11 wicked ways to celebrate the spirit of Halloween this year

No indoor costume parties for Halloween this year? No problem. It's time to get to what Halloween's really about: the lifting of the veil between this world and the next. Explore dark things, protect yourself from evil, and call on positive creative energy (nature's! your own!) with these ideas and activities for you and your friends. 

Plan a Halloween night full blue moon viewing party

Yes, there'll be a very rare full blue moon on Halloween night this year — an auspicious alignment for your outdoor evening plans like dates and viewing parties with your bubbles, I'd say. Also, perfect mood lighting.

Why's it so rare? According to the Farmer's Almanac, a full moon hasn't happened on Halloween night "for everyone in all time zones since 1944". Add to that the fact that a blue moon (the second full moon in the same month) only ever happens every two and a half to three years! 

Bundle up, build fires, bring blue cheese and a bottle of blood red wine, get to your local waterfronts or backyards, put hand warmers in your pockets. Just mind you plan safely so you don't run into you-know-what! (COVID, not werewolves). 

Watch the movie Alien with your cat

Do you ever feel like it's just you and your kitty against the odds? That's literally what this movie is about. The 1979 sci-fi film introduced the first American female movie action hero: ultimate cat lady Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver). In Alien, Ripley warns her crewmates: "Listen to me. If we break quarantine, we could all die." But do they listen? A lethal alien is unleashed onto the spacecraft and the only one she can really trust is the ship's orange cat, Jones — aka Jonesy. 

Watch movies for 'scaredy cats' that won't spike your stress levels

We asked entertainment and culture writer Ishani Nath for her list of Halloween movies that are spooky and seasonal... but not so scary or anxiety-inducing that they'll ruin your night. Check out her list of "10 Halloween movies for scaredy cats" for recent films with low-to-no popups or gore. 

Make all your online dating pics Halloween-themed and find your eternal soulmate

Looking for the Louis to your Lestat? The Morticia to your Gomez? If you're a Halloween-lover seeking same, why not try making your entire profile Halloween-themed? Imagine your life (afterlife?) together — the horror movie marathons, the skull-shaped ice cubes. Go big on this one, changing every pic, bio and caption on every platform. Let the right one in.

Ghost every romantic interest that isn't giving you what you need 

Halloween has roots in the Celtic harvest festival of Samhain, which signalled the end of the fall harvest season and the beginning of winter. Do you really wanna drag that dead-end dating drama into the cold, dark months ahead? Instead, consider making the decision to ward off all negative vibes and energy-sucking situations. Block, delete, burn old photos — do what must be done to put the past in a peaceful grave. 

For a less healthy alternative: "Haunt" your exes by sending them the ghost emoji without any explanation. Let's call it the Halloween equivalent of "Marleying".

Paint or draw a spooky still life

A type of still life painting called a vanitas became popular in the 17th century for its symbolic depiction of the fleeting nature of life and the inevitability of death. Not the cheeriest of headspaces, but since we're generally more comfortable with a macabre mood on Halloween, capturing some symbols of death, decadence and decay sounds like a pretty fun thing to do. Here's how to arrange, then paint or draw a still life.

Share the Zoom link for: The inaugural meeting of your Anne Rice Book Club

The only question here is where to begin in the Anne Rice canon. With her most famous 1976 gothic horror novel, Interview With The Vampire, which spawned The Vampire Chronicles and centres around (after)life partners Louis and Lestat? Or the 1990 book, The Witching Hour, part of the The Lives of the Mayfair Witches series? With the average read time being eight hours for the former and 29 hours for the latter, it'll all depend on who's committed enough to put everything in mere mortal life on hold for the week. 

Share the Zoom link for: A live pumpkin carving competition

The premise is simple: everyone shows up with their prepped pumpkins (gutted if you intend to carve), tools, plus drinks and snacks. You chat, carve, paint, glue, encourage and/or trash talk during the allotted time. (Keeners, you can share the varying origin stories of the Jack-O'-Lantern tradition.) When the time's up, you all vote for the greatest gourd. Since Halloween is on a Saturday this year, you might want to have your pumpkin carving video party on Friday night, then enjoy your creations all through the weekend. 

Share the Zoom link for: A very scary story time

Schedule this one for after dark. Turn off all the lights save for a few candles and the light of your respective monitors. Then, one by one, allow each person to tell the story of the spookiest/scariest/most inexplicable thing that ever happened to them. Or, people can perform dramatic readings of scary ghost stories. The object: to terrify and delight. To write your own story, or nail the delivery of a retelling, check out this advice from acclaimed Canadian horror writer David Demchuk in The beginner's guide to the greatest pastimes: Spooky stories. 

Make a potion to bathe in 

Healing is one of the hallmarks of witchcraft and magic. So take the biggest potion-making vessel you might have — your bathtub — and stir up a liquid spell to soothe or stimulate your senses. Here's a simple dollar store bathtime DIY to get you started, but feel free to tap into your inner apothecary to customize as you please. 

Explore your "shadow self"

Got any repressed desires or emotions? Of course you do. This Halloween why not read up on the works of psychiatrist Carl Jung and his concept of "the shadow self" which, according to him, is basically the entirety of your subconscious — the unknown side of you. "Shadow work" is about finding these emotions, hidden impulses and things that might be holding you back and facing them in a constructive and healing way. How better to explore the dark side this year than to begin with your own. If you dare. 

Jamey Ordolis is the senior producer of CBC Life and a regular contributor to CBC Radio.