By Andy Tarnoff Publisher Published Jan 03, 2011 at 2:32 PM

Historically, January has been my least favorite month of the year. With the holidays over and lots of gray days still on the horizon, it's easy to focus on the "sad" in Seasonal Affective Disorder.

But hey, that's not a great attitude to start off the new year, now is it?

So rather than wallow, I thought of six things I'm looking forward to this month, in no particular order:

Packers post-season: This was hardly a gimme. Granted, the Packers are so very depleted by injuries right now, fans should be happy that Green Bay even made it to the playoffs. But anything can happen on any given Sunday, and there's no reason to think the Packers won't be taking the field at least a week after this Sunday.

Stretching out the sundowns: Yes, it still gets dark pretty early in January, but the days are actually getting longer. Tonight's sunset is at 4:29 p.m. But tomorrow's is at 4:30 p.m. By Sunday, daylight extends to 4:35 p.m. Hey, by the end of the month it might not even be pitch black by the time you leave the office!

Giddy for Greinke: It's true that it's at least another month until pitchers and catchers decent upon Phoenix, but the recent "super trade" for Zack Greinke means Brewers fans are talking baseball in January. Can anyone remember the last time that happened? Me, neither. Just thinking about a hot summer night at Miller Park, watching the first-place Brewers cruising to a win, is starting to warm me up right now.

That snow lie: By now, I'm usually sick of snow, bummed with my snowblower. But I haven't used it once this season. I know we're past due for a blizzard or two, but the first few are certainly more novel than the fifth or sixth. Plus, I promised my daughter we'd go sledding for the first time. Bring it on.

Verizon iPhone: Could this finally be the month? No, I don't think so, either, but it sure is fun to imagine it.

Happy New Year: I like it when people are arbitrarily nice to each other. Wishing someone a "Merry Christmas" is good, but it's a pretty decent bet that with all those presents and food and family, it was merry without you having to suggest it. Wishing someone a "Happy New Year" is like telling someone that you hope their January will be nice. No holidays, no celebrations, just good luck on stuff, my friend. I've always appreciated that this is one of those salutations that seems unusually genuine and long lasting -- people say it for weeks, and say it like they mean it.

Andy is the president, publisher and founder of OnMilwaukee. He returned to Milwaukee in 1996 after living on the East Coast for nine years, where he wrote for The Dallas Morning News Washington Bureau and worked in the White House Office of Communications. He was also Associate Editor of The GW Hatchet, his college newspaper at The George Washington University.

Before launching OnMilwaukee.com in 1998 at age 23, he worked in public relations for two Milwaukee firms, most of the time daydreaming about starting his own publication.

Hobbies include running when he finds the time, fixing the rust on his '75 MGB, mowing the lawn at his cottage in the Northwoods, and making an annual pilgrimage to Phoenix for Brewers Spring Training.