I am never clear if I should start a new thread or not. Since what I am going to post directly adds to this thread, it seems right to post it here, although it would also do well as a separate thread.
I have stated that my wife is often "wound pretty tight." She came back Sunday from a month in the States, including ten days in Orlando Disney with her grandson and family.
Tonight she was in an unusually mellow mood. She mentioned that she might take the direct bus into Mexico City to buy nice disposable plastic plates for the Girl Genius' wedding January 28th, and make it back the same day.
I mentioned I had considered doing the same one day trip, except to perhaps buy a metal detector. She said she thought I had my old one with me. I told her, no, it didn't work, the on/off switch is broken, and I didn't get time to fix it in Texas.
I told her I wanted a Garrett, might be in Mexico as much as $400 or $500. She was surprised. I told her the old one, must have been 25 or more years ago, cost like $250 or more.
She asked what do I want with a metal detector. I pointed at the ancient house down the street. I said I think the uncles will let me snoop, and anything I find I will give them.
She said when she was a girl, which meant for all practical purposes pre-1954, people used to come and search, even with metal detectors. I have no idea how good metal detectors were 60 years ago, but would not use their presence as reason not to try a new detector. She said they didn't find anything. I laughed, and said you really mean they didn't admit to finding anything.
She said once she found an old coin, she thinks it may have been Carlos IV. (1788-?) Her grandma took the coin, and in the 1966 earthquake when an aunt was badly injured, people came in and looted a lot of stuff, including the chests full of old clothes from the 19th Century. (She has one dress of the last Moctezuma woman, partly good, some water damage.) Anyway, the coin also disappeared.
She suddenly remembered something her grandfather once told her. He said in one room of the house, they dug up bones, and a gold necklace. The bones were buried in the local cemetery, and the gold necklace was given to the church.
I asked, "Which room?" She laughed, and said, "I am not telling you."
Then, in a minute she said her grandpa also said there was a step in the ground where they found the bones. Whatever that means. My own guess is a buried step would indicate something is there, like an underground room or tunnel, but what do I know?
She said there is another place where she believes the treasure might be buried, but she is also not telling me that. I mentioned tunnels, and she said it is alleged there are four here, one running for miles. I have explained that I do not believe, because marble fills with water, and no tunnel running for miles could remain usable. I told her there is a tunnel which runs west out of the old church (1620?) across the street, but a man went down it and after a couple blocks decided he had enough of it.
You might wonder why they didn't explore that buried step. She said when her grandfather let people dig on his land, he often said he had no desire to dig up anything he didn't bury, let them have it. Strange, but he was a strange man in his own way, I guess.
He was "mayor", actually they say president, three times. Now there are hard political campaigns. In those days, the town leaders would come and beg him to be the president. The difference is now they get money. In those days, if he wanted something done, he might have paid for it out of his own money. So, it was a dubious honor to be president.
He had his own son tossed in jail for public drunkenness once. Which gives you a clue to his personality, I guess.
My wife said we could go to Mexico City together, and she would get plastic plates for the wedding, and I could go and buy my metal detector. I said I had thought of that, but will wait until next trip to the States.
Edited: I said above I would tell the truth here. In this posting, the truth is I am telling you something my wife told me that she says her grandfather told her. In other words, this is a family legend. No way to know if it is the truth or not.
I just want to thank you for all the pictures/etc. , the history, the humor, and everything. You are in a beautiful country. Your wife is a classical beautiful woman...and I congratulate you....you already posses a treasure.
