One Year To Tokyo 2020

One year from now we will get a break what promises to be an ugly 2020 election campaign in the United States to watch the opening ceremonies of the Games of the XXXII Olympiad.

The Tokyo Games will open on this date and close on August 9 in the soon to be completed New National Stadium.   Other venues are will be completed in time for the Games

It is not only the second time since 1964 that Tokyo has hosted a summer Games, it is the first Asian city to do so twice.  Japan has also hosted the winter Games twice (1972 Sapporo, 1998 Nagano).

It will also be the middle leg of three consecutive Olympic summer and winter Games being hosted in east Asia that started with the winter Games in Pyeyongchang last year and will conclude with the winter Games in Beijing in 2022.



When the Tokyo Games open there will be a record 33 sports in the 2020 Olympic program.  There will be along with the permanent core sports new additions like 3x3 basketball, freestyle BMX, and the Madison cycling race.  Baseball and softball will also return to the Olympic sporting program for the first time since 2008.

Four sports, surfing, karate, sport climbing and skateboarding will make their Olympic debut, and as usual, men's and women's soccer will start their respective tournaments before the opening ceremonies at stadiums across Japan.

One of the questions trans people around the world have is will this finally be the Games in which a trans athlete qualifies for their national team.   So far the only time a trans person has a ppeared inside an Olympic stadium was when model Lea T rode in on a tricycle carying Brazil's placard during the 2016  Rio Games opening ceremonies .

Over the last several Olympiads the host nations have been one upping each other on who has the most spectacular opening ceremony and who will have the most unique Olympic cauldron lighting.

Will be interesting to see not only who gets the honor of being the final Tokyo 2020 torch bearer, but how they light the cauldron and what it looks like during the opening ceremony.. 

We'll know the answer to that question in 366 days.   Yep, a summer Olympics always takes place during a leap year   

Tokyo Passes Law Banning TBLGQ Discrimination

For those of you who reflexively hate on the Olympics and fixate on the infrastructure costs associated with hosting an Olympic Games, here's a compelling argument in favor of having them in your city.

In the wake of what happened in Sochi, with the Russian government ramping up discrimination aimed at TBLGQ people by passing an anti-gay propaganda law on the eve of the 2014 Winter Games too late for them to be moved elsewhere,  the IOC as part of Olympic Agenda 2020 requires all future host cities to ban discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

In order to meet that Olympics hosting requirement standard, on October 5 the Tokyo Metropolitan Government passed a TBLGQ rights law that states:

“The Tokyo Metropolitan Government, citizens, and enterprises may not unduly discriminate on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation” and includes a government pledge to “conduct measures needed to make sure human rights values are rooted in all corners of the city and diversity is respected in the city.”

The new law also commits the Tokyo Metropolitan Government to do public education campaigns in the city about TBLGQ rights issues.

Tokyo, along with Tokyo prefecture which it merged with in 1943, and the Tokyo metropolitan area is home to 25% of Japan's population.

Japan doesn't have a national law yet legalizing same sex marriage, and Japanese transgender people are required to have gender confirmation surgery before they can obtain federal ID that matches their gender identity.

But Japan has been making positive strides on the TBLGQ rights front in the last several years. Well known trans women like 2009 Miss International Queen winner Ai Haruna live and work there.

According to Human Rights Watch, in 2016 Japan's Minister of Education released a teacher's guidebook that covered the topic of how to treat TBLGQ students.  That same year Japan, along with the Netherlands and the United States, led a UNESCO conference on TBLGQ bullying, and followed that up in March 2017 by the Ministry of Education modifying the national bullying policy to include TBLGQ students.

Since 2003, Aya Kamikawa has been serving on the council for the largest of the 23 wards that make up the historic city of Tokyo, Setagaya.

She was the first and only elected trans official in Japan until March 2017, when 26 year old Tomoya Hosoda became the first trans masculine person elected to public office in the Land of the Rising Sun by winning a seat on the Iruma City city council, located in the Saitama prefecture in the Greater Tokyo metro area.

He called his win at the time 'a marker for transgender rights' in his nation, and in the wake of it has worked to increase acceptance for all forms of diversity in Japan.

Tokyo 2020 Olympics Opening Four Years From Now Today

Four years from now on this date, the Games of the XXXII Olympiad in Tokyo will kick off and run until August 9.   When that happens, Tokyo will become the fifth city and the first Asian one to host the Summer Olympic Games more than once.  

The other three cities who have hosted the Summer Olympics twice are Los Angeles (1932,1984), Athens (1896, 2004) and Paris (1900, 1924).  London is the only one to have hosted the Games three times (1908, 1948, 2012) and Los Angeles may join that exclusive three time host list if they successfully win the bid for the 2024 Games.

Tokyo hosted the Games in 1964, and was scheduled to host them in 1940 but those games were canceled because the outbreak of World War II.  Those 1964 Olympic Games served as their international coming out party, and one of the long lasting legacies of those Games was the completion of the bullet trains that revolutionized Japan's national transportation system.

