Will Punxsutawney predict early spring? (02/02/2009)

Today is Groundhog Day. I don't know about you, but I am tempted to shoot the fat marmot just to prevent him from seeing his shadow! I have had about enough of winter and snow.

This is the kind of winter we tell our children about. The temperature dropped and stayed that way. It snowed then snowed some more. Our world currently is covered with so much white that if the Abominable Snowman himself showed up he would blend right in.

Part of me is glad that the snow and cold is hanging around. It is better for the plants to stay cold and not be teased into poking their heads out too early. There will be fewer bulbs on top of the soil come spring because there won't be as much frost heaving. All the snow cover will help protect the plants from windburn and winter dryness.

The rest of me is considering moving to someplace warm; say Hawaii. Except Hawaii is too expensive. I wonder what the cost of living is in Ecuador?

I like the crisp cold days - for about five minutes. At least the sun comes out this year. In the past it has seemed like the sky was overcast from November until sometime in April.

Frigid and sunny isn't as depressing as dreary and overcast.

I wonder why nobody has offered to shovel the sidewalk for me. Where are the enterprising souls wanting to make a few dollars for a little hard work? My guess is that they are snug in their houses playing video games and eating snack food. It has been years since anyone asked. It is a moot point anyway as I am not willing to part with my hard-earned money for something I can do myself.

It seems like fewer and fewer people shovel their walkways anymore. Someone told me that it was announced on the radio one day that the mail wouldn't be delivered to houses that didn't have a clear path shoveled. It would seem to me to be common courtesy to clear a way for people to get to your door.

I guess not.

I have to admit that all this white stuff is beautiful. All the trash is covered and is merely a bump in the landscape. The trees look festive with dollops of snow on their branches. Even the cars and trucks sport caps of snow.

When it was bitter cold a few weeks ago one of the supervisors at work called us all outside. He tossed a cup of water into the air and the airborne water droplets crystallized into snow. We all oohed and aahed like little kids. None of us had ever thought to do that before.

I bet the groundhog had never thought of doing that either. Wait, groundhogs don't have hands. OK. So they have an excuse. Since Groundhog Day is smack in the middle of winter it is likely that the beast will predict another six weeks of rotten weather.

The official weather predictor, Punxsutawney Phil, lives in a nice, warm library and therefore he couldn't care less what the weather outside is like. Depending upon which statistics you believe, Phil has been correct in his prediction 100% of the time or less than 40% of the time.

Phil, himself, doesn't care. He just knows that he is hauled outside one cold day a year and given a lot of attention. His first official trek to Gobbler's Knob (where he does his stuff) was in 1887.

Other Phil trivia: he weighs approximately 20 pounds (heavy for a groundhog), and is 22 inches long. He is a vegetarian. The normal groundhog's life span is six to eight years. Phil, of course, has been around since the 1800's due to a so-called "magical punch" that he is offered once a year during the town's annual groundhog picnic.

Even though I expect Phil to predict another six more weeks of winter I am hoping that it will be the mild half of the season. Maybe we should offer Phil some more of that "magical punch" and see if that persuades him to predict a warming trend.[[In-content Ad]]