It seems a little churlish to be moaning about this weather in terms of its impact on my training plans when the news is full of lives and livelihoods shattered by the worst of its effects.

But my professional life and, by choice, my marathon training are ruled by my ability to create and manage things to very detailed plans. I would almost describe my reliance on these plans as neurotic. When I have no plan, I don't worry too much, but when I do I really like to stick to it.

And now that I'm over the worst of the cold/flu thing that's dogged me for 3 weeks, I want to get out there and start pounding pavement. I've just had no window of opportunity where I've been on my own time and the weather has been conducive. This morning, for example, I got up at 6 and the wind was howling around the house, making the heavy rain 'fall' horizontally. And then, once I'd got ready for work (having given up on the run) and walked out my front door at 7, there was not a breath of wind, nor a drop of rain. But if I'd got changed and tried to squeeze a run in, I would have been late (or at least not early) for work.

Fortuitously, I am ready to get back into the programme in a 'light' week. These are scattered throughout the training schedule and involve easier weekday runs, although the long run is still a mile longer than the previous week's. All I need is a half hour where the weather and my availability coincide, dammit.

So I'm trying now to function without a plan this week. When at home, I will wear my running kit and I'll be out the door if at any point the conditions are suitable. In the meantime, I've been watching quite a lot of television and have picked out some of my favourite one-liners of the week.

Jeremy Clarkson: 'If you put an 'i', it has to be a small 'i' with a dot over it, in the name of a car, it means it's green, because ecomentalists are all daft.' This has a particular resonance given the work some of my colleagues have done for a major manufacturer's launch of a car with just such a moniker. He proceeded to name his prototype 'hammerhead thunder i blaster', or something equally amusing.

Baldrick and George in Blackadder goes forth: 'The stupidest stupidies in the the whole history of stupiditiness.' Speaks for itself, really.

I was going to do one from Louie Walsh about X Factor being a singing competition and Lloyd therefore being weak. But it's best if I don't start on about him. Or THEM.

Anyway, I am ready to run and write about it. As soon as I get the chance, I'll do both!

P.S. Particularly beautiful photo today, I think. A colleague of mine wrote some guidelines about how best to credit people whose content you use under a Creative Commons licence. I've read it and will do something about it asap.