Hi Pam;
Yes it became very wet as soon as the smear appeared, I left it that way because I thought that was what it needed , I just finished wiping it with some 8% brine and I think I lucked out, nothing seemed to go very deep and it all washed off very easy without losing much of the red/orange rind. I have it wrapped in paper towels and sitting on a wire rack right now, I'll unwrap it and put it back in my pretend cave, this time with the cover opened a crack, at bed time. I have high hopes for this cheese.
Thank you very much for the help.
Sam