Hope and the lack of optimism are not mutually exclusive. You can be pessimistic and realistic, and yet still hope for better than you think might be. And just because we may be going down the tubes doesn't mean that we can't enjoy the moment, the song, the food, the laughs, the company, the drink, the kiss, the...whatever. It really is a "mighty short trip from the cradle to the crypt" as Steve Goodman says. And once gone, we are dead for a very long time. Give yourself a break, Hawk, and try to lighten up a bit.

Saul