Bernina’s Eventful Adventures

Bernina and I are good friends

I met this grand old lady when I was 18, and she has been my friend for 55 years. She’s tired and is scheduled for a checkup next week, to see if we can revive her. She is a model 730 Record, Bernina sewing machine. We have been through a lot together.

Like many females of my era, I learned to sew in Home Economics class in Grade 8, making the obligatory multi-pocket apron. As I advanced through high school my sewing projects included several dresses, then in Grade 12 a tailored plaid wool skirt and matching plaid wool jacket.

Wacky grad dress!

Using my mom’s old pedal Singer Sewing machine that lived in the basement of our home, I created my high school graduation dress. The tunic design and the multi-colored fabric might not have been my best choice, but when the artsy owner of the fabric store and my creative mother ganged up on me, I acquiesced to their suggestions; their very persuasive suggestions.

The summer that I graduated, I was chosen as Miss Merritt, to be an ambassador for the town of Merritt at various British Columbia festivals and events. I designed and sewed the costumes for myself and the three young women, referred to as princesses, who shared the responsibility of being ambassadors.

Many events required a long formal dress. I didn’t have a lot of money, so I made whatever I needed. Some of the dresses were cute and some were oddly formal and too mature for an 18-year-old, but again, my creative mother and the artsy fabric store owner thought I looked divine.

A formal dress

That same year, I moved to Penticton, living with a family that was based in Penticton, but scattered. The husband worked as a cook in the camps up north. The daughter was married and living in Michigan. The oldest son was at university in Vancouver. And, the wife and younger son lived in the family home. They had extra bedrooms, and rented one to me for a low monthly rate, in exchange for minding their youngest son while his mom played bridge a few nights a week. The mother let me use her sewing machine to create the formal dresses that I needed.

One year later, Mom decided to buy me a sewing machine. I planned to move to Vancouver with another Penticton girl and share an apartment. Mom went into the Bernina sewing machine dealership at 418 Main Street in Penticton and purchased two 730 Record machines; one for my sister Judith in Vancouver, and a portable version of the same machine for me.

In those days the machines, without the cabinets to house them, were around three hundred, or more, dollars. It was a lot of money for a recently widowed woman to be spending, but she insisted that we needed sewing machines. Judith’s was in a cabinet. Mine was a portable. I was single and moving frequently and I didn’t want to deal with a bulky piece of furniture.

Ladies and me in costumes that I made

My next project was curtains for the Vancouver basement suite that my Penticton friend and I shared for six months.

Then friends asked me to make bridesmaid dresses for them. A year later I made a wedding dress for me, and my first husband, Sandy, requested that I make him several cozy wool shirts.

My portable Bernina sewing machine moved from Penticton to Vancouver, West Vancouver, North Vancouver, Bowen Island, back to Vancouver, then strangely enough back to Penticton in 1992, when Lawrie and I bought a home and acreage here.

Lawrie, sofa that I recovered

All along I sewed. Clothes. Reupholstered sofas. Slipcovered chairs. Upholstery for cars that Lawrie restored. Duvets. Curtains. Drapes. Tablecloths and napkins. And repairs of course.

Then when Lawrie and I moved to Mexico, in 2007, I left my Bernina with my oldest sister, Val in Gibsons. I didn’t want to subject the machine’s delicate electronics to the high humidity and salt at our oceanfront home. Val is a fabulous seamstress, and she had several specialty machines and didn’t need mine, so it languished in her basement for twelve years.

When I returned to Canada, in 2020, my sister reminded me that she still had the Bernina but she wasn’t using it. I retrieved it from her home, all thirty-five pounds of it, and brought it back to its origins in Penticton. It seems that both the Bernina and I are destined to live in this city.

The old girl doesn’t respond when I plug her in, and I have an appointment at the same Bernina dealership at 418 Main Street to see if the current owner, Wes, can repair her. Let’s hope she’s up for more adventures.

Cheers Lynda

Sparky sends his woofs!

Sparky's first Christmas - final excerpt Chapter 9

 

Chapter 9

Life is good!

What an exciting day. I played gently with my Christmas gifts because I didn’t want to hurt them. Tommy and Chica raced around the bedroom shredding the wrapping paper and chasing the pieces blown by the warm tropical wind. Servant and Driver laughed at their silly antics.

Chica batted her catnip mouse and her little foam balls across the room, back and forth, until they got stuck under furniture. She was only five years old, and had a lot of energy.

“Never mind, Chica, Servant said. “I’ll get them for you later.”

Tommy discovered canned shrimp and a bag of catnip in his stocking. The catnip made him very playful for a few minutes and then he fell asleep. Maybe because he is fourteen years old, he gets tired faster.

