My Great Canadian Adventure – by Sparky

All set to go on a Great Canadian Adventure.   

My legs twitched, my eyelids fluttered, my lips pulled back from my fangs. I moaned and groaned in fear. It was awful. 

Then Servant reached down to pat me, to stop my nightmare.

A month ago my humans, Driver and Servant, started packing their suitcases – and then a dog cage appeared. I didn’t like that one bit. 

The last time a dog cage appeared my roommate, Max, went away and never came back. Now there is only me living with my two humans and I was pretty sure that this carrier was meant for me.

Good view from upstairs on Ultramar

I had been having nightmares for several nights wondering where I was going to be sent. I really like living here, even though I am a bit of a Divo at times. I am a very picky eater. I like to sit beside my humans on the sofa. However, I do come when I am called - most of the time. Well, okay, I come if it suits me.

But all of a sudden we are all leaving, with suitcases, the pet carrier and me! Driver and Servant kept telling me we were going on a Great Canadian Adventure, whatever that meant.

First step was a golf cart ride with some of our human friends to the big blue and yellow boat. It’s the same boat my humans drive our winter friends to every April and then pick them up again in October. 

I usually get to come along to woof goodbye, or greet them when they return. My buddies Skipper the dog and Jax the cat met us at the boat with their humans. All of us four-legged folks were given the nice upstairs view seats, while some of our humans had to sit inside on lower deck.

On the big tube stuffed with people

Next was a ride in a big white van to a large scary place called the Cancun International Airport. I pretended I was an experienced traveler, and not bothered by the crowds and noises. I wasn’t even afraid of the weird little room with the sliding door that moved us to a different area. I think it is called an elevator.

Servant had to carry me through the Security area so that the grumpy people in uniform could check my tummy for recent incisions. People have a lot of strange ideas. They should have had the other dogs sniff me and confirm I wasn’t carrying anything illegal in my stomach. As if! Famous dogs like me don’t do bad things like that.

My bed and blanket kept me warm

Then we walked inside a big tube-shaped thing stuffed with people. I was a bit nervous for a few minutes, but the WestJet staff made such a fuss over me, telling me how good and brave I was, I pretended it was nothing unusual. Oh sure, I ride in jets all the time.

Many hours later, after a long and boring time without even one pee break we landed in a dark and cold place. 

I was sure we had travelled to the North Pole for a visit with Santa Claus, it was that cold!  Driver and Servant said we were in a place called Kelowna, and would be spending the night at Skipper and Jax’s house. I was so relieved to get to their house with the big yard, where I could pee, and pee, and pee some more.

View from our place in Westbank

Next day we moved to another pretty house in Westbank. 

Servant and I walked all around the neighbourhood, but I had to be on a leash all the time. We went every morning to a special park where dogs are allowed to run free and play. 

I met many Canadian dogs who loved swimming in the lake. I put the toes of my right paw in the water, then quickly pulled it back. Brrr, they must be nuts! It was freezing cold.

This water is cold! Not going in there.

Canada is not like my colonia in Mexico where I can run up and down the beach visiting my friends Izabella and Luna.

The funny thing was, my good friend Luna who we waved goodbye to the week before on Isla, was also living nearby. I really liked Luna’s yard! I spent one whole day playing with her while my humans did things they called appointments.

One of their 'appointments' was lunch at Quail's Gate Winery 

Driver and Servant took me for lunch with Servant’s cousins, then we drove for an hour up a mountain so that they could introduce me to snow. 

I was excited because I thought Snow was the name of another dog, but no, snow is cold sand. Very cold sand. I sniffed and got back in the car. 

Shut that door please!

Open that car door, and turn the heat on!

After teaching me about snow, we drove to another city, where we stayed at the Days’ Inn in Penticton. Servant used to work there before she and Driver moved to Mexico. The people there were very nice to me and the owners invited me to their house! It must be because they know how famous I am.

