I thought I would be having a lot more fun by now: Biden in the White House, Covid Relief checks out to the people, majorities in the House and Senate…but no. Fascism still is rearing it’s ugly head and making me tired. And as we all know, it’s all about me!
Wait…was that Pinky talking in my ear?
This week we’ll have a report from Frank and Mikey as they travel to Alaska to spend some time with their family, and Mei Xiang checks in with her sister! I bet you know what (or who!) is coming next!
But now, let’s dive into the archives for a little of that debonair French panda cubby!
Zank hebben…for leettle bears!The world swoons….Of COURSE he would be an artist!We are pandas of mystery!What grace! What form! Bebe Maurice is a painter to be reckoned with!
Did I hear the Bebe Maurice was going to be making a visit to the Panda House in DC? perhaps he will paint a family portrait!
Be the bear! Bob T Panda
Try to hold off the end of democracy for at least another week!
Who would have guessed my creative journey would have taken me into the realm of needle felted pandas, or even Panda Satire? Certainly not me! When I was in art school, back in the days when you could get a college education for less than the price of a house, if you were a painting student, you PAINTED! Nothing else was acceptable! You did not “waste” your talents on such frivolous pursuits as Panda Satire, for crying out loud!
For some number of years, I held to those principles. Eventually the realities of a more regular cash flow lead me down the path of printmaking (etching to start). Eventually I embraced other forms of printmaking, such as lithography, monoprint, and monotype. One of the universal truths I discovered was that all forms of making art have something to offer, and each technique you add to your tool box, circles back around and makes the other forms you practice stronger.
Working on black and white etchings made my paintings much stronger, with greater attention to composition and light an dark values.
This all has a point
The recession of 2008 hit me hard, and I needed something to cheer me up. Pandas were the answer. I don’t know what the question is. What I do know, is that one thing leads to another: panda satire lead to starting to write children’s book (another pursuit which has a long way to reach its conclusion) and it also led to making needle felted pandas.
Every bear has a story
Some of the stories are mine, but the felty panda troop inspires stories in the people who welcome them into their homes. I am honored to be entrusted with some of these stories, and rather than my usual dive into the archives today, I am going to share some of the photos sent to me by a lover of the felty bears. They have added their own touch to the settings, and as one who has always loved dollhouse miniatures, the exquisite details they have added to the scenes thrill me no end!
Enjoy these Felty Dioramas!
Frank ponders the readiness of his toasted marshymallow. Fortunately, ice cream sandwiches, lemonade, and hot dogs provide a back up, should the marshmallow be burned beyond recognition!Pinky ponders the speed limits of her new cubvertableThe Meihems attempt to catch a ride! “No room!” Pinky says! “you’ll crush my tutu” “Where to,” says Frank!Bert: well, if Pinky won’t give us a ride, we’ll have ice cream without her! Ernie: and some cuppycakes!Mikey prepares a treat at the Panda Chronicles company Picnic, while Larry looks on and gives toasting advice!Frank and Mikey have nabbed the cubvertable, but not for long!Frank and Mikey, kicking back at the company picnicMeanwhile, Pinky is off on a joyride! I wonder how fast this thing goes?After the party, some of the cubbies settle in for a slumber party!
I hope you enjoyed these felty dioramas! It’s never too late to have a panda party at your house!
Have a favorite ‘toon you want to see again? If you can describe it to me, I’ll try to find and post for next week!
By popular request….
Well *bleep* and take your *bleep* and stick it *bleep*!!!!
It was Bikkie’s Debut weekend this week, so, even though I just ran this one recently, it’s always time for the Cute-o-Meter!
See? I told you it was broken!I didn’t THINK that Pinky knew the “share” word.Well, it is kind of funny, isn’t it?My! You are quite the good looking fellow!
While all of Bikkie’s fans prepare to converge upon the Smifsonian Panda Zoo, (and the chaos of a reservation system being overloaded with all of his fans) those of us with non-panda zoos took a day to visit the “other” pandas.
Yes, I do mean red pandas. Of course I asked them where the real pandas were. They were not amused. No matter, it was a fun day at the zoo, meeting up with some of #PandaTwitter for a morning’s wandering in the May Seattle sunshine!
Here are some Sunday Fun Day ‘toons to hold you, until the next exciting episode of Pinky’s Dream drops on Tuesday!
Bikkie’s debut is just around the corner!!!
See? I told you it was broken!Oh those red pandas! They are such characters!It’s so hard to be cool when you still live with your mom.
