Feb. 2, 2009 Monday

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Groundhog Day. What a wonderfully dumb tradition. But it's party time out in Gobbler's Knob (residence of Punxsutawney Phil, the prevaricator of weather for the northern hemisphere - at least at this particular latitude). It's a major celebration each year, and we have considered making the trip (it's a six-hour drive from here), but have never been sufficiently inspired.

And what a great day to ponder how much more winter we will be having after a balmy 70-degree F spring-like day yesterday. The weather has been really weird this winter (extra-mild); Phil has his work cut out for him. At 7:25 am (Gobbler's Knob time), the sleepy rodent of the hour will be dragged from his ceremonial climate-controlled artificial tree stump and placed on the ground. As he waddles back to his stump, photojournalists with nothing more newsworthy to shoot, will click their respective shutters with ferocity.

Then everybody drinks or goes home, depending on their degrees of temperance and/or distance to travel.

Thanks to Opie and c.c., I've seen my share of rodents. Happy GH Day.