the_rev Posted February 2, 2005 Share Posted February 2, 2005 Phil saw his shadow today, six more weeks of winter! That is all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rachael Posted February 2, 2005 Share Posted February 2, 2005 :ph34r: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franciscanheart Posted February 2, 2005 Share Posted February 2, 2005 Silly Groundhog!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dudette Posted February 2, 2005 Share Posted February 2, 2005 haha, it's my sister's b-day today... Groundhog..hmm....*goes off thinking* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmotherofpirl Posted February 2, 2005 Share Posted February 2, 2005 Considering all the bright lights he is put under does he have a choice? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BullnaChinaShop Posted February 2, 2005 Share Posted February 2, 2005 [quote name='cmotherofpirl' date='Feb 2 2005, 08:43 AM'] Considering all the bright lights he is put under does he have a choice? [/quote] If they had enough lights there wouldn't be any shadows to see. By the way, how do they know if he saw his shadow? Do they ask the poor little fella? Just because a shadow is there doesn't mean he saw it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmotherofpirl Posted February 2, 2005 Share Posted February 2, 2005 (edited) The master of ceremonies asks Phil who whispers in his ear. They always make sure he sees his shadow. Groundhog Day History Groundhog Day, celebrated across the United States and Canada, on February 2, is purely a North American tradition. It is based on a belief that on this day (February 2) the groundhog, or woodchuck, comes out of hole after winter hibernation to look for its shadow. If the shadow is seen, it's a sunny day. And the groundhog foretells 'six more weeks of bad weather' and thus a lingering winter. But spring is coming if no shadow is seen because of clouds. The groundhog then behaves accordingly. It goes back into the hole if the weather turns bad, but stays above ground if spring is near. Thus weather prediction or prognostication came as an integral feature of Groundhog Day tradition. This prediction owes its origin to the European tradition of Candlemas. There is an old European supposition that a sunny Candlemas day would lead the winter to last for 'another six weeks'. Also celebrated on February 2, the was used to commemorate the Purification of the Virgin Mary. Candles for sacred uses were blessed on this day. Gradually the traditions at this Candlemas came to associate with them different folklores. The German added the belief of an animal, initially a hedgehog, being frightened by his shadow on Candlemas would foretell that winter would last another six weeks. This belief was brought in America during the 18th Century by the German settlers. These settlers adopted the groundhog as their weather predictor. The Groundhog Day came into being in North America during the late 1800s. Thanks to the combined effort of Clymer H. Freas, a newspaper editor, and W. Smith, an American Congressman and newspaper publisher. They organized and popularized a yearly festival in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, the State was populated predominantly by German settlers. The festival featured a groundhog named Punxsutawney Phil which used to foretell how long the winter would last. This very popular event is still being held and is called Groundhog Day. There has been a concerted effort in popularizing and commercializing the Groundhog Day across the United States. Chuck Wood is The Committee for the commercialization of Groundhog Day's official mascot. The movie "Groundhog Day," has played a key role in popularizing the schedule of Events in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, on and around February 2. Apart from Pennsylvania, fascinating Groundhog Day events are also held in other states, especially, Nebraska, Tennessee, Georgia, Ohio, Arkansas, and California. The Groundhog Day is also very popular in Canada and Wiarton Willy is the Groundhog that is used to predict the length of winter over there. Edited February 2, 2005 by cmotherofpirl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franciscanheart Posted February 2, 2005 Share Posted February 2, 2005 wow! never knew that! learn something new every day ( just isnt always interesting *mumbles to self about english teachers at her school* grrr) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
argent_paladin Posted February 2, 2005 Share Posted February 2, 2005 That reminds me... The cover article for the current National Review is about the Movie Groundhog Day... [url="http://www.nationalreview.com/goldberg/goldberg200502010801.asp"]http://www.nationalreview.com/goldberg/gol...00502010801.asp[/url] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgirl Posted February 2, 2005 Share Posted February 2, 2005 Groundhog day is pretty cool! My advice though is don't go to Punxsutawney to see him! I went in 2003 for a celebration of my 21st birthday (my bday is the 31st which was on a Friday and G-hog day was on the Sunday). It basically consisted of 40,000 drunk college students yelling obscenities/weird comments for four and a half hours in freezing temperatures while we waited for Punxsy Phil to be pulled from a cage shaped like a tree stump on a stage at Gobblers Knob. It was definitely nothing like the movie. It was neat and something different to do, but I will never do it again! I don't think it's his shadow that scares him, it's probably the fireworks they shoot off right before they pull him out of the tree stump! I did watch it on tv this morning, and I had this feeling of, "I was there!" Jen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrea348 Posted February 2, 2005 Share Posted February 2, 2005 i taught the kids a groundhog day song in the 4th and 5th grade....it was fun... and we acted out what happened this morning....good times Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fidei Defensor Posted February 2, 2005 Share Posted February 2, 2005 Haha I watched it on the news, and it appears Phil took a little tinkle when he was being held by the one man Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karinsbestfriend Posted February 2, 2005 Share Posted February 2, 2005 oh phil :shame: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karin Posted February 2, 2005 Share Posted February 2, 2005 oh i didnt remember today was ground hog day i just knew it was the feast of the presentation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the_rev Posted February 3, 2005 Author Share Posted February 3, 2005 Chucky, the groundhog in green bay, did not see his shadow! 3 more weeks of winter! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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