Reader

Here is an excerpt from Craig LaBan's online chat from March 5: Craig LaBan: What's been making your dinners, drinks, and snacks happy? My new invention to keep the kids from fighting at dinner? Personal nachos! Made these babies to order - chili for some, black beans for others, hold the salsa, heavy on the cheese - all a hit thanks to those addictive, amazing fresh chips from Tortilleria San Roman in the Italian Market. Are they the best chips on earth? ¡Creo que sí!

Here is an excerpt from Craig LaBan's online chat from Feb. 26: Craig LaBan: Last weekend was the Jewish festival of Purim, and that means our oven was full of fresh hamentaschen, those tricornered cookies filled with apricot, cherry, and raspberry jams. (See recipe at http://is.gd/MDelZV .) The best front-page news I've read in a long time: the report on the heart benefits of a Mediterranean diet from New England Journal of Medicine. Of course we knew this, but as the most scientific study to date has weighed in: pour on the olive oil, fish, and beans!

Here is an excerpt from Craig LaBan's online chat: Craig LaBan: Happy Mardi Gras!! I always get that gumbo feeling this time of year. Where do you plan to get into your Mardi Gras mood?   Reader: I vote Khyber Pass all the way! Reader: I was at Khyber last week and they had a Walker's style cochon de lait po' boy on special. It was like being in NOLA from the first bite. Reader: What do YOU recommend? C.L.: Well, I like some of the other contenders pretty much - Rex was a nice surprise for South Street, and Cajun Kate's is such a fun hidden gem to come across in the Booth's Corner Farmer's Market . . . but no one in town right now is nailing the true NOLA flavors quite like Khyber Pass.

Here is an excerpt of Craig LaBan's online chat from Feb. 5: Craig LaBan: Chef Marc Vetri, one of the most influential culinary figures in Philadelphia, with his namesake original, plus Osteria, Amis, and Alla Spina, is joining us for the chat. We're looking to see what's next: Vetri's vision for a suburban outpost of Osteria this fall at the Moorestown Mall. Today I'm snacking on tortellini pie - one of the latest creations between you and your Vetri chef, the talented Adam Leonti.

I WOULD LIKE TO thank the Daily News for the help concerning my SEPTA issue ("Gripe from a bus rider," Jan. 30). The same day my letter was printed, director of customer service Rohan K. Hepkins called and stated he would look into the matter and apologized for the service and staff problem. Way to go, Daily News , for getting matters addressed. Maryann Zindell Philadelphia Take his word for it Re: "What Obama's up to" (letter, Jan. 29). Just want to give Tom Bell of Philadelphia a great round of applause for his comment.

Beginning this week, editorials and commentary will no longer appear in the Saturday Inquirer. They can still be found Sunday through Friday.

In the spring of 2007, I was named an Inquirer metro columnist. As flattered as I was to land such a premier reporting position, I honestly wasn't sure I was up to the task. Writing about life in the big city felt too heavy and daunting, especially for a former sports and features writer who had spent the bulk of her career in the toy department. I realize now that the chance to champion ordinary folks and write about the issues affecting all of us was the most extraordinary opportunity I would ever have.

DEAR HARRY: I'm in a bind. I prepared my 1040 early, as I usually do to get a refund sooner, but found that I owe Uncle [Sam] a little more than $12,000. I don't have the money, and I want to hold the return until the last minute. The extra tax resulted from a rollover of a regular IRA to a Roth IRA. Today, a friend told me that there was some way I could get the IRS to let me pay in installments. Is this so? How do I go about it? WHAT HARRY SAYS: The IRS recently eased up on the requirements.

DEAR ABBY : In today's world, there are people who apparently cannot exist detached from their cellphones. In case you are wondering - yes, I do have one, but I use it only for emergencies, not idle banter. If I'm trying to hold a conversation with someone and he/she is playing with an electronic toy, I get up and walk away. It's obvious to me that my company isn't worth the person's time, so neither is theirs. If I am in a restaurant and people start texting, I get up and go and leave the person with the bill.

SOME BOOK CLUBS are serious affairs, intent on intellectual discourse and literary delving. The one I belong to is not of that ilk. Not that the friends and neighbors in my Belmont Hills club aren't smarty-pants material. It's just that our club is as much about feeding our souls and our bellies as it is about feeding our intellects. We're not really sure how it started, but most months, our meeting is a potluck inspired by something we are reading. Our discussion flows along with wine and herbal tea. Roasted vegetables and lovingly prepared comfort foods fuel our musings.