Tales from the CryptTok 

Timestamp: Sept. 20, 2023

Location: Trinidad, CA

Hey Grave Babies, it's me, Shyla, your favorite tomb raider! I know it's been a few weeks since I posted but I've been busy with a big surprise for you all! Remember how I told you St. Louis has some of the best archeo-foraging sites of all time? Well, check out this haul: You're looking at a vintage sweetheart locket necklace, actual gold, with what I am pretty sure are real rubies. We have a rough idea of when it was made because of what we know about the original owner — but this could actually be a family heirloom decades or even centuries older than her. If that's the case, we are talking about major profit, especially since I did not have to break the chain on this one to liberate it! This could offset the total cost of the trip and all my tools, as well as the cash-only motel where I'm filming this. Don't forget to check out my video on how to Off-Grid Grave Dig, for all of you who want to try the forage life but also want to play it safe! And now, the biggest surprise! Are you ready? OMG, okay, here it is. Yes, it's the key to the lock! What do I always say? Check. The. Bottom. Of. The. Box. I'm pretty sure this key was in the original owner's hand when she was interred, but it had slid right down to the foot of the casket and I had to sift through about 100 years' worth of decomp silt to find it. And I saved the big reveal for you guys! Even I don't know what's in here. Here we go ... aw, it's a lock of baby hair y'all. Classic. If you're a Patreon-level subscriber to my feed, you've seen my hair lock collection, which is getting a little too big to take on the road. Before photography was a thing, 19th century American settlers would often save little trinkets like this to remember their loved ones. Through foraging, we're only now finding out just how widespread this practice was — plus picking up cool collectibles! #historynerd!

Timestamp: Oct. 1, 2023

Location: Jackson, MS

Good morning, my gravebabies! As you can see, it's barely dawn out here and the mist is just starting to rise from the ground. Today I'm coming to you live from the Little Bethlehem cemetery just outside of beautiful Jackson, Mississippi. It's a perfect location for archeo-foraging for so many reasons, including its unsecured gate and quick access to the freeway once I'm done. But, most importantly, the dates, y'all, the dates! You gotta check those dates! Now, when I pan over this family plot, for example, what do you see? That's right, the same year of death for almost everyone: 1922. So we're probably looking at an outbreak of influenza or cholera. You know what I always say about epidemics: Shallow graves, cheap coffins! But I knew I was in for something special because, as you can see, it is just row after row of actual tombstones, meaning there was some serious intergenerational wealth here that translated to the survivors paying for proper masonry once the epidemic had ended. I was pretty sure I was going to find some cool stuff that you wouldn't see after the 1929 stock market crash, when a lot of families had to sell their heirlooms, and I wasn't disappointed. I'll give you a quick preview before I have to get back on the road. Please excuse all the dirt under my nails ....

Timestamp: Oct. 12, 2023

Location: Bloomington, IN

Hiiiii Crypt Crew! Oh my gosh, it is cold here! I'm soooo thankful to my sponsor, Marshall's, for sending me these insulated gloves keeping my hands nice and toasty. Make sure you check out their special Family Weekend Pre-Holiday Sale! Use the code 6FTPLUNDER to get another 5 percent off selected items. And speaking of family ... did you know some of my favorite foraging sites belong to people who didn't have any? No, not orphans. Widows! I found this absolute gem of a mausoleum ripe for liberation. We're talking a wealthy widow. We're talking Gilded Age. We're talking no kids. And while there is one museum wing named after the family, I did some research and it turns out they didn't actually leave the museum any money, just some old artifacts and bones that got dug up when her husband's company built a canal and road system through Potawatomi land! That means some serious wealth probably went into the ground with her. Or, as it were, into the tomb, as everything here is aboveground. Now, normally, this is where things would get tricky. As you can see, this locked door might take a little extra work, but I'm going to make it happen. In the toolbox today: An electric saw with a diamond blade, plus several back-up blades and a portable generator. Also a crowbar, a pry-bar and some metal shears, which also come in handy if you ever have to get through bone. Ladies, don't be intimidated when you go into the hardware store! You got this! #Girlboss!

Timestamp: Oct. 13, 2023

Location: Bloomington Police Department holding room

Hey Crypties, just getting at you real fast before they take my phone away. They said I could call my lawyer but I decided you — my fans — were so much more important. So this is a little goodbye for now, because I don't know when I'll be able to get back to work. I've discussed on this channel before how lopsided and unjust our legal system is, and now you're seeing it in action. Here I am, a female entrepreneur, making it happen in what has, candidly, been a male dominated field for centuries, and the patriarchy cannot handle it. It's just like I have said a thousand times: Our justice system literally prioritizes the rights of the dead over the need for the living to make a living. Which, by the way, is not going to be possible for me for a few months at least, so if you really love and support me, please, please consider sending some money to my Venmo to help pay for my legal fees. Or become a Patreon-level subscriber to my feed, which will unlock special bonus videos and maybe a treasure map to the hidden location of that baby hair collection you've been asking about. I'll be back with you as soon as you can, I promise! Don't forget to hit that 'like' button and share this post with the hashtag #ResurrectShyla! Kisses for now gravebabies, byeeeeee!

Linda Stansberry (she/her) is a freelance writer and journalist who lives in Eureka.