Life As We Knew It

On July 14, Miranda mistakenly lets the family cat, Horton, out and he does not return at his usual time. Because the sky is gray all the time now, it is hard to know whether it is morning or night. Horton usually goes out during the daytime, but must have gotten confused. Miranda’s mother says that any of them could have made the mistake, but Miranda knows it is her fault. She writes that she is always careless, but usually her carelessness only affects her, not someone else. On July 16, Miranda has another fight with her mother. She is still upset about the cat, which infuriates her mother, as they have not heard from Jonny in two weeks. Miranda says that Jonny is fine, eating two meals a day while they exist on starvation diets. She accuses her mother of betting on Jonny to survive, rather than her. Miranda knows that her mother will forego food for them, and that Matt will not take food if it means the rest of them can survive She recognizes that, as a woman, she is might be considered too weak to survive, which only leaves Jonny.