Dear Crabby, Does it Matter if the Groundhog Sees his Shadow?

Dear Crabby, Does it Matter if the Groundhog Sees his Shadow?

Thanks, April Spring

Dear April Spring,

Punxsutawney Phil is just a large rat with a great life. The Groundhog Club’s Inner Circle claim Phil is 100% correct, every time. He’s been doing this weather forecasting thing for almost 130 years and it’s a wonder he can do anything at that age. Most hogs of the ground live seven to eight years. Nevertheless, these people feed Phil something called the “elixir of life,” a secret recipe that somehow extends his life.

I’ve never been to this event called Groundhog Day, which takes place every February 2 in Punxsutawney, PA. I’ve seen the movie with Bill Murray so I don’t have to go. However, the next time our resident travel writer Michael Dwyer goes, I want him to bring me back a large bottle of that elixir juice. You can read about his tales of the furry weatherman HERE.

As most of us know, if Phil sees his shadow, we get six more weeks of winter. And, most years the sun (who has been hiding since Thanksgiving) comes out and scares “the seer of seers” back into his heated stump. Oddly, the first day of spring on the calendar (March 20) is just less than seven weeks from February 2. Anyhow, rarely do we have a cloudy Groundhog Day to receive the gift of an early spring.

No, it doesn’t matter if Phil sees his shadow. I don’t trust the Groundhog or any other weatherman to predict the weather. Just look at Winter Storm Juno, all kinds of snow and blizzard conditions were expected—it wasn’t nearly as bad as they lead us on to believe it would be. So, why would Phil get it right? Spring will come in late March, just like it does every year … sort of.

However, the event does lend itself to fun activities for the kiddies. A young woman who writes for Rochester Media had a few suggestions last year; check out Meghan’s tips for a fun Groundhog Day HERE.

Come Monday, Groundhog Day, I’ll watch the movie again, drink coffee and eat coffee cake, laugh at Bill Murray on the TV and bundle-up for another two months. Between living forever and royalties from the movie, Phil has it pretty good.

Sincerely,

Dear Crabby

Stuck in a rut? Need some biased advice from a crabby old baby-boomer? Go to www.DearCrabby.org and ask your question.