Tuesday October 20, 2026

Architecture, eyewear, music—and even a Highgate crêpe. A few recent outings reminded me that expertise can be found in the most unexpected places.

An architect, an exhibition and a fresh reminder

As many of you know, my wife Natia is an architect. When she heard that students at UCL were exhibiting their projects, we headed down for a viewing.

The place was buzzing with lectures, conversations and the energy of young people sharing new ideas. It even made me feel that perhaps I should do a little more studying myself!

What struck me most was how effortless some of the finished work appeared. Yet behind every elegant drawing and apparently simple structure were years of training, knowledge and careful thought.

The same is true in optometry. There is no such thing as a simple eye examination. Every question, measurement and observation has a purpose. We are not simply asking you to read smaller letters; we are examining how your eyes work together, how comfortably you see and looking carefully at the health of your eyes.

We finished with coffee and a snack at the Wellcome Collection—a wonderful place to explore the history of medicine and keep that sense of curiosity going.

A forgotten invoice—and a sheepish payment

As we get older, many of us become a little more forgetful. I was reminded of this recently when a letter arrived about a missed payment from a company I did not recognise.

Convinced it was a scam, I wrote back rather forcefully. They calmly sent me the invoice.

Slowly, it dawned on me: they were the new distributors for TAG Heuer eyewear. The invoice was entirely genuine, and payment was made very quickly—if rather sheepishly!

Here I am choosing the actual collection

The good news is that TAG Heuer eyewear is back after several years away. The collection looks fabulous: striking design, precision engineering and fantastic hinges. It is eyewear created with the same attention to detail that separates something merely functional from something genuinely special.

Vivaldi, Beethoven and a Cypriot bouzouki

At Burgh House, we heard a wonderful duo perform music by Vivaldi and Beethoven, but with an unexpected and very personal twist: the traditional Cypriot bouzouki.

It was a lovely meeting of cultures—familiar masterpieces given a fresh voice through an instrument that immediately made me think of Cyprus.

Afterwards, we continued to Highgate for a delicious crêpe. Watching it being prepared brought the whole day back to the same thought: there are no easy jobs. Even making a crêpe properly takes knowledge, timing and a practised hand.

Expertise is everywhere. It is often the skill behind an apparently simple result that makes all the difference.

Your eyes deserve real expertise

An eye examination should never feel rushed or routine. We take time to understand how you use your vision and to examine the health of your eyes properly. When spectacles are needed, we bring the same care to finding eyewear that suits your face, personality and everyday life.

Is your eye examination due?
Call Specs Direct Opticians in Barnet on 020 8449 1993.

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