P is for...

Phobias

Most of the time, I can overcome fear pretty easily. I'm not scared of water, or closed in spaces, or death, or heights, or spiders. I don't especially like public speaking, but I can muddle through most days if I have to. But I do have a few things that totally freak me out.

Snakes
I absolutely DESPISE snakes. Actually, anything reptile-like is gross. But snakes give me the ultimate creepy crawlies. Whether it is on TV, in real life, a picture in a book, whatever! Just get it away from me. Snakes are gross. Period. It takes me quite a bit of "pumping up" time to even go in the vicinity of Elvis, the albino python, at Exotic Pets.

People Touching My Neck
I'm not sure where this came from, but I have to be absolutely relaxed or completely trust the person completely in order to let them touch my neck. Otherwise, it's instant goosebumps, and I get all panicky.

Mice/Rats
Even the pet kinds. I picture them chewing on my toes or clawing their way up my legs. At work, we have a mice problem in our very old downtown building, so I think that is what has ruined me.

Burgulars/Peeping Toms
It's not so much the burgling or the peeping that scares me. It's the fright-factor. It's the idea of coming around a dark corner and seeing a man standing there. Or closing my mirrored medicine cabinet only to see someone in the reflection standing behind me. Or looking in a dark window and seeing dark eyes staring back to me. Oh man...I just got the willies just thinking about it...

Sidenote: Early on in our dating relationship when Jerod did not know this about me, he was over at my house and tried to scare me. He hid in my dark bathroom and when I came around the corner, all I saw was this dark figure standing there. It scared the CUH-RAP out of me! He learned quickly never to do that again to a single woman that lives in a big house all by herself.

Walmart
Maybe it's the crowds (because sometimes the mall at Christmas-time has this same effect on me) but I just absolutely freak out in that place. It's like I need to stabilize myself by hanging onto something. I usually walk along one side of the aisle and run my hand along the shelves. It's almost like over stimulation or something. All the people and the stuff to look at just confuse and disorientate me. Maybe this is why I do most of my shopping online.

Any Social Gathering With More Then Three People
I tend to clam up and hide in the corner hoping that people will think I'm the fly on the wall that I'm trying to be. Being sociable is not my forte. I tend to stutter and say or do things that are completely inappropriate. I'm not sure where this came from. Maybe from spending most of my day with a computer??? I guess social skills have an expiration date on them if not used regularly.