For those of you who were wondering how Frank got those fuzzy dice stuck on his ear…
Ruh Roh….Send in the bears!I like bears.
Who doesn’t love a couple of adorable grizzly bears?
I WAS kind of hoping that once President Biden took office and started, you know, doing helpful presidential things, that the crazy insurrectionists would calm down, but no.
This is why we can’t have nice things.
But we CAN have some panda ‘toons! Here are some now! Just the thing for Mother’s Day! (I’m pretty sure this is what your mom wanted!)
Our lack of taste is only exceeded by our sense of the absurd.
I hope your taxes are done!
Will Bob ever learn? will Mehitabel ever get the better of the panda kindergarten?I love a good art forgery, don’t you?Oh dear, the Mei-hem twinkies have made Pinky mad. Uh oh.Is this any way to treat our Nation’s most adorable icon?The forces of Meihem are only barely in check.
Panda Birthday season is approaching! Order your cake now! (Don’t flunk cake!)
The recent Doctor Panda felty was suggested to me by one of my long time followers/supporters, but those who have been following panda satire from its earliest beginnings, know that there were some early appearances by a certain panda (“I’m not a Doctor, but I play one in a cartoon”) and also, Nurse Babette, founder of the “Home for Indigent Panda Stuffies” which was just one of her many…um…enterprising enterprises!
Let’s ‘toon in to the way back machine…
All My Pandas……I’m not a Doctor but a play one in a cartoon!
And who could forget everyone favorite game show?
Episode 1Huzzah! More Wheel…of…PANDAS!!!Doctor Panda is making house calls now!
I hope everyone has a good day, but remember, Doctor Panda is in the house!
Be the bear! Bob T Panda
Note: some people are still having trouble getting in to the contact form on the Buy Stuff with Pandas Page. Feel free to email me via the contact form or paper airplanes across the transom if you have a need for felty pandas!
This week we celebrate the 51st anniversary of the first Earth Day! Pandas, of course are well versed in the environmental realm (“We R Endangered!!!!) so it is no surprise that pandas have embraced science!
are you SURE it’s not “carbonated”?well, what if I….but…WeREndangered!No nonsense to be found here!Or how about some cuppycakes?pass the beans!
It feels like spring today (despite the fact that I just woke up from a nap!) and now as the days get longer, I can still go outside!
So here is a little random collection, of ‘toons through the years that I have done in the spring. Do I have a theme? Um…not really! I’m just going to rummage through the ‘toons and see what amuses me today. I hope it amuses you too!
Naughty bear or cuddly menace? You be the judge!I am only making some of this up. Perhaps a THIRD chance is in order?Never underestimate the power of a good “fart joke”
It must almost be time to select the Torch Bears for the next Olympic Games!!!
So much for those new navigation systems…or is it “nagagation systems”?
My recent operating system upgrade and new printer brought along another round of technical difficulties!
Lamentations of Luddites lay waste to Linguini. Did I just see what I thought I saw?
So, my post on Thursday dealt with zoo keepers at a Czech zoo giving their chimpanzees access to Zoom so that they wouldn’t feel so lonely during the pandemic shut down. And then THIS happens! Do we think that there was a diabolical plot hatched between the Czech Chimps and these Barbary apes in Germany? And what about these monkeys in Cincinnati???
I don’t know about you, but this seems awfully suspicious to me! Therefore, today’s ‘toon round up is all about wild animals behaving…um…badly! (mebbee!)
The secret lives of the wild panda!What goes around, comes around.You just can’t trust crocodiles.Ooooooo-oooo-oooo-we have food tonight…Here kitty kitty…nice kitty…“We just want to talk!”
I’m still getting the hang of this new block(head) editor. I’m sure it is a good thing…now if I can just figure out how to do everything I need to do.
Speaking of doing things, I made some Easter Pandas! They’ll be available to order for a limited time.
The Easter Pandas! $42 plus the usual shipping charges. Maybe they will come with some tiny Easter eggs if I can find appropriate baskets!
So how about some ‘toons!
What’s Black and White and carries cuppycakes in a basket?Your marketing team is just as important as your writing!Oh, Bob, you didn’t really say that, did you?And look who Bob’s suspension replacement is! Huzzah!And now…going for the gold!!!
Well, I’m still finding my way around here, so that’s all for today. I’m still having trouble with the links to the new ‘toon post loading correctly when the link gets shared, but the general website address seems to work okay. So sharing on Twidder and fez book will be somewhat more erratic.
