DAILY DIRT: Roller coasters, horror movies and clowns lead list of most fearful things

You know what should be on the ensuing list? The price of a gallon of gas. Now THAT is fearful … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 435 of The Daily Dirt.

1. What scares you the most in everyday life?

We’re not counting death, predators or or similar subjects. Just things that are likely a part of your natural existence. Well, according to webmd.com, these are the top 10 things that worry people the most:

• 1. Roller coasters. (Not sure if this would be No. 1 on my list, but it’s right up there. My last coaster ride was in the 1980s, I think.)
• 2. Horror movies. (“These scary things don’t just appear — we seek them out and pay money for them,” reports Dr. Sabrina Felson. “Why in the name of Linda Blair do we do that? An older theory goes that some people aren’t afraid of horror as much as they’re excited by it. But a newer idea is that we can feel both positive and negative emotions at the same time: Some of us seriously enjoy being scared.” 
• 3. Clowns. (I always thought the worst thing about being a clown would be having to put on all those layers of makeup. And then there’s the oversized shoe thing.)
• 4. Heights. (I’m all for anything at ground level. And for the record, my home is one story.)
• 5. Flying. (I flew for the first time in June 1969. And there are no immediate plans for flight No. 2)
• 6. Spiders. (Especially those big furry ones.)
• 7. Snakes. (All of them. Every last one of them.)
• 8. Dentists. (There’s even a word for it: odontophobia.)
• 9. Needles. (Needles aren’t so bad, unless the doctor wants to stick one of them in you, right?)
• 10. Sudden loud noises. (Or not-so-sudden loud noises.)

2. A reader emailed me, asking for my favorite Reba McIntire songs.

Ask, and ye shall receive:

Gold medal: “I’d Rather Ride Around With You” (1996). It’s upbeat, it’s catchy, it’s Reba. And the video was great.

Silver medal: “Whoever’s in New England” (1986). Reba’s best tear-jerker.

Bronze medal: “Does He Love You” (1993). Her second-best tear-jerker.

3. Here are a few quotes — remember we’ve had a Halloween/monster theme going this week — that have the possibility of keeping your eyes open a little longer than usual tonight.

• “Monsters are real, and ghosts are real, too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win.” ‒ Stephen King.
• “To die, to be really dead, that must be glorious.” — Bram Stoker, “Dracula.”
• “There is something at work in my soul, which I do not understand.”
  ― Mary Shelley, “Frankenstein.”
• “Never moon a werewolf.” — Mike Binder. (A little monster humor, if you will. I didn’t want this getting too dark.)

Steve Thought O’ The Day — I think if there had been another Eighinger daughter her name would have been Reba.

Steve Eighinger writes daily for Muddy River News. He’s not very scary.