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Summer officially arrived this past weekend and for me, that was reason enough to scuttle all work and goof off intensely for three days. I can highly recommend it.

The adventure started on Friday, when I wandered down to the Redpath Waterfront Festival to check out the Dock Dogs competition. These dogs are incredible and clearly enjoyed every moment of being on deck (dock?) 

This one’s called Meadow. She won this part, jumping for a toy positioned at 6’4″! As you can see, her human was justifiably excited.

In the evening, I wandered up to Toronto Reference Library – a big building full of books. Heaven. I wasn’t there for the books, though. I was there to see Diana Gabaldon talk on the occasion of Written in My Own Heart’s Blood: A Novel (Outlander) the latest book in the Outlander series being released.

For the record, Diana Gabaldon is a very funny woman. If you ever get the opportunity to hear her speak, go. You’ll have a grand time.

This weekend was also the start of Pride week. Toronto is host to World Pride this year and that means there are rainbow flags in even more places than there usually is (including rainbow crosswalks in the Village). I love this time of year. It reminds me that my city is an inclusive one.

And this is where I have to ask for your patience. I spent Saturday and Sunday at the Lake, watching the inaugural North American Flyboarding Championships. What is flyboard, you ask? Check out this video and prepared to pick up your jaw from the floor. This is easily one of the coolest things I have ever seen and I very, very much want to try it. As that will have to wait for my next life, I did the next best thing. I watched one day, then came back the day after and took lots of photos on both days. I’m about to share several of these. Numerous several of these. If this doesn’t interest you, feel free to walk away and I’ll see you for my next post.

For those of you who are still here, are ready to be astounded? Even gobsmacked?

Flyboard is described as a mix of flying like Ironman and the ability to swim like a dolphin. And that is very true. These (admittedly not quite sane) guys made this new extreme water sport look easy. It was like a combination between acrobatics and dancing. We heard facts like the names of the different moves, that they are harnessing 260 hp from the jet ski, that hose management is essential to avoid flipping your boat (which results in disqualification), and much else besides. But mostly, I was transfixed, fascinated and captivated. It just never got old — I could have watched it for several more days, if it wasn’t for the fact that despite using SPF 50 sunscreen, I’m looking a bit like a lobster in certain places. I hope the fly guys come back to Toronto soon.

During a break in the semifinals on Sunday, there was a demonstration of a hoverboard, a new invention which will be available to the public in July. It, too, has a video that makes you want to try to fly.

Amazing. What a terrific start to summer!