Groundhog Day 2012: Punxsutawney Phil, The Most Reliable Groundhog
Groundhog Day is tomorrow, February 2nd, which means that one of our furry friends will be informing us on weather we should be packing up the winter coats and breaking out the flip flops, or stocking up on more hot chocolate.
If the groundhog sees his shadow we will be in store for six more weeks of winter, if not we're in for an early spring. The largest Groundhog Day celebration is in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania with the groundhog of honor being Phil. Around 7:00am Phil will emerge from his burrow to inform the waiting world of what's in store for the next few weeks.
Since the 1800's, Punxsutawney has celebrated Groundhog Day, with crowds as large as 40,000 people gathering to celebrate. This year Punxsutawney Phil will be making his 126th prediction. The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club claims that there has been only one Phil. So how has Phil been making predictions for over 125 years? Groundhog.org states that Phil gets his longevity from drinking the 'elixir of life,' a secret recipe. Every summer at the Groundhog Picnic Phil is rumored to be given seven more years of life by taking just one sip of this magic elixir.
So how exactly do Phil's predictions work? The 100% right groundhog will come out of his burrow on Gobbler's Knob on February 2nd and speak to the Inner Circle Groundhog Club President. The Inner Circle can be seen wearing top hats, and are responsible for carrying out the yearly Groundhog Day tradition. Besides planning events, the Inner Circle are the care takers for Phil. The President will converse with Phil in Groundhogese and then translate Phil's proclamation for the world. Last year Phil declared that spring was near after he failed to see his shadow.
Those who cannot make it to Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania for the Groundhog day celebration can watch Phil make his prediction through www.visitPA.com/groundhog.
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