Hosting the Summer Olympics not only revolutionized the japanese transportation system infrastructure, but also transformed Japan.   Since 1964 Japan has become an economic powerhouse nation that is on the cutting edge of developing robot technology, their women's soccer team won a FIFA world title in 2011, they are competitive in other international winter and summer sports disciplines and Tokyo has become a world class international city and the fashion capital of the Asia Pacific region.

As for what visitors to Tokyo can expect when they come to the 2020 Games, the Olympic venue game plan is to have two compact zones called the Heritage Zone and the Tokyo Bay Zone with the Olympic Village intersecting both of them.  

The venues will all be within a 8 km. radius of the Olympic Village

The TOOC will use some of the facilities built for the 1964 Games but also have some newer ones like the revised national stadium design.  

The old stadium design by world renowned architect Zaha Hadid won an international design contest in 2012, but was criticized for looking like a bicycle helmet and for its ballooning construction costs that would have made it at $2.1 billion the most expensive stadium ever built on this planet, exceeding the cost of the $1.6 billion MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.   That design was scrapped by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and a new one recently revealed by the Japan Sports Council.

The Tokyo Olympic Organizing Committee won the bid for the 2020 Games back in 2013 by promising to be 'the safe pair of hands' for it.  It will be interesting to see over the next four years if they pull it off while still hosting a memorable experience for the athletes and visitors attending the Games.

Based on their past history and the flawless way they have executed other large international sporting events they have hosted including two winter Olympic Games in Sapporo (1972) and Nagano (1998), I wouldn't bet against the Japanese doing exactly what they promised to do four years from now as they prep for welcoming the world back to Tokyo for another edition of the Games once Rio finishes its Olympic business.

President Obama's Hiroshima Speech

On May 27 President Obama made more history in an already historic presidency.   He because the first sitting US president to travel to Hiroshima, where the first atomic bomb was droppedon August 6, 1945.

Ten other US presidents had declined to do so, but President Obama didn't.

While the right wingers here in the US have predictably gone off the deep end about it, the rest of the world and reality based America have praised him doing so and the speech he gave in front of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial marking the Ground Zero spot above where the bomb exploded..

Here's the video of that historic speech

The 2020 Tokyo Olympic Logo Revealed

While we are still counting down toward the start of the 2016 Rio Games next year, we already know what city will be hosting the 2020 Summer Olympics.

It's Tokyo, and the Games of the XXXII Olympiad will take place from July 24 to August 9

The countdown to the 2020 Games will begin when Rio's mayor during the closing ceremonies  for next yer's games hands off the Antwerp Olympic flag to Tokyo's mayor, and in preparation for hosting the games for the second time since 1964, the 2020 games logo has been released

It was created by award winning designer Kenjiro Sato with the goal of symbolizing the unifying power of the Games.   It is based on a stylized letter ;T', which is the first letter in the words, Tokyo, Tomorrow and Team.

The black color of the central column of the stylized 'T' represents diversity.  The red color in the circle represents the power of every beating heart, in addition to representing the rising sun at the center of the Japanese national flag.

While the emblem has gotten some mixed reviews since it was unveiled at a public event in Tokyo on July 24, five years before the date of the opening ceremonies of the Games.  While some have criticized it, others have praised it, and the Tokyo Olympic Organizing Committee likes it.

But the logo unveiling is just another reminder that we'll soon be enjoying Summer Olympics action on less than a year, and the chatter about Rio Olympic favorites will only get louder over the next few months.

Hiroshima Plus 70

70 years ago on this date in 1945, the first atomic bomb used in warfare was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima by a lone B-29 bomber piloted by Col.. Paul Tibbets named the Enola Gay.

When the 'Little Boy' exploded in an air burst 2000 feet over the city at 8:15 AM local time, 60,000 people were instantly killed and five square miles of the city was left in ruins.  Thousands of other Hiroshima residents who survived the initial blast later succumbed to burns, radiation poisoning or died of cancer and other illnesses combined with effects of malnutrition.

It is estimated that 140,000 people were killed in Hiroshima and 70,000 in Nagasaki.

While the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki three days later are credited with ending World War II, they are still considered the most controversial events of the war.  The atomic bombings are still being argued in hindsight whether they were even necessary seven decades later.

A ceremony was held yesterday at 6:15 PM Houston time in Hiroshima Peace Park in which representatives from over 100 nations including US Ambassador to Japan Caroline Kennedy were there to mark that somber anniversary with a one minute moment of silence and renew the call to work toward a world without nuclear weapons. 

This 70th anniversary also dovetails nicely with the debate going on inside I-495  about whether the recent Iran nuclear deal will not only shut down their ability to build The Bomb, but be enforceable.

While that's another issue for discussion, what we know is that the Little Boy and Fat Man bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were primitive compared to the nuclear weapons we possess now that can be sent zooming off to their targets in mere minutes..  

We have come close in 1962, 1973, 1979 and twice in 1983 because of mistakes, military system glitches and political miscalculations of the US and the Soviet Union launching nuke attacks on each others respective nations and imperiling life on Planet Earth as a result.  

