Sundays With Ingrid

Ingrid Levin-Hill, three weeks past her thirteenth birthday, sat thinking in her orthodontist’s waiting room. You’re born cute. Babies are cute. Not hard to guess why—it’s so everyone will forgive them for being such a pain. You grow a little older, and people say, What beautiful hair, or Get a load of those baby blues, or something nice that keeps you thinking you’re still on the cuteness track. Then you hit twelve or thirteen and boom, they tell you that everything needs fixing. Waiting in the wings are the orthodontist, the dermatologist, the contact lens guy, the hair-tinting guy, maybe even the nose-job guy. You look at yourself in the mirror, really look at yourself, for the first time. And what do you see? Oh my God.

Two orthodontists divided the business in Echo Falls: Dr. Lassiter, who didn’t mind pulling a tooth or two to speed things along, and Dr. Binkerman, who liked to say he’d turn in his badge before sacrificing a single tooth. One kind of parents sent their kids to Dr. Lassiter. Ingrid, whose parents were of the other kind, was well into her second year with Dr. Binkerman, and behind her braces lurked the same jumble of teeth she’d come in with in the first place. And by the way, what stupid badge was he talking about? Ingrid flipped to another page of Seventeen. The glossy paper made an angry snapping sound.

From Down the Rabbit Hole.
Why? Because it’s Sunday. How do I know? Elvis gospel on the radio!
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This entry was posted on Sunday, July 18th, 2010 at 9:03 am and is filed under Chet The Dog. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

63 Responses to “Sundays With Ingrid”

  1. dawson
    4:16 am on July 18th, 2010

    My childhood dentist was Dr. Patch and he gave you a certificate for an ice cream from the drug store after your appointment.

  2. B. Stover
    4:36 am on July 18th, 2010

    Hi Chet! Hi Dawson!

    In my childhood dentists drilled, not using the high-speed drills of today. Whizzing pain.

  3. Riö - The Evil
    4:57 am on July 18th, 2010

    Ingrid!…That is the very beginning of Down the Rabbit Hole….snort!… I am enjoying this book very much….sneeze!… Ingrid skipped school and is up in the attic listening to audio tape at the moment… grunt!… For some reason while reading the character of Vincent Dunn, “Vincent, please”, I hear the same voice I heard for Julian Sawyer in The Tutor….shudder!… There’s something about Vincent Dunn that I don’t like….hmmm.

  4. dawson
    5:22 am on July 18th, 2010

    The Tutor. That book cost me a good night's sleep.

  5. Melanie
    5:23 am on July 18th, 2010

    Morning all, I have managed to block out my childhood dentist from all memory. I do remember the sound of that drill though. With ya there, B. Stover!

    Love Ingrid.

    Went out to check my neglected little garden patch. The rabbit has left me 4 strawberries, (he always seems to know exactly when they are ripe), and 5 pea pods.

    FEASTING TONIGHT! My yellow squash has a bloom on it, but the cucumbers are slow. And we seemed to have planted radish roots instead of radishes. We couldn't put the garden in until May 30th or so, then it was cold and dam, now it's dry and hot.

  6. Barb & Maggie
    5:23 am on July 18th, 2010

    Barb is chugging along with A Perfect Crime. Character development is outstanding, as PA flips from Whitey to Roger to Francie. Anticipation is building. Shudder! This is really a good…..oops, book.

  7. Melanie
    5:23 am on July 18th, 2010

    Julian was not a nice guy. Not even sure he was human.

  8. BARB & MAGGIE
    5:54 am on July 18th, 2010

    Melanie, We have tons of green beans, zucchini, and the tomato

    plants are about 4 feet tall, with lots of green tomatoes. Probably 2 weeks from picking, but they look great. Barb has a slight o.c.d. about her heirloom tomatoes.

    And we love Ingrid, too. As previously stated, another in the series would be nice. Maybe we could see Ingrid all the way through her high school years.

  9. Staff
    6:14 am on July 18th, 2010

    ~Dawson, WHAT! Dr Patch never game ME an ice cream cone certificate!

    ~Melanie, I have had 2 lousy peas so far this summer. The Rose-breasted Grosbeaks taught their babies how to eat them. Either that or they parked them on the pea fence while looking for the jelly feeder and the babies just taught themselves.

    However my Filet green beans are going great! Two meals and two in the freezer. Yum, Hope the potatoes come though too. I tried a new variety this year.

