Long Overdue, no doubt.

I was just working on a really fun post about what I've been up to the last couple weeks - travel, friends, bike racing, mystery, intrigue . . . well, maybe not the last two. But someone brought it to my attention that my blog has thus far neglected to give notice to a very important supporter of the life of this unemployed bike racer, my mom.

Just so you know, Mom, you brought this upon yourself.

This is the email I received:

Dear Marian Jamison,

I was surprised on reading a bunch of entries in your blog tonight to find no mention of your mother ANYwhere, whereas there are dozens of stories of your wonderful father encouraging you, buying you bikes, riding with you, etc. You are lucky to have him, as the man is obviously a saint. It is apparent your mother must've died giving birth to you. How very sad! My sincere condolences.

Yours truly,

A Fan

Clearly, this is an oversight on my part of criminal proportions, and I seek to remedy it immediately with this, an Ode to my Mother.

Ode to my Mother

Oh mother, with your hair of ever changing hue

How I miss your daily entreaties to pick up the dog poo

Tho I am sure his absence causes you great remorse

even as you assure me with forked tongue that mine is worse

Through discount clothing stores in solitude I wander

wishing you were here to join me in my frugal quest

(You above all should forgive my abandonment of rhyme

as clearly you did not bestow upon me your poetic gift)

Perhaps the hitherto lack of biography of you

is because our moments transcend retelling, too

Surely no one can appreciate the laughter that brings tears

when I tell you to "put on your big girl pants" and abandon fears

If even he closest to me cannot understand our delight

in the ridiculous nature of our furry friend's plight

The stories would surely be wasted on the world at large

be it no reflection on the times that we spend.

And that's all I've got. Yeah, I should stick to non-poetic forms of writing.