We must do our utmost to ensure that these are the last instances of cities being nuked in anger, and get people to remember, as I paraphrase a line from the movie WarGames, in that the only way to win a nuclear war is not start one in the first place.

Miss Universe Japan 2015 Is A Sistah!

I've always been a pageant junkie going back to my childhood and one of my fave pageants to watch is Miss Universe.  

I'm still waiting for the first transfeminine contestant to hit the Miss Universe stage, but until them I'm rooting for the girls of the African Diaspora, wherever they come from, to do well.

When the Miss Universe system finally names the date and location of the next pageant, I'll be glued to the TV watching it because of an unexpected sistah contestant.

When the Miss Universe Japan pageant was held in March, the winner was 21 year old Ariana Miyamoto of Nagasaki.    

She has an interesting backstory.  She was born in Japan today in 1994 (Happy birthday sister Taurus!) to an Japanese mother and an African-American father in Sasebo.   After attending elementary school in Nagasaki, Japan, her parents divorced and she emigrated to the US to attend high school in her father's hometown of Jacksonville, Arkansas before the 1.73 m (5'8") beauty returned to Japan to become a model.

She entered the Miss Universe Japan pageant after a biracial friend of hers committed suicide, and represented her hometown of Nagasaki in the pageant.   The moment she was crowned starts at the 6:00 minute mark.

.

Ariana's Miss Universe Japan win has caused some controversy there because in the eyes of some of her critics, she isn't Japanese enough despite being born there, a Japanese citizen, currently residing in that nation, her mother being full blooded Japanese, having fifth degree mastery of calligraphy and she being a fluent Japanese speaker.

And I do have some memories of Jesse Jackson having to make a few trips to Japan starting in the 90's to tackle anti-Black attitudes there.

Miyamoto's win has also opened the doors to a conversation in Japan about what it means to be Japanese in a multi-racial world.  At the same time it also gives African-Americans an opportunity to understand what life is like for a Black woman living in Japan and if it has improved since those contentious 1990's.

Miyamoto is eager to use her newfound fame to facilitate that conversation.  She's hoping her selection as Miss Universe Japan will help change attitudes in her nation toward people of color.

“I want to start a revolution,” Miyamoto said with a laugh. “I can’t change things overnight, but in 100-200 years there will be very few pure Japanese left, so we have to start changing the way we think.”

Ariana is not the first, nor the last Japanese person with African-American heritage they will see in a nation that is 98.5% ethnic Japanese and is not as monoracial as it thinks it is.

And yeah, just goes to show you how beautiful Black women are, no matter what nation they reside in

Congratulations Ariana!   Hope to see you rock the Miss Universe stage in a few months as you attempt to become the first Japanese Miss Universe winner since 2007.

Japan's Ministry Of Education Urges Schools To Do More For Trans Students

While some school districts in the United States no thanks to conservafools are moving to oppress trans students, other nations are going in the opposite direction in their education systems.

The Japanese Ministry of Education on April 30 issued a notice to local school boards imploring them to do more for transgender students to reduce their drop out rates.

Many Japanese schools already allow trans students to dress in the uniforms that conform to their expressed gender identity and use the locker rooms and bathrooms of their choice from elementary to the high school level.

The notice not only encourages all schools to do so,but also encourages schools to take steps to accommodate gay and lesbian students.

n a 2012 document, the education ministry urged schools to care for transgender students but stopped short setting out specific measures. Moreover, no mention of sexual minorities was made.
In June 2014, the ministry revealed that schools nationwide had recognized 606 students as transgender, but noted the actual number was probably much higher as LGBTI students often have difficulty coming out.
- See more at: http://www.gaystarnews.com/article/japan-schools-told-let-trans-students-wear-uniform-use-bathroom-choice010515#sthash.agaVSKjW.dpuf

Trans students, because of the pressure to conform in Japanese society, drop out of school,  The  Ministry of Education expressed concerns about that, and in 2012 put out a notice encouraging school districts to care for transgender students, but stopped short of recommending specific measures to do so.

In June 2014 the ministry noted that schools had recognized 606 students nationwide as transgender, but surmised that the number of trans students was probably much higher.because of the difficulty of TBLGI students to come out.

Our school districts could learn a lesson from Japan's education system and do the same thing.   They will learn, as Japan has, that if you give trans kids the opportunity to be themselves, they will stay in school, get their education, and thrive personally and academically.

The 2020 Olympic Finalist Cities

With the 2016 Summer Olympics set to take place in Brazil, the world is about to find out thirty days from now which mayor of what international city will be handed the Antwerp Olympic flag during the closing ceremonies of the Games in Rio de Janeiro on August 21, 2016.. 

The International Olympic Committee will hold its 125th Session in Buenos Aires, Argentina on September 7.   One of the items on the agenda in addition to electing the new president of the IOC will be to decide which of three candidate cities will get to host the 2020 Summer Olympics.   

The three finalist cities vying to snag the bid are Tokyo, Madrid, and Istanbul.  They delivered their final presentations to the IOC in Lausanne, Switzerland on July 3-4 and will get one final chance to sway the delegates their way at that September 7 meeting in Argentina.

