DOCSLIB.ORG

“The Groundhogese”

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
“The Groundhogese” “The Groundhogese” August 2019 The Official Newsletter of The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club www.groundhog.org Coming to Punxsutawney? Share your pictures of your visit with us! Submit your favorite memory about Groundhog Day! Newsletter Highlights Groundhog Picnic Worldwide Adventures of Phil Groundhog Trivia Gobbler’s Knob Wine Festival Handler’s Blog Annual Groundhog Picnic & Phil PhestPage 2 of 9 Groundhog Picnic and Phil Phest: Groundhog Day in the Summer? What would Groundhog Day be like if it was in the summer? We'll never know because the Seer of Seers only comes out of hibernation to make his annual prediction on those cold morning sunrises on February 2nd. But if you want the closest thing to Groundhog Day, without having to wear "your booties", come see Phil at the Knob on Saturday September 7th, 2019 at the 121st Annual Groundhog Club Picnic and Phil Phest! The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club has been holding its Annual Picnic for 121 years starting in 1898. Back then, hundreds of Club members and guests gathered, many coming to Punxsutawney by train, to have a festive picnic near Gobbler’s Knob. (As we all know, Phil is 134 years old but it took Phil awhile to get the Club organized.) Since then, the Club has held its annual picnic to celebrate its good fortune in knowing Phil, and to hold the “Elixir of Life Ceremony” at the Knob, giving Phil 7 more years of life for each sip. There is food and adult beverage starting a 1 pm, followed by a full steak dinner at 5 pm. And several years ago Phil wanted to liven things up a bit, thus adding the name Phil Phest, combining music and a highly competitive fun Cornhole Tournament open to all. The price: Advanced Tickets $25.00, Tickets that day $30.00. Click Here for Tickets! The 7th Annual Worldwide Adventures of Phil Photo Competition Wow, Groundhoggers! What a year! We are currently receiving the entries for the Worldwide Adventures of Phil. So far it looks like, Phil had quite the summer! Thank you to all those that participated in this year’s competition. Here is a reminder of all the great prizes this year! Submit your pictures by October 4th ,2019! Good luck to all those that participated! Prizes for Phil Phriends 12 & Under Prizes for National, International, and st GHC Member Category 1 Place: $75 Worth of Groundhog Day Souvenirs st 1 Place: 2 Inner Circle Section Passes for 2nd Place: $50 Worth of Groundhog Day Souvenirs Gobbler’s Knob on Groundhog Day 2020, a Gobbler’s Knob Parking Pass, and a 3rd Place: $25 Worth of Groundhog Day Souvenirs Groundhog T-Shirt 2nd Place: 2 Inner Circle Section Passes at Gobbler’s Knob on Groundhog Day 2020 and a Groundhog T-Shirt 3rd Place: 2 Inner Circle Section Passes at Gobbler’s Knob on Groundhog Day 2020 The Groundhog Club is on… Make sure to follow us on Instagram—punxsyphil Trivia Question Question: Which Inner Circle Member has 4 children - which is the most in the Inner Circle? Submit your answers to [email protected] . The first three people to answer correct will win a prize!! Page 4 of 9 6 Months Till Groundhog Day By: Ron Ploucha, Stump Warden With August 2nd fast approaching, we, the Inner Circle of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club, must soon begin the mandatory and grueling 6-month Groundhog Day preparation. It is a process of both mental and physical conditioning so as to assure that we are ready to endure whatever Mother Nature and/or Punxsutawney Phil sends our way. Here is a summary of what we can expect over the next six months. August 2nd – September 1st… Each day we will gradually diminish the amount of sleep we get. Depending on our bedtime which varies from member to member (the younger guys stay our late till after midnight whereas the more elderly of us turn out the lights right after we watch Jeopardy), our goal is to get down to 6 hours of sleep. September 2nd – October 1st…As mentioned above, all members will reduce their total sleep to just 5 hours per night. It is also during this month that