unironedman

The heading gave me a little brain tingle, so I checked it out, and sure enough, it is indeed a title of an Iain Banks novel. I’ve read quite a few of his, and they’re damn fine, but I haven’t gotten around to this one yet. Still, after Christmas, there is always a neat pile of must-reads on the bedside locker, so it will have to wait.

This week has been cold here in Ireland; bitterly so. And the Covid news has matched it for misery. My running mate Mark informed me his wife had tested positive, so alas, no runs with him for a while. To date, we’ve dodged the bullet here at home, and may it stay that way.

Above are a few images from this morning’s run. I got 17.5k in and felt pretty good. This is only my fourth run of the year, and the first was a modest 6 or so, and then the second one was cut short when the beeper went off after about 1.5k, resulting in some unplanned speed work, and then the third run was really just a mooch about for 7k with the new GoPro to see how it handles running. And I have to say, it does a remarkable job when you consider it is doing all this work without any gimbals or other cunning stabilising devices.

Of course, my head is full of ideas for this new device. It may need a few accessories in order to get the most out of it. Certainly one of those hand-held ‘sticks’ that float would be an asset: useful for general running and also for brief dips underwater. For other things, a chest harness might be handy. I think I have the bike handlebar sorted anyway.

Apart from that, it’s really just about hunkering down. Get the firewood in. Keep the log stove topped up, and just wait for this to pass. And of course, it helps if you have a hound…

And of course, why have one hound when you can have two?

Stay warm. Stay safe.