Be afraid, be very afraid...

Dear Reader,







It's really ridiculous what some people are afraid of. I mean, I can understand phobias like arachnophobia (spiders, gross!) or altophobia (I really, really hate heights) and stuff like that, because I have them (a little). I can even understand why some people would have agoraphobia (panic attacks, scared to leave their house). Maybe they went through some kind of trauma or something and it affected them so deeply that they were too scared to leave their house, because that's the only place they felt safe anymore.



What I can't understand, though, are the weird phobias.

Like octophobia.

"That's the fear of octopi, right?" you ask, a smug look on your face. "Even I know that."


Wrong.


Octophobia is the fear of the figure eight. Yes, you read correctly, you can stop wiping nonexistent smudges off of your computer screen now. But wait, there's more.



How about hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia? The fear of long words. I can just imagine how carrying out a conversation with a hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobic (officially my new favourite word ^^) would be like. Can you imagine if they were in some kind of 'Phobics Anonymous' meeting or something?



"Hey, I'm Tom. I'm an arachnophobic. What's your phobia?" Tom says to Harry.

"Oh, hi, Tom. I'm Harry. I'm afraid I can't say what my phobia is," Harry replies.


"C'mon, don't be like that. I told you mine, so tell me yours," Tom insists, aiming a friendly punch at Harry's arm.


"No, you don't understand. I'm afraid. I can't say what my phobia is," says Harry.


Tom walks away, muttering something about anti-social freaks, party-poopers and spoilsports.



Hey, if you want to know about more weird and wacky phobias, check out this site. Just scroll down the page a bit and you're there.



Although, I'm not really one to talk about weird phobias. I mean, I have some pretty...quirky [?]...fears as well. First off, I am freaked out by chicken heads. Chicken heads, when still connected to the chicken, are bad enough. But what really gets me are dismembered chicken heads. Their little beady, glassy eyes staring blankly at you. The little beaks, all sharp and...dead. Gross me green, man! Oh, yeah. I also have an extreme disinclination (fear is too strong a word) for chicken feet. Dismembered chicken feet. The scale-like skin. The little pointy claws, curled up and not moving...



Ok, topic-change time. I also dislike lizards. Exceedingly. Any type of lizard. Of every species, shape, form, origin and character. Now, cockroaches, I can handle. I usually just stay out of their way and they stay out of mine. But not lizards. The little buggers just freak me out.

Do you know how much I did NOT enjoy searching for lizard pictures? There were a few pics of lizards eating other lizards, but...I'm sensitive to graphic material.

I actually have an interesting story about a lizard. My house is full of geckos. You know, those average house-lizards. Anyway, it was really early in the morning. About 5:30 or something.



"Wait, 5:30?!" you gasp in shock. "What were you doing up at such an unearthly hour?" you ask.


Well, Nosy Parker, I was getting ready for school. And in answer to your other unspoken question, school starts at around 7 a.m. in Malaysia, depending on the school. My house is, like, 20 minutes away, so I have to leave by 6:30 to make it in time. One of the best things about me not going to school anymore is I can sleep in everyday. Ok, scratch that. It's the best thing about not going to school anymore.



So, getting back to my story. It was about 5:30, right? I was getting my uniform in the laundry room when I heard this really loud lizard-sound. You know that clucking sound they make? It was loud. And it was tut-tut-tutting really slowly, too. Like "TUT...TUT...TUT...TUT". I mean, I couldn't see it anywhere, but it sounded like the World's Biggest Lizard was in my laundry room.



I have never gotten dressed so quickly in my life.







Wow, this is a long post. By my standards at least. I guess I'll be signing off now.


So...TTFN, ta-ta for now.







Yours,





Figgy the [Not So] Fearful