Receiving the applause

This is taken at the end of tonight's Hexham Abbey Festival concert. The group is Horovod, playing a selection of music from the Balkans and Klezmer music.

"Horovod is the name of the first Russian dance, a dance in a circle. There was no individualism, all were together and this unity had one dance, one common idea which they embodied in this special dance."
(from the programme notes)

Brilliant. Hear them if you can.

Today started with an early drive to Sunderland Eye Infirmary for an appointment in the Orthoptic Department. We shared the waiting area with a group of young children with corrected squints, sporting a variety of smart spectacles. They all seemed very happy to be there and delighted with the stickers doled out if they stayed still for the eye drops going in!

The orthopist thinks that Mum's double vision was overcorrected with her last specs and is trying some stick-on prisms. I kid you not! They may or may not work but she was optimistic.

This afternoon we were in Corbridge for Mum's hearing test and new hearing aids were issued. She now has four settings: ordinary; background noise; music; loop.

The NHS did us proud today.

At the concert tonight I met an acquaintance who had not been able to hear the announcements. She has a loop setting but doesn't know how to switch to it, but promised she would find out.

I was at the concert with Julie, Maxine, Julie's cousin John and her friend David. We saw a good number of Haltwhistle walkers and other people we know there.