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I wonder if we'll see a balanced look at the past.... I remember a few strips in which John isn't so much a "stick in the mud" and gets drunk at a new years' party ("I think I dropped my lips")and at another party in which he offers dental advise to everyone while Ellie is stuck with talking about leg waxing and housekeepers' breath (John "isn't too proud to be chauffered by his wife")...these strips make them human instead of just examples of high moral standards.. just wonderin'..

Laura, Orillia

Just got hold of the final Fbofw collection while on holiday in the US, and reading it has given me food for thought: I've followed this strip assiduously since I was a student here in Memphis in the early '90s, and I've always wondered why it never was readily available in the UK: its humour has always struck me as very European in its breadth and sensibility, and I have always seen it as a welcome corrective to the more parochial brand of humour of many a US-based strip. I've always enjoyed it, and will continue to do so now that it has chronologically "re-booted" itself!
One little bit of trivia about myself which might amuse you: I am by profession a composer, and I studied at the Royal Academy of Music back in the late 1980s. My old composition teacher's name? Paul Patterson!

Paul P, Canterbury, UK

One of the best, healthiest and simplest meals my mom used to cook when my brothers and I were little was the following:

Vegetable Stew/ Soup

1kg peeled and cut potatoes
500g peeled and chopped carrots (although I like as many carrots as potatoes in mine)
1-2 medium-sized onions, chopped
3-4 cellery sticks, chopped
2 cubes of beef or vegetable stock
S&P to taste
Optional: handful of fresh parsley, 1 teaspoon paprika, or a pinch of cayenne pepper!

Simply place all of the veg in a cooking pot, cover about half with water and chuck the stock cubes in with it. Cook on gentle heat until the veg is soft and there's no more water left about 25-30 minutes usually).

You can now either eat this as it it with a chunk of butter on top, but especially in winter the best idea is to add some water after you're finished cooking the veg, and a blob of whipping cream, and blend it into a wholesome and delicious vegetable soup. Might also want to add some yummy croutons!

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmh.

Freya, Germany / US

Dear Lynn,

I'm an animal lover like I imagine you are from what I have gathered from your strip over the years, and it's the time of year again where I get extremely enraged over the baby seal slaughter that is going on in Canada, starting in March of each year. If it is possible for you to perhaps place a link on your website (PETA, humane society or other) and raise awareness of this issue of animal cruelty, and thus hopefully get people to sign pertitions or act in other ways to stop this unnecessary torture and killing of youg seals, I would be very grateful.

Keep up the great work and have a good day!

Miri, NY

I want to say thank you to Lynn for the lyrics to "Black Velvet Band" by the Irish Rovers in todays strip. (3/25). It brought such a smile to my face. I still have the 45, although nothing to play it on. lol. It was one of my favorite songs and still is. Just the few words made the song run in my mind. Oh the memories. Thank you Lynn.

Mary Anne G, Cumberland MD

Oh my, the song in today's strip is Black Velvet Band, probably by the Irish Rovers whose big hit around 1966 was "The Unicorn".

Black Velvet Band was the B side of the 45.

Christian, Greenville SC

I'm really starting to feel sorry for Ted. He's most likely going to be up all night being sick, attempting to convince himself that he had a "great time" and that John really was a loser for having only one drink.

Part of me wishes John had stopped Ted from drinking so much, but Ted is an adult--technically anyway--and he has to make his own choices. At least John did the driving and made sure he got in the house safely.

Maybe the inevitable hangover will give Ted a shake into reality.

Rachel, Illinois

It's nice to see John portrayed in a Positive Light. He may be better suited to 'earning' The Bread than he is to 'baking' it, but he certainly has his priorities in order, both as a Father and a Friend!

Paul J, Saint John NB

I must say I didn't care for John's "Now that Mom's home, having fun is over and done with" all that much. Elly hasn't even unpacked and there's her loving husband undermining her as a parent; he should at least have waited until she got stuff put away before he tried scoring points in that sick mental game he plays. The only thing that I like less is her neutral expression; does this mean that she's tuned out his idiocy, she expects it of him or that she's too punchy from jet lag to notice?

Paul J, Saint John NB