the mandatory facial hair will begin to appear on most members. This could be one of the reasons that there are no females in the Inner Circle! October 2nd – November 1st…Total sleep will be down to just 4 hours per night. Each member is required to stand outside for at least 3 hours prior to sunrise. To become accustomed to cooler temperatures, only light jackets are permitted. Facial hair will need groomed on a regular basis. November 2nd – December 1st…Only 3 hours of sleep permitted each night. Total time spent outside increases to 4 hours each night and clothing will be limited to just short sleeved shirts and light trousers. Absolutely no coats or jackets are allowed now. To increase our durability in the elements, after the first 2 hours are completed, we must turn on the lawn sprinklers and dance about the yard in the man-made “rain” for the remaining 2 hours. December 2nd – January 1st…While all the Phil Phans are getting ready for Christmas, the Inner Circle Members are focused on one thing only. The Big Day is now less than 2 months away our conditioning process now becomes brutal. We must learn to operate on only 2 hours of sleep per night and spend 5 hours outside before the sun comes up. If there is snow on the ground we are allowed to wear shoes but the shirt and trousers have now been replaced with just boxer shorts and sleeveless t-shirts. By now most of the lawn sprinklers are frozen solid so our spouses just spray us with water each half hour. By now we are learning some dance moves appropriate for cold temperatures. Only perk this month is that if we are lucky, we might run into Santa Claus while outside! January 2nd – February 1st…GHog day is close!! We now practice staying up all night – but we are allowed to sleep one hour every other day. Much time during the day is now devoted to trying to manage the wild facial hair and the grumpy Inner Circle members who have not had much sleep. Meetings every day and night, getting ready to accommodate the hundreds or thousands or maybe millions of Punxsutawney Phil Phans from all over the world as they descend on our little town. The boxer shorts and t-shirts have now been replaced with full blown tuxedos. We wear them day after day, night after night. The good thing is that we don’t sweat because we are now spending 24 hours a day outside in the frigid temperatures. We buy banquet tickets, ball tickets, tickets for this and tickets for that. Our schedules are locked in, our song and dance numbers have been perfected, and we are guaranteed that nothing could ever go wrong!! February 2nd…Groundhog Day 2020 is HERE!!! We are ready. Are you? Destination: Gobbler’s Knob Enhancement Project Building on to a Legendary Past, Constructing an Innovative Future The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club is continuing its efforts to raise funding for the project called, Destination: Gobbler’s Knob. We are working with Carnegie Science Center on some outstanding interactives displays that will be in the new visitor center. How can you help? There are many ways to support this project, here are few ways: - Monetary Donations - By visiting Punxsutawney now and after we have the project complete - By communicating the exciting project to others - Continued support of Groundhog Day and Punxsutawney Phil - Communicate to us way that we can improve a visitor experience year-round. Interested in donating? Click here! Check out some of the interior display ideas! Where in the World is Phil? Operation Game: Phil Edition Shadow Catcher ‘Off Season’ Phil Phil’s Timeline And more!!! The Online Scavenger Hunt Contest is back! Are you ready for a challenge?! The dates for the Online Scavenger Hunt will be now through August 16th! A different weekly clue/ riddle will be given on Phil’s social media, www.groundhog.org, and emailed to the GHC Membership once a week! · All the answers to the clues/riddles will be found within the www.groundhog.org website. · Participants are to solve the clue/riddle weekly and submit their answer to [email protected]. · All clues/riddles will be given on Monday of each week and the answers must be submitted by Friday