State of mind

Here's the best description of my worldview that I think I've ever encountered. It comes from Bill Emmott, the editor-in-chief of The Economist, who apparently first heard it described by an Australian winemaker.

PARANOID OPTIMISM

An attitude that is known by winemakers: the hope that this year's wine will be better than ever, mixed with a fear that it might be ruined by too much sun, too much rain, or some other calamity.

-- Bill Emmott, from an article in The Economist, Sept. 11, 1999