“Nothing Ever Happens on My Block” is one of Ellie de Castro’s favorite books. It’s not an academic title or a dense read on anthropology. It’s a simple children’s story about noticing the extraordinary in the everyday. In many ways, it mirrors the way Ellie sees the world: curious, observant, and always looking a little closer. When you think of archaeologists, the image that often comes to mind is Indiana Jones — whip in hand, dusty hat, chasing ancient treasures and danger in equal measure. Ellie de Castro is nothing like that. Soft-spoken and deliberate, she carries the kind of patience you’d expect from a kindergarten teacher. But beneath that calm exterior lies a relentless curiosity and the tenacity to follow every thread until it leads somewhere worth finding. That drive, she says, was shaped early on. “I grew up in UP, where everyone was always learning,” she recalls with…