When there’s lightning,
You know it always brings me down…
- Ronnie James Dio

Me too, Ronnie. Especially when it means I’m not going running.

I was really excited about this morning’s run. I planned on getting out of the house early and heading to a local 1/4-mile track for my first 5k of the week. I made sure to get all of my running gear - the layers of wicking clothes, jacket, gloves, hat, iPod, earplugs, and Nike+ receiver - laid out the night before. I set my alarm extra early to allow myself enough time to drive over to the track and still make it to work on time. I even gave myself a, “When the alarm goes off, you’re going to hit the ground running!” pep-talk as I was going to bed.

Sadly, when my alarm went off this morning, I heard the sound of rain against the bedroom window. I stepped out on the front porch to find medium rain, cold wind, and lightning.

Before I heard thunder, I considered toughing it out and going for it. As soon as I knew there was lightning, going running was out of the question.

Thankfully, the rest of the week looks like great running weather. I’ll be laying out all of my running gear again tonight, giving myself the same pep-talk, and hitting the track with all of the early-morning energy I can muster.