    My favorite heirloom is Brandywine followed closely by Cherokee Purple. Then the Amish Paste is my favorite Roma. It is just covered by tomatoes.

    I am getting ready for tomatoes. My favorite way to eat them is white bread (from A Toast to Bread)(I have to import it from Minneapolis) Kraft mayo with a little fresh lemon juice stirrede into it, a 3/4 inch thick slice of tomato and kosher salt. YUM-O 😀 😀 😀

    We will see if those happy bobs come up.

  10. Wookie of Chevy Chas
    6:24 am on July 18th, 2010

    Well, now that most everybody seems to be awake, on to WORD OF THE DAY. All I will say about it in advance is that today's word is VERY IMPORTANT. Today's word is:

    Ankus

    Extra credit for figuring out why it is important, but that should be obvious.

    Also, mom was extra busy yesterday, putting up some peaches, specifically peach halves in a light lemon sugar syrup, to be saved for special occasions later in the year, like Thanksgiving and Christmas breakfast. Yum. Yum.

    Melanie. Sometimes when my mom goes out to pick lettuce for dinner, one of our pesky rabbits will be standing right next to her munching away, and looking rather annoyed at this human that is interfering with its afternoon snack.

    RIo. Nothing in spam filter, so have sent alternate secret decoder device to you. Please check. Hopefully should work better.

    Stover. Have you ever read "Eats Shoots and Leaves" or "Woe is I", two really terrific grammar books for the modern age, although "Elements of Style" by Struck and White is still probably the classic.

    Wookie the linguist

  11. B. Stover
    7:06 am on July 18th, 2010

    I remember Vincent Dunn. Yes, Rio, we can discuss Dixie at the other place after we start reading it. Now I'm reading several books at the same time. Not simultaneously, if you know what I mean. Actually, it would be wonderful if we could do that!…though it might give one a headache.

    Thank you for the "oops" B&M. What does o.c.d. stand for?

  12. Melanie
    7:21 am on July 18th, 2010

    Ankus is a Peanut prod!

  13. B. Stover
    7:23 am on July 18th, 2010

    Excellent word Wookie. I had never heard of it so, of course, I looked it up and now understand why it's important…or will be.

    I have Eats, Shoots and Leaves but have only glanced through it. I've never heard of Woe Is I. (Sometimes correct grammar sounds very strange….probably because it doesn't follow usage!) Elements of Style….yes.

    My favorite way to eat a tomato (no "e" on the end), is like an apple.

  14. Melanie
    7:25 am on July 18th, 2010

    Tomatoes; Zoë's growing about 6 plants called Ben Franklin.

    She says she never liked Ben Franklin much, but his tomatoes are supposed to be good.

    Last year the Northeast had a tomato blight. No word on that yet.

    Zoë says, "Thanks for all your support and prayers, and though I couldn't stay awake for the party, it was a good read the next day."

    Just kidding B. Stover! She said "what a bunch of wonderful, creative, and crazy people!"

  15. Sam
    7:32 am on July 18th, 2010

    People living in Boston will tell you that Ankus are the things that boats use so they don't float away. Right Melanie?

  16. Staff
    7:33 am on July 18th, 2010

    Ankus,

    Hmmmmm

    Guessing again, cause that is the game isn't it?

    A pimple on your ankle.

    😀

  17. Alice Johnson
    7:37 am on July 18th, 2010

    Now I looked it up and after trying vainly to figure out why it would become important I remembered Peanuts!

    Good one Wookie!

    May I assume you had to look it up too, or was it explained in context?

    Alice Johnson

  18. B. Stover
    7:38 am on July 18th, 2010

    Sam and Melanie: I'm laughing…..laughing….

    We are eccentrics.

  19. Staff
    7:40 am on July 18th, 2010

    Wookie,

    Do you think your Mom would give me that recipe for peaches in the lemon sugar syrup? Peaches are the only thing I 'put up' and lemon is my favorite flavor. One of the few I can actually taste!

    Pretty Please?????

    Staff

  20. Staff
    7:41 am on July 18th, 2010

    Good one Sammie!

    >^..^<

  21. Barb & Maggie
    7:43 am on July 18th, 2010

    Ankus, what a great word. Had to look it up, of course, but perfect.

    Sam, you are funny.

    Bee, obsessive/compulsive disorder.

    Staff, I am not a big tomato fan – the only part of BLTs that I like is the B. But Barb loves them. Her favorite is Paul Robeson, closely followed by Mortgage Lifter. We are growing Cherokee Purple and Black Brandywine for the first time this year. Barb usually buys her seeds, but if you, or anyone, is interested we will try some seed saving this fall.

