January 12, 1995

Dennis Hoffman had been a good worker at Daniel Enderle's construction company before he was arrested six years ago. So when he was released from state prison on Tuesday, Mr. Enderle agreed to give him a ride from jail to his sister's house. "I tried to help the guy, but it sure backfired," Mr. Enderle said today.

THEY are two words that stab fear in a bureaucrat's heart, send doctors groping for Alka-Seltzer and television producers begging for mercy. They inspire tight-lipped secretaries to insist that their bosses are in a meeting, out to lunch, on safari. Larry Kramer.

U.S. Moves to Increase Aid To Ease Crisis in Mexico The Clinton Administration pledged to increase its aid package for Mexico, including the possibility of new, subsidized loans. Page D1. The show of support helped stabilize markets in Mexico and elsewhere in Latin America. Page D6. Black Joblessness Falls The unemployment rate for black adults dropped faster in 1994 than it did for whites, though long-term prospects are uncertain. Page A12. Call for 'New Urban Agenda' Mayor Giuliani called for New York to become a model for how cities can solve problems if freed from state and Federal mandates. Page B1. Flight Restrictions Eased Federal officials said a type of commuter plane may resume flying in icy weather, with new pilot training and flight procedures. Page A14.

THE first image on the computer screen is a bright brass knocker on a red door. Click. A living room appears, a fire blazing happily in the hearth. Outside the picture windows, snow-capped mountains rise. In the corner is a grandfather clock; on the carpet, a tawny cat. On the coffee table are a Rolodex file, a checkbook and a home maintenance guide. Click. The wall calendar tells you today's the day to clean the chimney. Click. The maintenance guide tells you how. It's cold outside. Click. Swap the mountains for a palm-lined beach.

THE garage is tunneled into the hillside, with room enough to hold 20 cars, its roof covered by sod from the Cascade Range and surrounded by a fresh-planted forest of Northwest alders. Batman would blush. At the bottom of the slope is an estuary, man-made, fed by a small stream into which salmon will swim, procreate and die every fall, according to plan. Nature, not the building code, now governs that part.