Mascots + Bugs/Critters = Bad News

I have two HUGE fears and their both completely ridiculous but also completely legitimate. Here it goes:

1. MASCOTS. It's actually really funny that this is our question for the week because Debra and I were just talking about this yesterday. I hate hate hate hate hate hate anything with a costume. Clowns, mascots, Santa, you name it, I won't go near it. This has been going on for as long as I can remember. My mom tried really hard for me to sit on Santa's lap for the first 5 years of my life and I kicked and screamed and wasted her money each and every time so she gave up. Sport's mascots? Forgetaboutit. My dad took me to a Met's game (we had free tickets... we're actually Yankee's fans) and he had a free pass to get a picture with Mr. Met. Well, I was like 14 at the time and I literally shook sitting next to him. I still have the picture and my Dad is sitting close to him like a normal person would and I'm almost out of the frame I'm so far away from him. I have no plan to get rid of this fear. I think they're creepy and I don't want strange people dressed up in even stranger costumes coming anywhere near me.

2. BUGS. Ugh how I hate bugs. We have these weird crickets in our basement (their like infesting the east coast of Jersey... they're literally everywhere and they are not normal crickets they're these crazy "secret cave" crickets that can jump over your head) and I shake every time I go down there. I've learned that loud noises scare them away so lately I've been going down there with pots and pans to scare them off. But it's not just those crickets that scare me; basically anything that is bigger than an ant that looks weird and can crawl/jump on you freaks me out. I don't think I'm going to make a plan to get rid of this fear either. I do I pretty good job in avoiding them and I think I'm just going to stick with that :)