Thursday June 24 2010 – Airplane Journal, Glasgow to Halifax

It was an early morning to rise at 4:30am in Glasgow to catch the BMI flight to Heathrow and transfer with a duty free bottle of Scotch and crystal goblets to an Air Canada flight direct to Halifax (via the Maple Leaf Lounge of course!). I have been in the UK since Monday. The night before was Sunday – which was also Father’s Day.

Rewind 4 days earlier, we were winning the gold at Banff , had a great after party, slept for 3 hours and flew back East across the whole country – from Rockies to Haligonia. When I arrived in Halifax it was quite late at night, is my baby was already asleep when I got home. Jessica and I spend 30 minutes awake with each other then crashed hard. The next morning I said goodbye to my beautiful family again and drove to Fredericton for a New Brunswick Arts Council board meeting Friday night and Saturday morning.

I left the Saturday meeting early because I had to drive to Saint John the next day to perform the duties of wedding MC at my dear friends Chrissy and Jake’s wedding. That was a grand ole party. A lot of my old school friends were there which ended up being a fun reunion dance party as the band Big Fish cranked out the classics! Sunday I drove back to Halifax to spend 1 hour with Jessica (Kaiya was asleep) then drove back to the airport for the red eye flight to Heathrow. None of my Aeroplan upgrade certificates worked to upgrade me to the glorious blue pods of business class…oh the sweet sweet pods. I find that the upgrade certificates never actually work; it’s just a scam to get suckahs like me to keep flying Air Canada. Oh alas.

The flight was alright, I slept the whole way really. Arrived at Heathrow very late and had 2 minutes to spare to catch the train to Scotland at Paddington Station from the Heathrow Express…dang, tight spots.

The train ride took me past some of the nicest window views ever of the British country side and eventually the ragged and swelling coastline of Scotland.

I ended up in Stirling and checked in to the best little Inn South of the River Spey! (see my 2006 blog to dig what Inn to check out next time you are in Scotch Whiskey Heaven North of Aberdeen!).

I completely recommend this Inn if you are in the area, it is called the Auchyle Stirling and is operated by Mandi and Tom Dick, and their dog Harry…no kidding, Mandi, Tom Dick and Harry. How perfect!

The Auchyle is located right on the edge of the infamous and ignored quarter of Stirling; Raploch. Raploch has had a reputation that spans hundred of years of being kind of a sketchy spot. Others in Stirling just don’t go there apparently. Interestingly enough I thought the place was quite nice actually, neat and tidy, modest homes, community housing…and anywhere you look up you will either see the Stirling Castle

or the William Wallace Monument,

both great climbs! The hospitality that Mandi and Tom gave me, and the warmth and authenticity of the community is unparalleled.

I shot footage for our Sistema documentary (CBC) at Sistema Scotland’s “Big Noise” for the day

after enjoying some solid shwallys with Mandi and an extensive tour from the Stirling Bridge (go watch Braveheart and you will be on the same page), the castle and other battlegrounds…Scotland first hand.

Sistema Scotland is true proof that other countries can adopt Venezuela’s El Sistema and make radical social change with it while creating world-shaking classical music professionals. Sistema Scotland has only been open for a year longer than our Sistema in New Brunswick , so it was a great experience for me as a board member of the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra and Sistema to see where we could be in another 12 months!

I filmed some solid footage, the kids were great, the Big Noise was helpful and I had a great day only to be followed by a Scottish steak dinner up at the castle, some more Highland Park shwolly then a short sleep before hitting the train to Glasgow to pop back on a flight to go home from the quickest overseas trip of my history. Glasgow’s a fine city, jazz fest was going down, as was the World Cup. Britain won and I witnessed a frenzie of happy Brits at the pub I was sipping at.

Scotland is a magical land. If you end up in Scotland climb the Wallace Monument, check out the Stirling Castle, the Bridge where Wallace defeated the English, and of course, Big Noise in the heart of a broken but healing community – Raploch.

Minister of New Brunswick, Hedard Albert, sends his letter of congratulations for our pilot awards at Banff.

Thank you, Minister Albert, and all of those who help support our work here in New Brunswick!

I am flying back East across the country. It is time to get home and sleep in my own bed for just one night, the idea of being home with my family is helping this weary flyer as he writes his next blast of randomness and run-on sentences! An hour ago I was on the phone with CBC radio doing an interview about our surprising but ridiculously re-inspiring wins last night at the Banff World Television Festival. We won three international awards for our best pilots. So surprised and stoked was I when I was called to the stage for the third time! I delivered Bear hugs to each of my presenters including Alberta’s Minster of Culture Lindsay Blackett! Ha ha. The party afterwards was sick; there is an incredible place in the woods with two very large circular yurt-like wooden buildings with a massive hole in the ceiling to the sky creating a chimney for the large indoor bonfires in both of the buildings. House beats on vinyl in one building and old school funk from a band in the other, Hammond B3 and Lesley Amplifiers in full affect. Lots of celebrating to be had for the wrap up of the best Banff / nextMEDIA yet in my humble opinion.

