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Animated Meat

Junk Drawer of the Universe
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As some of you may remember, Animated Meat first came to life in 2008 as a way to document some sights that managed to slip through the cracks of most popular travel websites.  You may also remember that the original website was built on Apple's now defunct iWeb.  From there, it migrated over to WordPress where it met an untimely demise at the hands of Russian hackers.  Many of those old, pre-2012 entries have found a new home here in the Before the Now section.  I would consider these posts as my starting place as a writer, probably comparable to a musician's first demo tapes.  They are very rough, but I took them all seriously and wrote each one with passion.  While I would like to believe that I have matured in my abilities as a writer, it is my hope that I carry this same blind passion into all of my new efforts.

Outside halloween club

Halloween Club - Originally Published 2010

August 1, 2018
Store

Being a peer-edited scientific journal, Animated Meat seeks to shed light on the mysteries of the universe.  Today, we ask the question, “What happened to all the adults?”

Masks

Adults.  Remember them?  They were those folks with mustaches and lower back pain that drove AMCs.  They used to tell us when it was time for bed and to turn down that god damned racket.  I’m not sure when it happened, but it seems that they very quietly disappeared somewhere back in the 1990’s.

Death from above

Take the Halloween Club, for example.  This is a year-round store in Santa Fe Springs devoted to all things spooky.  It’s well stocked and the staff was great.  They were attentive and helpful.

Skulls

But a year-round Halloween store?  I don’t think that this would have flown back in 1976.  Why?  Because 1970’s moms were worried about being good moms.  They didn’t concern themselves with dressing like a slutty stewardess. 

Stormtrooper

Do you have $1000 sitting around?  If you do, they have a storm trooper outfit for you.  The adults that used to be around wouldn’t be interested in something like that.  That same thousand dollars could be used to put a new roof on the house.

Peeled off face

But as I said, this place is incredibly well stocked.  There’s even a cannibal butcher shop.  Stock up, because the peeled off face is on special this week.

Child leatherface

And while I’m busy calling our generation’s ability to be adults into question, I want to point out these costumes.  Yep.  Leatherface, Jason, and a pimp all in child sizes.

Child pimp
In travel Tags store, santa fe springs, halloween, halloween club, 5, animated meat, ed richter, united states, california, southern
Mai and sign

Heritage Park Pumpkin Patch - Originially Published 2008

July 27, 2018

In the early 20th century, La Verne and much of Southern California was a citrus producer.  Somewhere, between then and now, contractors showed up and built the suburbs.  La Verne has managed to preserve a few spots; one of them being Heritage Park.

Fall ed

The park hosts a number of seasonal events.  Most recently, we swung by to take a look at the annual Pumpkin Patch.

Fall mai

Aside from just a pumpkin patch, there are animals to pet and old, rusty tractors to get lockjaw from.  It’s pretty amazing to consider that only one hundred years ago, most of Southern California looked exactly like this place.

Citrus
Mai and chicken

This chicken ruled.

Old and rusty

If you’re ever in the area, it’s worth taking a look at a piece of America that just doesn’t exist anymore.

In travel, parks Tags la verne, halloween, pumpkin patch, fall, autumn, southern, california, park, animals, farm, citrus, la county, ed richter, animated meat, united states

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