UPDATE (6th of June, 8:03 am): Dr. Fiona Graham a.k.a "Sayuki" Still A Full-Fledged Geisha

UPDATE (6th of June, 8:03 am) Via www.news.com.au/ :

Dr. Fiona Graham denies she has officially split with the Asakusa Geisha Association. According to her: "My situation is unclear. The official papers saying I am no longer a geisha has not gone out from the geisha office yet...But I have the strong support of many of some geisha sisters both inside Asakusa and other districts."

"I'm still a geisha! The white make-up covering my whole face and nape is permanent!"

Sayonara Sayuki: First Western Geisha Bids Farewell to the Sisterhood of Getas & Kimonos

READ UPDATE BELOW (6th of June, 8:03 am)

SAYUKI, meaning "Transparent Happiness" in Nihongo and the Japanese geisha identity assumed by the Oxford-educated Anthropologist Dr. Fiona Graham when she became the first Westerner admitted to the prestigious sisterhood of geishas since 400 years ago in December 2007, is gone. After being stripped off of her geisha recognition on charges of bringing disrepute to the geishas and for not living up to its centuries-old traditions, Fiona left angry and in tears. She's back to being an outsider and the love affair with her adopted country Japan and its geishas has turned sour and disappointing. 

Originally from Melbourne, Australia, Fiona first fell in love with Japan when she went there as a cultural exchange student at the age of 15. She then bravely and determinedly enrolled herself in a high school in Japan before pursuing her undergraduate studies at Tokyo's Keio University. She then went straight to Oxford University for a doctorate in Anthropology and what originally started as an integral part of her formal studies and community/cultural immersion eventually led to years of rigorous geisha training that resulted in her remarkable induction to the geisha organization. 

The Asakusa Geisha Association, the official geisha house where Graham used to be affiliated with, claimed that she repeatedly missed compulsory classes and gatherings. There was no official word as to the manner she was booted out except for reports that she was "politely asked to leave." However, Keiji Chiba, a spokesman for the Asakusa Geisha Association, had one thing to say about Fiona: “She tried.” I'm not sure also if Sayuki's or Fiona's chief trainer or geisha mother, "Yukiko" had a hand on her ouster.  

She did try. And Fiona's efforts in fully assimilating with and immersing in the long and still revered tradition of the geishas should be applauded in a sense that she was able to live and be recognized even for a short period as a full-fledged geisha. However, based on the reported claims of Fiona's co-geishas, being a geisha is not a creative or perhaps scholastic enterprise but a life to live that is bound by strict rules, traditions, and one-of-a-kind discipline and most importantly a life purpose in accordance with exclusive kinship among geisha "sisters" and "mothers" that must be fully embraced.      

After debuting in 2007 as a geisha, Fiona lectured in schools about the geisha traditions and continued her pursuit of a scholarly life. Her case was not just a costume play (or Cosplay) because she had to live a real geisha life for years. Conservative and seniority-oriented geisha rules dictate that newcomers like Fiona must seek official approval first from her elders or senior geisha "sisters" before she can perform in front of the public or customers. According to reports, her "sister" geishas accused her that she performed even without permission. A fellow geisha alleged that “She says she is a flute player but she does not go to lessons and said she was already good enough."

In fact, another of her co-geisha claimed that “No-one would give her permission because she was not good enough – so she became hysterical, yelling at everyone. That is not our style. We have a traditional way of thinking and we have to obey our older ‘sisters’." This in turn, according to their allegations, made Fiona to arrange her own "unofficial" and "unauthorized" performances in front of paying customers outside the geisha district. Sad. Really sad. Simply put, Fiona or the Dr. Fiona Graham was just not yet ripe for public performances. Or perhaps, she must have stepped (both literally and figuratively) on some senior geishas' toes and ultimately earned their white-faced ire.

Sayuki (Dr. Fiona Graham) during her first appearances as a newly-inducted geisha in Tokyo.

I am very familiar with the old Tokyo geisha and entertainment district of Asakusa because I lived there as an exchange student too not long ago, albeit briefly and under the harsh circumstances of a Tokyo dry winter (AND, definitely not as a geisha apprentice). Geishas of all ages and stature would normally roam around the area after lunch near the many capsule hotels and within the Asakusa Temple grounds and the bazaars for a regular and very chore-like parade to meet and mingle with people. I tried having a picture with a group of geishas but they commanded a price too hefty for a student like me that time. I ended up having a stolen snapshot with a beautiful view of the backs of a group of geishas underneath the very large fit-for-Maskman-Galaxy-Robo woven straw slipper. What baffled me more than anything was when I tried to engage a couple of geishas for a conversation, they put on a shy smile, as if on cue, and covered half of their faces from below their eyes down with a fancy folding fan. Their movements lacking of sophisticated grace and appeared almost learned by rote. I'm guessing I chanced upon the failing ones or the ones lagging in progress in the geisha school. 

Now, I'm quite certain that Dr. Graham will come up with a creative non-fiction book or perhaps a more straightforward scholarly book on the geisha life based on her own experience. "Memoirs of a Real Geisha" is a fitting title for her would-be tell-all book. After all, Arthur Golden's critically-acclaimed 1997 novel, "Memoirs of a Geisha" inspired her after she read it. "Geishacked"? "Geishocked"? What do you think?

