time doing the free time? Go to work. Uh, let's see. I read that the magazine, they call it the Jungle magazine. I read

01:20:55.399 - 01:21:24.080

the newspaper and, uh, that's all, didn't do anything in the venture or something. Just a kind of a read the newspapers every day. Do you still write down definitions? You still look up words in the dictionary. Do you look up words? Look, Oh, I have a,

01:21:24.089 - 01:21:44.750

I always look for, I have a, I have a pad of paper, right? Uh You still do that? You, your pad of paper, you, you look up words, you don't know, you write down the definition. You still do that. I still do that. Still look up

01:21:44.759 - 01:22:08.729

on the words. I have a big dial. I have a Chinese English, Chinese. I have a completely uh, it language. Is that a big, a big book to look to if the Chinese uh dictionary doesn't really explain that they not look at the big dictionary. Um,

01:22:08.740 - 01:22:31.810

so did you ever go back to Taiwan or China? Well, I've had the food was, uh, that was 11 years ago when we all went to Taiwan for uh Thursday birthday or something. We all went to Taiwan. Yeah, I didn't go with you. I don't remember

01:22:31.819 - 01:22:52.459

that. That was 11 years ago. Ok. Yeah. Um, she talks to her sister in Taiwan once a week. So, yeah, my sister is still a lady in Taiwan. OK. Uh How is that visit? Do you like had Taiwan changed a lot from how you remember last

01:22:52.470 - 01:23:21.319

time I went to Taiwan was 11 years ago, so I don't remember nowadays. Of course they change it a lot. Mm. Um And what does your sister do? My sister is an artist. Oh, she, she is real, really good at drawing the pictures and the, yeah,

01:23:21.330 - 01:23:47.129

she is the artist. Let me just say that she didn't do something else but just very easily. And I have a really painting by her. I put on the flame room by home. So does she do Chinese style painting? Yeah. Oh, she is, she is doing

01:23:47.140 - 01:24:16.490

that. Um Were you, had you ever been interested in art me? I don't have any other, other cell in my body. Not even one officer. You may bother me. That is true. But a lot of that of. Yes. Um So I want to tell you something

01:24:16.500 - 01:24:54.290

other than this. OK. Uh Let's see. What was that? Oh, that is that time is when you 1,000,000 so young people how to sell them uh soldiers, soldiers. Then I just signed up for the, the 10,000 soldiers or something. So later on then I follow the,

01:24:54.299 - 01:25:31.549

the, the uh I can't help you. I follow, oh, there is a name called the service support people teaching the soldiers, uh singing and the play, play, put on place. Yeah. Put on place. Yeah. Yeah, for them and teaching them how to sing and writing the

01:25:32.390 - 01:26:08.660

letter for them. That, so that was, uh, something I did. Um, so in your life, um, you worked a lot but you were also a mother at the same time. Was that difficult for you? Oh, that's, well, you were young. It's no difficulty. Only when you're

01:26:08.669 - 01:26:29.479

getting old, you cannot do whatever you want. You can only barely get advice. That's it. That's why the people teasing me. I brought my shoes to the ice box because I'm hurry up to try to prepare for the dinner for the family. So one kind of

01:26:29.490 - 01:26:51.700

holding my feet, my two shoes in front of refrigerator to check out, what could I do to learn to make dinner for them? And then the, I put the shoes inside the ice box. That's just because, uh, you didn't really do it. You know, at that

01:26:51.709 - 01:27:11.959

time, we, at the first we only have one car. Right. Then later I bought only one car for me to drive. And then you will take a turn, uh, who is driving, who pick up, who something like that? And, uh, 11 day. So I have my

01:27:11.970 - 01:27:31.120

own car and they will have arrange, uh, uh, who is going to take it home? Take something like that. You used to take the bus downtown from when we lived in the apartment in, in West L A. She used to take the bus downtown and the

01:27:31.129 - 01:27:46.589

bus home every day because back when we lived in the apartment, it was close to the bus line and you could take the bus downtown and during lunch hour you would go shopping. And one day she brought home, I don't know, 2030 plates because they were

01:27:46.600 - 01:28:03.620

really on big sale. We still have some of those plates from, remember the plates you bought from the sale at, uh, whatever, uh, Robinson's or something? The department store, we still have, we still have a lot of those dishes that lunch hour she would go shopping.

01:28:05.140 - 01:28:31.220

Um. Mhm. And in your life, um, there have been two times that you were not with your husband. Um, was it ever difficult, like when you were in China and your husband was in Taiwan being away from him? Was that difficult because I was working all

01:28:31.229 - 01:28:37.229

the time? Even my husband is, uh, my husband was a wonderful.