This past weekend Elena and I headed to Fergus, Ont., to attend the Fergus Scottish Festival and Highland Games*. There is a huge Scottish population in Southwestern Ontario, and these are some of the biggest Highland games outside of Scotland. Well, probably. I’m too lazy to look that up, so let’s just assume that I’m right.

One of the best parts of the Fergus Festival is the semi-regular appearance of Diana Gabaldon, my second favourite author and creator of the Outlander series of books, which feature the hottest Scotsman in the history of Earth. I mean, this guy is smoking. I gave Outlander, the first book in the series, to my friend Lal the other week, and once she got about 100 pages in she couldn’t stop. She read until midnight every weeknight, and until 3 a.m. on the weekend. (It’s a long book.) Her son was running a fever, and she welcomed his illness as an excuse to stay in all weekend and read. Her husband is leaving her. Her job is going by the wayside. She can’t stop!

I’m bringing her Dragonfly in Amber tomorrow, to start it all over again.

So Elena and I welcome to chance to see Ms Gabaldon whenever we can, since she reads parts from her forthcoming books and answers audience questions. This year, though we were only 50 metres away from her, we were unable to make her talk. We were busy. Watching this:

The Fergus Scottish Festival takes place the second weekend in August.
 
A Breath of Snow and Ashes, the sixth book of Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series, hits bookstores Sept. 27.
 
Eddi Reader gives me something to listen to while I’m blogging about men in kilts.

(*In case you’re wondering what my Scots credentials are, my family emigrated from Scotland in the 1920s, and my family name is still Scots. I’ve never been to my ancestral home. If I were to die tomorrow this would probably be my biggest regret. You know, if you’re looking for something to get me for Christmas.)