
Remember TP’ing your neighbor’s house or squirting catsup all over your Halloween costume to freak out your parents? These pranks are almost as lame, but if you execute them with finesse, they should scare the bejeezus out of your friends. Just watch out -- you never know if someone is planning to prank you!
The Foggy Mirror
Use your finger to write a scary message on the mirror, like, “I’m watching you!” or, “Don’t be so sure you’re alone!” Then breathe on the mirror to view your message. Next time someone takes a shower, the steam will cause the mirror to fog up, revealing your scary message!
Blocked Calls
Dial *67 before dialing your friend’s phone number … repeatedly. Each time he answers the phone, hang up. If he doesn’t answer, leave a creepy message with heavy breathing.
Superstitious Mischief
Have a friend who believes in superstition? Pretend to read her horoscope to her: “Beware today of the number 13. Be wary, too, of an unexpected delivery.” Then go to your nearest Chinese takeout and pay cash to have 13 egg rolls delivered to her. Psych!
Rise from the Grave
At night, when you know your friends will be walking by, lie flat on your lawn in dark clothing. As your friends near you, slowly rise from the dead!
Facebook Fear
Make up a ghoulish character, and create a fake Facebook account complete with doctored photographs. Send a “friend” request to your friend who’s most addicted to social networking. Send at least one eerie message, and then do the “Blocked Calls” prank (see No. 2 prank) as the Facebook Creep.
Loose Looney
One or two nights before Halloween, walk around campus in a hospital gown and chant, “They think I’m crazy, but I’m really not!”
Bloody Bathroom
Squirt fake blood all over the bathroom mirrors and on the shower floors to frighten your roommates next time they walk in. (Know that this one involves some serious cleanup afterward.)
Creepy Crawlers
Place icky-feeling objects (fake spiders, squishy eyeballs, vampire teeth) under the blankets at the end of your roommate’s bed to give him the heebie-jeebies when he crawls under the covers for the night.
Swaying Spirits
Get a few plain white curtain sheets and use thumbtacks to hang them from the ceiling of your common area. Place a fan on low in a corner to make the “ghosts” float and sway around. Leave doors open so your friends pass the spirits on their way to their rooms.
Noises in the Night
Place your iPod and dock hidden under your friend’s bed and set a wake-up alarm for it to play spooky music and noises in the middle of the night.
Name: Ocean Gildee
School: University of North Carolina Wilmington
Year: Senior
Major: Business Administration, concentrating in Marketing
Ocean recently interned for Coastal Urge, an active lifestyle store, writing product descriptions for the company's website. Ocean is also a Crossroads Peer Educator at UNCW for alcohol and substance abuse, as well as President of the UNCW Club Gymnastics team. Ocean coaches part-time at Port City Gymnastics and Dance.
Forget the printer
A well-kept secret of college: You don’t really need a printer. Submit your work electronically or print it in the computer labs found in nearly every building to save space and money.