The three host committees along with their national leaders will be nervously watching on that date as the assembled IOC delegates vote to see which candidate city gets an absolute majority of votes and will be signing the coveted 'Host City Contract'  to organize and stage the Games. 

The frontrunner to host the 2020 Games is considered to be Tokyo.  

This is Tokyo's fifth Olympic bid overall and its second consecutive one after being eliminated in the second round of bidding for the 2012 Games.  If this one is successful it would become the fourth city to host the Summer Olympic Games twice. 

Tokyo won the right to host the 1940 Summer Games that were cancelled by World War II.  It bid for the 1960 Games but was eliminated on the first ballot but successfully won the right to host the 1964 Olympic Games, becoming the first Asian city to do so.

The 1972 and 1998 Winter Games were hosted in Sapporo and Nagano in addition to those 1964 Summer Games, so Japan has been there done that when it comes to Olympic hosting experience.   It also hosted the 2002 FIFA World Cup, the 2006 FIBA men's World Basketball Championships, the 2011 Gymnastics World Championships and the 2019 Rugby World Cup. 

Tokyo also scored highly on the IOC Evaluation Committee reviews and there is enough of a time separation since the Asian-Pacific region last hosted a summer games  (Beijing 2008) to make it a front running candidate along with sentiment in the wake of the devastating 2011 earthquake and tsunami to bring the Games there.  It is also regarded as a safe and secure city in comparison to its finalist rivals.

The fact the $4.8 billion budgeted for the Games is sitting in the bank along with a compact Olympic venue plan in which the competition venues are within 8km of the Olympic village with the exception of the football prelims are other pluses in their favor.

Soft public support for the Tokyo bid is one negative that people are throwing at it although that support has continued to rise since the London Games concluded.   73% of Tokyo residents and 86% of Japan now support the bid and it has the backing of Tokyo's mayor and the Japanese government.

Controversy erupted when Tokyo 2020 Chairman Naoki Inose made a shady comment interpreted to be about Istanbul's bid when he was quoted as saying, “Well, compare the two countries where they have yet to build infrastructure, very sophisticated facilities. So from time to time, like Brazil, I think it’s good to have a venue for the first time. But Islamic countries, the only thing they share in common is Allah and they are fighting with each other and they have classes.”

Criticizing another candidate city's bid is against IOC rules and Tokyo 2020 quickly went into damage control mode.  In addition to Tokyo 2020's statement reiterating they "have the utmost respect for all candidate cities and have always taken pride in bidding in a spirit based on the Olympic values of excellence, respect and friendship,” Inose apologized for the comment a few days later.   

How much that comment will affect the IOC votes Tokyo gets in Buenos Aires has yet to be determined since as Chicago painfully found out, ranking very highly on the site evaluations and being considered the frontrunner doesn't necessarily guarantee you'll get the Games, especially in a body as political as the IOC.  

Madrid is attempting its third consecutive bid (and fourth overall) to host the Games.   It lost to Munich in the final round of voting to host the 1972 Games, was knocked out of the third round of voting for the 2012 Games that London eventually beat out Paris for in the final round and lost to Rio de Janeiro in the final round of voting for the 2016 Games.

So Madrid feels it's due.  Madrid like Tokyo also has a compact venue plan with the exception being the sailing events held in Seville and football prelims would be held in various Spanish cities. The bid has national (84%) and citywide (75%) support.   Barcelona hosted the 1992 Games, and Spain will host the upcoming 2014 FIBA World Cup of Basketball with Madrid being one of the host venue cities.   Madrid's Mayor Ana Botella and the Spanish government also support bringing the games here.     

The negatives affecting the bid is Madrid will have to build six new venues and two temporary ones out of the 36 needed.  They will have to upgrade other ones in the midst of a Spanish economic crisis. 

Since London already hosted the 2012 Games, the IOC usually likes some time separation before it returns to a continent..  Only eight years will have elapsed between the time of the 2012 Games and the 2020 ones, but people supporting Madrid's Olympic bid can point out there was only eight years separation between the 1976 Montreal Games and the 1984 LA ones on the North American continent. 

Istanbul is the third candidate city finalist.   It has yet to host a Games but has made four previous bids.  It was one of five candidate cities vying for the 2000 Games but was eliminated in the first round of voting.   It failed to become a candidate city for the 2004 and 2012 Games, and finished fourth in both rounds of balloting for the 2008 Games that were held in Beijing.

Istanbul's bid is proposing to host the Games from Friday, August 7 to Sunday, August 23, 2020.  It is playing up the fact the city is on the Asian and European continents, is new Olympic territory and if selected would be the first time the Games would be hosted in a predominately Muslim nation. 

It was voted the number one city in Europe by the international travel magazine Travel & Leisure for its 2013 'World's Best Awards', and recently completed the Marmaray Rail Tunnel underneath the Bosporus strait that will open in October as part of a major expansion of Istanbul Metro's rail system.    

