Brace youself

New Years signify's the end of the holiday rush. Now there will be a long gap before we hit a real holiday of any circumstance (Remember, you don't get Valentine's Day or St. Patrick's Day off). This also spells the big dry desert of sports that hits at the beginning of the year. This is what you sports fans will be hit with.

1. College football is done, finished and not coming back till fall. The NFL will have fewer and fewer teams playing as they get knocked off in the playoffs.

2. The NBA is in that weird middle of the season form where the games don't seem to matter thaaaaat much.

3. Baseball is still a ways away from spring training. Since the regular season of college basketball is basically pointless because 68 teams make the postseason, so have fun with that until March.

Now just what are you supposed to do? Here are some things you can do to get past the sports withdrawals.

1. Work on your putting - Get that short game down, because we all know you're a terrible golfer. Since the weather means you're probably not playing 18 every day, you should at least try to get better on some aspects of your game.

2. Read about Ted Williams - He is perhaps the greatest hitter in baseball of all time. So instead of watching NBA players try to pretend to be Jordan, learn why Ted Williams was an absolute bad ass. And then you have my permission to watch the Red Sox in the spring.

3. Pretend you're watching College Football - With the magic of the Xbox, don't pine for the days of RG3. Live them all over again with high def graphics and some questionable play-calling by yourself. What else are you gonna do with the Xbox? Play Halo?

4. Take up Skateboarding - Granted, if you're above the age of 12, you'll look like a complete moron.

5. Go backpacking - Seriously get out of the house. Skipp Bayless is slowly eating away at your brain. Find a trail. Blaze it. Maybe even go camping for a few days.