Morning vs. Afternoon

I normally run in the morning. Like, before the sun comes up - which is sick, but it's the only time I can easily carve time out for myself, what with the job and family stuff and all.

When I'm out, I always greet the people I see with a "Morning!" Sometimes the exclamation mark is a little quieter, you know, cause I'm running up a hill or away from their dog or something, but I always say it. And I almost always get a response in kind.

This weekend I ran my 20 miler in the afternoon, and I noticed two things. First, I didn't know what to say to people as I went by. "Hi?" "Hey?" "How's it going?" "Nice legs?" "Grunt?" Nothing really rolled out nicely. (I finally settled on "Hi.") And second, very few people acknowledged that I had said anything.

Afternoon runners and walkers - they're an unfriendly lot.