So…here’s the thing. I really wanted to keep Mei and Tian and all the kids in DC, even though they went back a year ago, and the kids even before that. and, had there been no new pandas in DC, I probably could have kept up the fantasy that all the pandas live together in the Panda House, with the occasional visit from Six and Sebben, not to mention Frank, Mikey, Pookie, Josie, and let’s not forget Ping. I mean…Mehitabel still rules ZooNooZ and she’s been dead for almost 8 years now.

But now Binky Li and his Qing Bao have arrived. If they are to find their stories and be the stars, along with Chuie and Xinger out in Pandiego of The Next Generation, well, it was getting a bit crowded in the Panda House, and who could surpass Pinky’s stardom. So, they have moved to China, just like their real life counterparts. I think there will be stories coming from there. They have been my constant companions for more than a dozen years.

Fortunately, there will be some continuity. Frank and Mikey and Pookie (and Josie) are staying at the Panda House. So is Ping. Somebody has to show them around town! Bob and Mehitabel will still be holding down the ZooNooZ desk.

When one of my favorite mystery writers killed off one of her most loved characters in a rather brutal fashion, she said, “if you don’t let your characters sometimes have bad things happen to them, if they all live happily ever after forever, you eventually hit a story dead end.” While I do like a bit of repetition in my stories (I find it funny that Six and Sebben are always bad guests, and that their mother is always finding excuses to send them off to her sister’s house) I think by expanding the pandas’ world, there will be more, not less stories to tell. So let’s tell some stories!

But first, a letter from Ka’Bikkie to his nephew…

Don’t be mad, ‘kay?

Be the Bear
Bob T you voted, didn’t you? Panda