    Just let us know.

  22. Staff
    7:43 am on July 18th, 2010

    BlueKat and BarbandMaggie, check your email

    Staff

  23. AbbietheKitty
    7:45 am on July 18th, 2010

    Off to have breakfast for lunch. BBL

    >^..^<

  24. Wookie of Chevy Chas
    8:00 am on July 18th, 2010

    Well, everyone has done well on the quiz and the extra credit. It was a new word for me, but very clear from the context of the book what it means. Can't say more though, or Spence's phalanx of lawyers will descend. Phalanx, that's actually a good word too.

    Stover. I think you would enjoy "Woe is I" a lot. Full name of the book is "Woe Is I: The Grammarphobe's Guide to Better English in Plain English" by Patricia T. O'Connor, readily available on Amazon (although my dad first saw it in a Barnes & Noble). Get the second edition. The author is an editor at the NY Times Book Review.

    Wookie

  25. Barb & Maggie
    8:08 am on July 18th, 2010

    I'm not very good with numbers, but Barb says the rat count is 4 down, 2 more to go. Yes, yes I had another successful hunt last night, and my prey drive is still going strong. Only bitting done last night was done by the MagPie!

    Barb says the English Shepherds, my pack, are classified as herders, but part of our breed description is that we excel at "pest eradication". Just trying to live up to my genes!

    Staff, Thanks for the heads up – got it.

  26. B. Stover
    8:49 am on July 18th, 2010

    Wookie: I pre-ordered the 3rd edition paperback of Woe Is I. It comes out at the end of this month.

  27. Wookie of Chevy Chas
    9:19 am on July 18th, 2010

    Staff:

    Here we go on the peaches, entitled (sorry about that) "Peaches in Light Lemon Syrup."

    In addition to the peach halves (freestone), to make the light lemon syrup, you need 3 cups of sugar, 6 cups of water and 2 lemons.

    Peel peach halves by dipping in boiling water (30 seconds) and then shock in ice water bath.

    Make lemon syrup (sugar water, slivers of lemon peel using vegetable peeler and juice from two lemons)

    Boil syrup

    Pack peach halves in sterilized jars

    Pour boiling syrup over packed peach halves, leaving one-half inch head space in jar

    Process jars in boiling water for 25 minutes

    The recipe above should be enough to fill about 6 quart jars, and requires roughly 30-36 peaches, depending on size.

    Hope that is clear. Kind of mumbo-jumbo to me, but that is what my mom says she does.

    Wookie

  28. Riö - The Evil
    9:46 am on July 18th, 2010

    Woo Hoo!… She came home with all the supplies I will need to create my artistic Square!… snort!… Finally a friendly quilt type person helped her figure out how I am going to get this thing done… heh!heh!… Except her damned printer decided right now not to work… grump!… I swear if it’s not one thing it’s another trying to mess me up… huff!

    Ankus! … A type of cussing used by ants.

  29. Mollypop
    9:49 am on July 18th, 2010

    MagPie! What great hunting. You are amazing.

    Wookster – We have Eats Shoots and Leaves so now we must have Woe is I. This time in book form instead of Mom's beloved Kindle so she can read it and then give it to Sam's Mom. Thanks for telling us about it.

  30. Melanie
    9:53 am on July 18th, 2010

    Magpie, Looked up some photos of your pack. You guys are a great looking nexus of the Nation within the Nation!

    (thought Nexus would be appropriate because is a connection linking two things. Also . . . NNN!)

    Wow what a ratter!

    Riö: you are Ingriding with your square!

  31. Barb & Maggie
    10:22 am on July 18th, 2010

    Melanie, I've never been called a nexus before, but thank you, I think. I've heard of a Lexus.

    Tell Zoe that Barb looked up Ben Franklin tomatoes on Google, and can't find anything. Are they known by any other name? Where did she get them?

  32. Riö - The Evil
    11:03 am on July 18th, 2010

    Melanie!…What do you mean by “Ingriding”?…snort!…We have the first and second steps done for mySquare…. grunt! …. Absolutly no cutting or sewing has happened yet… sniff!…That’s the terrifying part to come later… gasp! … You guys, you quilt-type guys do this for fun?…. I can think of other things to do on a Sunday afternoon… wheeze!… Like watch the Rockies!… Crap!…We missed it! It was on really early…sob!… Messing around with this artsy fartsy stuff and we missed it. I can’t believe it!…dammit!

