June Challenge: Day 7: The thing(s) I'm most afraid of

Day 7, Friday: The thing(s) I’m most afraid of

This one is easy for me although it might convince all of you I'm even weirder than you already think I am! Please don't disown me if you think I'm a freak following this blog post. I've got four things, each for their own reason. 

1. Clowns
The enforced smiles, the clothes, the make up. I don't care if it's a clown that's smiling or one that looks like it's crying. I don't do clowns. They freak me out beyond belief. I've been to the circus before, I felt sick from the moment I arrived. Would you believe my mum never even noticed?

2. Ventriloquist dummies
I know they are just inanimate objects but I cannot shake the feeling that if I met one I may well be murdered in my bed by it that night. Far too chucky doll for my liking. On a school camping trip when I was 8 or 9 a friend told me about a dummy coming up the stairs and appearing in the doorway whilst a child was sleeping. I swear I didn't sleep a wink those days away.

3. Dinosaurs
The actual animal, regardless of extinction, and also them in movie or cartoon format. I am undeniably frightened by them to the point of nightmares. The thought of Jurassic Park makes me feel like I want to throw up so can you imagine what I thought when I heard about the "walking with dinosaurs" tour with the robot dinosaur representations? My worst fears realised! I think this started as a combination of the moving dinosaur exhibition at National History Museum and a cartoon I watched as a child. For months on end I refused point blank to sleep out of terror to the point my parents had to seek help from my school. Aged 7 I appear to have been disturbed, I am not entirely sure this issue ever was resolved.

4. Cotton Wool 
This is a full on genuine phobia. I cannot stand to even be in the same room as the stuff, never mind touch it. I hate the texture and I hate the noise it makes when you tear it. I will leave a room if you have it and I've refused to open jewellery packaged inside it. Nothing else makes me feel that ill. You should have seen me earlier today when hospital technician took my blood and then came towards me with cotton wool, I shot out of that room faster than he could speak. This is the fear that embarrasses me on a regular basis and makes other people laugh at me regularly but I really can't help it. When I was little  cotton wool was used to wipe away the blood when I grazed my knees, so I am certain somewhere along the way I started to associate it with pain. I can't think of another explanation for this one unfortunately.

So there you have it. My fears. Yes there are some other general ones about death and losing people which we all have but these are my specific things I'm frightened of. I'm a little odd and a bit quirky but that's just me!