March 28, 2007: Thoroughly Thursday

My day today:  I didn’t have any work! Yea! :o) Briefly:
Walked the dogs.
Coffee with Constance in the garden:  first sunny morning for ages.
Mower to vet:  Mower is now MOLAR-LESS. Friends, if you have a cat, keep on top of that tartar! Buy special cat toothpaste and use it!
Went to Constance’s and made a barrier out of old wood for the door, thus preventing Dodo from wiggling back inside the house.
Went to Lourdes: made Chocolate Chip Cookies. Between batches (tiny oven, nine cookies at a time) I cut out squares of fabric to make a ‘samples’ folder. Thus the guys can choose which fabrics they want to use which I will then bring the next week--saves me from bringing all my fabrics up to Lourdes for eight months. Of course, I had to bring a third of it to Lourdes in order to cut sample squares out. I’ve been meaning to do it at home for weeks and haven’t yet: quilts must be finished by November 1^st” tempus fugit, and all that. One guy was folding ‘ghost money’ to burn on ‘Ching Ming Jie’ (Tomb Sweeping Day) which falls on April 5^th this year (I will hopefully do a blog about Tomb Sweeping Day early next week). He was folding the paper into little shoes, similar to Dutch clogs (‘sabots’?) I thought they were pretty neat!

Here’s a photo of cookies from today in a cookie jar that was given to Lourdes by my friend, Jerri. Jerri will be returning to the States at the beginning of May and has kindly donated a bunch of stuff to Lourdes, including a sewing machine (Yes!), a yogurt maker (Yes!) and an ice cream maker (Yes!) We love Jerri!!

Dinner at home (mmm, leftovers!) Dodo is officially installed in her outdoor dog house and not too thrilled about the change in accommodation. She spent a fair bit of this evening alternately whining pathetically and giving short, sharp barks in order to remind me that I had forgotten to let her in. Dodo is the dog who pees anywhere and everywhere. Dodo is not suited to live indoors!
Up to Simon and Constance’s for a glass of wine. I introduced Sophie (8) to the pleasure of the monster drawing game, you know: Each person draws a head on their paper then folds the paper so only the neck is showing. You trade papers and draw a body, folding again so only the bottom of the waist is showing, etc. She thought it is a fabulous game! We watched two episodes of ‘Sean the Sheep’, a claymation show. It is utterly charming and quite amusing. Similar to ‘Wallace and Gromet’ without the dry humor.
It’s 10:23 and time for bed. I have a cloth-back copy of ‘The Man in Brown’ (from the orphan’s book sale) to begin before I turn out the lights. It’s a copy from 1946 and has that musky, old book smell. Happy Amanda!

