half a world away

today we leave the mountains.

we arrived at the tail end of winter a year and a half ago.

and as i loaded the truck yesterday a light snow fell,

heralding another that we won't see here.

i will remember incredible tasting water.

the smell of fresh cut wood.

lighting fires in the big old wood stove.

gardening. chopping wood. snow shovelling.

being very physical. feeling it in so many muscles.

like being back on the farm.

like being camping.

i feel muscles again now, from lifting and loading.

thanks to t and big john for helping move the backbreakers.

thanks to lichey's mom for helping pack up the house,
for looking after asa, and being friend to steve the magical blind cat ...

satisfaction in getting the pack as good as possible.

years of loading a van on the road have made me a pack master.

i astound myself at how our whole lives can fit into such a small space ...

it has been a time of extremes.

a grey world. a green world. a red gold world. a white world.

bears in the backyard.

fresh native herbs from the forest in lichen's incredible cooking.

sun warmed berries straight out of the garden.

lichen's home made cobbler.

local maple syrup.

playing music with brother t again ...

thanks to bess, t, sar and their families for being our community.

for giving us a place to have a baby ...

our beautiful son is 6 and a half months old and always ready for the new.

he has been mobile a while now.

always pulling himself up to stand on ever steadier little legs.

always looking for a better view. coasting. crawling.

he is robust and precocious. (2 delightful words)

2 teeth have emerged. and an increasingly voracious appetite.

the little fella eats a good 3 meals a day.

and always ready to be happy, to be one of us.

the obvious recognition the last time i came home from a few days away

brought tears to my eyes. he is a simple profound blessing.

i thank my wife for all she gives him ...

and now, the last of the packing,

a fond farewell, then we hit the road to begin a new life.

half a world away.

see you on the other side.

angus

my brother

you may remember him as fergus.

or as bur, the name we called him growing up.

he is jack avalon.

he is my brother.

it has been 11 years

since we shared a stage,

my brother jack and i.

i am excited to finish the year

with a double bill at the coach house with him.

to hear his music live.

to play together again.

makes me feel good ...

and now i head out the door for the airport

and northern california.

see you there?

angus

i'm listening

i haven't felt compelled to write in a while.

so i haven't written in a while.

off the road for a few days.

and, among other things, getting ready for another cross country trek.

it seems we came to this marvellous mountain hideout

to have ourselves a baby. and that we have done.

the circumstances were ideal. and now,

it is time to raise a baby with family and community nearby.

and so, soon, we say our goodbyes.

to good people, good times, good places.

and the best water i've ever tasted.

in the vision we find ourselves refining together

it is the north west that calls ...

in the meantime, a few more shows with dalbo and drew.

on both coasts.

i find myself enjoying what we do more and more.

i am still sometimes astounded

at how this thing called BROTHER

has once again been re invented.

i never imagined it would evolve this way.

we knew we could make it work.

we just weren't quite sure how.

and so we began. we see now. nice one fellas.

i make asa smile and laugh.

he does the same for me.

there is no better feeling.

simple.

so many firsts with him, sometimes every day.

he changes so quickly. and so must we.

keeping up keeps me young.

thank you little matey ...

hey little matey

hey little matey

i know you

i know you

charm all the ladies

charm all the ladies

that's what you do

that's what you do

baby i'm blown away

whatever it is you're trying to say

whatever you're thinking

i'm listening

angus

a worthy ponder

this path i'm on seems to involve a constant stripping away
of those things that aren't really me anymore,
or never really were.
often the question is, how much to reveal?
in a song
in an interview
in conversation
in a journal entry
in a photo, a video ...
a worthy ponder.
i think so long as the revelation, however large or small,
doesn't adversely affect another's life.
and most importantly when that other is family.
what and where are the boundaries?
always on ongoing evaluation.
more so than ever now
with one who will one day be big but is still tiny today and in my care ...

angus

halifax revisited

so, i'm back in halifax for the buskers fest.

we play on the waterfront surrounded by wonderful old stone buildings.

it is a whole different world, playing on the street,

the audience right there with us, ready to be entertained.

BROTHER first played here in 94. the last time was 2001. 

many good memories.

this is the first time here with no brothers

and it is kind of weird to have no one to share those earliest memories with.

gives me a glimpse of the solo performer experience ...

but soul brothers drew and t are with me and the playing feels good.

and best of all, i'm on the road with the family again.

asa proves himself to be a natural for the gypsy lifestyle.

holding the little fella, now so much bigger, so much more aware,

never fails to make everything okay.

all those other tiresome things just fall away.

a beautiful day out there.

time to go make some more music ...

angus

bethlehem

as i ponder our impending return to bethlehem, pennsylvania,

the words of yeats again come to mind ...

And what rough beast, it's hour come round at last,

Slouches toward Bethlehem to be born?

and it occurred to me that maybe we are indeed some kind of beast.

often, over the years, this beast BROTHER has changed its form.

and more often than not bethlehem has witnessed the new.

i look forward to unveiling the latest incarnation of the beast this week.

angus

today

we are two years married today.

i just want to find the words

i don't want to say what she's already heard

i look for another way to tell her

i am the luckiest bastard i know ...