Strange phobias.

[Doppleganger]

When I was at the bus-stop today, I noticed whenever there was a parked bus I'd always stay away from it for some reason. I decided to get close to it but got really un-comfortable and had to walk away. Thinking back, I've always done this and didn't think about why, but I realized I'm afraid of the bus' engine exploding or, more strongly, of the tyres exploding.

This connects to my fear of cars, but it's also totally different since it's un-related to why I'm afraid of cars (getting hit). I'm also afraid of cell-phones exploding, though this is partly because I'm afraid of celluar radiation inducing cancer and because I don't know what would happen if someone turned on a cell-phone after it was micro-waved.

So, does anyone else have odd phobias though one never bothered to think about them?

[Raptor Jesus]

You are one paranoid boy. Have you ever gone onto a bus before? And why would a cellphone ever be put into a microwave? I'm 99% sure the phone would explode inside the microwave oven before it explodes against your ear. Unless the gods are just that hilarious.

I actually have a friend with arachnophobia, which has led to some humorous stories. For example, our friend bought him a Black Widow in a cube, which is basically a cube made from throwing a live Black Widow into some molten plastic and quickly make a cube out of it. He knows the spider is dead and completely trapped in the plastic cube, but he is irrationally afraid of that cube. And attached to the cube was a description of Black Widows, and it stated that Black Widows like to hide behind toilets. Which led to him inspect the toilet for like 20 minutes prior to every time he wanted to use one. He no longer has the cube xd.

I, myself don't really think I have any actual phobias to my own knowledge. I mean, I'm afraid of dogs but that doesn't stop me from walking by one. I'm scared of getting hit by cars, but I still cross the street and walk around outside. I'm scared of being run over by a subway train, but I still use the subway system. I don't like hospitals, but I still go into them. So unless I have a phobia that I have yet to encounter, I don't believe I have any phobias.

Oh yeah, the best phobia is hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia, which is the fear of long words xd.

[Doppleganger]

I've taken the bus regularly for three years now, though I've always disliked the notion of the tyres exploding and try to avoid standing near them. I should submit a question to those MythBuster folk to crack - "If a bus tyre is shot with a gun and someone is near it, can that someone be killed by the explosion"?

As for your friend's arachnophobia, that's pretty extreme. I don't like those crawlies but I'm not as afraid of them as some folk - one time when I was taking a shower, I used a dry towel and just as I was about to leave I noticed a huge black widow lower down from it. The towel had been left outside over-night and it was there while I was rubbing myself; how I didn't get bitten is something I'll never know.

A fellow I knew in Junior High played a nasty trick when I said I was afraid of spiders to my work partners; for a while, the lot threw this big plastic model spider at me and I acted scared, but one time the fellow took some pipe-cleaners and molded them into the shape of a spider, put it on my head and said "hey there's a spider on your head". I ignored it for a while, but when I reached to take it off I yelped in surprise.

I'm afraid of cars only because I've been nearly hit by them three times now, each when someone ran a stop-sign or a stop-light.

[Raptor Jesus]

I sincerely doubt a tire popping could kill you. The average tire holds about 30 cubic inches of air at 20 to 30 psi, which is up to slightly more than double the regular air pressure you sit in. At most it might feel like someone knocked the wind out of you (like with a punch), not knock your head off. The only way I could imagine a tire explosion killing someone was if the bus was moving when the tire exploded and the driver loses control and runs someone over or crashes into structure and the people inside get tossed around.

[Talon87]

Ever since I saw an episode of The X-Files where a bunch of bugs crawl out of a public toilet and kill a man who was taking a shit, I have had an irrational fear of bugs attempting to crawl up my butt when sitting on toilets and (as such) always inspect the base of toilets and under the lid of toilets for cockroaches, ants, flies, etc. before sitting on them and using them.[/*:m:gm5yg8ql]
Similar but different to the one above, I have a fear of flies attempting to fly towards my butthole because they "smell" feces, so if I see a fly in the bathroom, I will not use that bathroom; and if I am already going to the restroom (#2) and I see a fly in the restroom, I'll wipe up asap and relocate to the other bathroom in our house.[/*:m:gm5yg8ql]
Ever since I was a little kid and heard about the movie "My Girl" and how it ends (never saw it, though), I've been deathly afraid of bees and other stinging insects. I've never actually been stung by a honeybee (only two "black jackets", jet-black yellow jackets), so I have no idea if I am allergic or not. I run inside if I see bees. Which is why I hate Indiana summers so much. And why I have one nice thing to say about Indiana winters, rather than absolutely no nice things to say at all.[/*:m:gm5yg8ql]
Others, but nothing's coming to mind right now.[/*:m:gm5yg8ql]

[Muyotwo]

I sincerely doubt a tire popping could kill you. The average tire holds about 30 cubic inches of air at 20 to 30 psi, which is up to slightly more than double the regular air pressure you sit in. At most it might feel like someone knocked the wind out of you (like with a punch), not knock your head off. The only way I could imagine a tire explosion killing someone was if the bus was moving when the tire exploded and the driver loses control and runs someone over or crashes into structure and the people inside get tossed around.
It is possible with a truck tire. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MythBusters_%28season_5%29#Exploding_Tire_of_Death )