March 21, 2007: A, B + C at Lourdes, Dodo's new house

Wow, I’m tired. Early to bed for me! I taped tests this morning with Steve then went to ‘City Super’, a supermarket that sells many foreign goods to get some ingredients for Lourdes. Chocolate cake had been requested and as I didn’t find an interesting (and easy) recipe I decided to go for a cake mix. Off to Lourdes where I enjoyed leftover curry for lunch (YUM!). My fellow volunteer, Gino, was late, so I hung out with the guys. One of them, A, told me that he thinks his partner may have contracted AIDS as they did not always practice safe sex. I asked if his partner had been to see a doctor. No, A answered, as he doesn’t have health insurance. Health insurance is super cheap in Taiwan, around NT600 a month. (Currency converter.) So I said that A’s partner should go register. Well, it turns out that A’s partner has a warrant out for his arrest (I didn’t ask why) and so is worried that if he registers for health insurance he will get arrested. Tricky, eh. So then I suggested that A’s partner just go and pay the full fee (still really, really cheap by world standards) to get tested but use a false name and address when he registers at the doctor’s office. Naturally neither A nor A’s partner have any money. And the last thing: if A’s partner does get tested and is HIV positive, he has said that he will kill himself. And possibly A as well, I’m not sure on that point. What a cheerful conversation.
As I was listening to A’s tale of woe, B popped over to the smoking balcony (A was smoking, not me!!) B had a huge, happy smile on his face and said, ‘I think I’m falling in love!’ I saw a photo of his love-interest and he’s cute (so’s B, he’s one of my favorite guys at Lourdes.)
At 2:00 Gino still hadn’t showed up so we made the cake. I also had a bag of strawberries that my neighbour had given me, so I sliced them into a bowl to be served with the cake. One of the lovely social workers, Sophie, came to chat as I was slicing strawberries. I ranted a bit about one of the guys, C, who has succeeded in irritating me beyond belief since his first day. He alternates between sulky little girl, screechy teenage girl trying to impress and just plain stupid. Any three of these personalities (regardless of gender) irritate the crap out me but to find all three together in C: Grrrr. About three years ago I talked with Sister T about C, her response was terrific: We all know C has a serious lack of interpersonal skills and if we had more resources we’d do intensive counseling with him. Unfortunately, as a charity, our resources are very limited. But if C ever bothers you too much, just leave. Let us know in the office that you’re leaving and then go. It’s not that he consciously tries to irritate me, it happens totally naturally! I have never taken her up on her offer, but it is good to know that I can leave if I want to. I played ‘Big 2’ with some of the guys (including C) which was fun.
After letting the cake cool I cut it into squares and served it with cut up strawberries. Their reactions were very interesting: everyone ate the cake (some people had seconds and thirds!) but they didn’t rave about it. They ALWAYS rave about everything. Conclusion: after a year of making cakes, pies, cookies and biscuits by scratch using the best ingredients I can find, a cake-mix cake did not thrill them! The folks at Lourdes now have more discriminating taste buds! :o)
I went for a massage at 4:30 which lasted about 45 minutes. At the end I fell asleep and slept like the dead until 5:45! When I came out my masseuse told me it was Friday already. Ha, ha, funny lady. :o) It felt really, really good.
Home, fed the beasties, ate the last portion of chicken curry (YUM!) with a Hoegaarten (YUM!) Walked the dogs, got wood shavings, checked out Constance’s latest wood work project and congratulated Sophie on her MASSIVE trophy from abacus class. I put Dodo’s dog house together and put her outside for the night. She is NOT a happy camper. She scratched at the door, whined and barked fro 20 minutes before giving up (for now.) It’s about 20 C out and fairly clear, a good first night out in her new accommodation.
Well. I feel better now. It’s 9:30 so I’ll upload this, check out your blog and then drift off in the arms of Morpheus.

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Feb. 14, 2007: Poor Knights

I worked this morning, went to Lourdes this afternoon and then taped again from 4~7. At Lourdes we made something I had never made before: 'Poor Knights.' This is, apparently, a recipe that dates back about 500 years. The Knights of the Realm (which realm? I don'™t know.) were not very well paid. They couldn't afford to eat meat much, instead they often had something similar to French Toast. I say '˜similar'™ because mixed in with the eggs, milk and cinnamon was some white wine. A more fancy version was a sandwich filled with assorted goodies which was then dipped in the egg-milk-wine mixture and fried. After doing a bit of research on the net, I came up with this:

4 eggs
350 mL milk
½ teaspoon cinnamon
1 ½ loaves bread, crusts trimmed
Assorted fillings: cream cheese, raisins, jam, brown sugar, sliced bananas, peanut butter, Nutella:  whatever appeals to you!

It's best to use bread that is a couple of days old (but not stale! Yech!) If you have fresh bread as I did today, dry it out for a few minutes in a warm oven.
Make a sandwich using the fillings of your choice. This afternoon we made two kinds: cream cheese/raisins/brown sugar and cream cheese/jam. Whisk with a fork the eggs, milk and cinnamon. Dip the sandwiches in the egg mixture then fry in a pan with some melted butter until golden, turn over and fry the other side (just like French Toast.)
Cut into quarters and share with your friends. Yum! Here's a photo that Sister Teresa took of us. The guys were all standing around me, smiling broadly and posing. Sis T tried to shoo them away without success. They wouldn't un-pose. Then she said they couldn't stand next to me for this photo as it was going to be published in the annual report. That's ok, they all said. No, she insisted, we can't have photos with your faces in. That's ok, they repeated. Let me tell you, Sis T is not a woman to be thwarted. So I suggested they turn around and do manly Chippendale-esque poses (but with clothes on~please!) This photo was the compromise we reached, a little fuzzy but charming! One guy was recognisable by his profile so I very inexpertly fuzzed it out. If you think the tall guy on the right looks weird it's my fault!

LW is becoming more feisty: yesterday evening and this evening he came downstairs when I arrived home and demanded his dinner in No Uncertain Terms. Yea, LW!
Tomorrow I am working in the morning only. I'll come home for the afternoon, then back to the city for dinner with friends. This dinner will mark the beginning of the Lunar (Chinese) New Year celebration: I will be off for nine glorious days. Hooray!