It does have high level international sport hosting experience.  Istanbul hosted the knockout phase and the final of the 2010 FIBA men's World Basketball Championships with Turkey set to play host next year to the FIBA women's World Basketball Championships.   It has also hosted the 2001 EuroBasket final and the 1992and 2012 Euroleague finals in addition to having a bid in for the 2002 Euro 2020 football tournament.

The Istanbul bid also have the support of the Turkish governement and the city of Istanbul. 

But the protest in Taksim Square that beamed photos around the world of Turkish police violently beating down peaceful protestors, anti-trans violence, getting called out by IAAF president Lamine Diack about doping issues and a negative IOC Evaluation Committee report have started to impact the momentum that was building toward Istanbul winning the 2020 Games bid. 

All three candidate cities cities have bids with strengths and weaknesses and we really won't know until September 7 which city wins the right to host the 2020 Summer Olympic Games.

The Wedding Reception

I haven't treated you TransGriot readers to my fiction writing talents in a while and I'm going to do so with an assist from the characters of the anime series You're Under Arrest.  

I've written about the show and one character in particular in the person of Sgt. Aoi Futaba, who despite what far too many cis people in anime world mislabel as a crossdresser and misgender her, is undeniably a girl like us.

Aoi in the You're Under Arrest series realistically experiences the issues and emotions we go through as she lives her life and does her job as a Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department officer.

This photo I stumbled across of Miyuki and Ken's wedding gave me an idea for a short story based on Aoi and the You're Under Arrest characters..

Hope you enjoy it.

***

"Congratulations,  Mr. and Mrs. Nakajima!"  
"Thank you, Chief," Ken and Miyuki said in unison as they sat at their bride and groom table in the redecorated Bokuto Station cafeteria where their wedding reception was being held.  
"Took them long enough," said Natsumi.
So when are you and Shoji tying the knot, Christmas Cake?"
"I got your Christmas Cake, tramp"
"That's Mrs. Tramp to you, Natsumi." Miyuki said with a mischievous smirk on her face. 
"Keep it up Miyuki and I'm taking my wedding gift back."
"That would make you look bad, Ms. Maid of Honor."
As everyone chuckled over the good natured ribbing best friends Miyuki and Natsumi were giving each other, Miyuki noticed Aoi sitting at one of the tables in her bridesmaid dress forlornly picking at her food and gazing at the other couples dancing.  Ken noticed the concern etched on his bride's face when he asked, "What's wrong with Aoi?"
"Yeah, she was fine this morning before the ceremony," said Saori.
I think I know what might be bothering her, thought Miyuki.

