Scaredy-Cat

"meow" goes the scaredy-cat.

Guess what world, I have a comedy-buddy. His name is Chris and together we are working our way through a book called The Comedy Bible. One of the first activities in the book was about dealing with fear. We were instructed to write down five things we would have done that very day if fear had not held us back.

Although I am afraid of all you readers knowing my fears and evilly using them against me, I am working on conquering fear, so here we go. In no particular order, five things I would have done last Monday had fear not held me back:

1. Shaved my head - I have always wanted to shave my head. When your own mother suggests a rather expensive smoothing treatment for your hair, you know you have a major problem with frizz and getting rid of my hair is a much less expensive solution than a keratin treatment. Plus, do you know how hot one's head becomes in the middle of summer due to a full head of hair? Oh the convenience of a clean-shaven head... Still, I am afraid. Afraid of what my friends and family would think and of course, what judgments would strangers make if they saw me?

2. Spoken up more in class - Yeah, this is kind of a lame one but it was one of my fears. I am afraid of saying something wrong that would make me look like an idiot in front of a whole classroom of my peers. I am also a little afraid of being right and then looking like a know-it-all freak. Either way, everyone hates me and I become "that girl." Are my fears irrational and a bit exaggerated, yes. Do they still exist, yes.

3. Asked someone one out - Do you want to know who I would have asked out? Really? You want to know? Ok, his name is....HA like I would actually tell you! I think most people have a fear of rejection and I fall into this group. Plus, I am a girl, so shouldn't he ask me? I know, I know, that's a stereotype - but I don't care.

4. Danced everywhere - Ok, this was when I was beginning to be reluctant about sharing my fears. But I do think that if I was not afraid of what other people thought about me I would dance more, maybe not as I made my way to class down College Ave, but perhaps I would put some extra pep in my step wherever I went.

5. Held a tarantula - This one came about from my fear of most things creepy-crawly. Most creepy-crawlies in my life are spiders, aside from the occasional cockroach in college dormrooms, and they get the brunt of this fear. Anything that can crawl up a wall and defy gravity just does not seem completely benign to me. Plus, they could crawl in my mouth or ear when I am sleeping and lay eggs - I've seen something similar on "Medical Mysteries" so it's definitely a legitimate fear...

Then The Comedy Bible told me I needed to conquer one of those fears. Ummm excuse me? Really not fair that you did not inform me of this until after I wrote my fears down. Should I have seen this coming, certainly, but I did not think "the bible" would be out to get me! Well what do you know, my friend Anne knows someone who recently got a pet tarantula. I prefer pet puppies, but that's just me. To each his own...

So sometime in the near future I will be holding a tarantula. If it gets all huffy and decides to jettison hair at me (that's how they attack) I will be holding/chucking-as -far-as-possible a tarantula in the near future.

Conquering fear is good though. It's healthy, right? It instills confidence and self-worth. At least that's what I am telling myself every time I think about my fears. Fake it 'til you make it. Confidence is key. Just a couple antidotes to get you through your fears, people. I have found that hitting "Publish Post" is like slaying a big ol' dragon of fear whenever I put a new post up. Take that fear of judgment, you are outta here!

So what are your fears? How are you going to conquer them? Would you like to go on a date with me where we hold hands tarantulas, go out to dinner dancing, and at the end of the evening, I just might let you kiss me good night shave my head!

"RAWR!" goes the confident-cat.