I also got to meet two more dog that my humans have known for many years. Cleo and Sophie were friends of Thomas the Cat when he lived in the nearby city of Summerland. 

I met the family, plus Caitlin who is missing from photo

We stayed several days while Driver had more really boring appointments. 

The really great thing was while we were there I got to visit with more of our family, John, Maia, Caitlin, Ethan and Evan. 

It was really fun to see them, and to meet the younger generation for the first time. I liked them a lot, and I think they liked me too. They gave me lots of tummy rubs.

Brrr. Still cold. But at least I tried it.

In Penticton I finally had a quick dip in Skaha Lake. 

It had been a month since we had arrived in Canada and with weather had warmed up enough that I decided to try a swim. Once! Still too darn cold for this low-to-the-ground Mexican.

After our time in Penticton we drove back to Skipper and Jax’s house in Kelowna. Lots of people, plus my friend Luna, came to a fun party to say Buen Viaje.

Nicole, Lawrie, Linda G., Kara

The next day we flew from Kelowna to Edmonton, where I got to stay in a beautiful hotel. 

Then we went through the same procedure of being walked through Customs, onto the plane and home to Mexico. 

The WestJet staff let Servant hold me up to see out the window, once!  Wow! What a sight, seeing my home from a way up there. It’s beautiful.

A quick peak out the window.

I am now back on our island, I’m happy to be running on the sand, swimming in the warm Caribbean Sea, and settled into my Divo routine in our little house.

I would like to thank everyone for their generosity, hospitality, and love on my Great Canadian Adventure.

Cheers

Sparky,

etuk twhered figure whoboat – tLynda and Lawrie

Caribbean Sea - flying into Cancun

~

Join Sparky on his Caribbean adventures 

in the Isla Mujeres Mystery series!

Available on Amazon as E-Books or Paperback.

Pirates, buried treasure, kidnappings, murder and mayhem on a tiny island in the Caribbean Sea.

Sparky’s first book signing & Maxie flys to Arizona

Sparky's first book signing.   

Sparky was the cutest, and definitely the shortest celebrity at a recent Make a Difference fundraiser in support of the Ron Brown Scholarship Fund. 

On Tuesday this week a generous group of people gathered at Curtis and Ashley Blogins’ beautiful Villa la Bella B&B to raise money for the charity. Since its inception in 2010 the scholarship fund has helped seventeen island students to achieve degrees as veterinaries, dentists, graphic artists, engineers and many move occupations.

Richard Lock introducing some of the graduates of RBSF

This year Sparky and I received an invitation to participate with a book signing and a draw for the lucky person who will be ‘Killed Off’ in my Isla Mujeres Mystery Book #4. 

The lucky winner was Patti Packard. She will get a choice of being either a good person or a bad character in my next novel, due out late in 2018. (Book #3 Tormenta Isla is just a couple of weeks away from being published!)

Diego, Thomas and Lynda 

I was delighted to add a healthy donation to the fund on behalf of both myself and my friend Diego Medina. Diego is the talented illustrator of our bilingual book for children – The Adventures of Thomas the Cat / Las Aventuras de Tomas el Gato. We have been setting aside a portion of our book sales for the scholarship fund, and this was the perfect event to present the donation. According to Gwen Brown the fundraiser brought in a little over $8800.00 Canadian. All of the funds will be used for assisting students, nothing is spent on administrative costs.

Thank you everyone who made the event so successful. You can find out more about the Ron Brown Scholarship Fund at http://ronbrownscholarshipfund.org/ Please be sure you click on this link for information about the Isla Mujeres Mexico scholarship program as it is easily confused with the similar sounding name that supports students in Africa.

~

The day after the fundraiser our other little pooch Max and I went on an odyssey to his new home in Arizona. As I mentioned in a previous blog, Lawrie has been diagnosed with a debilitating disease – PSP, Progressive Supranuclear Palsy. The left side of his body doesn’t get the messages from his brain as quickly as the right side does. PSP creates serious stability and mobility issues for him.

