Weather Whoas

Who in my home base of western Pennsylvania is sick and tired of this weather?
Frigid temperatures since the week after New Year's.  Then milder.  Then frigid again.  The volume of snow ebbs and flows.
Back in the late 70's, when my younger brother and I enjoyed playing outside in this stuff, it was at least a foot deep, and the thermometer usually hovered between the lower to upper 20s.  You usually didn't see grass between New Year's Eve and the second week of March.
Today marks the annual event where people congregate to the their radios and TVs to hear the prediction given by a groundhog in a small town in northwest Pennsylvania.  Six more weeks of winter, or an early spring?
In a world of Doppler 4,000,000, state-of-the-art weather systems from dozens of satellites orbiting the earth, we turn to a woodchuck one day out of the year for his prediction.
Having been professionally connected to Punxsutawney for five years as a broadcaster, I've learned many things about this little town of about 5,500 residents, including its most famous one.
Speaking ill of the groundhog in ANY way will get you run out of town on a rail.  I'm not even close to kidding on that one. 
Just about every businessman in town is involved in the Groundhog Club (caretakers of Punxsutawney Phil) Inner Circle.  They know secrets they will take to their graves...and have.
It's one of the friendliest towns I've ever had the pleasure of working in.
Danny Rubin (who wrote the screenplay to "Groundhog Day" starring Bill Murray and Andie McDowell) is very accessible and a great interview.
The town's population swells to approximately 20,000 on the day of the prediction.  In some cases, retail businesses in town earn enough revenue to sustain them until next year.  Or at least until the summer groundhog festival.  Didn't know there was one of those now, did you?
Local media are the daily newspaper and radio stations...and they work well with each other, albeit on an often shaky truce.  You won't see that in many other towns.
The school district has no metal detectors or internal drug problems of any kind.  You can send your kids to a school where they know they're going to be safe.
Punxsutawney Phil's predictions have NEVER been wrong.  Just ask any of the townsfolk.
The residents of Punxsutawney have mixed feelings of Groundhog Day.  Some welcome it with open arms, while others stay behind locked doors until February 3rd.
Phil receives frequent veterinary care.  Even if he nips one of his handlers, they're in the clear.
To this day, I miss the town and interacting with its people.
However, I look forward to the visits. 
One of which I hope to share with my daughter this year.
Oh, and in case you're wondering, Phil says...drum roll, please...
Six more weeks of this stuff.


NEXT WEEK:  If She Weren't A Carpenter