What are you afraid of? Spiders? The dark? Thunderstorms? Personally, I’ve always been afraid of heights—experts call that acrophobia. This week I had a chance to face my fears with a visit to The Space Needle in Seattle. It was a reminder that overcoming my fear is a lifelong pursuit.

Welcome to week 32 of The Sunday Spark, a series with weekly thoughts and highlights, nuggets of learning, and a sustainable living tip for the week. In addition to acrophobia, this week I look at surprising things made of oil, the best time of day to fly, food transportation emissions, and a way to conserve water that you might not have considered.  

The Sunday Spark – Week 32

On my mind this week: Overcoming my fear

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been terrified of heights. It’s not all heights that make me go weak at the knees, though. I’m fine in tall buildings and airplanes. On the other hand, I go to great lengths to avoid open spaces where I feel I could fall. Roller coasters, ferris wheels, ski lifts, and balconies higher than about 8 floors are all no-gos for me.

A couple of years after we were married, my husband and I made a trip to British Columbia and Alberta. While we were in Banff, we wanted to take the Banff Gondola to the summit of Sulfur Mountain. I remember standing at the base of the mountain and looking up. No matter how much I wanted to see the view at the top of the mountain, there was no way I was getting on that thing! So, I sent my husband up on his own while I explored the shops in the village.

A few years later, our first daughter was born. I didn’t want to pass my fear along to my children, so I worked really hard to conquer my fear of heights. About 10 years after that original trip, I returned to Banff while on a work trip to Calgary. I did brave that gondola and lived to tell the tale. I’ve also survived Space Mountain at Walt Disney World, the London Eye, the Peak 2 Peak gondola in Whistler and, more recently, the Elk Falls Suspension Bridge in Campbell River.

Despite my progress, I’m a long way from fully overcoming my fear of heights. During the same trip when I loved the Peak 2 Peak gondola, I drew the line at the Capilano Suspension Bridge, and the chair lift to the summit of the mountain in Whistler.

The Space Needle

During my trip to Seattle this week, I didn’t have a lot of opportunity to do touristy things because I was there to attend a conference. I did have some free time on my last afternoon, so I decided to go to The Space Needle to take in some views of the city.

When I boarded the elevator to the observation deck of the 605-foot structure, I took my place against the back wall. Even so, my stomach did a bit of a leap during the 41-second ride. Once at the top, the breathtaking views of the city, Puget Sound, and the mountains in the distance made the trip worthwhile.

But there’s a limit to my ability to face my fears. The Space Needle’s observation deck features glass benches. While others were standing on the benches, and leaning right back against the glass walls, I stuck to perching nervously on the edge for a photo-op. The Space Needle also features a rotating glass floor. Like me, the friend who was with me is afraid of heights. Unlike me, she conquered her fear long enough to stand on the glass floor while I took her picture. I wasn’t so brave!

Fear is illogical

The thing about fear is it’s illogical. Why was I okay with taking in the view from my room on the 22^nd floor of the hotel, and looking down on the mountains while flying 40,000 feet in the air on the way to Seattle? Yet, looking straight down through the glass floor less than 600 feet above the ground at the Space Needle made my knees buckle and my stomach do cartwheels.

I suppose we’ll never know why the same thing strikes fear in some people and excitement in others, or why our brains can rationalize some things while letting seemingly less scary things paralyze us. As for me, I’ll continue to take cautious baby steps toward overcoming my fear of heights…as long as they don’t involve a glass floor.

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Three highlights of the week

It’s important to celebrate big milestones and simple pleasures in life. Keeping the trend going, here are three highlights and simple pleasures of the week gone by:

• This week I attended the ISCEBS Employee Benefits Symposium in Seattle. As the 2023 President of this professional association, one of the highlights for me was delivering the President’s Report on Tuesday morning. I incorporated a little fun into my presentation with a Back to the Future time travel theme. It was a hit with attendees.
• In a year plagued with travel delays, my flight home from Seattle arrived back in Toronto 30 minutes early on Thursday morning.
• Our new patio and deck are done! I’m looking forward to spending some time relaxing out there in the remaining weeks of the summer.

Three things I learned this week

I spent three days at a conference, so I learned lots this week. Most of that content wouldn’t be of interest to this audience so I chose three non-work-related items to share this week. 

Surprising things made from oil

We use oil and gas to fuel our cars ad heat our homes, but oil is also hidden in many of the things we use every day. Here are a few items made from oil and gas that might surprise you: antihistamines, candies and gum, crayons, detergent, food preservatives, guitar strings, hand lotion, house paint, ink, insect repellant, lipstick, rubbing alcohol, shampoo, and unbreakable dishes. (Source: U.S. Department of Energy)

Flying during the day has less environmental impact

Air travel has a huge environmental impact, but did you know that flying during the day has a smaller impact than flying at night? During the day, contrails from planes trap heat from the Earth’s surface and reflect solar radiation. At night, however, those contrails simply trap heat. (Source: 8BillionTrees.com)

Food transportation emissions

It’s the time of year where local produce is plentiful, and farmers’ markets are overflowing with visitors. The type of food we eat can have a significant impact on our personal environmental footprint. Beyond that, where our food comes from also makes a difference. Transportation accounts for around 20% of total food system emissions. (Source: York University) Yet another reason to buy local!

Sustainable living tip: Conserve water by buying less clothing

Last week, I suggested taking shorter showers to conserve water. At a time when many areas areas are experiencing severe drought conditions, I’m continuing the water conservation theme this week.

Textile production is one of the biggest water hogs around. Did you know that it takes 1,500 gallons (5,600 litres) of water to manufacture just one t-shirt and one pair of jeans? (Source: Marion County Oregon) That’s the amount of water the average person drinks in 13 years!

One of the best ways to conserve water is buying fewer clothes and washing them less often. For more water conservation tips, check out this post.  

I’d love to hear your thoughts on any of this week’s topics. Drop me a comment below and let me know your thoughts and ideas.