of that same week. Participants can not submit answers for previous weeks. · All correct answers that are submitted will be in the running for that month’s prize. Three winners will be selected at the end of each month. · In order to qualify for grand prize drawing, the participant must submit at least 5 out of 6 correct answers over the course of the competition. The Grand Prize Winner will receive: Two Inner Circle Section Passes One, Parking Pass for Groundhog Day 2020, and one engraved brick that will be placed on the stage at Gobbler’s Knob. Any questions? Email [email protected] August 2nd is ½ Way to Groundhog Day! Yes, Groundhoggers! You read that correctly. Groundhog Day is a mere 6 months away. Do you have your plans made for the 2020 Celebration? Share your favorite Groundhog Day pictures with us! Use the hashtags #punxsutawneyphil #halfwaythere #ghd2020 We would love to see your favorite memories!! Handler’s Blog By: AJ Dereume Phil and Phyllis have been enjoying a nice relaxing summer other than a busy 4th of July week.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Darkness Is Cheap1 Spooky Similarities and Shared Symbolism Between a Christmas Carol and Groundhog Day By: Thomas M Ciesla January, 2018
    Darkness Is Cheap1 Spooky similarities and shared symbolism between A Christmas Carol and Groundhog Day By: Thomas M Ciesla January, 2018 At first glance the storylines of “A Christmas Carol” and “Groundhog Day” couldn’t be more different. Written 150 years apart, Dickens story was heavily influenced by social injustices of the time: poverty, child labor horrors, and social class structure. Groundhog Day was written on a vastly different social fabric, in a place far removed from foggy-smoggy London: sunny and carefree Los Angeles. The former was penned during the oppressive 1800’s of England, while the latter was created on the golden coast of California in the 1990’s. Perhaps these disparities are most apparent in the overall pessimism of A Christmas Carol versus the optimism and somewhat snarky humor of Groundhog Day. Each protagonist has a slightly different way of expressing distaste for others and society in general. Scrooge prefers the more enigmatic “Bah Humbug” to articulate his overall disaffection. Phil prefers the slightly more hostile “people are morons.” Now for some similarities. Winter is omnipresent in each storyline as you would expect given the similar timeframes, but more important are references to the creeping, otherworldly cold. It permeates the neighborhoods, the buildings, the people, and the heart and soul of Scrooge and Phil. It hardens them against the importance of other lives and blinds them to the lack of 1 The title is a play on Dickens comment in Stave 1 of the original manuscript describing Scrooges’ climb up the stairway after seeing Marley’s face on the door knocker: “darkness is cheap, and Scrooge liked it”.
    [Show full text]
  • Groundhog Day Weather History for Springfield
    Groundhog Day Weather History for Springfield Normal High and Low Temperature 37° and 20° Warmest High Temperature 62° (2012) Coldest High Temperature -1° (1996) Coldest Low Temperature -16° (1905) Warmest Low Temperature 37° (1944 and 2016) Wettest Groundhog Day 1.94” in 1883 Snowiest Groundhog Day 5.2” in 1961 Greatest Snow Depth 12” in 1918 Frequency of At Least 1” Snow Depth 34.5% (41 of 119 years) Frequency of Measurable Precipitation 27.7% (39 of 141 years) Frequency of Mild Temperatures 24.8% (35 of 141 years) with highs ≥40° Frequency of Cold Temperatures 34.0% (48 of 141 years) with lows ≤10° Sunrise and Sunset 7:06 am / 5:20 pm Groundhog Day is celebrated on February 2. According to folklore, if it is cloudy when a groundhog emerges from its burrow on this day, then spring will come early. If it is sunny, the groundhog will see its shadow and retreat back into its burrow, and winter weather will continue for six more weeks. Specific weather data follows. These were measured in downtown Springfield from 1879 to 1947, and at Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport from 1948 to the present. Year High Temp Low Temp Precip Snow Snow Depth Sky Cover Sunrise 1880 38 20 0.00 0.00 N/A N/A 1881 33 18 Trace Trace N/A N/A 1882 50 35 Trace 0.0 N/A N/A 1883 36 13 1.94 N/A N/A N/A 1884 55 36 0.00 0.0 N/A N/A 1885 46 16 0.00 0.0 N/A N/A 1886 19 -6 0.00 0.0 N/A N/A 1887 39 20 Trace N/A N/A N/A 1888 32 28 0.00 0.0 N/A N/A 1889 48 27 0.00 0.0 N/A N/A 1890 48 35 0.01 0.0 N/A N/A 1891 46 18 0.04 N/A N/A N/A 1892 38 34 0.11 0.0 N/A N/A 1893 32 7 0.85 1.5
