A boy and girl bite into the same apple inside a pumpkin. Text at the top reads "Halloween."

The Long Lost Matchmaking Rituals of Halloween

October 21, 2020, 6 Comments

When it comes to holidays about true love, one typically thinks about Valentine’s Day, and not Halloween. But yes, the time of year we typically associate with more macabre imagery used to have a rather romantic element, the rituals of Halloween matchmaking. Some of the earliest noted methods of Halloween matchmaking are from 18th century…

Long Form: Removal of Confederate Monuments

July 21, 2020, 5 Comments

Unless you are totally new here, then you know that I value history. I love it. I have a degree in it. I live for it. Much of this blog is dedicated to history in one way or another. So…when I hear people crying “They are erasing history!” it should be an alarm bell to…

Myself, holding a bottle of Coke, while wearing a t-shirt of a girl in a cowgirl hat with a bottle of Coke being handed to her, red script reading "Coca-Cola" across the top. Script across the photo reads "History of the Coca-Cola Bottle"

Curvaceous Design: The History of the Coca-Cola Bottle

May 20, 2020, 6 Comments

Few things are as iconic as a bottle of Coca-Cola. In fact, as early as 1949, a study showed that fewer than one percent of Americans could not identify a bottle of Coke by its shape alone. That is a pretty big flex if you ask me. Today it’s impossible to think of not being…

Six cameras of various styles are lined up at the bottom. Blue script reads "Patric's Camera Collection Vol. 1"

Patrick’s Camera Collection Vol. 1

March 25, 2020, 5 Comments

When Patrick and I first started dating he was well on his way to a career as a photographer, and I soon learned he didn’t collect anything. Now, coming from a family of collectors I was a little shocked. Some years previously I had purchased a cute vintage camera and decided to gift it to…

Myself, standing in front of the neon mural, wearing a dark blue velvet wide brim hat with a mustard band, and a light brown suede jacket with cream fur trim, a white peasant top underneath, and dark jeans.

Inside Los Angeles’ Historic Grand Central Market

March 12, 2020, 4 Comments

In the heart of downtown Los Angeles stands a rather unassuming building, but on its first floor is a unique icon of the city, Grand Central Market. Under various buzzing neon signs, each advertising a different vendor, crowds of people make their way through what is now a first class food hall offering unique dishes…

A low, single story building has an overgrown front yard area, and weeds growing through the cracks of the sidewalk. Banana trees have grown as tall as the roofline.

The Ghostly Remnants of the Old LA County Poor Farm

February 25, 2020, 12 Comments

Within the small LA suburb of Downey sits what appears to be a ghost town. A mixture of overgrown, charred, and boarded up buildings sit behind chainlink fences topped with barbed wire, and gates locked with multiple padlocks. What is this ghostly place? It is what remains of the Los Angeles County Poor Farm. For those…

Faded blue neon sign for the Frontier Motel and Restaurant. A mural painted on the side of the building features a chef and the word "Cafe"

Fading Icons of Arizona’s Route 66

September 27, 2019, 9 Comments

As mentioned in earlier Arizona posts, most of our journey took us along the Mother Road, Route 66. The legendary stretch of blacktop is dotted with a combination of still functioning tourist attractions and long forgotten buildings, all begging to be photographed. So, in my concluding Arizona post, I share with you a sampling of…

Myself standing in front of the blacksmith shop, where a giant prickly pear cactus resides, wearing a black dress with silver trim.

How One Book Saved Old Town San Diego

July 11, 2019, 6 Comments

After checking in to the Cosmopolitan, we explored Old Town for a bit, going in and out of the various museums and shops this unique state park has to offer. Old Town San Diego State Park is made up of a variety of authentic buildings from the 19th century and early 20th century, along with…

Screencap: Men take a body out of the orange and blue Laff in the Dark building, covered in a white sheet.

Tracing the Journey of Mummified Outlaw Elmer McCurdy to the Long Beach Pike

June 26, 2019, 4 Comments

Last week I talked about the history of Long Beach’s infamous Pike, including the location being used in an episode of Charlie’s Angels and The Six Million Dollar Man. What I didn’t mention was that in the Charlie’s Angels episode, “To Kill an Angel,” a man’s body is found within the Pike’s Laff in the…

Myself standing with the Cyclone Racer Bridge in the background, wearing a t-shirt with a female sunbather and the Cyclone Racer in the background, and red shorts.

The Rise and Fall of the Long Beach Pike

June 20, 2019, 38 Comments

Towering above shops like H&M, Forever 21, and The Gap is what appears to be a rollercoaster, yet no cars race by, and no screams of riders can be heard. Upon closer inspection, it is no rollercoaster, just bridge built to look like one. But, why? Let’s take a trip back in time, all the…

Atomic Redhead

1910s

The Long Lost Matchmaking Rituals of Halloween

Long Form: Removal of Confederate Monuments

Curvaceous Design: The History of the Coca-Cola Bottle

Patrick’s Camera Collection Vol. 1

Inside Los Angeles’ Historic Grand Central Market

The Ghostly Remnants of the Old LA County Poor Farm

Fading Icons of Arizona’s Route 66

How One Book Saved Old Town San Diego

Tracing the Journey of Mummified Outlaw Elmer McCurdy to the Long Beach Pike

The Rise and Fall of the Long Beach Pike