Another way of looking at these "distractions" from the red sports car, etc. is that they are the point.

Taking care of our children and our parents is why we are here; it's our mission. That an alternative version was held out to us by The Love Boat and Fantasy Island was an aberation.

We are here to support the next generations and honour the past ones; everything else is beside the point.

Which is not to say that life must suck. But for it not to suck, we need to change some definitions of what's primary and what's secondary.