Once upon a time there was an old man who loved to listen to the striking of his grandfather clock. He enjoyed it so much, in fact, that he kept it in his bedroom against the far wall. After retiring each night, he would lie in his bed, half-awake, listening to the striking of the clock. Whenever the clock struck, he would sleepily count the chimes. One night something went wrong with the clock's mechanism. It began to strike and he began to count. He counted to ten, eleven, twelve...then thirteen!...fourteen!...fifteen!... Suddenly he realized something had gone wrong and he was immediately wide awake. He reached over, shook his wife, and said, "Wake up, Ma! It's later than I've ever knowed it to be!"