the Giant Panda @ the National Zoo gave birth finally after several years of trying

The National Zoo's panda Mei Xiang gave birth yesterday to a squealing, squirming cub the size of a stick of butter, and elated zookeepers said she is giving it the tender care that befits its status as one of the world's most endangered animals.

Even as they rejoiced in their first panda birth after years of effort, zoo officials cautioned that the coming days are critical to the cub's survival. They praised the mothering skills of Mei Xiang, who was holding a rubber toy at the moment of birth and at first seemed surprised by her squawking cub. But she quickly gave it her full attention.
    

Dr. Suzan Murray, chief veterinarian at the National Zoo, monitors the newborn panda cub Saturday at the zoo.
Dr. Suzan Murray, chief veterinarian at the National Zoo, monitors the newborn giant panda cub via video Saturday at the zoo. (Ho - Reuters)
ABOUT PANDA CUBS

Taken from the National Zoo website:

1. Giant pandas reach breeding maturity between four and eight years of age; they may be reproductive until about age 20.

1. Female pandas come into estrus (heat) only once a year, in the spring, during a short period of two to three days.

1. When female giant pandas ovulate but fail to conceive, they undergo seudopregnancies, where hormonal changes and behaviors are identical to a true pregnancy, which makes it very difficult to determine if a panda is pregnant.

1. Panda gestation length ranges from 90 to 185 days, with an average pregnancy lasting 135 days. This two-month variation in gestation occurs because the fertilized panda egg usually floats free in the mother's uterus before it implants and begins developing. Once the embryo is attached to the uterine wall in late pregnancy, its development continues until a panda is born

1. A newborn cub weighs 3 to 5 ounces and is about the size of a stick of butter. Pink, hairless, and blind, the cub is 1/900th the size of its mother. Except for a marsupial (such as the kangaroo or opossum), a giant panda baby is the smallest mammal newborn relative to its mother's size.

1. Cubs do not open their eyes until they are six to eight weeks of age and are not mobile until three months.

1. Any baby born to Mei Xiang and Tian Tian would belong to China, and the National Zoo would likely return the cub to China when it's two years old, so that it could become part of the breeding population there.

1. The giant panda is listed as endangered in the World Conservation Union's Red List of Threatened Animals. It is one of the most critically endangered species in the world.

1. There are about 1,600 left in the wild. More than 160 pandas live in zoos and breeding centers around the world, mostly in China.

1. The Smithsonian's National Zoo is one of four U.S. zoos that exhibit giant pandas. The other zoos are in Atlanta, Memphis and San Diego.

"She looked kind of startled for all of about two minutes, and then she picked the cub up," said Lisa M. Stevens, associate curator for pandas and primates. "She picked it right up and began cuddling and cradling it. The cub responded immediately and settled in."

It may be weeks before keepers can get close enough to learn the cub's sex, because the mother will hold it close and they will not intervene unless something goes wrong. A photo released by the zoo shows the newborn -- which weighs perhaps a quarter of a pound compared with its mother's 250 -- resting on Mei Xiang's arm in an indoor den at the Panda House as staff and volunteers watch via closed-circuit cameras in a nearby room.Quoted from: Zoo's Pandas Produce First Cub, High Hopes

While out shopping with a friend of mine, I came across a pair of slippers that bore this tag:

((e:Twisted) (e:Southernyankee) (e:Lilho))
The pic is fuzzy because I didn't want to frightened the locals by taking pictures of merchandise inside a store. I'll take pictures just about anywhere else, but I guess I have to draw the line somewhere. But it looks like an (e:Paul) creation.

hmmm. quick summary:
lots of homemade sangria (fermented 3 days).
grilled food. baseball on the big screen. fireworks at the pier in Old Town.

All American Avenue in Old Town

tonight is martini madness. Peach Papaya! they are insanely addicting... yum ;)

It seemed the world was divided into good and bad people. The good ones slept better... while the bad ones seemed to enjoy the waking hours much more.Quoted from: Woody Allen Quotes

Saturday was hot here in Dc as well! 100 degrees the gauge read in the car!!!
So Lisa & I headed to the marina in Old Town Alexandria. We took a quick boat ride along the Potomac River to cool off. I sat across from a woman who I thought was Lebanese. I think she took offense to me slathering my dark body with sunscreen. She asked her daughter in her native tongue what I was doing. I could understand part of the daughter's reply "Sunscreen". Unfortunately it could not be helped; i was cooking!
here are some snapshots

All Aboard!

pretty cafe

Lisa and Chamille at the Pier

the new woodrow wilson bride in building progress

It looks like everyone had a blast Thursday night at (e:Ajay)'s farewell at the Pink!
I hurt me not to be there ; (
That beer drinking in the drunk is right up my alley. As a matter of fact, last week I performed a similar adventure: 1 bottle of Panama Jack in purse/1 free very lg Coke & a smile from the Bartender/ 1 Clean lavatory & voila'!!! Instant Drunkenness!!!
This led to riding in a Honda Civic crouched in the front seat, face forward in my friends lap (strictly platonic though). There were six of us crammed inside (Three guys in the back and three peeps in the front) That was a very uncomfortable ride. Oh yeah, and it was a stick shift upon which we all thought we were going to die inside of...

