Yesterday, fellow blogger Oren expressed amusement that my mother comments on my blog. I suppose it does seem strange if you don’t know my mom.
My veil of pseudonymity doesn’t extend to members of my family; mom knows who I am. And my knowing she is out there checking this site daily, I do occasionally feel that I have to self-censor but honestly not that often. That’s mostly because I don’t do anything even approaching illicit behavior (anymore), but partly it’s because of the general coolness of my mother.
As a parent, my mom was always able to achieve that very delicate balance between being a Parent and being a Friend. It wasn’t like she was one of those pathetic hipster moms desperately trying to act 20 years younger, smoking pot with her kids and hitting on their friends, but she also wasn’t a total oldster constantly eliciting her children’s embarrassment over her terminal squareness.
I think a lot of it came from her being a high school teacher. When my sister and I were teenagers, my mom had a hundred others to deal with besides us and she saw just how truly bad kids can get. Nothing my sister or I did — nothing we pierced, dyed, wore, or listened to — was anything my mom hadn’t seen before.
I’ve already written about how she used to judge her students’ intelligence via Monty Python quotes. She also went to midnight screenings of The Rocky Horror Picture Show with them. It’s not like she dressed up as Frank-N-Furter or anything; she just went to have a good time, and, I’m sure, keep an eye on them.
In short, my mom knew how to relate to teenagers and young adults. She didn’t try to emulate our lingo, listen to our music, or live our lifestyle. But she kept an open mind about it, didn’t judge (well, not often), and kept us pointing in the right direction.
So, true to her form, she’s not out there blogging herself, but she’s keeping an eye on me. Just like a mom.
Comments
My mom and my aunt read my blog regularly, though usually they don't comment. Heh... some of my friends and family who are out of state use it to keep track of what's going on with me, too.
Your mom is way cool though. That's just a fact.
Posted by: B | June 30, 2006 11:15 AM
Can we trade moms? Just for a year?
When my mom found out that I kept a blog she wrote me a scathing letter about how stupid the very idea of blogging was. That's my mom for you. I occasionally wonder if she reads in spite of this apparent aversion to bloggers, but I don;t wonder too hard or too long. She is who she is. Sad but true.
Posted by: nina | July 2, 2006 9:25 PM