A Cold Constitutional

"Why go? You could always skip today, too......" The dreaded voice, often present but more strident in cold weather, cycled on repeat through my head yesterday as I taught classes.

I was tired. It was cold. And, really, it was supposed to be a lower-miles week.

All excuses.

"But I don't have gloves!" I thought as I was gearing up, despite a colleague warning me as to the chill. "Or a long-sleeved shirt!"

Squashing the dissent, I layered a couple of short-sleeved shirts under the jacket I left in my office and shivered out the door. At least I had a hat and thick socks.

Wanting to get the run in before another meeting and before I got too hungry - almost 4:00pm is a fair ways away from lunch, when you've left the house early enough for an 8:15am class.

First thing that happened, besides my hands and rear getting numb, was that I ran into the crowds at Columbus Circle. Stupid red-and-white shopping kiosks! Stupid tourists that likely pay my salary!

I can appreciate them without liking them, right?

A loop the hard way, then a resolute turning-around and going the other way, instead of running back at the turn-around conveniently located right at Columbus Circle. Sigh.

It got a lot warmer, actually. I didn't even need the gloves until the end, when the sun had been set for a while and the temperature dropped. The Time Warner sign said it was 31 degrees. I beg to differ!
Stopped to window-shop on the way back. Out of character and a mistake. Didn't find anything except crowds and what little I had sweated froze as the wind started blowing.

Don't know whether it's Central Park, or that my back has been bothering me and, likely, has tightened everything down the back of my legs, or both, but my butt and hamstrings really hurt by the end of this run. And I was going not-so-fast.

Hmmmmm.

Also an unwelcome twinge in my right quad. This weather causes everything to flare up!
A bit over 12 miles