    [Show full text]
  • Groundhog Day February 2 Groundhog Day Is a Celebration That Takes Place About Halfway Through the Winter
    Groundhog Day February 2 Groundhog Day is a celebration that takes place about halfway through the winter . It has its origins in an old European holiday called Candlemas . On Groundhog Day, a groundhog named Punxsutawney Phil emerges from his burrow in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania to predict the seasons . If Phil sees his shadow, it means that we will have six more weeks of winter . If he doesn’t, it means that spring will arrive early . Groundhog Day is a fun and silly holiday that is rooted in a time when people relied on small changes in the environment to predict the weather and the changing of the seasons . Summary of Activities Reading: Literature The Underappreciated Groundhog—fictional story with comprehension questions Reading: Informational Text Marmota Monax—nonfiction passage with a main-idea activity Writing Critter Compare and Contrast—activity in which students write a summary comparing and contrasting two animals Bonus Measuring Shadows—Have students measure their shadows at different times throughout the day . Ask, “When are they the longest?” and “When are they the shortest?” Vocabulary: burrow, felidae, hibernate, marmota monax, sciuridae, strewn ©Teacher Created Resources 15 #3179 Celebrating Holidays Groundhog Day Name Date The Underappreciated Groundhog Directions: Read the story below and on page 17. Then answer the questions on page 17. There was a crisis in Gobbler’s Nob, the hometown of the most famous groundhog in the country, Punxsutawney Phil. Phil had woken up on New Year’s Day and had made a resolution. He decided that he no longer wanted to participate in Groundhog Day. These people are so ungrateful, Phil thought.
    [Show full text]
  • Groundhog Day Trivia Answers
    Groundhog DayTrivia Fill In the Blank Questions 1.The only two countries who celebrate Groundhog Day are ______________ and ______________. 2. An ancient holiday known as ______________ evolved into _____________, which then became Groundhog Day. 3. The ____________ were the first to use small animals as a prediction tool for the spring forecast and favored the ___________ as their forecaster. 4. Groundhogs are also called ________________. 5. The elite group who manage Punxsutawney Phil and his annual celebration are called the _______________, which is part of the larger group known as the _______________. 6. Other famous groundhog forecasters besides Phil include __________________ and ____________________. 7. The movieGroundhog Day starred actor _________________ and was released in _____________. 8. In 2010 animal rights activists from PETA suggested replacing the live groundhog with a _________________ one. 9. During the Punxsutawney ceremony members of the inner circle speak________________ and wear _____________________. 10. In ancient traditions, Medievil cults designated the ________________ and the English designated the ____________ as the annual weather forecasting animal. https://printable.lovetoknow.com/quizzes-trivia/30-groundhog-day-printable-trivia-questions Multiple Choice Questions: 1. In what year did the first official Groundhog Day celebration take place? a) 1952 b) 1887 c) 1776 d) 1981 2. The man who started the annual Punxsutawney traditions on Groundhog Day worked in what profession? a) Journalism b) Outdoorsman gear sales c) Banking d) Teaching 3. What is the approximate population of Punxsutawney, PA where famed forecaster Punxsut- awney Phil lives? a) 1,500 b)10,000 c) 6,000 d) 3,400 4. According to legend, Punxsutawney Phil is how old thanks to the magic potion he drinks each year? a) 131 b) 1,002 c) 85 d) 448 5.
