It seems my morale has hit an annual low point. Hateful winter has presented itself in the usual forms- crappy weather and sickness- and the two have aligned against my running schedule.

First, a weather highlight. Snow is falling continuously enough that the sidewalks are never bare. The most recent storm, however, has coated the streets with an oily sludge entirely unlike snow. Imagine being ankle-deep in a gray, misery-flavored Slurpee, and you have Philadelphia’s current running conditions. Add to that a stomach bug and you have my current running conditions.

Or, perhaps I should say non-running conditions. I couldn’t eat, drink, or even walk a quarter-mile today without puking. A run just wasn’t in the cards. A shame- it would have made me feel better if it wasn’t guaranteed to make me feel so much worse.