Congratulations to Ian Jensen (LA, California) and Lynne Roberts (Aberdeen, Scotland)!

Well, it has been quite some time hasn't it? One might say I became a hermit for a month or so and I couldn't think of a better way to put it. I finished my third semester in the first week of May and spent about ten days in Scotland; admittedly I'm still there in my heart and mind, as the past week I've found it particularly hard to settle back in to life at Berklee.

Ah, life in an airport. I'm here but I'm temporary, sort of like life in a nutshell. You arrive with all your bags, walk from the comfort of the known through a warzone of security checkpoints, and arrive in this strange place where no one really belongs. All struggle to get around with the bags they have, trying to find their way to the gate that leads to the right location. Flights can leave early, flights can leave late - some don't leave at all. Right, I reckon that's as far as the analogy can go at this point!

What can I say? I've been a very, very busy troubadour over the past couple of weeks and have neglected to stay in touch with my beloved fans; so this is where we have a coffee, catch up and play some cards.

So, I have to be brief as I am ever so tired, but I have to say that the last few days have been amazing. I returned to Boston a couple of hours ago and am reflecting on how amazing & wonderful the Canadian tour has been. I performed several times in Toronto, met old friends and made new ones and Tim FiztGerald is one of these new friends! Tim is a concert bassist and joined me for several tunes at every show of mine in Toronto. His openness to playing new musical styles, his generosity, and quick-wit were all enormously inspiring; I will be keeping in close contact with Tim as concerns future trips to Toronto.

Well, it seems that silence pays its own way. Having spent the journey to Toronto in silence, and rested all of today, my voice is 95% back! I arrived in Toronto late yesterday afternoon, and spent the evening with friends before calling it a night.

Last night's fundraiser was wonderful and we raised over $400 for Canadian Humanitarian. I was headlining the night and had some wonderful opening acts, and one that caught my eye/ear/brainbox was Honeyman and the Brothers Farr. I met Eric and James Farr four years ago in Chelsea, Quebec, when I was touring with Wildfire Dance Theatre. I was immediately struck by James' ability on the guitar (which had garnered him a great deal of attention, and several awards), an ability that inspired me to take my playing further.

I decided, a little too late, that I wanted to keep up with my Canadian tour with a blog. So I start on the second day! I arrived in Montreal on Friday night and it struck me how amazing it is to be picked up by people that you've never met before, but to be welcomed like an old friend. Since I've been here I've felt that way as I've met so many people and been welcomed so warmly.

In just over 11 hours I'll be stepping off a plane and onto Canadian soil! Montreal is the first stop of my 10 day tour and I am so excited. So excited, in fact, that I haven't packed yet. The essentials are packed (guitar and passport), so I guess I'm fine.

I think it's time to revert back to pointing out the little things in life, all those little things that amount to a day. So in effect all the little things are like atoms making up the whole day. Like walking through Boston at 7am, enjoying the relative peace and then being confronted by very loud Latino music blasting from a banged up old car. And then smiling a huge smile whilst everyone else looks on bewildered. It's when old friends come to visit and all you want to do is make music.

“ ... Know that something holier than us but just as soft planted the parts of himself into our feet when we were born that we might one day find our way back to him you are almost home know this come closer come into this ... ” - Anis Mojgani, poet Imagine having this read to you by the sweetest, most sincere voice you have ever heard. Imagine this as part of a greater whole.

3 weeks in and I'm a little disappointed in myself for not keeping you all up to date, but it has been quite an intense period and every time I have sat down to write something it seems that more and more pops up. So now I sit on a quiet Friday morning with just enough time before heading out to visit Boston's Museum of Fine Arts. One of the perks of being a Berklee student - free passes to that wonderful institution!

Here I am.

Today's the the day that I leave home once again and to say that I'm used to it would be correct in one sense, but in some ways I don't think I'll ever lose that feeling of home. I know that wherever I am taken in life, wherever I tour, wherever I lay my head to sleep, that I will always need that home feeling; a place of ultimate return.

Today I received some wonderful news that I'd love to share with you all! Last November I entered several songs into the SongDoor International Songwriting Contest. They spanned all the genres I cover and, more than anything else, I was interested in the feedback that I would receive.

It seems that not so long ago I was flying over Philadelphia and now I find myself flying over Amsterdam, a city that I really know little about. Well, the dictionary on my MacBook has kindly informed me that it has a booming diamond industry. And from the air it looks cool. Though I reckon it'd look cooler if they somehow combined the already cool look with the diamonds. Then it'd be all sparkly.

