Me and Trisha clowning around at Stew’s. It’s kinda hard not to, especially when you’re with an out-of-towner!

A couple of months ago, I attended Book Fiend Reader’s Fest III up in Manchester, a little less than an hour from my house. My friend and fellow writer Trisha Wooldridge, who lives in Massachusetts, came down for the weekend, as the morning drive from my house was shorter than hers—but also, we LOVE having weekends together and would use any excuse to get one.

When we were planning food for the weekend, I asked, “well, what would you like me to get?”

Her immediate response was, “Can we go to Stew Leonard’s when I get there?”

She hadn’t spent the weekend here in Danbury since 2013, when she and another friend and fellow writer, Nanette, came here for a writer’s retreat (we were all broke and couldn’t afford to rent a place). On that trip, I took them to Stew’s—and Trisha, who wasn’t familiar with it, remembered her experience.

So, for those who’ve never heard of it, what is Stew Leonard’s? Billing itself as The World’s Largest Dairy Store, it’s a wonderland of pretty awesome stuff, but the biggest attraction is probably, honestly, all of its crazy singing animatronics. Most of these displays entertain the little kids, but they’ve been a great balm in Gilead for any adult who’s feeling down. Nothing a little video of singing animatronic chickens can’t cure, right?

Or maybe just these creepy avocado girls.