Why life is good even tho it sucks. w/ illustrations

Life is good even tho it sucks. The economy is fucked and might possibly become apocalyptic. Katie's w/o a job. Her grandma passed on. I had to go to a catholic funeral (sit down, pray, sing, stand up, kneel, be sad, be thankful, be scared, sit down, dress up, be humble, be proud, be christian etc etc ad nauseam). Thoughts of my own mortality have been forced upon me. I work too hard for too little money. Vacations are beyond my financial reach. My car keeps dreaming up new and expensive ways to need repair. My home is worth only slight more than I owe, and less than I paid. I'm addicted to nicotine, have little motivation to try to quit. It's been a long weird winter and a wet chilly spring. And yet, I'm in a pretty darn good mood. It's the second day of a three day weekend. The weather is awesome. I'm sitting on deck/porch/lanai/portico/balcony. Thanks to Kurt & Rob, I've gotta great local beer at my lips. I've got some amazing copper river salmon to grill, even tho I had to practically get a second mortgage to do so. Buddha is happily keeping the neighbor safe. Fae is nibbling away on cat nip. I'm playing with my favorite toys (iPhone & MacBook). Our herb garden is doing great. I have, perhaps, the best view in Portland. I have a beautiful and extremely tolerant girlfriend. I truly like all the people I work with, and almost all my customers. My job is actually pretty darn good. I do no harm, I get to be sarcastic and have fun while earning a living wage. My pets / fur kids are wonderful fascinating individuals. There's going to be Shakespeare in the park, as well as the Jazz Fest. The Historic Races coming up, as is the waterfront Beer Fest. OPB & NPR provide the background sounds for my life and feed my brain & soul. Despite it's kiss of death, so help me I love smoking. Even tho I'm solidly in my mid-forties, I usually feel and apparently look much younger. This is a good life by any standards, most certainly mine. In my past I've tasted depression, pain and more. It's good to have that context to inform me now. Now life is good even tho it sucks.