"I'll find out," said Yoriko as she turned on her heel with the bridal bouquet in hand and walked in the direction of Aoi's table. 
"Kenny, do you have your cell phone?"
"Yeah Miyuki. Why?" he asked as he pulled it out of his tuxedo jacket pocket and handed it over to his wife.
"I'll explain later," she said as she started dialing a number and watched Yoriko amble toward Aoi.. 
Moments later she was at Aoi's table and settling into a chair next to her. "You all right?"
"I'm fine,Yoriko."
"You don't look fine, Aoi. You look unhappy."
"Just thinking about something, that's all."
"About what?"
"About my chances of experiencing a day like this."
"Aww, it'll happen for you."
"More likely it'll happen for you since you caught the bouquet."
"I was just lucky as usual."
"Umm hmm.  And who shoved me and two other girls out of the way so you could catch it?"
"Well, all's fair in love, war and catching bridal bouquets."
"I'll keep that in mind the next time one of your boyfriends is hitting on me."
Yoriko's eyes widened in shock before Aoi allowed a grin to spread across her face. .
"I'm kidding." Aoi said in an earnest tone. "You're my partner, I love you and you know I'd never disrespect you like that."
Yoriko nodded as they watched Miyuki and Kenny continue to accept congratulations from fellow officers and the reception attendees as Aoi sighed again..
"Miyuki made a beautiful bride today didn't she?"
"Yes she did.  She looks so radiant."
"She should.  She's been waiting for this day to happen for years."
After a few more sighs from Aoi and silent pauses to watch the happy couple, Yoriko finally decided she'd had enough and it was time to get busy with her mission of finding out what was bothering her patrol partner.
"So what's really bothering you Aoi?"
'What do you mean?"
"Ever since I sat down at this table, you been looking at the other couples, Miyuki and Kenny and sighing.  They noticed how sad you looked."
"I didn't mean to worry her."
"Well, she is.  She's concerned about you and so am I.   So spill it.  What's wrong?"
Aoi paused a few moments to gather her thoughts before she turned in her seat and faced Yoriko.
"This wedding has caused me to review my romantic life and notice it sucks."
"It sucks? You're the one that has handsome guys falling all over you every time we go out or on patrol," Yoriko said.
"Don't even go there, Miss I-Had-a-Middle Eastern-Prince-Falling-All-Over-Me."
"And I guess you forgot about.Go Kitakoji proposing to you."
"No, I haven't."
"What do you mean?"
"I've been thinking a lot about him this week."
"Really?" said Yoriko with a raised eyebrow.
"Umm hmm.  We were a couple for about a year."
"Wait a minute.  How did you pull that off and not have me or the media find out?"
"It wasn't easy.  And neither was keeping you from finding out."
Yoriko chuckled as Aoi recounted the story. "Three years ago he asked me to meet him in Hong Kong for a movie he was shooting there."
"You went to Hong Kong, too?"
"Sure did."
'So what happened?"
"He sent me round trip first class tickets from Narita.  When I arrived in Hong Kong I was picked up in a white limo and taken to one of the best hotels in town.   When I arrived in my room there were several vases filled with my favorite red and white roses." Aoi said as she savored the memory. 
Yoriko nodded as she continued. "There was also a heart shaped box of chocolate with a note from Go, and when I opened it a debit card was inside."
"What did the note say?"
"It was so sweet.  Go mentioned how much he was looking forward to seeing me when he was finished shooting for the day. It also told me to use the card to go shopping and pick myself up something nice to wear for our date later that evening."
'Wow."
"I go into the bathroom to freshen up before I go shopping, and there's a basket with my favorite bubble bath, perfume and a dozen more red and white roses."
"Sounds like he went all out."
"Yeah, he did.  And when he finally arrived it was a waste of time for me to get dressed that evening because we never left the hotel room."   
"Why?"
"Neither one of us wanted to leave," said Aoi. "Although he really wanted to, he was tired from the shoot and I was tired from the travel day.  So we just ordered room service, talked and caught up on what had transpired in our lives since we last saw each other."
"And?"
"And then he kissed me"
"'I knew it!" said Yoriko. "Get to the juicy part.  What happened next?"
"We ended up going to bed with me wrapped up in his arms.". 
"Aww, that's it?"
"Like I said, we were tired.  He didn't have to shoot the next day, so we spent the day together."
"And?"
"And it was wonderful.  When we got back to my room as soon as the door closed he gave me a kiss that just rocked me to my core."  .
"See Aoi...you always get the good ones."
"Nothing happened further than us stripping down to underwear.  I still hadn't had my surgery yet and I was still very insecure and shy about my body."
'You know Go loves you and doesn't care about you being a transwoman."
"I know, but at that time I hadn't gotten past that in my own mind.  I had a hard time believing he really did love me for being the woman I am despite what was between my legs."
They observed Miyuki and Kenny taking their first dance as a couple before Aoi continued. "The weekend came to an end and I headed back to Japan.   He invited me to come to his house two weeks later to talk, and it was that moment we decided to become a couple."
'Wow."
"He wanted to be honest and open about our relationship, and Sachiko and I wanted to keep it quiet out of concerns for his career.
"Who's Sachiko?"
"Go's publicist.  I also wanted to keep it quiet to avoid a repeat of what happened with the two jealous fans at Bokuto Station"
"That must have been hard on you, Aoi"
"It was, but Go made sure we spent quality time together.  He was there when I needed him to be, even when I had the surgery in Thailand."            
"I don't remember him being there with you.  I was at your bedside."
"Yes, you were Yoriko.   But not for the two days you went to Pattaya and the beach."
"Oops..forgot about that." 
"While I was with him he introduced me to several other trans women in Japan and from around Asia.  Two of us became great friends." 
She and Yoriko watched Miyuki hug Randy Hammond and his grandfather before she continued.
"I'll never forget one of the things Go said to me that weekend in Hong Kong."
"What was it?"
"It was just before we went to sleep.  I could feel his manhood pressing against me, he was planting kisses along my neck and caressing my body.  I felt so powerful and feminine until he reached his hand inside my panties and was about to touch me there."
"I tensed up and asked him to stop.  He complied, but said before he stopped stroking down there,'The genitals between your legs does not determine whether you are a man or woman.  What's between your ears and in your heart does." 
"He's right about that, Aoi."
Yoriko and Aoi were mildly startled to see Miyuki standing there before she sat down to join them at their table. "I've said for years you were more feminine than all of us at Bokuto Station.and joked that you were the daughter my mother wanted." 
They all laughed before Miyuki continued. "I wanted you as one of my bridesmaids and so did Kenny.  You're one of our dearest friends, you're one of the girls and you played a major role along with Yoriko and Natsumi in making this day happen."
"That was sweet of you to say.  You don't know how much I appreciate that."
"Kenny and I appreciate you agreeing to be part of our wedding.  Now can you do me a favor?"
"What is it, Miyuki?" 
"Can you put that beautiful smile back on your face for the rest of the reception?" asked Miyuki. "I won't be happy heading off to Hawaii for my honeymoon knowing that you were upset about whatever is bothering you."
"I think I can manage that for you."
"Good," Miyuki said as she hugged Aoi before getting up from her chair to head back to her table.
 The DJ stopped the music a few moments later and handed the mic to Ken for him to say a few words.
"Umm, Miyuki and I thank all of you for coming to our wedding, to this reception and for all the well wishes and gifts we've received as we start a new chapter in our lives together."
"We were wondering when you were going to wise up and marry her," someone shouted as the crowd chuckled. Ken let the laughter at his expense subside before he continued.
"We would like our bridesmaids and groomsmen to come to the front of the room.  We have gifts to thank them for participating in our special day."
It took a few minutes for them to make their way from their separate corners of the room to where Ken and Miyuki were standing and form the gender specific lines to receive their gifts.  First all the groomsmen received theirs, then the bridesmaids were next.  As Aoi approached and received hers, Miyuki was handed the microphone by Ken and she said "Aoi, wait a moment, we have another gift especially for you."
Aoi looked puzzled at first along with the other bridesmaids when she said that, and a low murmur went through the crowd speculating about what this gift could be.
"Aoi was one of the people along with Natsumi and Yoriko, responsible for getting me and Kenny to see how much we loved each other and belonged together.for the rest of our lives.  Now it's time for us to return the favor."
Miyuki paused for dramatic effect before saying, "You can come in now."
Some of the women in the room began to shriek when Go walked in to the opposite entrance to the room dressed in a black tux carrying a single white and red roses along with a stylishly dressed Sachiko flanked by two bodyguards.  Shock and then glee registered on Aoi's face as she spotted them, and she hugged both Sachiko and Go when they arrived at the spot near the DJ area where they were standing.
As Sachiko fished a small box out of her designer purse Go handed Aoi the two roses, smiled as he took the box from his publicist before dropping down to one knee.
"Aoi Futaba, I have loved you ever since the day I first laid eyes upon you many years ago.  That love for you has only grown over time and will not go away despite the many obstacles that have been placed in both our paths."
The tears were starting to flow down Aoi's face as Go continued. "Aoi Futaba, I cannot waste another minute of my life not having you in it.   Will you marry me?"
"Yes!" Aoi said with excited glee as Go arose, placed the engagement ring on her finger and kissed her as  cameras flashed and people cheered .
When the excitement was over Yoriko nudged Aoi with her elbow to get her attention and then whispered into her ear, "Told you it would happen for you"
  