I'm writing this as I fly above Philadelphia and I never realised what an historically significant city it is. As far as I know it was the site of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and the adoption of the U.S. Constitution in 1787. Oh, and it's name is from the Greek philadelphia meaning 'brotherly love'. Cool eh?

Well, three weeks and two days from today I'll be heading home, and I'm so ready for it. The longest period of time that I've spent away from home, consecutively, was ten months and that, for some reason, was fine for me. But these past 6 months have been so trying on me and I can't really explain why.

It has indeed been a little while since I wrote last and it's been a very turbulent time since we last met. I promised that I was going to go deeper, to tap into what lays beneath the surface.

The past week or so has seen a whole ton of things happen, all of which are really exciting and I've been kicking myself because I waited this long to share it all with you.

This morning I witnessed something that really made me smile to myself.

I tried to pen down a thought process - turns out the best way was to just speak my mind!

So, I figured I owed you all an update on how things are going. I have had a very strange week. It's hard to explain or put down in words but some awesome things have happened and some weird things too.

The last few days have been really quite insane. I have learned a great deal, done a great deal and am about to go on and do a great deal more!

I recently uploaded a recording of my arrangement of Cissy Strut by the Meters and wanted to briefly discuss the process of writing and recording.

After having worked solidly for over ten hours on a music project I decided to take a break and head downstairs. I was met by Jesse Ryan, one of my great friends and musicians, who sat me down and told me that he had to return to Trinidad because his finances hadn't worked out.

Today was a strange, strange day. I was struck by the news that Dave, my dear friend and fellow musician, will be leaving Berklee this Saturday as his finances for this semester haven't worked out.

The quintessential Berklee greeting, preceded by neither a hello or good morning, poses a question, but apparently, from the standpoint of it's delivery, seeks no answer.

The air is salty. The sky comes down. And I'm listening to live jazz-funk. That can only mean one thing. Yup, I'm back in Boston and the remnants of tropical storm Hanna have been carrying the sea inland, dumping it upon us all.

My plans for a full-length album are in motion now and I decided that it would be great - and very important - to have suggestions and feedback from all of you concerning the album.

I turned 23 today and I decided to create a pledge for myself.

It's a glorious, glorious day - and I'm hiding inside the van. Why? Because us Scots just weren't designed for the intense heat of West Virginia. Aside from that though everything is fine and dandy! I spent the night in a tent in the middle of a field near Terra Alta, WV, falling asleep to the sound of crickets, a light breeze and the distant rhythm* of Mo-Town funk.

It's nice to breathe - and not just breathe in the physical sense. If you're used to open space and the sounds of nature then a city can no doubt begin to feel cramped. Which is why now, in the open space of Virginia, I can finally breathe.

It is finally time to rest ...

12 weeks can fly by ...

Only using 4 senses to explore the world can be a little limiting ...

The art of coming together ...

I returned from my trip to Canada a couple of days ago and I decided that it's high time to tell you all about what happened and why those days will live in my memory for the rest of my life.

Of once again to foreign lands!

To infinity and beyond! Or ... to Bed, Bath and Beyond - it's good either way!

Nearly a month in Boston ...

Not long into the semester and things are kicking off quite nicely ...

The days are shorter and the work is longer ...

Nearly settled and buckling in for the long haul ...

Goodbye Scotland ...

I'm not quite gone - I have a few last things to take care of ...

Making way for the new and cleaning out the proverbial closet ...

The last days of a previous life .. or something like that

I'm into my last month at home and the pressure is on ...

My first official music video has just been completed!

Life's an adventure, and why should soup not be a part of it? Read on ...

Some of my music has just been published in an artistic documentary on the Isle of Mull!

I feel recovered enough from my jet-lag to tell you all about my amazing six day trip to Vancouver Island, BC, which I just got back from this Tuesday.

Run, run as fast as you can, you can't catch me I'm an airplane!

Homeward bound!

A pilgrimage to the west ...

If any of you guys are on Facebook please come and support me!

Suffering a great deal at the moment - I haven't written anything of notable quality in so long, at least by my standards and I'm starting to despair ...

Ready to make a CD?

Yes, tomorrow, at 7am, I am leaving to work on Victoria Island in BC - 4375 miles away to be precise!

Another year older - man, I've come a long way!

Playing with the idea of not uploading anything until everything currently uploaded reaches over 100 plays ...

I am going to put together a demo - now, I have had feedback from a few members and now I am calling all iCompers to help me out!

It's time to get serious!