Kids, I don't wear gloves either, and I also wash immediately. I've learned that you can largely avoid the juices of peppers if you hold them so as to avoid touching the cut surfaces. I try to hold on to the stem, etc. A little bit of precaution can go a long way. OTOH, there is a certain pleasure in a mellow case of Hunan Hand. Hey, speaking of skin and capsaicin - my mom recently had a bout of shingles (viral skin disease) and the doctors told her there was no topical treatment to ease the tingling irritation. Someone else told me that there are cap products that can alleviate this. That's what I suspected, too. Anybody have information on this? Alex Silbajoris 72163.1353@compuserve.com And don't say "Inner Beauty is skin deep."<g>