RICHARD, I think you're the kind of person who can handle all of these bad things. Perhaps that's why you get them, after all, who else can manage to maintain their wit, playfulness and irreverance in the face of such huge mountains of bad stuff. All the same, I'd say you deserve a vacation.

What gives me hope?

Random acts of kindness.

And I am lucky enough to receive them or bear witness to them on a fairly regular basis.

The other day I was on my way to a temp job and quite lost. A man came out of nowhere and said "how can I help you find where you need to go?" So I told him the address and he practically walked me there. No gross weirdo stuff, either. Just some guy wanting to help a stranger without any concern or secret desire for anything in return.

Sometimes, things like that make me really love people. I try to remember those little moments when I read bad news.