Max waiting for boat ride to Cancun

Having two energetic dogs underfoot is too risky for Lawrie, and as much as we loved the fuzzy little guy Max had to find a new home. Fortunately for us our friend Janet Cummins sent our blog post to her friend Dianne in Arizona. Dianne Stocks who has had other rescue dogs, including her current beautiful girl Willow, agreed to adopt Max.

Wednesday was a tough day for Max and I. He left his island in paradise for the first time ever. Even though I have been giving him an anti-anxiety medication for a few days in preparation for the trip, riding on the Ultramar passenger ferry frightened him. But, by the time we got him loaded into the CARM van and headed to the airport he had stopped trembling and seemed interested in his new adventure. A special thanks to Denise and Mike Burton who helped me get from the boat to the CARM van on the Puerto Juarez side of the trip. Mike, you looked so handsome carrying my purse!

Max - keeping an eye on our wheelchair

At the airport the porters and wheelchair assistants were a huge help to us, bustling us to the head of the immigration line, the check-in line, then outside for a doggy pee break before he had to be surrendered to the baggage handlers. I had to use the wheelchair service because of course two days before I was due to make the trip my sciatica decided to act up, making walking or standing extremely painful. (Perfect timing!)

The American Airlines folks were delightfully kind and accommodating with Max and me. By the time we reached Phoenix he had adjusted to his international traveler status, and was doing just fine when I reclaimed him. My assistance wheeled us both out to meet Dianne and her friends, Laurie and Chris, who had come to pick him up. It was a very emotional meeting for me because I knew my time with Maxie was coming to an end, and Dianne because she was just beginning a new adventure with him. After tearful hugs and goodbyes I slipped away leaving Dianne to get to know her new guy better.  

Dianne and I at Phoenix airport

My return flight via American Airlines was just as easy and trouble free, only this time I was checking an empty dog travel case. That really confused everyone – porters and customs officers alike – wondering if I had an invisible dog. I had the same crew on the flight back to Cancun, and would like to mention Teri who took the time to make my return flight very pleasant and comfortable.

Back on Isla at the Ultramar ferry dock I was faced with a not too long, but still painful walk from the boat to the car park. I turned to one of the baggage handlers that I recognized and asked, “Would you give me and this empty dog cage a lift to the parking lot?”

He laughed and said, “Sure, hop on!”

I finished my two day odyssey riding on a diablito, Isla-style.

Willow and Maxie - worn out by excitement

I’m very happy to be back to Lawrie and Sparky. Thank you so very much to all of our friends and family who looked after my guys while Max and I were traveling. It’s the caring people around us that makes our lives so rich.

Our best wishes to Dianne, Willow and Maxie. We hope life is good to you as well.

Hasta Luego

Lynda & Lawrie

~

Book #3 Isla Mujeres Mystery

Tormenta Isla 

Soon!

Just another day in paradise!

Just another day in paradise.    

Sparky and Max, our two island rescue-mutts and I wander down the sidewalk in the semi-darkness. 

It’s the early morning pee-walk-for-pets, the one that happens before I get to enjoy my first cup of coffee. 

I prefer to stumble along the seashore in the morning with the dogs off their leashes, but at this time of year, the beach is a minefield of mama sea turtles digging nesting holes. Some of the holes are four-feet deep, and sometimes the mama turtles are still in the holes.

Sparky and I are restless sleepers. 

Max and Sparky - checking out the turtle smells

He noses me awake well before dawn. Lawrie and Max, on the other hand, could sleep through a category five hurricane and an 8.9 earthquake. 

It takes both of us, Sparky and me, to wake up Max and convince him he has to go for a pee. 

He’s not a happy camper.

Lawrie's photo early in morning

The next fifteen to twenty minutes are a comedy routine of Sparky pulling me, and me dragging Max.
“Come on, Max. Walk a little faster please.” I exhort, followed by “Sparky, slow down. Wait for Max.”