    [Show full text]
  • Ground Hog Day - 02/02/2021
    Ground Hog Day - 02/02/2021 February 2nd is Groundhog Day in the United States and Canada. According to folklore, if it is cloudy when a groundhog emerges from its burrow on this day, it will leave the burrow, signifying that winter-like weather will soon end. If it is sunny, the groundhog will supposedly see its shadow and retreat back into its burrow to sleep some more, and the winter weather will continue for six more weeks.1 First day of winter (Winter Solstice) was Tuesday, December 21, 2020 There are 31 days in December There are 31 days in January There are 28 days in February this year There are 31 days in March The first day of spring (Spring Equinox) will be Saturday, March 20th, 2021 1. How many days are there between the first day of winter and the first day of spring? 2. How many days are there between the first day of winter and Groundhog Day, February 2, 2021? 3. How many days are there between Groundhog Day and the first day of spring? 4. What position in the calendar do you think Groundhog Day is supposed to represent? Groundhog Day has its origins in an ancient celebration of a point mid-way between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox. Superstition has it that fair weather implied a stormy and cold second half of winter. In the U.S. and Canada there are several famous groundhogs that are locally celebrated on February 2nd. The first groundhog, however, was recognized in the 1800’s in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania and he was given the name Punxsutawney Phil.
    [Show full text]
  • Festivals of Lights
    Festivals of Lights La Chandeleur – Candlemas ; Hanukkah ; Diwali ; Eid al-Fitr La Chandeleur or Candelmas in English takes place every year on 2nd February. The origin and meaning of Candlemas : Candlemas is a Christian holiday celebrated every February 2, or 40 days after Christmas. The term Candlemas comes from "festival of candles", itself translated from the Latin festa candelarum. For the faithful, it is a question of celebrating the fact that “Jesus is light”, as well as the purity of the virgin Mary. Indeed, Candlemas commemorates the presentation of Jesus to the Temple, Jewish tradition requiring that each male firstborn in the family is brought to the Temple 40 days after birth to be consecrated to the Lord. This 40-day period corresponds to the period during which mothers were considered unclean by Jewish law after giving birth, so they were prohibited from going to a place of worship. Once this period had elapsed, mothers could go to the temple to perform an animal sacrifice and thus regain their purity. On the day Mary and Joseph took Jesus to the Temple, Luke's gospel says that a man named Simeon came there, moved by the Holy Spirit and the promise that he would not die until he saw the Messiah. There he took Jesus in his arms and said that Jesus would be 'a light of revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel'. It is therefore this precise religious event that Christians remember during Candlemas. However, it seems that this festival has more ancient origins, and could be Adapted from : https://icalendrier.fr/religion/fetes-catholiques/chandeleur/ Paula Ann COOMBES https://prononciation-blog.anglais-face2face.fr/wp/ page 1 sur 4 Festivals of Lights La Chandeleur – Candlemas ; Hanukkah ; Diwali ; Eid al-Fitr the resumption of a Roman rite, the amburbiales, linked to the purification of the city of Rome.
    [Show full text]
  • 134Th Anniversary 02-02- 2020
    Schedule of Events & Travel Guide 134th Anniversary 02-02- 2020 www.groundhog.org The Schedule and Travel Guide was funded in part by the Great Outdoors Visitors Bureau as a Jefferson County Hotel Tax Project. The Legend of Groundhog Day Groundhog Day was founded from the traditions of the Romans, who carried the myth to the Germans during the Roman invasions many centuries ago. The story was also based on this Scottish couplet: If Candlemas Day is bright and clear, There’ll be two winters in the year. Candlemas Day is celebrated each year on February 2nd. It was determined that if any animal came out from its underground hibernation on that day, and the sun was out, there would be six more weeks of winter. Thus, was born the tradition of the “two winters” or the “second winter.” What began as a tale from ancient times became fact in the early 1880’s. A group of residents in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, decided to celebrate Candlemas Day by going to the woods in search of a groundhog. In 1886, the editor of the local newspaper named the group the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club. The Club deemed a certain hilltop near the town as “Gobbler’s Knob” proclaiming that, from this knob, Punxsutawney Phil could accurately forecast the weather. On February 2nd, 1887, the first official trek to Gobbler’s Knob was made and Punxsutawney Phil delivered his first official weather forecast. The Punxsutawney groundhog, known as Phil rose to fame throughout the world. Known as the “Seer of Seers”, Punxsutawney Phil’s forecast on February 2nd is recorded in the Congressional Records held in the National Archives and the Library of Congress in our nation’s capital.
