That does sound tense. Sorry it was a bad experience for you. I've seen a lot of soldier with rifles and bayonets in my travels in Latin America, but they never made me tense, for some reason. When I crossed the border between Belize and Guatemala, they were having a war over a border dispute, and there were thousands of soldiers at the border. I grew up 25 miles east of Fort Hood (the largest military base in the world, according to them), and so I was used to seeings lots of soldiers growing up and never thought much about it. When I traveled through Chiapas and Oaxaca while they were having guerrilla warfare, I merely thought that I was close to a military post. I thought the same thing when hordes of soldiers would board the train from Laredo to Mexico City near San Luis Potosí. I still think that SLP probably has a military base nearby. You may have seen a naval base in Corpus Christi as well. The last time I saw a large military presence was in 1992 during the Rodney King riots when L.A. was under martial law. That was scary because I had nowhere to go. I looked up Nuevo Progresso, and it looks like a nice place to visit - much smaller and easier to navigate than Reynosa or Matamoros. It looks like you had rather warm weather with possibly a couple of cold days in the 60s. My parents said it had been in the 80s where they are. I'll look forward to seeing your pictures! I haven't been to "The Valley" (south Texas) since the 1980s! Lars

Netla, that's a good idea! Maybe it's time for another "Name That Gadget" quiz. Jcrowley, in preparation for our kitchen remodel a few years ago, I gave away, to a local charity, a lot of surplus kitchen items that might be useful to others (I think it was Fairegold who encouraged this). It was really liberating! Those things weigh you down with guilt that you OUGHT to be using them, yet you don't--for all the reasons you mentioned. When you pare down to the essentials, you have more cabinet space, and it's easier to grab whatever you need instead of having to make a choice. Sadly, my packrat habits have triumphed, and I'm building up a new cache of unneeded utensils. But it's the principle of the thing! Sue

I don't know if this is the one you made but I've posted this recipe here before. OYSTERS ROCKEFELLER STEW  4 servings 4 slices bacon 1 cup thinly sliced leeks 1 cup thinly sliced celery 1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper 3 cups half-and-half 2 cups milk 1 1/2 pints shucked oysters and liquor 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce 2 cups thinly sliced raw spinach leaves Salt and black pepper 1 Tbs. butter (optional) Oyster crackers to serve with stew In a large heavy saucepan or soup kettle, fry the bacon until crisp. Drain on paper towel, crumble and reserve. Pour off all but 2 Tbs. of drippings from the skillet. Add the leek and celery and saute over medium-low heat for 8-10 minutes, until the vegetables are softened. Stir in the cayenne pepper. Add the half-and-half and the milk and bring to a simmer. Add the oysters (cut large ones in half) and the Worcestershire sauce. Return to a simmer. Stir in the spinach and simmer for about 5 minutes, until the spinach is just wilted and the oysters are cooked through. Add salt and pepper to taste. Swirl in the optional butter, if used, and serve immediately in large, shallow bowls. Sprinkle each bowl with the reserved bacon. Source: adapted from LetÂs Eat In  Brooke Dojny & Melanie Barnard

I have a gem for you! Strickly uppa crust and very easy. Different from the usual sweet versions with nuts and sugar. I found this recipe many years ago out for lunch by myself. Someone had left a copy of the Cleveland Plain Dealer food section on the table, and the rest is history. This is WAY swanky as well as really delicious. It will get you raves, I absolutely promise. I also promise that although it looks tricky, it's actually a breeze. I thought things like cutting the brie, rolling the pastry, and getting it to stick to the cheese would all be difficult, but they were all very very easy. Plus, you can assemble the whole thing a day ahead and stick it in the freezer and bake just before party time. Healthy it isn't, but you didn't ask for that! :) Enjoy. Baked Brie with Pesto A 1.1 lb. (see note) wheel of brie, not too ripe About 2 T pesto sauce 2 oz. lox or nova or smoked salmon, cut up to little bits (buy the cheaper tidbits if you can find them) 2 sheets (1 package) frozen puff pastry, defrosted per package instructions 1 egg, beaten Make sure brie is firm before you begin. Refrigerate it several hours or place in freezer for 25 minutes. Using a long, serrated knife dipped in warm water, cut the brie in half horizontally. Spread one side with the pesto not quite to edge and top with the fish. Replace top half of brie, place on a greased baking sheet and freeze 30 minutes. (I like to use a greased quiche dish instead; then I can serve it right in the dish. The 1.1 lb. wheel of brie leaves room for crackers; the bigger one just fits.) Roll out one sheet of pastry a little so that you can cut out a circle that will cover the top and sides of the brie. Place the brie in the middle of the circle and fold the dough up around the sides, pressing the edges into the cheese. Roll out the other sheet of pastry and cut out a second circle of the same size. Invert the cheese onto this circle, brush with the egg wash, and form a tight seal (this dough does this very easily). Turn the cheese back over and replace it on the baking dish or sheet. If you like, use the dough scraps to make cut-out decorations for the top. Keep them simple; remember, it’s puff pastry. Then brush all over with the remaining egg wash. Return to freezer for 15 minutes and preheat oven to 400. You can freeze it overnight at this point. Remove baking sheet from freezer and place it on the middle rack of your oven. Bake 20 minutes or until golden brown. Let it rest at least 25 minutes before serving, or it will be very runny. If you wait a lot longer than 25 minuets, you can reheat at 250 for 15 minutes. Serve with crackers or bread, or just its own pastry, if you didn’t let it get runny, or even cold the next day. Note: you can use any size wheel of brie, but it must be an entire round. If you use the 1.1 pound size, you can get away with using only one sheet of pastry per wheel, if you roll it thin. The huge size needs the whole package.