Hi Michael,

 ML> > All commissaries are run by the Department of Defense Commissary
 ML> Agency, > be they Army, Air Force, Navy or whatever branch, whatever
 ML> location.
 ML> > They set the policies and practices; I don't know if the individual
 ML> > stores have any sort of wiggle room. I do know that stores can stock

 ML> And in an attempt to explain the absurd behavior of the
 ML> clerks you mentioned, maybe the rule was written in
 ML> numbers of calendar days, not months or business days.

I don't know; I never saw the rule, just heard about it when we moved to
Frankfurt. When we were in Berlin, the mother of one of our church
members would, about every couple of months, send over a big envelope
full of Sunday paper coupon inserts. She'd get all the inserts from her
friends who subscribed to whatever the local paper was so there were
quite a few. Her daughter (the church member) would go thru them for
what she wanted, then pass the envelope around for others to take
whatever coupons they wanted. It was a help to be able to use otherwise
(stateside) expired coupons.

 ML> > local goods so we got all sorts of neat European goodies in Germany
 ML> like

 ML> There must have been some kind of procurement office
 ML> that had some discretion, mostly a good thing.

Probably some sort of local advisory board.

 ML> > Danish butter. In HI we got macadamia nuts from a local vendor who
 ML> > packages them in all sorts of varieties; my favorites were the dark
 ML> > chocolate coated and the garlic/onion flavored ones. (G)

 ML> I was suspicious about garlic macadamias, thinking the
 ML> flavor would overwhelm the delicate sweetness of the
 ML> nut, but the ones I found turned out to be addictive.

Quite addicitive! (G)

 ML> >  ML> If one lived through childhood without shame or
 ML> >  ML> occasionally not getting one's way, when it (almost)
 ML> >  ML> inevitably comes, it'll be all the more the shock.
 ML> > Sad to say, I think there are some people who were raised with
 ML> getting > their way for everything. I could say more, but this is a
 ML> cooking, not a > political echo.

 ML> Grr.

That's why I'm not saying anything more.

 ML> >  ML> Maybe into a spoon ... .
 ML> > Or fork, don't recall what the rest of lunch was that day but Mom
 ML> never > set any more flatware than was neccessary for the meal.

 ML> Which makes sense. The alternative would be to set
 ML> full places but have people just use what they needed.
 ML> The temptation would be for the diner to think, cool,
 ML> there's a spoon, let's figure out some way to use it.
 ML> Shove it in a newborn's mouth, perhaps.

Or use it as a catapult to fling unwanted veggies at a sibling.

 ML> >  ML> A different kind of heat, though: cinnamon heat
 ML> >  ML> and horseradish heat affect me more than either
 ML> >  ML> black or red pepper heat.
 ML> > Yes, and southwestern hot is different from Asian hot.

 ML> I've said, to the skepticism of others, that there's
 ML> really no such thing as southwestern hot. Asian hot runs
 ML> the gamut from a to z (really c to C, which is what gamut
 ML> means), and southwestern from about a to e.

Depends somewhat on your definition of heat, I would think. I've a
friend who thinks that anything above a bell pepper is too hot.

 ML> >  ML> Nuking it works just fine, as would wetting it
 ML> >  ML> down and tossing it in a bon- or campfire.
 ML> > We don't do campfires that often, especially now with the camper.

 ML> And are probably circumspect with the outdoor fires
 ML> in the summertime.

That's where the portable propane fire pit is nice. We pulled it out one
night down in FL on our last trip, getting together with several other
campers, and had a "campfire" sing along. It's what we've used here for
our neighborhood gatherings where we've made s'mores and "pies".

 ML> >  ML> I was referring to the cops being surprisingly lax.
 ML> >  ML> It might be that they get more respect, that way
 ML> >  ML> they can give more respect.
 ML> > If they're too lax, they don't get the respect they deserve.

 ML> I've not seen excess in either direction in Germany,
 ML> perhaps because they have had all too recent experience.
 ML> In France, though, I've seen excess in both directions.

They are very much "by the book" in a lot of things in Germany.


 ML> >  ML> > I think snapper is a bit stronger flavored than mullet.
 ML> >  ML> Probably depends on the habitat and the size of
 ML> >  ML> the particular specimen.
 ML> > Very true.

 ML> This ties in neatly with the rest of our discussion,
 ML> with Jim noting the prevalence of seafood
 ML> misidentification and even fraud. The mutability of
 ML> fashion is something I've also brought in and note
 ML> here that in times and places past, mullet was prized
 ML> even beyond snapper.

Swansboro (down on the NC coast, where we used to live) has an annual
mullet festival, usually in early October. Don't know how many pounds of
the fish gets battered, fried and served each year but it's a lot!

 ML> Bansh - Small filled pockets, boiled
 ML> categories: Mongol, starter, main
 ML> servings: 2 to 4

Quite interesting; it would be fun to get together with an experienced
maker of such and learn how to do it first hand.





---
Catch you later,
Ruth
rchaffly{at}earthlink{dot}net  FIDO 1:396/45.28


...  It works!  Now, if only I could remember what I did.

--- PPoint 3.01