We can't be sure of an exact sequence of events in this poem. Think of it as more of a domestic scene that could represent any day and any time. Brooks colors the scene with the vivid smells of cooking—so maybe it takes place around breakfast, lunch, or dinner—and closes the poem with a race to the bathtub—so maybe it takes place in the morning, or just before bed. In any case, our speaker wonders about the power of a dream to transcend all of this humdrum, daily (and kind of unpleasant) reality. She doesn't wonder long, though. Once the bathroom's free, the speaker drops this line of thought and rushes off to be the fifth person to enjoy the communal, lukewarm bathwater. Eww.