    [Show full text]
  • Groundhog Day
    National Climatic Data Center Formerly the National Climatic Data Center (NCDC)… more about NCEI » Home Climate Information Data Access Customer Support Contact About Search Home > Customer Support > Education Resources > Groundhog Day Browser Support Issues Groundhog Day Online Store Every February 2, thousands gather at Gobbler’s Knob Check Order Status in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, to await the spring Certication of Data forecast from a special groundhog. Known as Tools Punxsutawney Phil, this groundhog will emerge from Partnerships his simulated tree trunk home and look for his shadow, which will help him make his much- World Data Centers anticipated forecast. According to legend, if Phil sees Education Resources his shadow the United States is in store for six more Groundhog Day weeks of winter weather. But, if Phil doesn’t see his shadow, the country should expect warmer Archiving your Data temperatures and the arrival of an early spring. History of Groundhog Day Groundhog Day originates from an ancient celebration of the midway point between the winter solstice and the spring equinox—the day right in the middle of astronomical winter. According to superstition, sunny skies that day signify a stormy and cold second half of winter while cloudy skies indicate the arrival of warm weather. The trail of Phil’s history leads back to Clymer H. Freas, city editor of the Punxsutawney Spirit newspaper. Inspired by a group of local groundhog hunters—whom he would dub the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club— Freas declared Phil as America’s ocial forecasting groundhog in 1887. As he continued to embellish the groundhog's story year after year, other newspapers picked it up, and soon everyone looked to Punxsutawney Phil for the prediction of when spring would return to the country.
    [Show full text]
  • Groundhog Day Is Celebrated on February 2Nd and It Is the Day When People Look to the Groundhog to Predict the Weather for the Next Six Weeks
    GROUDHOG DAY READ ABOUT THIS TRAD ITION A N D TELL YOUR PARTNER IS A S M U C H DETAIL AS POSSIBLE Source: https://www.ducksters.com/ Useful Vocabulary: burrow/ˈbʌr.əʊ/ hole or tunnel dug by a small animal, especially a rabbit, as a dwelling, especially to live in www.cristinacabal.com Groundhog Day is celebrated on February 2nd and it is the day when people look to the groundhog to predict the weather for the next six weeks. Folklore says that if the sun is shining when the ground hog comes out of his burrow, then the groundhog will go back into its burrow and we will have winter for six more weeks. However, if it is cloudy, then spring will come early that year. This is a tradition in the United States. There are a number of celebrations throughout the United States. The largest celebration takes place in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania where the famous groundhog Punxsutawney Phil has predicted the weather each year since 1886. Large crowds of well over 10,000 people gather here to see Phil come out of his burrow at around 7:30am. The origins of Groundhog Day can be traced to German settlers in Pennsylvania. These settlers celebrated February 2nd as Candlemas Day. On this day if the sun came out then there would be six more weeks of wintry weather. At some point people began to look to the groundhog to make this prediction. The earliest reference to the groundhog is in an 1841 journal entry. In 1886 the Punxsutawney newspaper declared February 2nd as Groundhog Day and named the local groundhog as Punxsutawney Phil.
    [Show full text]
  • HALLOWEEN, an ASTRONOMICAL HOLIDAY Halloween – Short for All Hallows’ Eve – Is an Astronomical Holiday
    HALLOWEEN, AN ASTRONOMICAL HOLIDAY Halloween – short for All Hallows’ Eve – is an astronomical holiday. Sure, it’s the modern-day descendant from Samhain, a sacred festival of the ancient Celts and Druids in the British Isles. But it’s also a cross-quarter day, which is probably why Samhain occurred when it did. Early people were keen observers of the sky. A cross-quarter day is a day more or less midway between an equinox (when the sun sets due west) and a solstice (when the sun sets at its most northern or southern point on the horizon). Halloween – October 31 – is approximately at the midway point between the autumn equinox and winter solstice in the Northern Hemisphere. In other words, there are eight major seasonal subdivisions of every year. They include the Equinoxes, solstices and cross-quarter days are all hallmarks March and September equinoxes, the June and of Earth's orbit around the sun. Halloween is the fourth December solstices, and the intervening four cross-quarter day of the year. cross-quarter days. In modern times, the four cross-quarter days are often called Groundhog Day (February 2), May Day (May 1), Lammas (August 1) and Halloween (October 31). Halloween is the spookiest of the cross quarter days, possibly because it comes at a time of year when the days are growing shorter. On Halloween, it’s said that the spirits of the dead wander from sunset until midnight. After midnight – on November 1, which we now call All Saints’ Day – the ghosts are said to go back to rest.