Sparky flips me one of those looks, “Really. Slow down? He’s nearly motionless.”

“Well, Max is just not a morning guy like you, Sparky,” I tell him.  We continue our pull-drag pace a block south and turn to make our way back. Finally, Max is awake enough to pee.

Mama turtle - digging, digging, digging.

As we near our house I can see Lawrie standing in the street, waving frantically at me. “Hurry up!” He shouts quietly, trying not to wake up our neighbours.

“What’s wrong? Is there a problem?” I am about to pick up Max’s hefty twenty-eight-pound body and run home.

“No, no problem. Unless you think a turtle digging in our yard is a problem.” He says with a happy grin.

Sparky watching from our upper deck.

“Come on boys, let’s go!” And surprisingly Max breaks into a run. Maybe he thinks I said let’s eat. The dog likes his food.

We barrel inside the house, scrambling to remove dog leashes and harnesses, but keeping the dogs locked inside. 

We discovered a few weeks ago that mama turtles don’t like being sniffed by inquisitive canines. 

The boys will have to watch with us from the upper ocean-side deck.

This photo has been shared and reshared on web.

And there she is, digging up the back yard. 

During the night she has wandered from side to side, front to back testing the ground before she finally located the deep sand at the bottom of the yard.

Lawrie had, uncharacteristically, woken up when I left with the two dogs and wandered out onto the upper patio to check our neighbours’ beach. 

A few seconds later - same turtle.

There is usually one or more fresh holes every morning. 

Instead, he spotted the mama tossing sand in our yard. He grabbed the camera and snapped a few photos without a flash, but it was still too dark to really see her. 

By the time the dogs and I had returned home the light was perfect for photos. We watched while she dug yet another hole, then moved along and dug another and another.

"What do you want in your coffee, mama?" Ken Jost photo

Familiar guests, Norma and Ken Jost, were staying next-door at MarVillaCaribe. They are also early risers and noticed the commotion in our yard. Ken took some amazing photos as well as videos. 

Eventually, the mama turtle lumbered down the path towards Casa Luna, and then turned right and headed towards the water.

And away she goes around 7:30 a.m.

We don’t know if she laid eggs, but we are watching and counting down the sixty days of incubation. 

Fingers-crossed everything goes well if there are eggs.

So, yeah, just another boring day in paradise. What did you do this morning?

Cheers

Lynda & Lawrie

Lawrie tidying up the beach.

~
Isla Mujeres Mystery series

Available as e-books on Amazon, Kobo, Nook, or iTunes.
Paperback copies available at Amazon, or on Isla Mujeres at Jenny Penny Beach Boutique and Casa Sirena Hotel.

                               
                            

There’s Trouble in paradise … big trouble!

New Year’s Eve is a magical time on Isla Mujeres, especially this year after the stormy events of the past few months. After their chaotic hunt for the pirate treasure, and a close encounter with a serial killer Kirk Patterson, Yasmin and Jessica deserve a lady’s night out.

Hung over from a night on the town, it is late in the afternoon before Yasmin starts to worry that her boyfriend Carlos hasn’t been seen all day. And then the texts start coming:

“Give me what I want!”

I’m just darn excited, or as my great-niece, Ellen, says – I’m pumped! 

My second novel, book #2 in the Isla Mujeres Mystery series, Trouble Isla, is available on Amazon e-books as of today. It’s the sequel to book #1, Treasure Isla. 

Both adventures are set on Isla and feature a group of close friends and an island rescue-mutt, who just happens to closely resemble our little divo Sparky. He’s is a scene-stealer once again.

Then, while I am basking in the after-glow of finalizing book #2, Lawrie grins at me and says, “Now you can finish editing your historical novel, Named by the Enemy. 

Then start on book #3 of the Isla series, oh and finish the sequel to The Adventures of Thomas the Cat, and start the children’s book about turtles that you and Julie Goth are collaborating on.

