04 JUL 2017: Like many of my fellow Torontonians I was somewhat underwhelmed at the idea of a $120,000 large yellow rubber ducky on the Toronto waterfront. However, something odd happened – The Duck proved to be a huge hit.

People flocked to the waterfront to see The Duck which was part of the RedPath Waterfront Festival. There were people of every colour and persuasion, mamas, papas, kids, teens, grandparents, aunties, uncles, cousins, singles, couples, dogs, (didn’t see any cats) taking pictures, selfies, eating, drinking, buying souvenirs – (small) rubber duckies, t-shirts with ducks, all smiling, laughing, chatting and enjoying themselves.

They came on foot, on bikes, on roller blades, by streetcar and (moving very slowly) by car.

Why? Who knows… perhaps in these days of where the mindless menace of violence, and anger and suspicion are part of our daily fare, the sight of a large benign daft yellow duck just makes us smile and believe that there is after all, fun and silliness in our world.

Everywhere in the city you went this weekend, people were asking, “Have you seen The Duck?” In the elevator, on the street, visiting friends, passing neighbours, everyone was talking about The Duck! When friends posted pictures on Facebook and sent me selfies with The Duck, and a five-year old said he had seen it, “Twice. Once live and once on TV” I knew it was time to see the damn Duck for myself.

So, around sixish on Monday evening we had a chore to do midtown and I suggested after we might take a drive down to the waterfront to see The Duck. Getting the okey dokey on that, we headed over to Spadina and then down to the Lakeshore. All fine till you had to turn left and all those, let’s just call them ‘nasty people’ tried to cut into the left lane from the right. Anyway, we finally inched along Queen’s Quay marvelling at the number of people milling about and enjoying the evening as we kept an eye open for The Duck – six stories high they said – surely it would be easily visible. It was around Simcoe our friends had said, but no duck on the water at Simcoe, or York, Bay or Yonge. We were resigned to having missed The Duck. Then suddenly – a big yellow shape slowly being towed eastward.

THE DUCK!

I have no idea why, but I was yelling and fist pumping, “Yes! Yes! It’s The Duck! It’s The Duck! I saw The Duck!” I felt like a three-year old spotting Santa.

My calmer partner took the pictures.

So, in retrospect, was The Duck worth the money? I would guess the organizers of the RedPath Waterfront Festival, the merchants and vendors down on the waterfront, and the reportedly over 750,000 people who went down to the waterfront to view “The Duck” would say, “Hell, Yes!”