    [Show full text]
  • Celebrate! Holidays in the U.S.A
    Celebrate! Holidays in the U.S.A. Table of Contents Introduction National Celebrations: New Year's Day (January 1) Martin Luther King Day (Third Monday in January) Abraham Lincoln's Birthday (February 12) Presidents' Day (Third Monday in February) George Washington's Birthday (February 22) Arbor Day (In April or close to April 22 or on that day) Mother's Day (Second Sunday in May) Memorial Day(Last Monday in May) Flag Day (June 14) Father's Day (Third Sunday in June) Independence Day (July 4) Labor Day (First Monday in September) Columbus Day (Second Monday in October) Veterans' Day (November 11) Thanksgiving Day (Fourth Thursday in November) Christmas Day (December 25) Religious Celebrations: Easter (A Sunday between March 22 and April 25) Fun Days: St. Valentine's Day (February 14) http://www.usis.usemb.se/Holidays/celebrate/ (1 of 2) [10/23/2001 2:08:40 PM] Celebrate! Holidays in the U.S.A. April Fool's Day (April 1) Halloween (October 31) Ethnic and Regional Celebrations: Chinese New Year (Sometime between January 21 - February 19) Mardi Gras (February/March) St. Patrick's Day (March 17) Cinco De Mayo(May 5) Native American Pow-Wows (March - August) Other American Celebrations Embassy of the United States of America Dag Hammarskjölds Väg 31, SE-115 89 Stockholm Home Public Affairs Section | US Mission | Commercial Service | Agricultural Service Consular Information | Fulbright | U.S. State Department | Defense Department [email protected] Last Modified: Tuesday, 04-Apr-2000 08:59:07 CEST http://www.usis.usemb.se/Holidays/celebrate/ (2 of 2) [10/23/2001 2:08:40 PM] Celebrate! Holidays In The U.S.A.
    [Show full text]
  • Well-Grounded
    Well-Grounded The Story of Groundhog Day Why celebrate a rodent? There are religious holidays of all types, national holidays that honor heroes and events, and even silly holidays like National Candy Corn Day that we celebrate “just for fun.” But a day devoted to a chubby rodent that spends a lot of time underground? Now that’s a holiday worth discussing. Like many unusual holidays, this one goes back centuries. Early European Christians celebrated the Feast of the Presentation, honoring the day when Mary and Joseph first brought the infant Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem, 40 days after his birth on Christmas Day. Later, this became the day when priests blessed the candles—candle mass—used in this celebration. Candlemas Day, February 2, merged with other pre-Christian celebrations, marking the first possible day when hibernating animals might awaken and the end of winter was in sight. Candlemas Day and the Hedgehog Ancient wisdom from the United Kingdom maintains that if there is nice weather on Candlemas Day, harsh winter weather will follow: If Candlemas Day is clear and bright, Winter will have another bite. If Candlemas Day brings cloud and rain, Winter is gone and will not come again. The Romans brought the Candlemas Day weather superstition north to the Germanic peoples they encountered during their conquest of northern Europe. The Germans incorporated it into their own folklore. They concluded that if the hedgehog, a common hibernating animal in their area, awoke to sunshine on Candlemas Day, he would cast a shadow and thus predict continued winter weather.
    [Show full text]