Feb. 10, 2007: Pinenut Cookies

These cookies were a hit! Here are the ingredients ready to go:

Mixing...

Dipped and ready to bake...

Finished. They were delicious!

The first ones we made were too big so we were only able to make about 23. When scooping the batter into the pinenuts you should use a heaping teaspoon/cookie. Also, we ran out of pinenuts for coating the cookies, so you should use 2 1/2 cups of pinenuts. The modified reipe is:

PINE NUT COOKIES
Crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside, these cookies are like almond macaroons with a pine nut bonus.
2 1/2 cups pine nuts (about 7 ounces)
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup (packed) almond paste,* crumbled
1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 large egg whites
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup powdered sugar (for dusting)


Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 2 large baking sheets. Using on/off turns, blend 3/4 cup pine nuts and next 4 ingredients in processor until crumbly mixture forms. Transfer mixture to large bowl; add egg whites. Using electric mixer, beat until mixture is smooth. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in small bowl to blend. Add to pine nut mixture; beat until smooth (dough will be soft and sticky).
Place remaining 3/4 cup pine nuts in shallow bowl. Spoon generous teaspoonful of dough into pine nuts in shallow bowl, coating 1 side of dough with pine nuts. Using floured fingertips, transfer dough to prepared baking sheet, pine nut side up. Smooth edges of dough to form even round. Repeat with remaining dough, flouring fingertips as needed to prevent sticking and spacing cookies 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets.

Bake cookies 1 baking sheet at a time until golden, about 20 minutes. Cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar, transfer to plate, and serve. (Cookies can be made 1 day ahead. Store in airtight container at room temperature.)

*Almond paste is available at specialty foods stores and in the baking-products section of most supermarkets. Or, if you live in Taiwan you have to make it yourself! Recipe below.

Makes about 28.
Bon Appétit
December 2003
Almond Paste (I got this recipe from Ellen's kitchen.)
Makes approximately 1 pound

2 cups whole almonds, preferably Mission

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

2 tablespoons light corn syrup

a few drops of almond extract

Cover the almonds with boiling water and let them stand for at least a minute. Slip off the skins with your fingers. If they are very stubborn, cover them again with boiling water or let them soak and remove them just a few at a time to work on.
Combine the sugar, water, and corn syrup in a pan and cook, without stirring, until the temperature is 235 degrees F. Then stir in the almond extract.
While the syrup is heating, preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Put the peeled almonds on a cookie sheet and leave them just long enough to dry out and warm up, about 8 to 10 minutes. Then, while they're still warm, grind them in a food processor until the texture is fine and smooth. If necessary, add 1 or 2 tablespoons of water to loosen the mixture and make it easier to process.
With the food processor going, gradually pour in the syrup in a slow, steady stream. Process until the paste is uniform. Remove it from the work bowl, wrap it well in plastic wrap, and refrigerate it until needed. To make it soft and easy to work with, put it in a warm place, such as on top of the stove while the oven is on, or heat it in a double boiler or a steamer set over simmering water.

1. I only needed 1/4 cup of almond paste, so I made 1/4 of this recipe.
2. 235 F is 'soft ball' stage.
3. I didn't pre warm the almonds. Mine were already skinned and semi-ground.
4. My 'food processor' is a small attachment for my beaters (in the top photo.) It is impossible to add the syrup as the machine is running, so I poured in some, ran the machine, poured in some more, ran the machine and so on until the syrup was all added.
5. When we wanted to use the paste the next day it was like a little block of cement! I took it out of the plastic bag and into a small bowl. I then microwaved it on the lowest setting for 20 seconds--still hardish. After another 20 seconds it was soft and crumbly.
6. Making the almond paste took about 10 minutes, start to finish and it is delicious.

