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Dear Elly/"Past" Me:

How curious that you should mention the old "Cheapie Weenie Casserole." Why, just the other day [grown-up] Michael taught this recipe to Meredith and Robin. The children were having great fun making this dish, but apparently when Deanna came home, she was quite dismayed! She asked Michael why he couldn't teach the children something "healthier" and "tastier." So, although I notice you are not soliciting advice this go-around, I do suggest you find some other easy, kid-friendly recipes that fit the bill!

Best,

Future Elly
Future Milborough, Future Ontario

Lynn,
I'm in awe of your openness to both compliment and complaint, and I sometimes wonder how you can read all these entries without going nuts. Entries in this column alternately beat you up and lift your spirits. Some days I have to stop reading because it's so angry; other times it's full of warm wishes and uplifting recollections.

I check your strip daily, and have read FBorFW for many years. My wife and I laughed our way through "Hi, Mom, Hi Dad!" in 1978, and I discovered your strip not too long after it began.

Your hard work at imitating your early drawing style is paying off - it's getting hard to tell which is a new strip and which is original. And the additional story material fleshes out the original in a delightful way.

Count me among the ones who say, "Great job, Lynn! Keep it up!"

Roy W, Fair Oaks CA

What a stroll down memory lane today! I had flashbacks to a picture of my sister when she was about Elizabeth's age. She was standing at the breakfast table with a bottle in her mouth untying my father's shoe strings. Elizabeth with the shoe string in her mouth today was perfect! Thanks for the happy memory.

Catherine K, Texas

I had only just noticed today, while browsing through the Meet the Pattersons section for the umpteenth time, that John has the same birthday as me!
The funny thing about is, when I was little and up through grade 9, I had always dreamed of becoming a dentist. The whole concept of it amazed me, and I was certain it would be my ideal profession in life. Of course, things did change over time, and I found many other things that interested (It's alright though, I'm young and should explore while I still can!) but one other thing that remains the same with me is my interest in toys and small creative hobbies, not trains like John has, but many other things. Again, the way I can relate to a comic character in some ways, and be unique in others, is very interesting!

Tiia R, Rimouski, Quebec

Once again, we have a strip that has a Patterson using the word "sleep" where the word "day" or "night" would be more appropriate. It amazes me that these people don't realize that they've set themselves up to fail; it doesn't seem to have occurred to John that by saying Elly will return after six sleeps, Mike will think that if he sleeps six times, Elly will return. What's more, when they're in the wider world, they'll be mocked for using substandard English.

Paul J, Saint John NB