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2012 Olympics Watch-This Time It's For The Gold Medal

The last time Japan and Team USA clashed with a title on the line it was during the the 2011 Women's World Cup final in Frankfurt, Germany.   Japan was recovering from the March earthquake and  tsunami that devastated the northeastern part of the country, and the Nadeshiko Japan rode that wave of international goodwill and determined play to go on a World Cup run that ended with a stunning penalty kick shootout win over Team USA and the FIFA world title..   

It's a year later, and the stage is now a sold out Wembley Stadium and the Olympic Final.   Once again it's Japan and Team USA battling for women's soccer supremacy, and once again the USA comes into the match with the history on their side.   They have won four out of the five Olympic titles since women's soccer became part of the Olympic program in 1996 and are working on a gold medal threepeat .

They also have bitter memories of that loss in Germany and want to atone for it.

"It's definitely redemption," said Carli Lloyd. But it's also opportunity to show that we're the No. 1 team in the world. This game is going to be different. We're a different team. Japan's a different team, and we're ready to bring it."

FIFA world champion Japan wants to make more history and prove their penalty kick shootout win over  the FIFA women's world number one ranked team USA wasn't a one hit wonder.

We'll find out at 1 PM CDT which team takes home the gold.  (Stop hatin', Canada)
  .

Canadian Women B-Ballers Headed To London!

It's next stop London for the Canadian women's basketball team.

Two days after being upset by Croatia in the quarterfinals, they had to do it the hard way and on Canada Day no less, but for the first time since 2000 the Canadian women's basketball team will be taking part in the women's Olympic basketball tournament.

They knocked off Argentina 58-41 yesterday to get to today's final.  Courtney Pilypaitis scored 21 points and handed out six assists in the 71-63 win over Japan to clinch the final berth available in the FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Ankara, Turkey.

The Canadians shot 48% for the game and lit it up from three point range, knocking down 9 of 19 attempts from behind the arc.

They get to savor their win for a few days and contemplate what life will be like in the Olympic Village before preparing for tough Group B Olympic competition that will include games with 2008 silver medalists Australia, Brazil, 2008 bronze medalists Russia,  2010 FIBA Women's World Championship runner-up Czech Republic and host nation Great Britain.   

Canada Women B-Ballers Still Alive For Olympic Berth

It's probably not the way they envisioned spending Canada Day, but they will be glad to take the court tomorrow with a final chance to dribble their way into the London Olympic women's basketball tournament. 

After a tough quarterfinal 59-56 loss to Croatia that dropped them into the win or go home knockout semifinal games today, Canada defeated Argentina 58-41 today to reach the final game at the FIBA Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament being contested in Ankara, Turkey.

Their opponent will be Japan, who knocked off their fellow FIBA Asian Zone rival Korea 79-51 to advance to tomorrow's pressure packed game for the final Olympic women's basketball berth.

Good luck ladies and don't sleep on Japan.   If you do your next chance to play basketball on the Olympic stage won't occur until 2016 in Rio.

