Ramona Quimby Age 8

It is a rainy Saturday, and Ramona is still angry with her mother for sending the raw egg. Mrs. Quimby tiredly reminds Ramona that it was a mistake. While Mrs. Quimby attends to household chores, Mr. Quimby is busy sketching his foot for an art class assignment. Ramona joins him and attempts to sketch her foot, but neither of their sketches is very good.

Mrs. Quimby calls the family to dinner, and almost immediately, Ramona begins complaining about the food, and claims that she wants cornbread. She sniffs the potato, broccoli, and what she thinks is pot roast before tasting and picks at her food, careful not to eat any of the slimy fat. Everyone eats contentedly until Beezus notices small bumps on the meat and says: “This meat is tongue” (71). Mrs. Quimby explains that tongue is cheaper than other cuts of meat but just as nutritious, yet both girls refuse to finish their dinner. Mrs. Quimby reminds them that they named the cat Picky-picky in honor of their eating habits. Over desert, Mr. Quimby gives an update on his job at the frozen food warehouse, where it is so cold that icicles form on the workers’ facial hair.