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In response to Dolores in Friday's blog, yes I still miss the daily dose of the contemporary Pattersons. However, I'm enjoying the "new-run" strips as well. It's a kick to look back and see the kids when they were small. It makes me nostalgic about my own son who is the same age as Michael in the original time-frame.The most fun I have with these strips is reading the comments, both here in Ellie's Coffee Talk and on other forums. The thought that goes into most comments is refreshing and a lot of fun to read - whether they like a given strip or not.

Jan C, Victorville, CA, USA

I wanted to correct the misinformation given in Coffee Talk about college life. As a college professor who has taught at the college level for 11 year, I can state the following:
1. Students can enroll in a single course. Non traditional students often do, especially if they are working students taking night classes.
2. Most North American Universities do require students to take a 1 or 2 semesters of compositional English in order to teach them how to write properly, but I know of no student who says they are taking creative writing (often sophomore or junior level course) when they are taking freshman compositional English, literature or some other type of English course.

Kelly, TX, USA

I'm very distressed by the icky husband in the new strip. He is patronizing, sexist and now is looking at porn. Where is this going? I feel transported back to the 50's.

Merrily L, Seattle, WA, USA

I normally enjoy the comic strip but was highly offended at the strip released in our local newspaper today depicting the main character's husband apparently looking at pornography while the wife is looking at her son playing ouside. She makes a comment about how she has forgotten how to fantasize. I feel this is so inappropriate in light of the problems and heartache caused by married people getting involved in pornography or fantasizing about others outside of their marriage. I was shocked to see such a topic made light of in the comic strip and hope that in the future the focus will return to healthy topics.

Codi J, AZ, USA

I have a question about the Macho Man magazine which John Patterson is shown to be reading in the 10/30/2009 strip. Is it:
a. A magazine about the song “Macho Man� performed by the group “TheVillage People� in 1978, or
b. A freak show circus magazine, judging by the Lion Tamer cologne advertisement on the back and the bearded lady on the front, or
c. A gay men’s entertainment magazine, or
d. A straight man’s entertainment magazine, or
e. A magazine John Patterson just reads for the articles on teeth?

Paul S, Oro Valley, AZ, USA

I think it's very mean of Elly to throw away Halloween candy, whether it was Mike's or Liz's. Why did she even let her kids get candy in the first place if she was just going to throw it out?

Emily G, Montreal, QC, Canada

Wow. Is this the same Elly Patterson who patted herself on the back about what a great mother she was in the "real-time" strips? She is downright MEAN.

Barbara R, LA, USA

Enough is enough. Look, I'm really a long time reader - I own all the books, visit your website every day. But the strip reached a level of desperation that I can not endure anymore. What do we see on Nov 1st? A boy gets taken away his candy by a mean person. Why? As an educational method? It is so idiotic in so many ways... Why not put the rest of the candy in a box and it a little bit every other day? Look, there were some friendly neighbors spending money to make some children happy. If you don't like the costum - well, don't let your kid outside on this evening. If you don't like your child's eating manners, be a better role model. If you don't want your child to gulp down everything, tell him (and see above about handling a big pile of sweets by rationing). Throwing away unspoiled food owned by your kid is neither fair nor in any way necessary. It's just mean and dumb.

Margarethe M, Hamburg, Germany

Throwing away Halloween candy on November 1st?!? Exactly what lesson is Elly teaching Michael here? Like a animal on the savanna, he has to gorge himself before someone bigger and stronger takes his food away from him? Or he has to figure out how to cheat and lie and use his sister to get what he wants? If Elly is so concerned about how much candy he's consuming, why not allow him several pieces Halloween night, then ration it out a piece or two at a time for the next few weeks, like most parents do, instead of being so wasteful and mean-spirited as to take it *all* away? Elly's behavior here is a far cry from the environmentally conscious, waste-not-want-not recycler of the past few years, and does not at all reflect the humanity of the strip as it was thirty years ago, when I was reading it the first time. It used to be fun - now it's nothing but heavy-handed moral lessons delivered in painfully unrealistic ways.

Melody F, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

Today, Michael was told he had five minutes to finish his candy. I used to have a friend with that rule: Every Halloween, they had to throw away all their candy at midnight. The result was three kids eating as fast as they could and sneaking to the bathroom to put their fingers down their throats so they could eat more before midnight. It was sickening.

Cynthia K, Columbus, OH, USA

Very clever, Elly. We all know you're not throwing out that Halloween loot. You're just saving it to binge on yourself. And it was as easy as taking candy from a baby!

Ed T, St. Paul, MN, USA

Oh, no! You took away Michael's candy?? When I was a kid, we kept our Halloween candy for as long as it lasted--I was very frugal about eating it. I knew it was a long time until the next year's take! But I suppose if one's father is a dentist, things are different, yes?!

Lucia, MT, USA

Normally I'd let little things go, but I really, really don't like the belching and smacking in food-related strips. It really turns my stomach.

Les G, AL, USA