Keith Kretchmer

In Los Angeles is one of the most unique and amazing places I’ve ever visited—the LaBrea Tar Pits.  Have you been there?  Smack in the middle of the city, somewhere is this primordial natural deep pool of a tar-like substance.  Trapped and preserved in this pit over the millennia are long extinct creatures that are often extracted to this day.  Scientists continue to study what is pulled out of this large gooey, messy pool and are still amazed at what is in there.

You can tour the LaBrea Tar Pits and see the exhibits in the museum there.  Prehistoric creatures and early humans I had only read about are on display.  It’s fascinating.  To my knowledge this is the only site of its kind in the USA.  It’s different and better than just fossils, as the creatures trapped in the pit are nearly fully preserved.

Of course there’s a gift shop.  Have you been to a museum without one?  I made a purchase on my first visit—a sabretooth tiger tooth.  I only purchased one and not the complete set of two.  Being bitten by this would hurt like being stabbed with a dagger.  (Not that I’ve had this experience.)   Apparently many sabretooth tigers have been extracted from the tar pits over the years.

I still have this tooth.  It’s been on my desk for decades.  It feels nice when I hold it.  I’ve often wondered however—is it real?  It feels like it might be.  Maybe it’s a plastic reproduction.  I’ve never had it analyzed by a knowledgeable professional.  It doesn’t matter, though.  I like to think that this awesome canine was once attached to the maxilla of a fearsome prehistoric big cat.  It’s real enough for me.