Later in the morning we had breakfast, played together in the kitchen, and then everyone including Servant and Driver had a siesta. Early in the afternoon I could smell delicious aromas coming from the barbeque in the courtyard. Driver was slowly roasting the turkey for our Christmas dinner. In my previous home, I didn’t know what that smell was or where it was coming from, and it made me drool with hunger. Now I was here, in this house, and I am going to eat some of that delicious meat. What a lucky doggie.

After sundown the festive lights on our palm trees created a fairyland of light and color in our yard. Beautiful music drifted through the house, and our people sang about funny things I had never heard of; snowmen, one-horse-sleighs, and jingle bells.

A few of Servant and Driver’s friends came over and we ate a tasty dinner exactly like Chica had described. Turkey is amazing! It was the best meal I had ever eaten. The humans talked, laughed, clinked their glasses together and wished each other a Merry Christmas. ¡Feliz Navidad!

I slowly drifted off to sleep clutching my new stuffed toy. I was grateful, happy, and very sleepy. I thought about all the people and animals who had never known so much love.

Merry Christmas. ¡Feliz Navidad!

 

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Sparky's 1st Christmas with us - excerpt from A Surprise Gift

          Sparky in 'his' golf cart on Isla Mujeres Mexico.

Chapter 8

It’s Christmas!

“¡Feliz Navidad! said Driver.

“Merry Christmas everyone,” Servant said, and then she kissed Driver. “Happy Christmas, my love.”

Tucked into the king-sized bed, between our humans, Tommy sleepily opened one eye. Being the most senior animal in the family, he was allowed to sleep in their bed.

Chica stretched and yawned. She liked her cozy little nest on the nightstand beside Servant. She jumped onto the bed to say good morning.

I was curled up in my comfy bed on the floor beside Driver. It was a good place for me to sleep because I could keep an eye on both entrances; the bedroom door and the patio door. As the only dog in the house, it was my job to protect everyone.

Christmas Day. I had forgotten this was the day I had planned to hide outside in the bushes, in case the cats were going to play a trick on me. I quietly slithered towards the entrance, hoping I could zip past when someone opened the bedroom door.

Servant hopped out of bed and opened the patio door. “What a beautiful day, warm and sunny. Just look at that view!” she said, pointing towards the turquoise Caribbean Sea. “I’ll go get our coffees and be right back.”

“Sparky, where are you going?” Driver asked. “Come here little buddy,” he patted the bed.

I tucked my tail and slunk back towards Driver.

“¡Feliz Navidad Sparky!” Drivers said, as he scratched my ears and rubbed my tummy. “We have presents for everyone, including you.”

Presents? For me? I gazed hopefully at his kind face.

Servant returned with a tray holding two cups of coffee and a pile of goodies; some were for our humans and some were for us. She handed one cup of coffee to Driver, then distributed the treats to everyone.

“Okay, time for presents!” Driver said, pulling several objects out from their hiding place. Two were wide red sacks that were filled with colorfully wrapped items. Two were long and looked like over-sized socks, and another was shaped like a large red paw.

Servant held up the fuzzy red paw, “Sparky, it has your name on it!”

For me? Just for me! I carefully took it from her hand then set it on the floor. I grinned happily, as my tail swished back and forth. A present. A red fuzzy paw, with my name on it.

Tommy looked over the edge of the bed to see what I was doing, “Silly dog, open your gifts,” he said.

“I did. It’s a big red paw.”

“That’s just the container. The gifts are inside.” He reached into his sock and snagged a brightly decorated parcel with his claws. Then he pulled it out and ripped off the paper. “See, this is a bag of cat snacks, and there are more things inside.”

I stuck my nose deep inside the fluffy paw and pulled out a stuffed toy. Oh my, I’d never had a toy. It was beautiful, a black and white dog that looked like my younger brother. We hadn’t seen each other since we were puppies, and I hoped he was having a good Christmas too.

Chica said, “Look inside again, Sparky. I think you have another present.”

I put my nose inside again, and yes there was another toy, a silly yellow cat. This one didn’t have big sharp claws. Two toys!

I really like Christmas.

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Learning the rules - excerpt from A Surprise Gift, Sparky's story

 

Chapter 7

Learning the rules

“Buen diá Princesa Chica. ¿Cómo está?” I said, “Good day Princess Chica. How are you?”

“¿Estoy bien, gracias, y tú?” Chica answered me in cat-Spanish and I understood. She had said she was doing well, thank you, and then asked how I was.

