Now, it's hard to remember what all of that was like. The dog's lost ten seconds off its time of several years ago. Illegal explosions wake us at all hours of the night. Well-intentioned parties turn into riots. Cats cannonball through the house.
Nobody gives thought anymore to any sort of obligation.
Bills pile up on the kitchen counter. Children's needs go unmet. Taxis continually show up at the gate, and are sent away. Nobody wants to use them. The dog runs on and on.