2012 FIBA Women's Olympic Qualifying Tourney In Quarterfinals

The 2012 FIBA Women's World Olympic Qualifying Tournament tipped off in Ankara, Turkey June 25 with our FIBA number 11 ranked Canadian neighbors being amongst the femme roundball teams trying to dribble their way into the London Olympic basketball tournament that starts a few weeks from now

Out of the 12 nations that started their quest for the five remaining spots to go to London only eight remain after they survived group play.  The host nation Turkey won Group A and will play Group B runner up and FIBA number 12 ranked Argentina. Group B winner and FIBA number 4 ranked Czech Republic will play Group A runner up and FIBA number 15 ranked Japan.  

Canada was in Group D with FIBA number 8 ranked France and Mali and got their tournament off to a rousing start June 25 by crushing Mali 89-23.  

The next day against France they brought their bricklayers union cards and got off to a slow start that resulted in a 57-46 loss and a 1-1 record in Group D play.  

Despite the loss they were still in great shape to qualify for the quarterfinals because of the blowout win over FIBA number 19 ranked Mali.   The only way they would be knocked out of the tournament is if Mali upset France and beat them by a 65 point margin in doing so. 

Umm no. France routed Mali 88-37 on June 27 to win the group with Canada finishing as the runner up.  France will play Group C runner up and FIBA number 9 ranked Korea for one of the Olympic spots.

The Canadians will play Croatia, the group C winner that has jumped 23 spots in the FIBA rankings to number 31 with a spot in the Olympics going to the winner and the loser moving on to play June 30 the loser of the Turkey-Argentina game.   The losers in the Czech Republic-Japan and France-Korea games would also battle it out on June 30 in the semis.

The winners of the June 30 semifinals would play July 1 for the final Olympic berth.  

I would think the Canadian women's b-ballers would rather handle their business today and be celebrating on Canada Day a trip to London rather than playing a nerve racking two additional must win games tomorrow and on Canada Day to get the final Olympic berth.

70th Anniversary Of The Pearl Harbor Attack

70 years ago today the Sunday morning calm at Hawaii's Pearl Harbor was broken at 7:55 AM local time by a surprise Japanese attack on the bases and airfields in the area from six carriers commanded by Imperial Japanese Navy Admiral Chuichi Nagumo and a two wave carrier aircraft strike force under the command of IJN Captain Mitsuo Fuchida. 

The Japanese were also busy that morning on the other side of the International Date Line launching air attacks on Hong Kong, Singapore, Guam, Wake Island and Clark Air base near Manila.  

They also launched ground invasions of Thailand, Hong Kong, the Philippines and Malaya in the opening steps of their drive to conquer Southeast Asia and build what they euphemistically called the "Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere."

But the Japanese were deeply concerned about the US Pacific Fleet and its 3 carriers, 8 battleships and other ships anchored at Pearl Harbor.  They wished to neutralize it before they continued their plans of military conquest. 



'The day that will live in infamy' as President Franklin Roosevelt called it resulted in the catastrophic loss of the battleship USS Arizona when its magazine exploded and three other battleships, damage to four others, the battleship USS Nevada grounded, 2 destroyers sunk, 188 aircraft destroyed, 2402 people killed along with 57 civilians and 1247 people wounded.   




Fortunately for the United States the carriers USS Lexington, USS Enterprise and USS Hornet were not at Pearl Harbor on that fateful day and Admiral Nagumo decided not to launch a third air strike to lay waste to the drydocks, oil storage tank farm and other Pearl Harbor support facilities and head back to the Japanese home islands despite the urging of Captain Fuchida and other officers to do so . The successful surprise attack galvanized and unified the US population on a level we haven't seen since and led to the entry of the United States into World War II.

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August 6, 1945

And what happened in Hiroshima on this date and Nagasaki on August 9 came too damn close close to being repeated in October 1962, September 26, 1983 and November 1983

Germans Whacked In Wolfsburg

We also don't get the Germans until the final assuming they don't get upset between now and July 17.

Can I call it or what?  I watched the England vs France and Japan vs Germany FIFA Women's World Cup quarterfinal matchups today    I feel for the Brits losing in a shootout, but definitely feel the German supporters pain right now.   

The Germans are the host nation, the back to back FIFA world champs and were prohibitively favored to take a third straight title.   The last time the Germans lost a match in Women's World Cup play was a 3-2 quarterfinal loss to the USA 12 years ago and Japan had never beaten them. 

Until today.   This loss also hurt for the Germans because this tournament was serving for the European teams as a qualifier for the 2012 Olympic women's football tournament.   Hope Powell's Three Lionesses are already in because England is the host nation.


Japan going into this match was 0-8-1 against European squads but is also the FIFA number 4 ranked women's team in the world.   They aren't any football slouches and the law of averages was going to break their way sooner or later just like it did a few days ago with Sweden against the USA.    

The USA and the Germans have had a wonderful run in World Cup and other international women's football competition but sooner or later the teams you beat on a regular basis because they got a late start will catch up to you talent wise.  If you're not on your 'A' game and they have enough talent, a solid game plan and execute it flawlessly you're going down.   .


Japan's not the FIFA number 4 ranked team for nothing and they proved it today.   And as much as I'd like to see the USA continue its dominance of women's international football, at the same time more competitive balance and making us work for those titles is good for the game   

Shoot with that being said, hope Team USA handles their business with Brazil tomorrow.