[Doppleganger]

Ever since I was a little kid and heard about the movie "My Girl" and how it ends (never saw it, though), I've been deathly afraid of bees and other stinging insects. I've never actually been stung by a honeybee (only two "black jackets", jet-black yellow jackets), so I have no idea if I am allergic or not. I run inside if I see bees. Which is why I hate Indiana summers so much. And why I have one nice thing to say about Indiana winters, rather than absolutely no nice things to say at all.[/*:m:2p0hpri7]

I'm surprised you've been stung by a wasp species, but not bees; wasps are more dangerous since even the killer bee hybrids are relatively docile unless you bug them a lot. I've been stung by a honeybee thrice in my life; the first time was when I was walking inside my house and the bee landed on my little toe. I tried to shake it off but it wouldn't fly away and stung me.

The second time would be something worthy of your fear; I was walking inside a building for summer school and walked through some flowers. I was wearing sandles. A flower got stuck under-neath my toes and I gripped it to try and knock it loose, but then I felt a sharp pain. Turns out it wasn't a flower under my foot, but a frantic bee buzzing under my feet. That sting hurt the most because it was in a very tender spot.

Third sting happened at night, when I was picking up some of my Dad's medical parts; I couldn't see and grabbed a box, and something landed on my arm and stung me. I thought it was a spider, but found out it was a bee in the light.

[Another Fan]

I'm scared of heights. And stuff that can kill me.

And um... close up pictures of bugs.

However, my most irrational fear comes when I spend a lot of time alone at night, which is that every law governing the universe isn't true and that all the stuff that can't actually happen, will happen. Like, sure, my shadow can't kill me, because it doesn't make any sense, but what if that isn't necessary for it to happen?

Yeah.

[deoxys]

Heights and being alone.

Flying back from Florida by myself last summer was pretty much living hell for me.

I wonder if anyone here has Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia.

[Holy Emperor]

You guys are wusses. I've actually had a spider crawl up a toilet seat from the inside towards my crotch and I just killed and went back to doing my buisness. It's not the end of the world.

I have a few fears but they're just the more common stuff I guess. I don't think I have any crazy ones lol.

[SulcataIxlude]

The only real phobia SI has is the fear of sharp things like razor blades falling, and slicing my penis when I am taking a shower (at my house in the states my mom and sister keep their razors near the window in the shower.) I dunno why I am afraid of stuff like that, but usually I just move the sharp things away, and carry out on my own business.

Oh yeah one more phobia is the fear of if there is nothingness after death. Really if there is nothingness after death, then well why bother existing?

[PiccoloNamek]

I have no phobias. In fact, I have no fears of any kind of anything that is external. My only fears are internal.. things like self-doubt and whatnot.

Also, if there is nothingness after death, why are you afraid of it? That doesn't make any sense. Are you afraid of going to sleep?

[Talon87]

If there is nothingness after death. Really if there is nothingness after death, then well why bother existing?
One could ask you, "If there is nothing after death but the Ultimate High, then why not go through life right now living that high?" After all, that is what Christians believe, is it not? That when you die, you become one with God and attain limitless happiness? Because to be one with God is to be infinitely happy? Sounds like a drug high to me.

I suppose you could be swayed by that argument to start up hardcore drug use. I'd rather you didn't. You're supposed to go the other way. :)

[Raptor Jesus]

It is possible with a truck tire. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MythBusters_%28season_5%29#Exploding_Tire_of_Death )
That's not the same. Dopple is talking about standing next to an exploding bus tire. While yes he will be hurt, it is not the same as a truck's tire running down a highway at 60+ miles per hour exploding. Firstly, the a truck tire is at least 50% larger than a bus tire. Secondly, it's spinning very quickly, giving it a lot more force than a still object just popping.

It's the same as saying baseballs are dangerous because if I threw one hard enough, it could kill you. Hell, he might as well be scared of coconuts falling from trees. Or a vending machine because it could fall on him.

[Holy Emperor]

It is possible with a truck tire. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MythBusters_%28season_5%29#Exploding_Tire_of_Death )
That's not the same. Dopple is talking about standing next to an exploding bus tire. While yes he will be hurt, it is not the same as a truck's tire running down a highway at 60+ miles per hour exploding. Firstly, the a truck tire is at least 50% larger than a bus tire. Secondly, it's spinning very quickly, giving it a lot more force than a still object just popping.

It's the same as saying baseballs are dangerous because if I threw one hard enough, it could kill you. Hell, he might as well be scared of coconuts falling from trees. Or a vending machine because it could fall on him.

Suddenly he's afraid of many more things.

[Muyotwo]

Not exactly the same, but still relevant. S'why I qualified it with "truck" tire.

This reminds me of the odd group discussions at school where we would try to find an object that Rob could not find a way to kill someone with.