February 7, 2007: Life and a story

It's been a busy day and busier days are coming: I'll be working Thursday morning and all day Friday. Thursday afternoon I'll be making cookies at Lourdes (and introducing a colleague to Sister Teresa who would like to volunteer at Lourdes! Yea!) Both Thursday and Friday evening I'll be going to a 'Wei Ya', this is a 'Year End Party'. Remember that Chinese/Lunar New Year is on February 18th, so now is the time for end of the year celebrations.
Which means that tonight I have to check my outfit (the same for both parties). Make almond paste for the cookies tomorrow. (You think I should buy it here instead of make it? In Taipei? Yeah, I don't think so. If I had known that pinenut cookies were such a pain I would have said "No Way!" It's a bit too late, now, my fellow volunteer has already bought the pinenuts.) Wash dishes and do some general tidying. I went grocery shopping and have pre-weighed and cut up the dogs/cats meat for the next four days. Yes! I am completely insane! They get freshly cooked meat every night! Crazy spinster lady with too many cats at your service!
So, no cruising your blogs for the next couple of days. I'll take many (many, many, many) photos and post, post, post over the weekend!
To people who've been writing to me recently: I will answer your messages probably over the weekend. Patience, friends.
*************************************************
Sheesh, making the almond paste and gathering up the tools + equipment for tomorrow only took 10 minutes. I was imagining 30 minutes at least.
Department Store Story.
On Saturday I bought three magazines in a moment of decadence. One of them, among other things, tested jeans, concealers and alarm clocks. Interesting combination, I thought. As I have mentioned 'once or twice' I've been staying up progressively later and later. One of the side effects is that I am getting bags under my eyes. Yech. So, reading this article about 'concealers' I thought I would go and buy my first one. Ever.
I got to the department store, clutching my magazine and told myself that I would not be intimidated by the twenty-one and a half year old waifs selling cosmetics. I had planned to buy a product by YSL, however it is only available at the airport in Duty Free. So I moved on to my next choice, something by Channel. Nope, not available in Taiwan. Choice number three was a product by MAC. The girls at MAC are by far the hippest: Short shorts, 'F-M' black leather boots, shiny black cascading hair and far-out makeup. I was a woman on a mission (in my Timberland shoes and Abercrombie hoodie) and asked one of the young women to help me. She was very friendly but busy and said she'd help me in a minute. Their little corner of the department store was a frenzy of women, some getting their make-up done, others browsing and debating the merits of this and that. I noticed a couple of guys discusing lip gloss and then trying them on. They were so cool: they looked completely unselfconscious as they tried different shades. I don't know of any other big city in the world (except maybe SF?) where guys could casually try on make-up and no one would bat an eyelid. Tell you what, seeing them made me feel way chilled out. When the salesgirl got back to me and we discussed what I had chosen, she suggested a different product and then tried it on me. She noticed that my skin is dry, very dry. (Oh?) I admitted I almost never put on moisturiser. "Hmm," she said. "What foundation do you use?" Er, none. It was just like a cartoon: Her eyes bugged out and I swear there were pink and green sparkly question marks floating around her head for a couple of seconds. She professionally pulled herself back together and suggested that in the future I put on moisturiser and then concealer. Everyday.
Being girly is hard work. I think I should just go to bed earlier.

January 31, 2007, Happy life

I think I have had enought pet-centred blogs for a while now. I have mentioned 'once or twice' about the fact that it is chilly here now. (Of course, I don't help things by having a door open on the first floor and one open out to the roof. Hmm, on that note, I will go upstairs and Close The Door. Back in a sec.)
I mention the cold weather because have I 'sensitive' skin: My skin does not like cold. For my skin anything under 10 C (50 F for my American friends) is Not Good. So what does this mean? It means that if, at these temperatures, I wash dishes without rubber gloves (my normal method), the skin on the ends of my fingers most distressingly cracks. Two days ago my skin showed signs of discomfort thus I chose not to wash the dishes. This afternoon, on my way back from Lourdes, I stopped to buy some rubber gloves. (There is a point to this meandering story, bear with me.)
So, I got home. I scooted around the house making sure all of my furry friends were here and well. I then pulled on my rubber gloves and attacked my two-day mountain of dishes. The point: I was listening to 'Wonderful Tonight' by Eric Clapton. As the opening bars played I experienced one of those 'perfect moments': I was at my beloved home, with my dear pets (all still alive!), listening to wonderful music, sipping a glass of wine and I felt an incredible surge of joy washing a bowl. I particularly noticed this moment because, frankly, washing dishes doesn't usually (ever!) make me feel so joyful.
I read the expression 'a perfect moment' years ago. When I came across this term I realised that every day is full of potential 'perfect moments', some of which I noticed, some I missed. To experience more joy, I simply needed to become more aware of these moments.
Today has been special because there have been a few perfect moments. One was at Lourdes as we made peanut butter cookies. (Thanks! to CP who shared her recipe with me.) The whole afternoon was good, making cookies with my favorite co-volunteer and one of my old Lourdes friends, J. As this was a new recipe for all of us we really worked as a team and boy, the cookies were yum!
1. Rolling and pressing.