  33. B. Stover
    11:20 am on July 18th, 2010

    Rio: A new Poirot is on Masterpiece Mystery tonight: Third Girl.

  34. Siberian Husky
    11:33 am on July 18th, 2010

    The Rockies Won!!!

  35. Melanie
    12:08 pm on July 18th, 2010

    Sam, that is wonderful.

    Before we moved North, I lived in the South. The boys and I came up to visit Dan and Zo¨(who lived in Boston at the time) and I asked directions of a Boston cop. First, he couldn't understand a word I said, then when he did, I couldn't understand a word he said!

    Riö, play on the word "Intriguing" to honor Sunday with Ingrid!

  36. Melanie
    12:12 pm on July 18th, 2010

    Hmm. I had a long nap today. Still trying to get over the whatever. Wonder if I can stay awake for "Third Girl." When my nephews moved the TV, they unplugged all the wires. I still haven't figured out how to tape anything.

    Riö, my sister said she SAW YSAS in this last weeks episode of Royal Pains. I have not seen it yet. Hope to look on-line tomorrow. Zoë's going to Boston to see Dan and I'm in charge. Sort of.

  37. Kirby T. Penworthy
    12:35 pm on July 18th, 2010

    Sorry I'm joining the conversation late, but I wasn't feeling up to par (sorry, Dad was watching golf and that word is stuck in my mind). I wasn't eating, so Dad was feeling my nose. What's up with that? Luckily, that last trip outside seems to have done the trick, so I'm feeling much better.

    Anyway, ankus…Staff thought it was a pimple on an ankle. She's close, but it's actually the plural of ankle. One ankle, two ankus. Extra Credit: It is important because if that bouncer touches Bernie one more time, Chet might just chew on a couple bouncer ankus!

  38. Riö - The Evil
    12:45 pm on July 18th, 2010

    Melanie!… Huff!Huff!… I will go watch that episode right now….grunt!… We just got back from running around town and we are both wilted from the intense heat…”Dog Days of Summer”….is what I heard someone say… snort!….

    SiberH!….I did get to see the Rockies win the game… 1 –0!… heh!… At least we got one away from those Reds!…snort!

  39. Riö - The Evil
    1:24 pm on July 18th, 2010

    YSAS!…Still waiting patiently to see him!…snort!… This episode is set at a winery… heh!… How ironic.

  40. Riö - The Evil
    1:45 pm on July 18th, 2010

    Hmmm!… Melanie, what was the scene he was in again?… snort!… I think I must have missed it….damn!… There was only a very short scene at the hospital this week, most of it was at a winery… grunt!…. I will re-wind to the hospital scene and see if I missed him. … crap!

    Stover! …Thanks for the Poirot heads-up!… snort!… I doubt I will be allowed to stay up all night tonight as tomorrow she has to get up ridiculously early for that busy season place…growl!.

  41. Riö - The Evil
    2:58 pm on July 18th, 2010

    Wookie!… I’ve decided to try the alternative decoder device… snort!… I have no idea if it will work or not…Please check it when you have a free moment… grunt!… You guys are all talking about vegetable gardens and such today…sniff!… This summer has been difficult for us in that arena. She just didn’t feel like buying and planting anything this summer – A First!….snuffle!…Its been tough and we are just muddling through the best we can right now…sigh… Trying to survive her mom, her grandma and all this terrible hot heat… blast it!

  42. Staff, AbbietheKitty
    3:04 pm on July 18th, 2010

    ~Wookie, Thanks, got the recipe. I have been waiting for the peaches to come into the store. I will be ready when they do! Maybe I will buy two lugs this year. Our good peaches always come from Colorado!

    Staff

    ~Rio, So glad you found a 'good' quilt shop. Or a good sales person. Twins won too! Bottom of the 9th! WooHoo!

    ~Magpie! Way to go you ratter you! Alice and I have been camped outside a closet for two days now. Staff let us in yesterday and today but closed it last night and put a mouse trap in it. No luck, so that is why it is open again.

    She is trying to decide if we are 'yanking her chain' or not. Or maybe that is 'pulling her leg'.

  43. Staff,
    3:07 pm on July 18th, 2010

    I put a new link up in my post of 8:04. It is awaiting moderation. I linked to my webshots albums with my quilts in it. Mike Baker does not like that link.

    >^..^<

  44. B. Stover
    3:14 pm on July 18th, 2010

    Do you have a farmer's market nearby Rio?

