“They say we’re young and we don’t know
We won’t find out until we grow
Well I don’t know if all that’s true
‘Cause you got me, and baby I got you
Babe
I got you babe
I got you babe”
Well hello folks, you’re friendly, fun loving SCUBA blogger here, bright and early to let you know, today is Groundhog’s Day.
First off, have you ever wondered what the background story is on Groundhog’s day? I’m so glad you ask me these questions! So let’s have a short history lesson, shall we?
Most of you know that the Groundhog that predicts the winter weather or lack there of is located in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, and his name is Phil. He has a wife, Phyllis and daughter, Phelicia,who live with him in their temporary home of Gobbler’s Knobb, which happens to be located about 3 miles outside of town. Now from what I know about this Groundhog Family, they are treated better than most people are. I’m sure they have a vacation home in some place like Hawaii or something (haha… just kidding).
Now the folk lore goes, if Phil sees his shadow, he predicts 6 more weeks of winter-like weather, but should he not see his shadow, Early SPRING! Punxsutawney Phil has had his gig now since 1886 roughly, but he gained national recognition by the 1993 movie, Groundhog Day starring Bill Murray.
The chosen few who have the privilege of taking care of Phil and his family year round are known as the “Inner Circle,” with one person nominated as president. These men are recognizable by their attire of top hats and tuxedos.
As most of us know, Pennsylvania was founded by a lot of German settlers. This tradition of watching Punxsutawney Phil stems from Germanic and Celtic traditions that state if a hibernating animal casts a shadow on February 2nd, the Pagan holiday of Imbolc (Known among the Christians as Candlemas Day), winter and cold weather will last another six weeks. If no shadow is seen, legend says, spring will come early.
Now I stated that this is a Germanic tradition that came from Germany. Well, in Germany, they used hedgehogs to represent their animal, but when the settlers moved to this great country, they changed their tone to a groundhog.
I too, would like to mention that folk lore states that there has only been ONE groundhog used which if you do the math, you know my strong suit… Phil is REALLY Old. In reality though groundhogs lifespan is about 6 years so who knows just how many Phil’s there have been in years past.
So remember, these predictions are to be taken light heartedly. As of 2016, Punxsutawney Phil has made 129 predictions, with an early spring predicted 18 times. They say these predictions have proven correct 39% of the time. If you correspond that to a grade scale from school, that’s a pretty low F. Hopefully they grade on a BIG curve!
So you may be asking why on earth I’m giving you this history lesson. Again, I’m so glad you asked. Makes my life so much easier to get through this… Diver Dan said that his SCUBA tank saw its shadow, so that means 6 more weeks of winter-like weather. Now who is ready to do a February dive with him?
