au revoir, tai shan!

today tai shan was packed in a fedex crate and flown back to china.

as notion's capital commented  "If no one's home, leave him with the neighbors in Mongolia."

pandamania

today begins the big party for washington's favorite panda, tai shan, at the national zoo. it's a bitter sweet affair, though, as it marks the start of the countdown to our favorite panda's return to china in a week. trudge through the snow 11-3 to listen to panda interpreters, talk to zoo specialists and participate in panda art activities. above is a photo of my "freedom panda" i sculpted for pandamania back in 2004.