Topsy Turvy

Dear Friends and family,

Everything has been upside down for the last few days. Instead of waking up ready for action and gradually tiring towards the end of the day, I seem to be starting out pretty tired and then picking up steam in the late afternoon. That has happened the last few days. I suspect it has something to do with the meds I am taking, but how or why the situation has changed I don't know. But it does lend itself to interesting possibilities for planning evening activities.

Yesterday I wrote about the lovely setting for the concert we attended on Sunday but didn't say anything about the concert itself. It was highly unusual and fascinating. The acoustics in the church lent themselves to the experience. There was a mezzo soprano, Margo Grib, who not only sang but also played a vielle, a violin-like instrument, sometimes both at once, which rather amazed us. There were two recorder players, Daphna Mor (who also played a weird instrument called a nai, very breathy, not forceful), and Nina Stern (who also played a chalumeau); Haig Manoogian, an oud player; and David Buckbut, percussion. At one point they all said something about at least one of their instruments, explaining its likenesses and differences from the instruments more familiar to us. Buckbut charmingly explained his especial affection for his tambourine-like instrument--not the kindergarten variety at all, and my, he could get lots of different sounds out of it. Three of the five were not native Americans. They played 13th- and 14th-century music: Latin, Armenian, Spanish and English. Fascinating, lovely sexy. That's probably more than you want to know, but this blog is at last partly a diary, a memory-keeper for me.

I went to another session with the PT for my thumbs today, arriving there exactly 5 minutes from the time I pulled out of the garage. I like that. The session itself helps me feel better. But still a wrong move and I let out a screech.

See you later,
Bernice