It's Groundhog Day

[Fippy]

Groundhog Day is every day in off-topic.

 

[warpus]

To this day I still do not understand Groundhog day and why people in North America care about it.

Surely in America at least a school shooting predicting badger would make a lot more sense.

For the kids, yeah, I get it. Magical furry animal that can talk, it can be exciting. But for adults? Who cares about this day? Weather stations report on it as though it is a genuine weather predicting animal. Yeah, I get it's a cute tradition - but people post about this thing as though it were exciting. Like I said, I get why kids are into it, but.. are they really even? I haven't heard any of my 5 nieces/nephews ever talk about this thing, ever.

You don't even get a day off work! We don't even get to eat the groundhog! What kind of a crappy day is this?

Why not educate people about how weather actually works on this day? Instead you're teaching them hog propaganda. I looked it up, and the whole thing is based on an old superstition. Sounds about right

 

[Birdjaguar]

It is old, local news culture gone national and brings money and tourists to the community. Marketing!

 

[warpus]

It honestly seems like more than just kids and marketers get excited about this day though. But as far as I can tell, nothing actually happens on this day, aside from a pretend prediction everybody knows is made up and doesn't matter. There is no feast, no excuse to get together with family, no presents.. So there doesn't appear to be anything tangible there, and yet this ends up being brought up every single year outside of elementary school classrooms. Why? Where does the marketing come into play? Are people ordering merchandise based around groundhog day that is bringing in money to certain communities and media companies? Who are these tourists who travel to see this event in person? Who is keeping this going and what sinister plans do they have for our future?

 

[9gkj548hkm20vk79dj689bnj4]

You could say the same about Mardi Gras (the US one at least) which is only an excuse to get drunk.
Groundhog Day is simply more subdued and small town-ish.
But some events just get more attention than others.
Maybe the movie made it famous (?) but I was a little young to notice any real shift at the time.

 

[Birdjaguar]

It honestly seems like more than just kids and marketers get excited about this day though. But as far as I can tell, nothing actually happens on this day, aside from a pretend prediction everybody knows is made up and doesn't matter. There is no feast, no excuse to get together with family, no presents.. So there doesn't appear to be anything tangible there, and yet this ends up being brought up every single year outside of elementary school classrooms. Why? Where does the marketing come into play? Are people ordering merchandise based around groundhog day that is bringing in money to certain communities and media companies? Who are these tourists who travel to see this event in person? Who is keeping this going and what sinister plans do they have for our future?

First, you can blame the Germans. Now you can blame streaming

Pennsylvania[edit]
The observance of Groundhog Day in the United States first occurred in German communities in Pennsylvania, according to known records. The earliest mention of Groundhog Day is an entry on February 2, 1840, in the diary of James L. Morris of Morgantown, in Pennsylvania Dutch Country, according to the book on the subject by Don Yoder. This was a Welsh enclave but the diarist was commenting on his neighbors who were of German stock.[j][k][20][28]

Punxsutawney beginnings[edit]​

The first reported news of a Groundhog Day observance was arguably made by the Punxsutawney Spirit newspaper of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, in 1886:[l] "up to the time of going to press, the beast has not seen its shadow". However, it was not until the following year in 1887 that the first Groundhog Day considered "official" was commemorated there,[29] with a group making a trip to the Gobbler's Knob part of town to consult the groundhog. People have gathered annually at the spot for the event ever since.[30][18]

Clymer Freas (1867–1942)[m] who was city editor at the Punxsutawney Spirit is credited as the "father" who conceived the idea of "Groundhog Day".[31][n] It has also been suggested that Punxsutawney was where all the Groundhog Day events originated, from where it spread to other parts of the United States and Canada.[33]

The Groundhog Day celebrations of the 1880s were carried out by the Punxsutawney Elks Lodge. The lodge members were the "genesis" of the Groundhog Club formed later, which continued the Groundhog Day tradition. But the lodge started out being interested in the groundhog as a game animal for food. It had started to serve groundhog at the lodge, and had been organizing a hunting party on a day each year in late summer.[34]

The chronologies given are somewhat inconsistent in the literature. The first "Groundhog Picnic" was held in 1887 according to one source,[31] but given as post-circa-1889 by a local historian in a journal. The historian states that around 1889 the meat was served in the lodge's banquet, and the organized hunt started after that.[34]

Either way, the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club was formed in 1899, and continued the hunt and "Groundhog Feast", which took place annually in September.[35][36] The "hunt" portion of it became increasingly a ritualized formality, because the practical procurement of meat had to occur well ahead of time for marinating. A drink called the "groundhog punch" was also served.[o][37][38] The flavor has been described as a "cross between pork and chicken".[39] The hunt and feast did not attract enough outside interest, and the practice was discontinued.[35]

The groundhog was not named Phil until 1961, possibly as an indirect reference to Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.[40]

Punxsutawney today[edit]​

Groundhog Day, Punxsutawney, 2013

The largest Groundhog Day celebration is held in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, where crowds as large as 40,000 gather each year[41] (nearly eight times the year-round population of the town).[42] The average draw had been about 2,000 until the 1993 film Groundhog Day, which is set at the festivities in Punxsutawney, after which attendance rose to about 10,000.[35] The official Phil is pretended to be a supercentenarian, having been the same forecasting beast since 1887.[35]

In 2019, the 133rd year of the tradition, the groundhog was summoned to come out at 7:25 am on February 2, but did not see its shadow.[43] Fans of Punxsutawney Phil awaited his arrival starting at 6:00 am, thanks to a live stream provided by Visit Pennsylvania. The live stream has been a tradition for the past several years, allowing more people than ever to watch the animal meteorologist.[44]

2021 was the 135th, and for the first time, much of the Inner Circle members were required to wear a mask. The groundhog was summoned at 7:25 am on February 2 and saw its shadow.[45] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the ceremony was held behind closed doors, with no fans allowed to attend.

2022 saw the 136th celebration of the event and the groundhog saw its shadow, predicting six more weeks of winter.[46]

In 2023, during the 137th prognostication event, the groundhog once again saw its shadow, calling for six more weeks of winter.[47]

Groundhog Day - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Gori the Grey]

Again?