Cheap Dates is a new series dedicated to scrounging the most amount of fun out of the Midcoast on the fewest dollars.

This Cheap Date goes all the way back to high school, where instead of gravestone rubbings, it was more gravestone whining, where we'd all sit around in the dark, complain there was nothing to do, make a few references to the zombies in Michael Jackson Thriller video, freak ourselves out and beat it.

But we're adults now. And everybody always has craft supplies stashed somewhere. Even without kids at home, I found a pile of crayons and some drawing paper and you know you have it in your house, too.

The idea is to take your boo (slang for beau and another forced Halloween reference) to the graveyard on a beautiful October day and wander throughout the property to find the creepiest gravestone, or your own name, or a series of letters, which you can then recombine into new sentences. (For example, look at this guy's tombstone dating all the way back to the Boston Tea Party!)

Take the paper off the crayon and place the drawing paper up to the stone, rubbing the crayon on its side until the letter is superimposed onto the paper. That's it. That's all you gotta do.

Gravestone rubbings make great Halloween decorations when you're done. And because I think that Boston Tea Party guy will probably rise from the dead if don't mention this, it goes without saying, be respectful of the tombstones.

This October 31, because all of the good parties will have already happened while I was away, I'll still be sitting around a graveyard complaining there's still nothing to do. Except I won't be staying up to midnight. I'm freakin' old. I'll be going to bed at nine.

Kay Stephens can be reached at kaystephens@penbaypilot.com