Random Observation/Comment #532: Uncertainty can be the scariest things for adults.
Ghouls, goblins, ghosts, gremlins, and other ghastly creatures don’t really scare me (that much). I’m much more afraid of the weird meta creepy things and awkward situations that can happen daily that just shake my norm. These include social anxiety, losing precious items, seeing odd coincidences, or imagining possibly unrealistic situations. Here are some of my daily fears.
- Going into an elevator with a colleague who wants to talk about sports, but you haven’t been keeping up at all
- Not knowing an answer to a question you used to know
- Finding your regularly placed items have moved to a different place
- Your significant other saying “we need to talk”
- Scope creep on a project that’s due in a week
- Forgetting your phone at home
- Blue screen of death when you don’t remember if you saved that document you’ve been working on for the past hour.
- That phone call from someone who doesn’t normally call you
- That weird taste of an exotic food that you just swallowed which makes you think “Welp, that’s definitely food poisoning”
- Running late for a flight
- Surprise midterm (even though I haven’t taken an exam in 6 years)
- Forgetting someone’s name… Twice in one conversation (and then having to introduce that person to someone else)
- Getting a terrible haircut
- Having spinach stuck in your teeth during an interview
- A drawer with no matching socks
- A Trader Joe’s 6pm check out line
- Investing in a stock (at any point in time)
- The lingering smell of your pet’s poop that could be anywhere
- Loneliness…
- Tripping while walking up stairs and breaking your teeth
- Logging into your bank account and seeing $0 for everything
- Student loans and mortgages (debt in general)
- That feeling when you know you’re going to throw up in public
- Impromptu speeches to senior management
- Having someone find out about all your lies
- Having colleagues find out you’re completely incompetent at your job
- Finding a place to live (at all times – even harder for buying)
- Messing up your wedding first dance
- Running out of closet space
- Clowns. All of them.
~See Lemons Scared