  45. Riö - The Evil
    3:39 pm on July 18th, 2010

    Farmers!… We are surrounded by farmers – don’t get me started….snort!… Yes there is a farmers market here on the weekends and I have been there once so far… wheeze! …That was when a Golden Retriever got a piece of my mind… sniff!… It was right after Wookie had won the ARC and I was a little sensitive back then…heh!

    Stover!… I had my whole weekend planned out, which included reading a lot of Ingrid, but her mother has been instrumental in destroying all of our plans so far… yeep!…We knew this would happen at some point. The loneliness and neediness are setting in and we are close by and very accessible…sigh… And there is no way of saying “No” to her right now…snort!…That would just be cruel and heartless….wheeze!…So our weekends will be willy nilly for a while….snuff!… My friend did suggest “reading” to her mother, but there is no way she is letting her mom read one of the Charming Mr. Abrahams books unless it is one of Ingrid’s…heh!

  46. B. Stover
    3:53 pm on July 18th, 2010

    Rio: I went through something similar a few years back. I bet your friend's mom would like the Ingrid books. Has she already read the Chet and Bernie books? Perhaps you could get her interested in a reading group.

  47. Macy the Min-Pin
    4:13 pm on July 18th, 2010

    Hi, everybody. The pack is driving me nuts. I don't ever get time on the laptop, (except mom's), plus it is too darn hot to breathe.

  48. Siberian Husky
    4:16 pm on July 18th, 2010

    Hi Macy, It is hot here too. Got up to 100 today and suppose to do the same tomorrow.

  49. Riö - The Evil
    4:17 pm on July 18th, 2010

    Stover!… You know what!?….snort!… Just this week I got ‘Dog On It’ back – a little worse for wear, but its been all over the place!… hey!… I will give it to her mom and see if she bites….cough!… My friend remembers her mom when she was much younger, she was the type to pick up a book and not stop reading till she was finished….wheeze! … Her mom keeps eying those stacks of the Charming Mr. Abrahams books whenever she comes over and finally today my friend put them away in a special place…heh! … The only one out is “Last of the Dixie Heroes” which Mother Bogar is guarding with her life!…heh!..Blu Kat I will let you and Stover know when we are ready to read that one…Gruff!…Can’t wait, but Ingrid is so good I do not want to rush through it at all….sigh.

  50. Riö - The Evil
    4:23 pm on July 18th, 2010

    SiberH!… I don’t know how hot it got today only that it got too hot to be bearable…sigh…Everything is hard to do in this heat…sniff!…Even trying to keep outside things alive is an ongoing miserable watering project….dammit! …Finally the neighbor came home so we don’t have to piss on his stuff any longer…wheeze!….Fun at first and then not fun at all in this heat…grump!

  51. B. Stover
    4:40 pm on July 18th, 2010

    I'm watching Third Girl. It's very good. Wonder if Wookie is watching.

  52. Kirby T. Penworthy
    5:11 pm on July 18th, 2010

    It's hot here, too, and on top of that we have thunderstorms every afternoon. Today Mom went to the store and got caught in a big storm. She said the umbrella didn't help because the wind was blowing and she was wet from head to toe by the time she got inside. And then when she walked into the store the electricity was off. Luckily they had an emergency generator, so there was a little light and she was able to shop until the lights came back on.

  53. wookie of chevy chas
    5:38 pm on July 18th, 2010

    Saw most of the Poirot, but missed the beginning because we had dinner guests. Looked really good though and will try to see the whole thing later this week. Wookie

  54. Siberian Husky
    6:02 pm on July 18th, 2010

    Rio, my newspaper said that it was 102 in your area yesterday. We know about he watering for neighbors when they go away. It gets boring and almost impossible to do in this heat.

    Our monsoon (rainy season) is late this year, They really do call July and August our monsoon period. I've always thought that was a bit dramatic because our monsoon is nothing like on the sub-continent of India. Chet and Bernie also experience our July-Aug. monsoon.

  55. Staff
    6:12 pm on July 18th, 2010

    Gosh I almost hate to tell you all that the weather here has been quite nice. This is a good thing since our air conditioner is broken. We have a heat pump and evidently need a new water coil. It has been ordered but will take another week at least. Thank goodness it is under warranty.

    However we have been able to keep comfortable for the most part. It is often quite hot up here in the Summer but it has been in the low 80's in the daytime lately. Thank goodness.

    Staff

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