There are many people out there who hate mornings. I am not one of them, but I hate waking up, whether it is from a night of full sleep or an afternoon nap. It might just be psychological, it is a physical struggle to make my arms and legs move, not to mention to remember everything I need to pack up, brush up, throw away, or turn off before I leave my apartment. For any hope of mental awareness, I need to shower, hydrate, and then spend at least fifteen minutes reading a paper or spacing out before I am even marginally fit to face the world. One of the godsends for my morning struggle is the calm, sane voice that emanates from my boom box in the form of National Public Radio’s Morning Edition. They give me the news quickly and efficiently, as well as provide human interest stories that may or may not be interesting, but are always comfortingly unobtrusive. If some of these stories appeared later in the day, of course, I might not feel the same way. Case in point is StoryCorps. This is an initiative—backed by and aired on NPR—that follows in the tradition of Studs Terkell and Charles Kuralt in collecting the stories of so-called “Ordinary Americans.” The stories—which usually seem to be some thirty-something reporter interviewing her octogenarian grandfather about what life was like growing up—are aired on national radio and then (we are told) catalogued in the Library of Congress. Even in the morning, the best thing that can be said for many of these “stories” is that they make a nice white noise that can easily be ignored. I certainly hope the Library of Congress has a lot of space, because saving every one of...

Remember when times were simpler?  When the names Rudolph, Scrooge, the Grinch, and even Jesus could put a smile on your face?  As a kid, they were all a part of Christmas and can be found in just about any bookstore this time of year.  But, sadly there are a couple books from my childhood that have gone out of print – never to return.  Let’s take a walk down the holiday literary road and look at some of my favorite Christmas stories from years past. A CHRISTMAS CAROL Definitely, one of my favorites.  I was even in a stage adapted version at the Pleasant Valley Golf Course in the late 90’s.  I’ve seen the animated Disney version with Scrooge McDuck a ton of times.  (Gee, wonder where his name came from?) Charles Dickens, a popular novelist of the Victorian era, penned one of our earliest holiday classics.  Much of Dickens work had a theme of social reform or a lesson to be learned. The story of Ebenezer Scrooge and his greed at the expense of his friends and workers is still very valid in our capitalist society, today.  You could even compare Scrooge to a modern day Bernie Madoff, however Scrooge’s ending is much different than Madoff’s will be. Three ghosts visit Scrooge on Christmas Eve seven years after the death of his business partner to show him the mistakes of his past, present, and future.  Scrooge learns from these lessons and abandons his life of greed in order to become a better person. Dickens began work on A Christmas Carol in October 1843 and finished the book in six weeks.  It was released on December 19th after some delay with Dickens disagreeing with the publisher on how he would receive payment for his...

Could it be the ultimate infusion of two of the greatest foods ever – BBQ and a sundae?  With all the talk of McRib on FaN lately, I was shocked when I saw this advertised on the side of a local BBQ truck and had to give it a try! Joey’s BBQ, located in Hoboken, New Jersey and within eyeshot of New York City has come up with one of the most creative menu items I’ve ever seen.  They are a small, but growing local restaurant that has purchased a food truck and now serves meals on the go. Recently, after getting off the train I passed the truck and saw their portable sign advertising the BBQ Sundae.  I had already eaten dinner and decided I would give this is a try the next day. The sundae consists of shredded chicken, cole slaw, and BBQ baked beans.  It’s also served with a side of BBQ sauce.   Sounded cool to me!  I wondered how this was going to be presented. So, the very next day after getting off the train… no truck.  Figures, right?  So it was one of my favorite websites, delivery.com, came to the rescue.  I had seen their restaurant listed on the site and I simply point and clicked my order.  $7.50 for the sundae and a $3 delivery fee.  I can handle that, and the delivery guy has to fight the Holland Tunnel traffic. Then the sad part, it took 75 minutes to get to me.  I could have driven there and back.  I received a phone call from the distracted driver that he was lost and would be there in five minutes.  Sure enough, he was.  I still tipped the man (he needs to earn a living, too). I opened...

To celebrate Halloween, all week Fierce and Nerdy is proud to present the online premiere of John Dunn’s Last Run, a darkly comic psychological horror film written and directed by Hell House: The Awakening co-author and F&N contributor Ryan Dixon and produced by F&N writers Zachary Halley, Joe Rusin, and Jersey Joe (with Yasmina Jacobs). Today is the conclusion of the 26 minute film about John Dunn, a former high school teacher with a mysterious past who takes a late night run only to discover that he’s on no ordinary running trail. His run turns into a nightmare as specters of his dark past appear before him and threaten to consume his sanity — and his life. Click here for Part 1 Click here for Part 2 Click here for Part 3 Click here for Part 4 And watch the final installment of John Dunn’s Last Run...

