Groundhog Day

Groundhog Day has always been one of my favorite holidays. Not for any particular reason, I just always thought it was interesting that this tradition actually carried on from year to year, especially now that with today's weather forecasting technology, while not as precise as most people would want, is still much more accurate than that of a groundhog. You may be surprised that Groundhog Day goes back way before America was even settled. According to Tamim Ansary, in his column, "The Secret Truth Behind Groundhog Day", he discloses that Groundhog Day started in Europe, but it wasn't called Groundhog Day then. The holiday was Candlemas, a Christian holiday. The legend about the animal and its shadow was part of Candlemas, but the animal in question was the hedgehog. The Pilgrims brought the tradition to America but couldn't find a hedgehog here, so they seized upon the next best thing. So this facination with Punxsutawny Phil, the world's most famous groundhog, has some historical basis to it, going way back several centuries. Still, this day has basically become a tourist and travel promotion for Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, and nothing more. The real problem with Groundhog Day is the notion that if the groundhog sees his shadow, winter will last for 6 more weeks, but if he doesn't, then spring is right around the corner. My calendar says that spring begins on March 20th which is more than 6 weeks away! But even if we accept the "Groundhog Day" theory, how often is it actually correct? A Canadian researcher did a study that found out that Punxsutawney Phil only gets it right 37% of the time! That may be a good baseball average, but it's not good for anything else. So enjoy the day, watch the movie with Bill Murray, but don't make any travel plans just yet. Breaking News: Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow, winter will last longer!