Okay, I'm home with my books again, so I can finally jump in on RGBP's weekly meme:

1. Do you enjoy a good fright?

Generally, no. Not unless it's well-controlled and not a surprise. Which sort of takes the frightfulness out of it.

2. Scariest movie you've ever seen

A Thief in the Night, the classic "scare the hell out of you" second-rate rapture movie of my generation, giving kids the heebie jeebies about getting "Left Behind" when Kirk Cameron was still in diapers. If you grew up in a certain swath of the evangelical spectrum in the late 70s/early 80s, chances are good that you were traumatized by this film at some point along the way.

By 1995, it was dated enough to be more amusing than troubling. I think it would be a hoot to watch it again today.

3. Bobbing for apples: choose one and discuss:
a) Nothing scary about that! Good wholesome fun.
b) Are you *kidding* me?!? The germs, the germs!

c) None of the above.

Golly, that's a trip down memory lane. I don't think I've bobbed for apples since my 10th (?) birthday party. Haven't done it again 'cuz it turned out to be less fun than I thought it would be -- nailing those suckers is tougher than it looks! As for the germ factor, bobbing can get a little icky, but it doesn't really gross me out too much. Then again, if I'm going to be exposed to other people's bodily fluids, there are means I find more attractive.

(There are also other means of exposure that I prefer to apple-bobbing, but they don't really apply to my life right now...)

4. Real-life phobia

Losing my health insurance.

5. Favorite "ghost story"

"Obstinate Uncle Otis" by Robert Arthur, published in various anthologies, including Alfred Hitchcock's Ghostly Gallery. If I ever wind up teaching introduction to philosophy, especially to teenagers (why that would happen, I don't know), I will use this story to talk about epistemology and the relationship between belief and reality. Which is not to say that you have to be into philosophy to enjoy this clever little tale.

Addendum:
Somehow, seeing Cathy's reference to The Wizard of Oz reminds me that the movie that really traumatized me as a kid was the original Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. The music teacher at my elementary school (yes, I was lucky enough to grow up in a time and place where they had music instruction in the public elementary schools) insisted on showing it every year as our special Christmas "treat," but we never had enough time to watch the whole thing, and every year it cut off at about the point where the girl inflates into a giant blueberry balloon and floats away. I still don't know how the story ends!