2. Baking.

3. Mmmm, ready to eat!

4. Going, going, nearly gone...

On my way home I called Mr Du, the manager of the wood-furniture factory to ask him if I could pick up some wood. The wood that I burn in my stoves comes from this factory, they are the scraps of wood too small (mostly 25 cm long or less) that they cannot do anything with. Just before I reached the factory I noticed the moon hanging in the sky, looking incredibly large. Another perfect moment. I stopped to take a few photos before continuing on to collect some wood.

Oh! Another, well, not perfect moment, but fabulous moment? A few months ago I mentioned that someone had put up some HUGE storage sheds right on the edge of the river road. They were then dismantled (yeah!) but then, two weeks later, 'remantled.' (Is 'remantled' a word?). Rats. Well. It would appear that either (a) last night they were hit by a meteor or (b) someone destroyed the buildings. I don't know if these sheds are legal or not (I suspect not) AND they are very ugly so I don't feel sorry for the owner at all, ha!


OK. Last thing. I found this really neat snake skin in the basket that holds my 'house slippers.' Don't you think snake skins are just so cool? How does the snake wriggle out without the skin breaking apart?

Repost, LW and the IV, January 31, 2007

Yeah, well, it tricked me. After fiddling for another 40 minutes (including 'refreshing' three times without success) I unclipped everything and put LW into bed with me. In the morning I got it going, sporadically.
I took Little One into the vet for a check up: Her arm is healing nicely; the cuts are no longer infected; her bowel movements are, uh, moving; she's walking well. She needs 3~4 more weeks of restricted movement while the bone finishes healing. Luckily she seems to like my downstairs bathroom!
Here, in photos, is the LW I.V. story:
1. Yesterday, before the I.V., sitting next to the radiator.

2. With I.V. attached, part 1.

3. With small incisions at the top of his bandage to ensure it isn't too tight, thus restricting the flow of fluid.

4. I.V., part 2, higher up with an extension, thus greater gravitaional pull. Tube hanging over heater making is softer and easier of controlthe flow of drops.

Let's hope this works! Off to bake peanut butter cookies at Lourdes. As TAO2004 says, 'L8R G8RS!'

Repost, AIDS quilts, 2000~2006

By popular demand...the AIDS quilts! There is a picture of each one, followed by an explanation.
Quilt 2000 Spring tree

This quilt was made in memory of those who died, as represented by the leaves quilted on the sky, rainbow and ground. The new leaves bursting out of their buds show us that there is always hope for the future, for a cure. We quilters got a little bored near the end just quilting leaves, so we started quilting flowers and birds, then moved on to a pumpkin and a snowman!

Quilt 2001 Anonymous

This quilt is titled “anonymous”. People infected with HIV/AIDS do not dare to disclose their names because society rejects them. We hope one day they can be accepted as people with an illness and not pariahs of society.

Quilt 2002-1 Taiwan


This panel followed the “Anonymous” quilt. We wanted to show that AIDS is not something that happens to “other people”, but it affects us all over Taiwan, and the world. You may not realise it, but perhaps your neighbour or co-worker or the person who served you when you last went shopping is HIV positive. AIDS is here and it’s all around us. By accepting this fact and pulling together as a country, we can spread the message of keeping ourselves safe and find a cure.



Quilt 2002-2 I Remember You

This quilt is in memory of a friend from Lourdes Home. He was a very kind Buddhist. One of his great joys was to go to temples and copy down the sayings on the temple walls. When making any major decisions he asked for Buddha’s help. He often dressed in Chinese-style clothes.

Quilt 2003 '99 Sheep' (written October, 2003)

It’s almost the end of October and, as most years, the pace of our quilting has suddenly picked up as there are only six weeks, five weeks, four weeks left until it must be finished. Our quilt this year is not only pretty and quirky, it also has several layers of meaning which can be uncovered.

Firstly, I like bright colours and nature. As this year is the year of the sheep or goat, we thought it would be nice to design a quilt based around sheep in a natural setting.

But there are deeper meanings to our design. If you count carefully, you will see there are ninety-nine sheep on the mountains and in the sky. Those on the mountains represent our friends here on Earth now. Those in the sky represent our friends who have passed on but are not forgotten.


The number ninety-nine refers to a parable found in the New Testament. To paraphrase, if you have one hundred sheep and one gets lost, of course you will go look for it, leaving the other ninety-nine behind. When you find it, you will take it home feeling so joyful that you found the lost little one. (‘And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.’ KJV Luke 15:7) I like to think of Lourdes as being a little like this good shepherd: If one of our friends is lost and scared they are always welcome at the Friendship Centre. This is a place where everyone can really relax and be themselves, no pretending or masquerading is needed or desired.