Bally Hoo (Lima wharf) featured in Trouble Isla

Ah, the challenges of being a self-published author. 

It sounds so easy, write a little book, and publish on Amazon e-books then wait for the piles of dinero to roll in. Sounds good, right?  Em, not exactly. 

There are apparently over 35 million titles available online and thousands more being added daily. It’s an extremely competitive industry. Sitting back and waiting to be become rich just doesn’t cut it, unless you happen to be as popular as John Grisham or Patricia Cornwell.

Lawrie and I at Javi's Cantina, featured in Trouble Isla

So, after coming up with an idea for a book, then writing the story a self-published author also has to be the marketing director, the publicist, cover designer, book designer, editor, and webmaster. Or you can pay people to do these jobs for you before you have sold even one copy of your absolutely-guaranteed-to-be-famous best-seller. Since I am operating on a shoestring budget I get to be the chief-cook and bottle-washer for the Island Tales (or should it be Island Tails?) Publishing Company. 

In my case proofreading is not my strong point. Family members and close friends are repeatedly pressed into service reading and re-reading the manuscript, looking for errors. Thank you again to Linda Grierson, Richard Grierson, Rob Goth and Julie Goth for your assistance. And a very special thank you to Julie's mom, Shirley Andrews who corrected my haphazard punctuation yet again. 

Abandoned condo project featured in Trouble Isla

Then, if the self-published author decides to print that soon-to-be-famous-novel a different set of skills will need to be mastered. Design the book. Find a printer at a price you can afford. Proof the sample. Guestimate how many you might realistically sell. Take the leap of faith and place the order. Get the books shipped directly to your spare bedroom, or shipped in small increments to an organization like Amazon, which by the way will charge for selling, storing, shipping. Amazon will also double your storage fees after six months, and ultimately will kick your unsold books out at twelve months. If you aren’t a superstar, out you go!   

Abandoned hotel featured in Trouble Isla photo 2013

The upside of being a self-published writer is that you get to control every aspect of your work. You are the boss. 

And for the times you are stuck, really stuck for a solution there are writers’ groups comprised of generous people who are helpful to newbie authors like me, offering insights and advice on a wide range of problems.

Fortunately, Lawrie and I have a bit of experience in managing small businesses and the same basic principles apply; the end goal being to make more money than you spend. Soon, one day, maybe. But in the meantime, it’s an enjoyable adventure learning fresh skills and meeting different people. 

I hope you enjoy my newest novel Trouble Isla. Sparky and I had a lot of fun writing it. Book #3 Tormenta Isla will have something to do with a hurricane and you will meet our two newest additions to the family zoo, Max and EB the cat.  

Sparky and Max using Lawrie as protection from E.B.

Max is another island rescue dog that looks like he could be Sparky’s third-cousin-once-removed, but he is totally different in personality. Except for Lawrie Max is still shy around men. He is eager to please, loves his food, and likes to sleep, a lot.

EB is a four-pound black cat that adopted us a month ago. She then went on a campaign, terrorizing Sparky and Max by sharpening her claws on their tender noses, and sleeping in their beds. The dogs named her EB, short for Evil Bi**h.  

After two weeks of feline intimidation, we begged the local vet, Dr. Delfino, to let us increase the population of his pet sanctuary by one small cat. He reluctantly agreed. He already has dozens of homeless black cats. We happily waved goodbye to EB while Sparky and Max did a happy dance around the cat carrier. 

The E.B. sleeping in Sparky's bed

Five days later she engineered her escape and was back in our courtyard, yowling for attention.

Sparky is depressed; The EB is back! 

Max is scared peeless to be within ten feet of her, but she’ll provide a bit of comic relief for book #3 of the Isla Mujeres Mystery Series.

Cheers from paradise

Lynda & Lawrie

~

Isla Mujeres Mystery Series 

Available now! $2.99 each, on Amazon e-books