Why Are Things That Crawl "Creepier" Than Things That Fly ?

Picture yourself sitting comfortably in a chair outside on a porch.  You've got a good book and a cool beverage.  Life is good.  And then something happens ... Out of the corner of your eye you see an ant crawling toward and into your shoe.  What do you do?

Now imagine you're laying in bed, almost asleep.  The moonlight is shining through the window providing a peaceful glow in your room.  And then you see it ... The thin line of cobweb is unmistakeable and the shadowy figure of a spider comes into focus just inches from your face.  How do you react?

One more example, you're moving things around in your yard, just getting some weeds cleared and trimming trees and bushes.  You're feeling good because your yard is looking better when all of a sudden you hear a rustling in the debris.
In a flash something alive appears and scurries across the yard along the fence line.  It is a field mouse and he is hauling home as fast as he can.  What are you thinking now?

If you're like me, in each of these scenarios you have a very strong and quick reaction.  Yuck!  Gross!  Get it away from me!  Aw man!  You might throw something at the unwanted guest(s).  You might strike to kill them.  You almost certainly don't just ignore their presence or wave it off with no fear or angst.

But change the creature in each scenario and your reaction is probably much less instant and angry.  What if it was a mosquito flying near your shoe?  What if it was a housefly aimlessly airborne near you as you lay in bed?  What if a small bird flew out of the pile of debris instead?  Is your reaction the same?
Mine certainly wouldn't be.

For some reason things that fly do not make me as nervous as things that crawl.  And I have no idea why!  It is illogical.  Things that can fly could "get me" from anywhere, while things that crawl would have to work very hard to "get me."  This reasoning would suggest that flying things would be scarier, but they just aren't.  They might be annoying pests, but they don't make me jump in fear.

Am I the only one?!

Song Of The Day:
It's been too long since I featured an OMD song, so today's selection is
"The Place You Fear The Most" which has an eerie ghost sound as part of it's main hook.  I definitely fear mice, spiders, and even a group of ants (if they are in my house or on my body) more than flying things.

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But, But, But ... Wait, What ?!

My niece and her boyfriend Michael

My niece graduated from high school today, which made me feel super old!  Congrats Brittany for being in the Top 5% of your class!

The main reason I felt so old is this ... during the graduation ceremony, I was trying to keep my youngest daughter Myra (almost 3) quiet and sitting still.  Brittany was younger than this when I first met her!  And it feels like just yesterday that I was tickling and teasing my cute little niece, listening to her funny mispronunciations of words and watching her act absolutely crazy, just to make us 'big people' laugh.

Now I've got a daughter who is doing those same things!  (This doesn't even account for the other three older daughters I have who have already gone through that stage).








So here's a cute little experience I had on the drive home from the graduation with my 'little Brittany' a.k.a. Myra:
Myra grumbles disapproval of something from the back seat ... "Ahh!  UHHH!"
     I ask "What's wrong?"
Myra says "Dere an ant in heeya."
     I explain "No there's not.  You'll be fine.  Stay strapped in please."  Thinking 'there's no way ONE ant is in my car!  Silly little girl.'
A little time passes, when I hear Myra complain "Dere it is again.  I don't yike dat ant daddy.  Why you have dat ant in heeya."
     I make up a little story and say that he is my pet ant and he's really nice, all the while thinking 'There's no ant you silly girl!  What an imagination!"
     Ten minutes later I hear Myra begin to shriek.  I look back in time to see her legs and feet shoot way up in the air and a look of terror shoot across her face.
     I pull the car over and turn around to help her ... and sure enough there is a HUGE ant crawling very quickly across the seat toward her.
     So I told her to calm down and then I squished the ant with my thumb.  She still won't put her feet down until I have wiped his ant carcass completely off the seat.  She seems satisfied and calm, so I turn around and begin driving again.
"Daddy.  Why you 'quish dat ant?  Dat was my favit ant and now he gone.  You 'quish him an' now I gon' haftoo fin' anudda ant.  You made me sad daddy.  I yoved dat ant an' now he dead 'cause you 'quish him.  Dat was NOT nice daddy!  Him was a good ant.  A nice ant."

Aaargh!  You make no sense ... but I sure love you!  :)

Song Of The Day:
I know I just barely used a Dave Matthews Band song, but
"Ants Marching" is just too perfect for this blog post
since it was Myra's 'favit ant dat got 'quished.'  :)

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