Sinuses!

For a week now, I have been struggling with a swollen head. Fluctuations in temperature and air pressure, illness, bad sleeping habits ... last night I went to bed with my socks on. It's fundamental, sleep with my socks on, wake up with a head like a pumpkin.

I've been eating so much Sudafed they have my picture of at all the local Walgreen's.

A week projected to be in the 40s. Keep it up, little Pengo. It's winter again.

1978 Playlist
(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction - Devo
This Is Pop - XTC
Tragedy - Bee Gees
Take Me I'm Yours - Squeeze
Pump It Up - Elvis Costello & The Attractions
Sunday Girl - Blondie
I Love The Nightlife - Alicia Bridges
The Eton Rifles - The Jam
I'm Gonna Love You Too - Blondie
My Best Friend's Girl - The Cars

Someone must have gotten Devo's Greatest Hits recently. Hmn.

Distance: 3.25 miles
Temperature: 34º
Weight: 152 lbs.

Why walk when you can run?

You know, calling out "Passing on left!" scares the sh*t out of people as much as just suddenly passing them does.

2008 Playlist
Down to Earth - Peter Gabriel
1,000,000 - Nine Inch Nails
Black & Gold - Sam Sparro
Detroit - Black Gold
Hometown Glory - Adele
American Boy - Estelle ft. Kanye West
Lights & Music - Cut Copy
Disturbia - Rihanna
Why Walk When You Can Run - Paul Weller
Mansard Roof * - Vampire Weekend
Mercy - Duffy

Distance: 5.15 miles
Temperature: 67º
Weight: 150.5 lbs.

Yes, it's worth living for.

Not only is there no snow scheduled in the six day forecast - it's supposed to be in the 50s and 60s! It's almost worth all of the illness and physical misery this house has been suffering to have this break.

It has to snow again, right? I mean, why get my hopes up? Just so long as it waits until, I don't know, April or something.

I am concerned about my physique. I need to continue with the weigh bearing exercises, but they are arduous, and frankly, boring. I do miss waking up extra-early last fall to do physical therapy - I listened to Capital Radio, boned up on all the recent pop music, and after all, I was under a doctor's orders. Nothing motivates like having someone in authority telling you what to do.

You know, like Rush Limbaugh. (drum fill)

1988 Playlist
Def. Con. One - Pop Will Eat Itself
Under the Milky Way - The Church
The Right Stuff - New Kids On The Block
Dragnet '88 - The Art of Noise
A Little Respect - Erasure
Waiting for the Great Leap Forward * - Billy Bragg
Drug (It's Just a State of Mind) - Duran Duran
Tropical Flesh Mandala - Robyn Hitchcock
Was It Worth It? - Pet Shop Boys
Lake Shore Driving * - Duran Duran
All Night Long - Peter Murphy

Distance: 5.15 miles
Temperature: 40º
Weight: 151.5 lbs.

Come and keep your comrade warm

I don't mind the cold. Really. Just ... don't ... snow.

1968 Playlist
White Light/White Heat - The Velvet Underground
Son of a Preacher Man - Dusty Springfield
Banana Splits (Tra La La Song) * - The Banana Splits
Grazing in the Grass - Hugh Masekela
Back in the U.S.S.R. - The Beatles
Hush - Deep Purple
Sister Ray - The Velvet Underground

This is as far into the past as I go. Literally. It took a seventeen minute songs from the VU to even make 30 minutes of music with any BPM at all.

Distance: 3.25 miles
Temperature: 12º
Weight: 152.5 lbs.

I have a history of taking off my shirt

Closed the 5s and 10s, working on the 8s.

I have snot crystals on my face. Mmmmm. Snot crystals.

1998 Playlist
Iris * - Goo Goo Dolls (Awesome BPM - in 3/3 time, no less!)
Cadriopo - Stereolab
Velvet Pants - Propellerheads
One Week - Barenaked Ladies
Outside - George Michael
Random Number Generation - Hedwig & the Angry Inch
Torch - Sister Soleil

Distance: 3.25 miles
Temperature: 23º
Weight: 153 lbs.

What you give is what you get

1980 Playlist
Girl U Want - Devo
You Make My Dreams Come True * - Hall & Oates
Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps) - David Bowie
Another Nail In My Heart - Squeeze
C30, C60, C90 Go - Bow Wow Wow
Start! - The Jam
Whip It * - Devo
Driven To Tears - The Police
Pulling Mussels (From The Shell) - Squeeze
Take This Town - XTC
All Over The World - ELO
Go For It - Graham Gouldman
That's Entertainment - The Jam

Distance: 5.15 miles
Temperature: 42º
Weight: 153 lbs.

Don't believe in anything that you can't break

Nothing like a demented dash through the darkened, sub-freezing streets.

Applications for the 2009 NYC Marathon are now open. I deferred last year due to blowing out my left knee. I can receive automatic entry if I re-apply before midnight on May 1. The question is: will I blow out my right knee before or after I apply?

And speaking of injuries ... my right foot. Big sigh. I used to have plantar warts, and much to my continued disbelief, they are gone. But I do have (I shudder to state this) a bunion.

When I think of the word bunion I think of words like goiter and cancer of the lip. Crackers get bunions, or at the very least, old people.

It's basically like this, my big toe is bending towards my others toes, and the major joint of that toe is beginning to jut to the other direction, towards my left foot, to compensate. Sometimes it is more visibly noticeable. Sometimes it tingles in a disturbing fashion.

I use toe separators, which helps. I concentrate on rolling properly through my foot. It goes away from time to time. It comes back. It's back.

As in all things, I blame my parents. I broke my leg in seventh grade, and used a walking cast for a while. Those are dumb, they shouldn't make those. I am pretty sure they don't anymore, at least not like this. It was like having a pivot on the base of my foot, which encouraged me to twist my foot to the outside - because I was wearing a cast. I couldn't bend my ankle.

So my right foot naturally splays out to the right when I walk, run or do anything, really. I didn't know any better. Where was the physical therapy?

God, what would have happened to me if I had been in physical therapy. Might have changed my life. Or maybe just another thing to strenuously avoid doing.

1995 Playlist
Mama Told Me (Not To Come) - The Wolfgang Press
Making Plans For Nigel - The Rembrandts
Under - Filter
Stupid Girl - Garbage
Girl U Want - Devo
Cupid DeLocke - Smashing Pumpkins
Big Apple Boogaloo - Brooklyn Funk Essentials

Distance: 3.25 miles
Temperature: 21º
Weight: 152 lbs.