I was so pleased I couldn’t stop my tail from doing its helicopter-spin of happiness. “I’m very well thank you,” I replied, then I noticed she was sitting beside a little tree that was covered in cute decorations.

“Oh, that’s a good idea, an indoor bathroom for pets,” I said. “But why is it sitting on a table? It should be on the floor.”

“No!” Chica quickly said. “This is our Christmas tree, un árbol de Navidad. Our humans would be upset if you peed on it.”

“Really?” I put my front paws on the low wooden table and gave the tree a sniff. It didn’t smell anything like a real tree. “What’s a Christmas tree?” I asked.

“It is part of the decorations our humans display at this time of the year.”

“So, Servant and Driver are also Decorators? Do we call them Decorator One and Decorator Two?” The rules of my new home were very puzzling. And why shouldn’t I pee on the tree? That’s what trees were for.

“No,” Chica answered, “she’s always Servant and he’s always Driver. Tommy says we don’t want to confuse them.”

“Si, now I remember. He told me that humans are difficult to train.” I agreed.

“Si, very difficult,” she agreed. “Tommy is very smart, and you should always listen to his advice.”

“I will,” I said, carefully studying the fancy tree. I still didn’t understand why I couldn’t use it for my indoor bathroom.

“We are extra lucky because we were born in Mexico and there are many winter celebrations, not just Christmas,” Chica said. “The holiday season starts with December 12th, Día de la Virgen de Guadalupe- Virgin of Guadalupe Day. Then, December 16^th to the 24^th is the Posadas, the procession recreating the journey of Mary and Joseph, and December 24^th, Nochebuena or Christmas Eve is when Mexican families have their special feasts. Our people and many of their friends are called Gringos and they have their feast on December 25^th.”

“Is that when the people create loud noises?  Lots of booms and bangs?”

“Yes, fireworks scare me,” Chica answered.

“I usually just hide under something and try to sleep,” I said.

“Me too!” Chica said. “The best part of the holiday season is that our people like to invite their friends and some of their cat-friendly dogs to a party at our house. They laugh, play music, sing, and eat lots of yummy foods.”

“I don’t think my first human had a lot of money. We never had a party,” I said, wistfully. “Parties sound like a lot of fun.”

“Si,” she agreed, “and our humans also go to our friends’ houses to celebrate.”

“Do you get invited too?” I asked.

“Tommy and I are invited to the parties that are close by,” she said, “We follow Servant and Driver along the beach.”

“What else do you do to celebrate?” I asked.

“My goodness you ask a lot of silly questions!” Chica flicked her tail and glared at me.

“I’m sorry. I just don’t understand everything about my new life yet.” I said, “please be patient with me.”

She sighed, “Yes, you’re right. I’m sorry. We were all strays at one time.” She licked one paw and cleaned her whiskers.

I was fascinated. She knew how to self-clean just like Tommy. Maybe she could teach me, but not right now, because she was still talking about the holidays.

“And there are parades with funny costumes,” she said, “and music, and people tossing candy for the children and their parents. Many people go to a building called a church and sing nice songs,” she added. “It’s a very busy time on the island, but we enjoy the excitement. My favorite day is Christmas Day. We get presents in the morning, then we eat turkey and sweet potatoes at dinner time.”

“Turkey? What’s that?” I asked.

“Turkey is awesome! It’s a huge bird that is roasted for hours and then we feast on it. Servant, Driver, Tommy, me, and of course you this year. We eat and eat, and then fall asleep.” Just thinking about the upcoming feast made Chica feel sleepy. She stretched and yawned, “the celebrations continue until January 6^th Día de Reyes, when the Mexican children receive their presents from the three kings.”

“Presents? What are presents?”

“Presents are my favorite,” she replied with a sly grin. “You’ll see.”

Oh no, I really don’t like it when a cat gives me a sneaky smile. I am pretty sure it means something bad for me, like another visit to the cat-doctor.

Maybe I should just hide outside in the bushes on Christmas day.

 To be continued ...

Happy Holidays and Seasons Greetings

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Woof, woof, Sparky

Two Canucks create American Thanksgiving dinner in Mexico

Thursday, November 26th 2009  

A few years ago, Frank Marcigliano the principal owner of the Casa IxChel Hotel, asked if Lawrie and I would be able to help him out with a small problem. He was going into the hospital for a hip operation back in the US, and needed someone to oversee the American Thanksgiving dinner at his restaurant on Isla. This was to be the inaugural turkey dinner for Casa Louisa. In our previous lives, Lawrie has managed three restaurants, and I have managed two hotels. How hard could it be? 

