Everett, Wash.
Published: Friday, October 31, 2008

Spiders figure prominently in this day of fear

 Take cover, all you sufferers of cucurbitophobia (fear of pumpkins), wiccaphobia (fear of witches), spectrophobia (fear of ghosts), dromophobia (fear of crossing streets) and the catchall Samhainophobia (fear of Halloween).

It's Oct. 31, your day of dread. For lots of us, fear -- fear of something -- is an everyday thing.

"The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear," wrote H.P. Lovecraft, an early 20th century horror author. To paraphrase Lovecraft, a harbinger of Stephen King, we're all fraidy-cats.

Thursday, the eve of this All Hallows Eve, I set aside all xenophobia -- fear of strangers. I stopped people at Everett Community College to ask about fear. It was a two-part question. First, I wanted to know about serious concerns about their lives. Then came a request for their silliest or most irrational fear.

Top of the heap?

It's not fear of a modern-day Great Depression. Arachnophobia, it turns out, is king.

"Spiders," said 27-year-old Christian Sorenson, of Snohomish, who's taking computer classes at EvCC. "It's the way they move, in any direction at any moment. I can't get close enough to hit them. I end up throwing books at them."

Sorenson's serious fear is public speaking, glossophobia. "I just freeze," he said.

Popular wisdom has speech anxiety at the top of the fright list. Sorenson was the only one to mention it Thursday. Spiders, though, came up again and again.

"Spiders. My brothers tormented me with them. I won't watch anything with spiders; I wouldn't be able to sleep," said Joey Linder, 17, of Lake Stevens, whose long-term concern is environmental disaster. "I'm afraid of the world coming to an end," he said.

"I used to play with spiders," said Nichole Larson, 16, a Running Start student from Snohomish. Now, she's terrified of eight-legged creepy-crawlers. Not being able to find a job is her immediate worry.

"Spiders. When I was a kid, there was one in my bed," said James Johnson, 21, of Arlington. He works two jobs, at the college bookstore and delivering pizza, and also worries about paying for school.

Korey MacKenzie, 22, of Everett, is afraid of snakes and bad drivers. He's had experience with the latter, after two car accidents.

Nineteen-year-old Danielle Dewey of Granite Falls hates driving around sharp corners. Dewey survived a crash that involved a sharp turn. She also has an eerie fear, straight out of horror films. "I avoid scary movies," said Dewey, who has imagined a child drowning. "It's really heartbreaking."

Drowning, like spiders, was mentioned by a surprising number of people, men and women. They all said they could swim.

Clowns scare 17-year-old Brittany Fitzmaurice of Marysville. But the Running Start student also fears plane crashes and drowning.

"I went to Maui in July, but I couldn't swim out more than 200 feet," said Jason Hill, 18, of Marysville. "I swim just fine; it's just in my head." Hill suspects his fear came from an experience of being pulled out by a riptide while surfing at Westport. "And I won't go into rivers," he said. "Later in life, I worry about not being able to get a job," Hill said as an afterthought.

Drowning also terrifies Adriana Gallagher of Everett, although she long ago learned to swim. "I think it was a past life," said Gallagher, 43, whose world concern involves unstable international relations.

"Ghosts," said Kyle Warrington, 21, of Lake Stevens. "We have a house that has ghosts. They move stuff." Wow, that is scary. "And the economy, the future. Education-wise, there's a lot of pressure," he said.

Lolita Thibou, 35, worries for the future of her four sons "if they can't get an education, and a house." For herself, it's dogs on the loose. The Lake Stevens woman said she avoids walking or jogging for fear of being mauled.

Boeing worker R. Ray, 47, is afraid the company might someday pull out of the Puget Sound area, taking with it thousands of jobs. His is a timely fear, as striking Machinists prepare to vote on a new contract. At home in Everett, he's wary of raccoons. "This morning, they were right at my door. Two raccoons," he said.

Is that procyonlotorophobia?

"Growing old," said David DeLashmit, 18, of Marysville. Economic troubles and not being able to stay in college are more pressing fears. And as a kid, he said he had nightmares that still keep him from walking on a storm drain.

Bats and Halloween haunted houses scare Jessica Yarrow, 27. Her gravest fear is shared by all parents. "I worry about something happening to my kids," the Everett resident said.

Johnson, who lived to tell about that spider in his bed, had something even scarier going on Thursday.

"I have a 2,000-word paper due," he said. "I'm not even halfway done."

Scriptophobia, yikes!

I've been there, so here's a suggestion: Screeeaamm! Then start writing.



Columnist Julie Muhlstein: 425-339-3460 or muhlstein@heraldnet.com.
© 2009The Daily Herald Co., Everett, WA