What happens when things “go with a runny nose”?

Dictionaries list this word as meaning "to be destroyed, to vanish". It comes from the ancient Russian word ‘smarka’, meaning ‘cleansing’. Gamblers would write down the debts of losers in chalk on the same table where the game was being played. As soon as the winnings were repaid, the entry was wiped clean. Or they could say it had "gone with a runny nose".

Although the word was originally written separately, over time, the preposition "stuck" to it, forming an adverb. It's most often used to describe wasted effort or time on something.

An English equivalent would be: “To go down the drain.”