The Life of an Artist

Am currently experiencing technical difficulties, otherwise photo above would be cropped (to say the least).

Journaling is taken direct from Carleton' s DVD, and reads,

I was probably eleven the first time I actually put a guitar in my hands. At the family cottage, there was a guitar that belonged to my grandfather, a beautiful old Gibson Hummingbird accoustic, probably a 1960's model. And just out of sheer curiosity, I asked him to teach me some chords."

The smaller photo on the layout is from that day. I have no idea who took it (although I suspect our stepfather Kenny), and truthfully I don't care. The fact that we have captured the first time Carleton held a guitar means more to me than I can say.

The "embellishments" at bottom right of page include his band's latest CD / DVD, a documentary he scored (as featured on Oprah, thank you VERY much), and one of his solo CD's, "Sweet Loving Angel Boy". Plus a clock, to show that we are all willing to wait for Carleton's Time. A time which we all know is coming.

The life of an artist is never easy. In the cold light of day, he works full time managing a company which does movie props. Seen "Chicago"? Look at the lamps, the newspapers on the table, and you are looking at Carleton. By no means did he compose the shots in the movie, or have any impact on the movie's final glory, but he DID spend hours inside his cavernous warehouse with the set director, showing him different chairs, rugs, toasters, and old magazines. It figures that his "real" job is just as artistic as his "artistic" job.

Carleton realized very early that if he was going to make it Big in music, he needed to be in Toronto. And so, at twenty, he left New Brunswick with the pledge that he would give Toronto ten years, and then come home.

Well, it has now been fifteen years, not the promised ten. And although we love and miss him, no one wants him to come home. He has literally spent the last five years "on the cusp", so close to a breakthrough that none of us has breathed freely in recent memory. I remember, when my father died about a year ago, Carleton strongly considered leaving Toronto and coming home so he could "be here" for our little sister. I remember laughing and saying, "Yeah, see if MUM lets you do that!"