Toronto Weekend: June 25, 2011 (videos)

The Toronto Jazz Festival: June 24 – July 3

This 10 day event takes place mainly in Toronto’s downtown core in various indoor locations. It has been a number of years since its name was the DuMaurier Jazz Festival, a change mandated by the federal government’s ban on tobacco advertising. The festival is now sponsored by TD Canada Trust and has dropped the word “downtown”.

The official web site has a complete listing of concerts throughout festival. Hey! One of tonight’s musical offerings is not unknown to me. The Average White Band is taking the stage at the Metro Square at 8:30pm. Wow, these guys have been around since the early 70’s when their hit song “Pick Up The Pieces” hit the airwaves. Ha, when I say song, that number was an instrumental except for the members calling out the title at the end. *chuckles* Now, is that a blast from the past or what?

Environment Canada says we have to contend with some isolated showers throughout the day so if you’re out, be prepared. The Dave Holland Quintet will be at the Enwave Theatre at Habourfront at 7pm. Get down early for dinner out on a patio overlooking the harbour and you’ve got the makings of a nice evening.

Beaches International Jazz Festival: July 15 – 24

Just a reminder of this up-coming 10 day event, July 15 – 24. Visit the official web site to make your plans. Most of what’s happening is happening outdoors so this is a way of getting into a part of Toronto that begs some good walking shoes as the boardwalk down by the lake is a must on a sunny day with an ice cream cone.

Gay Pride Week: June 24 – July 3

There is plenty going on during the week so check out Pride Toronto. Hey, I just noticed that Deborah Cox will be performing on July 2nd.

The Gay Pride Parade

The parade is Sunday, July 3 at 2pm. And dont’forget that on Saturday, July 2, there’s the Dyke March.

The Weekend Lotteries

I have to throw a mention in here as I am continually hoping my ship is going to come in and I can fly off to Tahiti. Last night’s Lotto Max (Fri Jun 24/11) had… *drum roll* … no winner. Rats! The whole thing has been rolled over to next week. Oh well, there’s still Saturday’s 6/49. Where there’s hope, there’s life. – Ah, but this means the July 1st Canada Day has an extra bang of an estimated fifteen million samolies (dollars: Urban Dictionary).

Painting on Water

Okay, I ran across this video of this guy, yes, painting on water. I have never seen such a thing; the technique is most unusual. The accompanying music makes for a mesmerizing clip.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCamx8vzyCw

Ring Art

Another interesting video of a guy manipulating rings. Hmmm, something of an optical illusion?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmq2dhIK42k

References

Wikipedia: Annual events in Toronto: July

July

* Toronto Fringe Festival, Toronto’s largest theatre festival

* Honda Indy Toronto at Exhibition Place

* Caribana is North America’s largest street festival, showcasing Caribbean/West Indian culture (in some years early August).

* Beaches International Jazz Festival – The Beaches

* Summerlicious

* Corso Italia – Italian Street Festival on St Clair West.

* http://rushcon.totem-media.com/ RushCon – North America’s largest Rush fan convention.

* Loyal Orange Lodge Parade. The oldest continuous parade in North America.

August

* Roncylicious, a showcase of the diverse flavours of Roncesvalles Avenue, running August 4th through 31st, with over thirty participating businesses. [1]

* The Canadian National Exhibition (CNE, or “the Ex”).

* The Taste of the Danforth festival showcases the mostly Greek culture of The Danforth and has expanded to include other cultures of the area.

* The Mabuhay Philippines Toronto Summer Festival- the largest celebration of Philippine heritage and culture in Canada.

* Festival of South Asia – A festival of the South Asian culture of Gerrard India Baazaar.

* Muslim Fest- Festival Celebrating the Best in Muslim Art & Entertainment – Annual Festival Celebrating the Best in Muslim Art & Entertainment.

* Toronto International Dance Festival

* Toronto Buskerfest- A festival of Street Performers.

* Taiwanfest previously known as TCF (Taiwanese Cultural Festival).

* Toronto’s Festival of Beer- Toronto Beerfest in Historic Fort York.

* Markland Wood Annual Family Fun Day is held on the second Saturday in August, celebrating summer with clowns, The Toronto Police and Firefighters, games, face painting and lunch.

6/49: Sat, Jun 25, 2011: $11,000,000

Lotto 6/49: One chance in 13,983,816

Lotto Max: Fri Jul 1: $15 million (No MaxMillions)

Lotto Max: One chance in 28,633,528

All the latest winning numbers

You can visit the Lotto web site and check out all the latest winning numbers including Poker, 49, Lottario, Keno, Pick 4, Pick 3 and Payday. Of course, all the Encore numbers can be found there as well.

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