But alas, we arrived safely into Del Ray Va. I pass out on the sofa. I wake up the next morning preparing to take the metro back to Vienna where I left Sebastian.
I make a mad dash for the metro bus and whoops!
I fall down a flight of fancy stairs in my hot new shoes and bust my ass real good!!!

Death by Shoes...

So needless to say, I did not end up getting home until right at 8pm SUnday night. (24hrs later)
I spent the next several hours laid up on my friends sofa while he shoved ice down my back side and made dinner (Crab Cakes - yummy ;) .)
That is a true friend!!! I am still sitting on ice as I type this - yes my arse is still swollen/it's Saturday. I have never seen something swollen for that long. There are lovely bruises to match this time. They go very well with the bikinis I bought just a day before the mishap.

But anyhow, speaking of friends... My Buffalo Visitor this month is my friend Lisa.
She is here for a week . We spent 4 hours in Ikea yesterday!

I got super deals all for under $20.00. Here they have an "AS IS" section full of returned items most in new condition. Yay!!!
I got these straws for $0.49. They were NOT in the "AS IS" section!!!
Lisa put them next to me & took this shot while I napped before climbing into bed.
But, they fit the mood at the end of the day "GROGGY"

me passed out in the middle of the floor (ice pack in place)

Sunday is the Dave Matthews Concert!!! My first DMB concert outside of New York State! Whoo Hoo!!!

Missing Image ;(

I "HEART" DMB in VA!!!

more to come later... Gotta help a friend move today and hit up the National Capital BBQ Battle fest downtown DC.

Best wishes to (e:Ajay)!!!! New ventures are awesome! Even though you will still be on the strip in heart/spirit, the neighborhood won't be the same without your physical presence! I love reading about your day sitting outside of Cafe Aroma or dancing with Hotties in Lotis!

Good Luck in the Bay!!!

who sells birth control on Craigslist????

ortho
Reply to: anon-78172817@craigslist.org
Date: 2005-06-10, 6:30PM EDT


Hi, I've got a packet of Ortho Cyclen (NOT tri-cyclen) that expires 01/06. That's stamped right on the package for your verification.

I paid $30, went off the pill, and am asking $15.

Can meet you in Old Town (I live 40 minutes away in the boonies, and this is the closest stop for me).

Please write me only if you are seriously interested.

Thanks!

* no -- it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests
Quoted from: ortho

Crashing happy hours is the best!!! Esp when it's closed party. Invite only.
I had been dying to check out 18th street lounge,but you gotta go with the right mix of people who are down with having fun and not just looking for fun...
. Home of Thievery Corporation. These guys spin some damn hot beats! My fav of course is Sex Elevator Music.

I thought it was going to be the perfect night of being the best wing girl on the block... Me, struttin' hot, mixin' around the crowd, and shakin' it on the floo-all without visible attachment; but apparently I may need to review the rules or maybe just go along with my own rules(anything goes)...

The catch? WG don't date clients – they help them find dates. A feminine take on the "Wing Man," these pickup chicks go out with guys masquerading as friends or coworkers. When Romeo spots prospects, his WG divebombs, striking up girl-girl chats peppered with anecdotes about how her "love-him-like-a-brother" pal "rescued my kitten" or "just got promoted." Then Prince Charming swoops in and scores easy digits!

Quoted from: Hot sexy ladies ..We're looking for Wing Girls...

all I know is that you guys are a trip sometimes... I laugh about it. You don't know what you want. You sometimes try to sell yourself into the idea of what you want.
if you do this, whisper to yourself; don't try to convince yourself aloud where the girl can hear you! "Hey baby, you may just work!" what the...

Perhaps this is something was all do, men & women alike. Maybe that's our mutual hangup which causes a + +/- - repelling of one another... I dunno.
Other than...
last night = hella fun!

don't you hate when you pay for services and you don't get exactly what you wanted???

Esp when you pay someone $50 for a freakin' haircut!!! not a wash, not a style, just to fuckin' cut some hair!!!

I have no hair. it's not sexy like I wanted. It's cutesy patsy like. it sucks.

so, in much witheld angst, I went to the mall to add on the new do...
$60 worth of shirts (marked down of course, but still hot!!!) to redirect attention from the hair elsewhere...


yuck.

sad me...

crying is so unbecoming... esp when you look like a boy.
"boys don't cry!"