Monkey DNA — Are you a Cousin?

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At Christmas Kongo received a Ancestry.com DNA testing kit.  The results just came back and it confirmed that Kongo is indeed a monkey.  Actually, the test was all about Kongo’s beloved keeper and there were a few surprises but for the most part the results pretty much confirmed what had been learned from previous genealogy research. Kongo’s keeper had previously traced his forefathers to the Jamestown area of Southern Virginia early in the 1600s.  They weren’t the first group to land but they were there within about 15 years.  In the genealogy research the main families investigated were the paternal…

La Brea Tar Pits

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Right in the middle of Los Angeles’ “Miracle Mile” lies one of the oldest sites in North America.  It’s full of ferocious animals along with baby strollers, grandparents, and sunbathers.  It’s the La Brea Tar Pits. Tens of thousands of years ago naturally occurring tar — also called bitumen — seeped from the earth in the Los Angeles basin.  Dust and leaves would cover the tar and unsuspecting prehistoric animals would wander in and that was the end of that.  There are literally thousands of skeletons of animals from a different age laying around Los Angeles and more are discovered…

Original LA Farmers Market

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Old and new come together in West Hollywood at the Los Angeles Farmers Market.  Now there are lots of farmers markets in LA.  Dozens.  But this is the ORIGINAL farmers market that started up in 1934 when a handful of local growers backed their pick up trucks at the corner of 3rd and Fairfax and started selling their produce.  The concept really took off and in a few months people were building stalls and restaurants at the site and it quickly became an institution. Today the market is next to the modern and hugely popular and upscale The Grove outdoor…