The first challenge was finding the necessary ingredients. A road trip to Cancun was required. Costco for turkey, pumpkin pies, and whipping cream. Sam’s Club for the aluminum roasting pans. Wal-Mart for gravy ingredients. Europea Wine store for cranberry jelly in the imported foods section. And the flea market for cranberry jelly ramekins and gravy boats. We searched all of the stores for sweet potatoes, yams, possible Thanksgiving decorations for the tables, and came up empty. 

Two days later we went back to Costco to pick up a terrific canvas banner to advertise the event. Then we put the call out to island gringo friends for spices and herbs for the turkey stuffing. Mary Simpson set Charlie over with sage, and thyme. Harriet Lowe sent Richard on his moto with three other necessary herbs. Hmmm, there’s a theme there. The women “sent” the guys on the errand. 

The second challenge was our lack of Spanish! Miguel the hotel manager at the time, was very fluent in English and was a great help when he was available to translate. The kitchen staff and most of the waitstaff spoke Spanish, period. It is amazing how much can be communicated with sign language, demonstration of what you want (like charades), and laughter. I loved the look of perplexed concentration the chefs had on their faces while they tried so hard to understand the gringa, and then we would all holler “Miguel!” and he would hustle over to translate the instructions. 

The third challenge was measurements. In Mexico, as in Canada, the measurements and temperatures are metric, not imperial. All of the recipes and instructions that we had for foods such as turkey stuffing or sweet potato puree were in imperial measurements. Again, the look of perplexed concentration from the kitchen staff, and I realized I would have to translate the measurements as well, English to Spanish, and imperial to metric, then metric to actual quantities – kilos of potatoes, bread croutons, onions, celery, sweet potatoes or yams – to be purchased. I must say I now have a greater appreciation for what goes on in a restaurant kitchen. 

This was the first time that any of the staff had made a traditional turkey dinner and it was fun to watch them learning the different dishes and techniques; creating roasted turkey, stuffing, gravy, and mashed yams. The idea of cranberry jelly caused a few raised eyebrows. 

“Why do you put marmalade on meat?” 

 “Because, that what our ancestors did.” 

The fourth challenge was getting the dinners out to the groups of guests – quickly. Fortunately, between Lawrie’s past experiences at busy restaurants in Canada, like Magnum’s at the Lakeside Hotel, and the Cellar Bistro at Hillside Estate Winery, he was able to show us ahead of time how to organize the turkey portions for quick plating. The guys in the kitchen were great! They had it down flat in two minutes. 

Lawrie was the sociable host and front-end guy, getting everyone seated, drinks ordered, and keeping an eye on the tables. I was in the kitchen overseeing the mayhem. 

We had so many reservations on the books, that we had to scrounge up another turkey. We had a lot of fun working together, and that big glass of wine at the end of the evening was really wonderful! 

Happy Thanksgiving 2020 to all of our American friends. 

Cheers Lynda and The Sparkinator

Lynda L Lock Author's Page

Two countries, four cities, four months ... time to settle down

Isla Mujeres December 2019

It's been an unsettled few months for Sparky and me, and my writing schedule has suffered greatly. 

My current work-in-progress, Twisted Isla, is two months behind on my self-imposed launch date. 

It's time to get back to my daily writing routine.

In December the sale of our Isla Mujeres house completed then I packed up my three suitcases of possessions and Sparky and I flew away to a new adventure to San Miguel de Allende. It's a beautiful colonial city located in the heart of Mexico. 

Sparky and I about to leave our Isla house 2019

Thankfully my good friend Eileen Regn had room in her heart for Boo the Cat, a sweet semi-feral stray that wanted to live with us, but strictly on her own terms. I couldn't imagine trying to relocate her to a new city. 

San Miguel de Allende December to March 

From mid-December to mid-March Sparky and I enjoyed exploring the history, the colour, and the culture of San Miguel de Allende. 

I was beginning to find new friends and new interests. In early March our Isla friends, Julie, Robin, and Anna came for a visit. Life was good. The sun was shining and I was busy writing. 

And then the emails from the Canadian government started - get home now. We are expecting a worldwide pandemic. 

Well, hell! 

So, again, I packed up my three suitcases of possessions and my pooch and flew back to the country of my birth. Thankfully good friends that I have known since elementary school days had an extra bedroom where Sparky and I could hide out and do our two-week isolation after returning to Canada from Mexico.

But of course, the whole world went into self-isolation, or quarantine, or social-distancing and life became very weird. 

Sparky in Surrey BC - new raincoat

By the time five weeks had passed, I decided that even though my friends were encouraging me to continue living with them until the world sorted itself out, I just couldn't do it. I needed a place to rattle around on my own with my demanding, neurotic dog, and to concentrate on writing again. 