My biggest inspirational human experience this week was meeting Nadia G from Bitchin’ Kitchen…if you don’t know her brand, check it out on line…she is the face of the future. Certainly a cross platform game changer. Thanks Nadia for rockin’ so hard!!! The funniest human experience was listening to Kenny of Kenny & Spenny, Ricky Jarvais of the Office and William Shatner, what a triage of hams! That’s fine f***ing ham mom! The coolest human experience was listening to Vincent Gilligan, creator and Executive Producer of Breaking Bad (as well as X-Files). Breaking Bad is such a cool show; it’s always amazing to hear the inspirations from the creators themselves. My blast to the past experience was bumping into Jason Priestly all over the place, yes Beverly Hills 90210 was a fav of mine in my younger years!

So as I write this I am exhausted, we got to bed after 1 in the morning, woke up 3 hours later to get Tidby to the airport for his 6am flight this morning. Exhausted but still buzzed from a very intensely smile-filled week. I am writing as a band called “Boom Box” is thumping sweet beats in the ear buds. “To Mexico, meet me at the West Coast, take your time…” Andrew MacCormack gave me this gem of an album, the singer is the son of the Donna from the Grateful Dead; you can definitely hear the Dead influences in his vocals and guitar grooves as he mixes funky electro-beats to keep my brain active. Check the album out, not a disappointment!

The awards that I receive need to always be deflected to the whole team at Hemmings House Pictures who are the ones in the battle field actually creating the stories and the visual adventures that attract the attention that we receive. I am always uncomfortable accepting credit for our company as I am only a part of the machine that creates the world class HHP experience. I want to share an email that Andrew just sent me this morning after hearing about the wins. Andrew is the one that edited the 3 nominated and winning promos. He is truly a talent, as is the whole team who helped produce the images and the stories, a true collaborative experience. This email that Andrew sent was very touching for me to read. It is very encouraging to have a team that supports each other the way we do.

Here is his note:

I was so pumped for you last night that we won those awards. I know it’s a team effort and everything, but it all exists because of you bro. Without you, none of this would ever have happened. I know how much of you ass has been put on the line to keep this company alive and keep us employed and there were probably lots of times you could have just packed it in. I’m really proud and honored to be a part of this company. It feels nice, (along with the Papikatuk award etc…) that when we least expect it, people recognize our work as being “world class”. That is a thought that I take very seriously and inspires me to continue to give it all for HHP and you.

Glad you were there to win the awards man!

That’s awesome…thanks Andrew!

‘Big Noise at Stirling Bridge,’ June 23, 2010 – If you ever watched the movie, Brave Heart, you will remember Mel Gibson playing the heroic role of William Wallace, the great Scottish freedom fighter. Against all odds, on Sept. 11, 1297, William led his small Scottish army to defeat the powerful British Army at the battle of Stirling Bridge. I took this photo of the bridge. I imagined what it would be like to stand in the same place 813 years ago. I would have witnessed a turning point in the Scottish history. I am in Stirling, Scotland, filming in a small, less-than-privileged neighbourhood called Raploch for a documentary. For the last year I have been filming the progress of Sistema New Brunswick, the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra’s revolutionary social and classical music program. The daily afterschool music program is based on the Venezuelan program El Sistema. New Brunswick is not the only area that has officially adopted the Sistema revolution. Stirling, Scotland – also known as Big Noise – has been creating little maestros for three years now. Yesterday was the end of the school year for the kids at Big Noise, so it was a perfect time to grab footage for the documentary. The parallel between William Wallace’s fight against all odds at Stirling Bridge, and Sistema’s fight to give disadvantaged kids a chance to shine is an apt comparison. El Sistema, Big Noise and Sistema New Brunswick are small, but tactical warriors making Big Noise around the world to fight against the face of poverty.

The day of the Originals Awards Lauchlan and I were filming more in Moncton for the “Sistema” documentary. It is always smile-inducing hanging out with these little shining stars as they learn their instruments. After filming a lot of the kids playing “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” I think I want to change the name of the documentary to “Twinkle Little Stars”, or “Shine Little Stars”, or “These Little Shining Stars”, or “Shine On Little Stars”. Thoughts? Please place a comment if you like or dislike! Anyway the kids inspire me, this program has given them ownership, pride, passion and talents in an area where they may never have exposure to otherwise. REVOLUTIONARY! There is nothing but dripping positives with Sistema. Unfortunately however there are dissenters out there right now from the elitist camp that feels that money and resources should keep classical music in the middle to upper class, not into the hands of children with lesser opportunities. Ignorance is not bliss. Love of music will prevail as anything attached to love usually does.

Lauchlan and I realized that it was exactly a year ago that we were filming in Venezuela. It has been a revolutionary year on many fronts, but mostly for Sistema New Brunswick. Stellar. I will be heading to Scotland next week to film their Sistema program. Where will we be in another year? More and more kids joining the circle of Sistema similar to “The Order” circles that I have just been inducted to. The more the stronger.

I am now listening to Jason Mraz, there is no immediate connection to these lyrics and Sistema, but I’ll throw them out there anyway. “I won’t hesitate no more, it can not wait, I’m yours. Look into your heart and you will find love love love, listen to the music of the moment, people dance and sing, we are just one big family, its our God forsaken right to be loved loved loved. I won’t hesitate no more, theirs no need to complicate, our time is short, this is our fate, I’m yours.”