The Popcorn Stand: Let’s skip Groundhog Day

Thursday was Groundhog Day, which meant Punxsutawney Phil made his prediction as for how long the remaining winter will last. I never look forward to Groundhog Day because it means I have to spell Punxsutawney.

Phil didn’t seem too enamored by Groundhog Day either or at least that’s what it looks like to me in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4L9_FmzOoIk. The expression on Phil’s face seems to be saying as he’s pulled out of his burrow, “Oh no this again? It’s already been a year? You know it’s pretty cold out here guys, can I just go back inside?”

And there also seems to be some controversy as to if Phil actually saw his shadow as was claimed on Thursday, meaning six more weeks of winter. As far as I can tell, Phil isn’t really doing much of anything, except displaying a facial expression that says, “Please let me go back inside.”

But actually, Phil doesn’t need to see his shadow. He just has to cast his shadow.

And theoretically, you’re not supposed to coax Phil out of his burrow. He’s supposed to awaken from his mid-winter nap and come out on his own. If he sees his shadow, he quickly goes back in to sleep. If not, he stays outside to play, meaning an early spring.

I don’t know much about these rodent species, I just assumed out west we have gophers, in the midwest they have prairie dogs and in the east they have groundhogs and they’re all pretty much the same. But then again, the University of Minnesota’s nickname is the Golden Gophers.

Of course my favorite gopher outsmarted Carl Spackler (Bill Murray) in Caddyshack. Murray also starred in Groundhog Day, so apparently he’s the go-to guy whenever a movie involving this kind of rodent is made.

No surprise in more than 120 years of making predictions, the groundhogs aren’t really all that accurate, they’ve been right about 40 percent of the time.

So when it comes to making my plans as far as the weather is concerned when it comes to Groundhog Day, I’ll pass on this Gopher Ball.

— Charles Whisnand