To celebrate Halloween, all week Fierce and Nerdy is proud to present the online premiere of John Dunn’s Last Run, a darkly comic psychological horror film written and directed by Hell House: The Awakening co-author and F&N contributor Ryan Dixon and produced by F&N writers Zachary Halley, Joe Rusin, and Jersey Joe (with Yasmina Jacobs). Today is the fourth part of the 26 minute film about John Dunn, a former high school teacher with a mysterious past who takes a late night run only to discover that he’s on no ordinary running trail. His run turns into a nightmare as specters from his dark past appear before him and threaten to consume his sanity — and his life. Click here for Part 1 Click here for Part 2 Click here for Part 3 And watch Part 4...

To celebrate Halloween, all week Fierce and Nerdy is proud to present the online premiere of John Dunn’s Last Run, a darkly comic psychological horror film written and directed by Hell House: The Awakening co-author and F&N contributor Ryan Dixon and produced by F&N writers Zachary Halley, Joe Rusin, and Jersey Joe (with Yasmina Jacobs). Today is the third part of the 26 minute film about John Dunn, a former high school teacher with a mysterious past who takes a late night run only to discover that he’s on no ordinary running trail. His run turns into a nightmare as specters of his dark past appear before him and threaten to consume his sanity — and his life. Click here for Part 1 Click here for Part 2 And watch Part 3...

To celebrate Halloween, all week Fierce and Nerdy is proud to present the online premiere of John Dunn’s Last Run, a darkly comic psychological horror film written and directed by Hell House: The Awakening co-author and F&N contributor Ryan Dixon and produced by F&N writers Zachary Halley, Joe Rusin, and Jersey Joe (with Yasmina Jacobs). Today is the second part of the 26 minute film about John Dunn, a former high school teacher with a mysterious past who takes a late night run only to discover that he’s on no ordinary running trail. His run turns into a nightmare as specters of his dark past appear before him and threaten to consume his sanity — and his life. Click here for Part 1 Watch Part 2...

Just in time for Halloween Week, Fierce and Nerdy is proud to present the online premiere of John Dunn’s Last Run, a darkly comic psychological horror film written and directed by Hell House: The Awakening co-author and F&N contributor Ryan Dixon and produced by F&N writers Zachary Halley, Joe Rusin, and Jersey Joe (with Yasmina Jacobs). In the 26-minute film, which will broken into five parts airing each day this week., John Dunn, a former high school teacher with a mysterious past, takes a late night run, only to find that he’s on no ordinary running trail. His run turns into a nightmare as specters of his dark past appear before him and threaten to consume his sanity — and his life. Watch Part I...

. a favorite blogumn by Jersey Joe   Jersey Joe Says: My second FaN Favorite blogumn is my campaign to bring back Unsolved Mysteries.  I really miss this show.  I loved watching all the compelling reenactments, hoping that I would have the clue to solve the mystery. From June 25, 2010 Missing persons, ghosts, UFO’S, lost lovers, lost heirs, the unexplained, and more! For one hour a week Unsolved Mysteries used to scare the crap out of me, but I couldn’t stop watching. The thought that I might hold some vital clue to solve a case was and still is irresistible! So, join me. Perhaps you may be able to help solve a mystery! “This program is about unsolved mysteries. Whenever possible, the actual family members and police officials have participated in recreating the events. What you are about to see is not a news broadcast.” Each and every episode opened up with a similar disclaimer and to stay true to the show, my blogumn shall to… The original groundwork of what would eventually become Unsolved Mysteries aired on NBC as a series of three specials titled “Missing… Have You Seen This Person?” After good ratings, the format was changed to include more than just stories about missing people. The title was also changed and the first official episode of Unsolved Mysteries premiered on NBC back on January 20, 1987 with Raymond Burr as host. Six more specials were ordered with episodes two and three hosted by Karl Malden and Robert Stack hosting the final four for what turned out to be the show’s first official season. In the fall of 1988, the show was officially picked up as a series by NBC with Robert Stack as the permanent host. Stack’s trench coat videotaped...