Some members of the group are creative and dexterous with their hands as well as willing to make a certain time commitment. Others, while interested are limited by time constraints or else unsure about their abilities. Thus making sheep and sewing them onto the mountains was a good project that appealed to all abilities. To design and make each sheep took from 30 minutes to 3~4 hours. In a short space of time a person could make a solid contribution to the quilt. Others made several sheep of varied designs and textures. Some sewed on the works of others while yet others gave moral support, providing coffee, music and charming conversation.

I was happily surprised with the enthusiasm with which this year’s quilt engendered. There was a free flow of people every Friday afternoon, some ‘regulars’ who came often, others who stopped by only once. It was truly a community effort, one of those rare events in life where the journey is the destination.




Quilt 2004 Love


This quilt is titled “love”, because love is really what holds us all together. It is the love of friends, families, higher powers and lovers that makes life worth living. It is love of life, of work, of nature, of ideas, of our hobbies and sports that contribute to make life the wonderful thing that it is. You can see we have quilted some of the things that we love onto this panel.

Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing
Paul Frances Webster

Love is a many-splendored thing

It's the April rose that only grows in the early spring

Love is nature's way of giving a reason to be living

The golden crown that makes a man a king

Once on a high and windy hill

In the morning mist two lovers kissed and the world stood still

Then your fingers touched my silent heart and taught it how to sing

Yes, true love's a many-splendored thing

Quilt 2004 "Michael's Quilt"

This year’s quilt was designed in memory of a dear friend, Michael. Michael touched many people’s lives through his work at Lourdes Home and his volunteer work at Tai Da Hospital. We brainstormed to come up with ‘the essential Michael’ which we then worked into the design of the quilt.
Michael was a Catholic his entire life, so the crucifix is to represent his belief.
Coffee and a cigarette, preferably several times a day.
A portrait of Michael.
Michael loved playing cards, especially ‘Big Two.’
‘Kiss Me Goodbye’, the song Michael wanted to have played at his memorial service.
Self-explanatory!
A copy of the vest volunteers at Tai Da used to wear. Being a volunteer was a big part of his life.
Ma-jiang pieces. Michael loved to gamble.
Michael dearly loved his mother and two sisters. He looked forward to meeting his sister in heaven…
This translates to ‘I love to gossip.’ Michael always knew the news!
The signatures of a few of Michael’s friends and co-workers.
The name of the organization where Michael worked (and where we made the quilt), Lourdes Home.
A ‘scratchy’—Michael often bought lottery tickets in the hopes of becoming a millionaire.
We miss you Michael.

Quilt 2006-1 Joy (Scott)

Last year we didn't have anyone in mind when we designed the quilt. Instead, we based it on a Christmas decoration that G and I made with streamers for our Christmas party last year. In early November, one of our friends, Scott, died. There wasn't time to make a quilt for him before December 1 (World Aids Day). Scott LOVED anything that was designer and insanely expensive. I asked around people I knew to give me some designer labels to make an angel Scott. I also wrote to about ten designers. The designers all gave the same resounding "No! (And are you on crack, Amanda?)" Unfortunately, most of the people I know are not into designer clothing; those who did have some were loath to cut off the labels. So, with these rather minor brands I sewed together a designer Scott, ascending to heaven.

Quilt 2006-2 Baby Quilt


There are, I think, 17 AIDS babies in Taiwan. Pinkiedaliah wrote a very interesting letter about her experience helping to care for an AIDS baby, listing all of the gloves, masks, disposable gowns etc that she was advised to use when interacting with this baby. These babies lives are tough. If, however, a pregnant woman is caught in time, she can take drugs which will STOP the transmission of AIDS from the mother to the baby. In order to limit mother to baby transmission I understand that EVERY pregnant woman in Taiwan is now routinely examined for HIV. Awesome, eh? (Oh, and AIDS medicine is covered by National Health Care.)
So anyway, this 'baby quilt' (it's one-fourth of a regular quilt, (45 x 90 cm as opposed to 90 x 180 cm.)) was designed to help people remember that although a baby may have AIDS, it is still: joyful, playful, naughty, happy, a person! And we used dogs because 2006 was Year of the Dog. (Year of the Pig begins February 19th, just after midnight.)