susany | Users | Discover Nikkei

@susany

Nima of the month: June 2017

susany (Tucson, Arizona, United States)

I was born Susan Araki in Seattle, WA, and grew up in the South Park district of Seattle. Almost two years old when Executive Order 9066 was enacted, my family and I were incarcerated in Camp Harmony and Camp Minidoka for about three and a half years. A free, PDF download of my memories of that time may be accessed at the link given in my bio.

I graduated from the University of Washington, Seattle and worked in computer programming at several companies, including the Boeing Company in Seattle. I retired many years ago from computer systems and network administration at the University of Arizona. Now I am a clay and watercolor artist and love to write both fiction and nonfiction.

Nikkei Interests

communities families food

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Gifts from Jichan and Bachan

Gifts from Japan

Jichan and Bachan brought back many beautiful gifts from their trips to Japan. They ordered lovely,…

Sept. 16, 2020

awards charity gifts Japan Japanese Americans medals Order of the Rising Sun

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Gifts from Jichan and Bachan

Dolls

The first gift I remember receiving from Jichan and Bachan was a gift of Japanese culture, the ce…

June 11, 2020

dolls figurines Girl's Day toys

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Gifts from Jichan and Bachan

The Home That Jichan and Bachan Built

How Jichan Became an Araki Although Jichan was born Nisaku Kaneda, the second of four sons in the …

May 7, 2020

commerce economics markets Pike Place Market private clubs Seattle The Rainier Club United States Washington

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Nikkei Uncovered: a poetry column

Comfort

This month, we feature California-based Yonsei writer, Kendall Tani, and Arizona-based Sansei write…

April 16, 2020

Discover Nikkei Kendall Tani literature Nikkei Uncovered (series) poetry poets social distancing Susan Yamamura

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Mochitsuki

One of my fondest memories is of the annual mochi making party that was held at our house in the we…

July 13, 2020

Araki family Arizona families food grandparents holidays mochi mochitsuki New Year parents traditions United States

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Where to Bury Me

I awoke this morning to memories of the cowboy lament, “Bury Me Not on the Lone Prairie.” Perhaps t…

March 31, 2020

Pearl Harbor attack, Hawaii, 1941 traditions

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Jichan in America

The grandfather of my heart will always be my father’s father, Grandfather Araki (born a Kaneda b…

June 27, 2017

families Japanese Americans labor migration race United States Washington

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Nikkei Chronicles #6—Itadakimasu 2! Another Taste of Nikkei Culture

Matsutake Sukiyaki

In Seattle, my family’s mushroom hunting season would begin with discussions around the big table i…

June 1, 2017

Discover Nikkei families food Itadakimasu 2 (series) Japanese food matsutake mushrooms mothers mushrooms Nikkei Chronicles (series) Pacific Northwest Seattle sukiyaki United States Washington

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Cherry Blossom Petals

An elegant few, pale pink blossoms on the slender limbs of a delicate February Fuji Cherry tree, di…

April 28, 2017

cherry blossoms Cinderella (legendary character) fairy tales fiction short stories stories

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Minoru Tamesa: The Quiet Man Who Came to Dinner - Part 3

Read Part 2 >> In writing this remembrance of Minoru Tamesa, one more memory of Min’s father, Uha…

April 13, 2017

draft resisters Heart Mountain Heart Mountain concentration camp Heart Mountain Fair Play Committee Minoru Tamesa resisters United States World War II camps Wyoming

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