Sparky and I plus my three well-traveled suitcases took up residence in Summerland on April 28th. It's a nice new building, with a view of the mountains. 

It's interesting trying to find furniture for an empty unit during a pandemic. The first four nights I slept on a foam mattress on the floor. Now I have a bed, a sofa, and two chairs plus a tiny table. It's a start. I have discovered on-line shopping, and the FedEx delivery guy and I are on a first name basis. 

My bed - some assembly required.

I feel guilty about spending a little money when so many people are struggling to put food on the table, but sleeping on the floor when I am 69 and a-bit-years-old is too darn difficult. 

I am enjoying being back in Canada, but frequently Lawrie's favourite complaint comes to mind. "Canada has so damn many rules," he would grouse when we returned to visit with friends and family. Every. Single. Time. 

He's right. It's a funny adjustment to be back to the Canadian way of thinking. 

As for my writing, today is a chilly and rainy day. It's a good day to get back to writing Book #6 of the Isla Mujeres Mystery series - Twisted Isla.

Stay healthy my friends. Hopefully we will see the end of this isolation soon. 

Cheers

Lynda and The Sparkinator

Sparky checking out his new country.

Book #6 of the exciting Isla Mujeres Mystery series - coming soon! 

Buy all three with one click!

Isla Mujeres Mystery series - buy all 3 with one click!

Dan Greenwood

5.0 out of 5 stars  

Isla lovers, these are a great beach read!

June 21, 2018

Format: Paperback 

Verified Purchase

Anyone that loves Isla Mujeres will enjoy this series. 

The author makes it fun to recognize familiar places. 

The mystery of each book is also captivating! 

I suggested buying all three books at one time, 

as you will want to continue reading!

101 things to do on a beach

Locals enjoying the sunrise

What can you do when you are surrounded by the beautiful turquoise Caribbean Sea?

Start your day with the sunrise, or maybe you are headed to bed after being out all night dancing. After all, it's Mexico and the parties last until dawn.

The sunrises here are usually spectacular unless it happens to be one of those rare cloudy days, and even then the sun might give you a multi-coloured light show as the glowing orb clears the horizon before disappearing into the clouds.

Visitors enjoying the beach before the crowds arrive 

Go for a walk on the beach while enjoying your morning coffee, smoothie, or whatever other beverage you want to start your day with. 

While you are out enjoying the early morning calm you might see the beach cleaning crew raking the sand, sifting for discarded cigarette butts and bottle caps, picking up trash and removing potentially dangerous overhead coconuts. 

If you happen to have an extra bottle of water with you, pass it along. These folks start work at sunrise to make the beaches clean and tidy for the next round of sun-worshipers.

Coconut removal crew 

Get your towel, sunscreen, sunglasses, a bit of money for food and drinks, and don’t forget your reading material. 

May I recommend some enjoyable beach reads? My Isla Mujeres Mystery novels – are entertaining mysteries set on this fabulous little island. Murder and mayhem. Revenge and romance.

Head to the beach and claim your favourite spot.

Order lunch from one of the many beach-side restaurants and bars. 

The wait-staff with happily deliver it to you. Don’t forget to tip, but please no foreign coins, including American or Canadian. Coins are only valuable in their country of origin. 

Find your favourite spot

For instance: American coins are only good in the USA, and occasionally in Canada and then only at face value. Canadian coins are only good in Canada, Americans will not accept them. 

Euros are only good in Europe, Americans and Canadians don’t accept them. 

Okay, you get the idea. Using the currency of the country you are in is always the easiest solution.

Great place to people-watch 

People watch to your heart’s content. 

There are beaches for sunning and swimming, beaches where the fishermen repair their nets, clean and sell their daily catch, beaches for surf-casting, beaches to investigate the under-water inhabitants, and beaches where on windy days the enthusiasts for kitesurfing, bodysurfing and regular surfing play in the warm waves.

Windy day - surfs up

Then wrap up your day with a long leisurely dinner at a beachside restaurant while watching the sun sink into the ocean. 

If you are lucky you will get another vibrant display, the kind that we refer to as a “Tony Garcia Sunset.” 

Captain Tony seems to have a natural instinct for when the light, clouds and atmospheric conditions are optimum for producing the best technicolour displays.

The peaceful beauty of a tropical sunset

Okay, so not exactly 101 ideas, but we’ll leave you to come up with your own plans as you enjoy the white sand, the turquoise ocean, and the clear blue sky.

Hasta Luego

                Isla Mujeres Mystery series! 
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