Jackson Cooper
    Staff Writer

As fall approaches, the biting, cold air only enhances the bitterness of people. People cover their ears with Beats by Dre to keep warm and comforted by their music. But your music library gets old after a while.

What’s there to listen to? Your own thoughts. No, don’t ever assume that that is even an option. That is why, this week, I am blessing you with the top podcasts to listen to on your way to class. These are informative, entertaining and never boring short snippets of information that help start your day off better than your worrisome anxious thoughts ever could. Oh, and all are available for Free Download on iTunes.

5. “Serial”

The radio drama “Serial” made huge waves on the air (bad pun) about a year ago because of the incredulous nature of how truthful the podcast seemed to be. The plot involves a detective who follows the unopened case of a man wrongfully accused of murder some years back. Does it sound too good to be real? It’s real, all right. The podcast, which had people, including my own mother, glued to their headsets plays out like a good episode of “How To Get Away With Murder” minus Viola Davis. It is a true piece of art that occurs in real time before your ears.

4. “WTF with Marc Maron”

If you’ve ever been angry at life, Marc Maron has probably emerged from your voice. His signature stand up is of the angry old guy who is just PO’d at the way the world works and what is has become. This makes his podcast, where he and celebrity guests hilariously explore the age old question, “WTF?!” hilarious to listen to.

3. “Welcome to Night Vale”

It’s “The X Files” if Garrison Keller wrote it. If you were like me and grew up in a small town or suburb that you always thought could take place in a horror movie, “Welcome to Night Vale” is the most relevant podcast you’ll ever listen to. It’s also blisteringly funny while simultaneously genuinely creepy to listen to. Just listen to it when you’re driving home at night, and you’ll know what I mean.

2. “This American Life”

If you listen to “This American Life,” chances are you won’t be able to tell a story the same way again. Well, you will, except better. The stories in “This American Life” are all true, tied together by some kind of theme or “through-line” that unites all of the stories together in some way.

North Carolina native David Sedaris got his start on “This American Life” by reading the same short stories that he would eventually become famous for, including “The Santaland Diaries” about his unfortunate job as a Macy’s Christmas Elf. Every week, I look forward to “This American Life” because it’s a bit of an escape from the craziness of life and concisely puts the world into perspective.

1. “Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me”

You’re probably too busy to keep up with the news. Well, keeping up with the news outside of whatever is on your Facebook feed, right? No worries! “Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me,” a podcast of National Public Radio (NPR), is the best way to get your news: by laughing at it.

Now that Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert have stepped down from their thrones of media comedy royalty, “Wait Wait,” which had gone a bit under the radar thanks to those two giants of comedy, is your best bet for laughing at the news. And it’s all true. Through fun games, like “Lightning Fill In The Blank” and “Bluff the Listener,” you’ll digest the news in a fun way! Special guests always include a celebrity — last week it was Carol Burnett — so it’s worth a listen to perk up your day.