The time of our lives ...

 Jonna in performance
[See below]

There will apparently be a million more septuagenarians in the UK during 2017. An astonishing figure and rather frightening I imagine for the boss of the NHS. I read it in The Times on Saturday, so it must be true! I fear that The Donald  is also around that age which gives pause for thought and fear, as the Times article opines that the Seventies are possibly the best decade of one's life. I do  NOT wish more power to Trump’s elbow; indeed quite the reverse; a swift decline or a complete disappearance would suffice and improve the global landscape immeasurably.

 Joanna Lumley looking Ab Fab at 70

However, the article did remind me of how lucky many of us are in the seventieth and in my case, eightieth, decades. Not all of course,
pensioner poverty is dreadful, but compared to previous generations, we have good diets, enough money, exercise, education and boundless self-confidence based on wide experience. Much of this could even delay dementia with luck. Sunday morning to an aperitief concert at the Crowne Plaza hotel where I also go swimming every day. I arrived to a full audience but got a seat near a lovely couple who turned out to be Belgian [her] and British [him]; they live here now after some travelling, losing, then finding, each other again after many years. Afterwards over a glass, we chatted and also met an elderly German couple on holiday. Ages cropped up and I was amused at the compliments for me; quite reminded me of a fossil on view in a museum. ‘No?! A million years old. Amazing!’ Saturday morning I went for coffee to the apartment of a new friend age 79 who has a large house in twenty hectares in Normandy but realised she was just watching the grass grow. So she is selling and has come to live here. I think it is the unfettered confidence of so many elderly people these days that is so impressive; the confidence to search out good, satisfying, interesting lives as a matter of right, almost. To be recommended and attitude helps!

Emma Wauters

 Saturday evening I went to a super concert in the Ryelandtzaal to hear two sisters, Emma & Mathilde Wauters playing a harp each SO beautifully. The whole evening was such a treat; Franck, Bach, Liszt and John Thomas of whom I had never heard. His Fantasie on a theme from Bizet’s Carmen was great fun. I think they had arranged the whole concert themselves with family and friends on hand to help with the audience entering and then enjoying a glass of wine before leaving. Mention was made in the programme notes of a professional cellist sister to add to the claim of being a musical family. The Sunday morning concert was dominated by Jonna, a young jazz singer, guitar player, pianist and composer; incredibly, all of her lyrics were in English. Her accompanists were Olivier Penu on drums; Jered Kerstens on piano and Benny van Acker on bass. They were very loud but accomplished and the audience loved them.

 Mathilde Wauters

I have spent a Long Time during the last two weeks over discovering the tax status of my pensions. It matters. I have a bill for 9000 euros payable by March 24th! Governmental pensions continue to pay UK tax; non-governmental, i.e. private, must pay Belgian tax. I believe I have now finally discovered the situation but must obtain written proof of the Governmental status of my Teachers' Pension [so far refused]; start proceedings [six page form] to reclaim relevant UK tax; and when I obtain the afore-mentioned written proof, apparently I must face Sandra in the Brugge Tax Office to seek official approval [without which I cannot reclaim UK tax]. This is definitely the most difficult, time-consuming, convoluted task since arriving here and I am trying to remain up-beat and positive!

 This is NOT a drawing of Sandra-in-the-Brugge
Tax Kantoor.