As I peck away on the keyboard, I find myself getting irritated with everything that surrounds me.

Co-workers Eric Hammond and Lou Babiarz are probably the ones suffering the most from my wrath as they are stationed in my area.

I finally figured out the cause for my doldrums I miss my mom, Mildred "Millie" Elizabeth Peterson.

It's been almost a year since my life changed drastically.

A year ago, on Sept. 1, Mom was admitted into the hospital with a heart attack. After spending almost a month in the hospital, she succumbed and died on Sept. 28 of congestive heart failure.

September is going to be one of the toughest months to get through. Throw October in there, too, because her funeral was on Oct. 3. Her birthday would have been on Oct. 16.

I was so blessed to enjoy such a unique relationship with my Mom. Not only was she my parent, but she was also my best friend and the most important person in my life.

She loved to travel. Because of her companionship, we were always on the go and ended up visiting 34 states together. Weekend trips and day trips were frequent, and they were always filled with tons of fun.

Mom loathed cooking and loved to eat in restaurants. Most of the time she ordered some type of entree that included chicken.

She loved to drink Diet Dr. Pepper and eat Club crackers or Zero candy bars.

Mom loved zoos and watching the Discovery Channel to learn about the habits of different animals. She loved the nose of a pig, the trunk of an elephant and the silly face of a monkey.

Mom was very loyal, giving, compassionate, goofy and caring. I'd like to think I picked up those traits from her. She didn't always like to let those things show something else I picked up from her.

She loved to smoke, which was the only thing we ever really locked horns over. She would have bought herself much more time if it weren't for that wretched addiction.

She could also be very stubborn, judgmental, critical and never liked to admit she was sorry. Unfortunately, I inherited that part of the package as well.

To my Mom, the most important characteristic she had was her sense of humor. Her ability to joke around was so apparent that the pastor who spoke at her funeral made humor the central topic, which is how she would have wanted it.

When I was growing up, I was never sure if my friends wanted to hang out with me or my Mom, because she was so much cooler than I was.

I really belive my Mom was tailored especially for me.

What does this have to do with sports? Well, nothing. She has just been on my mind lately.

I do give her credit for me starting a career in sportswriting. Mom laid the foundation at an early age because she was an avid reader. She mostly liked to read romance novels, but she would really read anything. She once tried to write her own romance novel an interest I never inherited from her, thank God.

I developed the love of reading through her. She had told me when I was a small child that she would have loved to give journalism a whirl. She did write a couple stories for The Minot Daily News as a correspondant, and our family was so proud to see her byline.

Mom always looked for ways to expand her vocabulary. Thanks to her I learned the meanings of words like behoove, forthwith and kittywampus.

Mom always encouraged me to work in whatever career I wanted to. When I was a child I wanted to pave roads. In high school, I thought I wanted to be a chef or manage a restaurant and motel.

I graduated college with four-year degrees in criminal justice and sociology with my Mom's encouragement.

When I decided to enter the male-dominated world of sportswriting, Mom supported me even though she wasn't a big sports fan. She'd even defend me when I made an error.

Mom loved the Yankees because my dad, a Dodgers fan, hated them. She liked the looks of tennis player Ivan Lindl, Baltimore pitcher Jim Palmer and Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino, but that's about as far as her sports knowledge went.

When I went through some of her things, after she had died, I found stacks of newspapers in her room. She must have saved every article I had ever written, even when it was only a college part-time gig for me.

There's nothing more rewarding for me than when I see a Mom watching her son or daughter at a sporting event. It reminds me that moms are so precious.

If I was presented with the option to bring my Mom back, I wouldn't do it. I know she's in a better place and wanting her here with me would be selfish, and that's not how she raised me.

(Cindy Peterson is a Tribune sportswriter.)