UPDATE (6th of June, 8:03 am):
Dr. Fiona Graham a.k.a Sayuki denies she has officially split with the Asakusa Geisha Association. She explains VIA www.news.com.au/ the following:

"I asked the geisha association, given the circumstances of my mother, if they would allow me to become independent in December."

"I was told very directly that the reason I couldn't have tenure was because I was a foreigner.”

"Being the first white geisha was the hardest thing I have had to do.”

"I have worked very, very hard, so it's a very hard thing when the geisha association would not allow me to become independent solely because I am a foreigner."

FOR MORE ABOUT the clarification, READ THIS...

In Fine Fettle: Curve Side Alert

THINGS ARE changing in the fashion industry. More and more people are speaking out against Photoshop-manipulated magazine covers or editorial spreads. There are more companies embracing and advocating the beauty of diversity and most important of all, healthy beauty. There are more plus-size female models in the industry now but more in the print ad campaigns.

Plus-size model, Lizzi Miller in a photo published on the September 2009 issue of Glamour Magazine.

A male plus-size model struts his stuff in an indie European style magazine.

READ MORE About Plus-Size Male Models...

In the US, the average weight of a woman is 163 pounds or 74 kg based on 5' 3.8" or 163 cm average height (National Center for Health Statistics: NHANES III (1988-1994); HANES (1999- 2000)). So, that's pretty much the size of Queen Latifah or Brooke Elliot the actress who plays Jane Bingum on My Lifetime Channel's "Drop Dead Diva."  The average weight of an American man, on the other hand, is 190 pounds or just think of Adam Sandler (based on average height of 5' 8.5" or 174 cm) according to the same sets of studies mentioned earlier.      

This sure is a healthy sign and in this case, the Europeans are aggressively taking the lead. 

In 2006, during the Madrid Fashion Week, the organizers and the Madrid City officials (official financial backer of the event) banned skinny models and allowed only those with a body mass index (BMI) of at least 18 that meant a 5ft 9 in (1.75m) tall model must weigh a minimum of 8st 11oz (56 kg) in order to walk the catwalk.  

The most recent good news is VOGUE ITALIA's decision to put three (not just one!) amazingly beautiful plus-size models on their July 2011 cover. This is an aim to battle upfront the pro-anorexia messages being sent by some beauty and fashion establishments. And lo and behold, the cover doesn't shy away from fully showcasing and prominently celebrating the women's curves because they are flaunting their features in their underwear. 

    In full glory, plus-size models Tara Lynn, Candice Huffine, and Robyn Lawley in a cover photo by Steven Meisel for the "Real Beauties" July 2011 issue of Vogue Italia.  

Now, there's something to feel good about when women and/or men read publications that aren't afraid to go against the image alteration "standards" perpetuated by over-editorialized and over-glamorized out-of-touch-with-reality fashion ad campaigns. Why feel good? Because if you're an average-size American (based on the statistics and figures mentioned earlier) woman or man, then you won't feel alone or MARGINALIZED or even neglected. 

The important thing is you're healthy, eating well (as in nutritious and delicious!), up and about, and feeling good. After all, it is really true and proven not just by scientific standards but by common sense that when you DO good, you'll FEEL good and then you'll LOOK good.

In Memoriam

Jack Kevorkian, controversial suicide advocate dubbed as the 

Doctor of Death, dies at 83

TO MANY, he was the "Angel of Death" or "Doctor Death" as dubbed by the media. To a certain few, he was an angel, even a saint, and a hero. 

READ more and WATCH videos here... 

The Earth in the Eyes of Astronauts

Ever wonder what's the view from above? Here's what Earth looks like from space and the amazing details of our planet's surface:

Real-Life Two-Face Illusion

Everyday Heroes: Strong Spirit, Tender Heart

Japan is the land of superheroes. They are all multi-colored fierce, kick-ass powerful, and staunch defenders of the good against evil. Intelligent and funny, they exude strength and restraint at the same time. 
As a child in the 80s and a teenager in the 90s, I followed a lot of Japanese superhero cartoons and live-action shows like Bioman, Maskman, Voltron, Voltes V, Ultraman, and Magmaman just to name a few.  

After the harrowing magnitude 9 earthquake and major tsunami that destructed Japan last March 11, many selfless heroes and heroines have dedicated their services and even their lives in rescuing people and tending to the survivors amid the deadly radiation leak and nuclear power plant meltdown in Fukushima. The Great Eastern Japan Earthquake of 2011 claimed more than 15,000 dead, more than 5,000 injured, and about 8,492 still missing and unaccounted for.

To this day, the troubles and dangers brought by the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant meltdown and radiation leak are still being dealt with by the selfless young workers and dedicated professionals.  
Now, a team of modern day Japanese superheroes-in-the-making are volunteering their services to work in the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant almost three months after the catastrophe. This courageous group of about 200 seniors and pensioners composed of retired highly-skilled engineers and other professionals over the age of 60 are more than willing to fix the nuclear facility complex or what's left of it. They want to spare the brave young professionals who are presently working in the radiation contaminated area so that they can live longer and help more people in the future.      

This group calls itself the Ultra Power Magmamen Giga Association but it is more commonly and appropriately known as The Skilled Veterans Corps.  

Yasuteru Yamada, the group's leader said people from all walks of life are welcome to join them.

"We are not kamikaze. They were going to die but we're going to come back." - Yasuteru Yamada, one of the 200 pensioners volunteering their services to work at the Fukushima Power Plant.

VIA BBC Japan and BBC Asia-Pacific: