Groundhog Day has come and gone, and the little rodent predicted more winter weather.
While not to impugn the integrity of weather forecasting from what is basically an oversized gerbil, Iâm calling bull. With the exception of a few days here and there, this winter has been plenty mild in our area.
According to an essay called âTotemism and Civic Boosterism in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania,â by Christopher R. Davis, Groundhog Day has its roots in the Catholic tradition of Candlemas, where priests would bless and give away candles needed for winter. The candles âpredicted how long and cold the winter would be.â The Germans embroidered this a bit by choosing the badger as a way to predict the weather. Davis points out that in some regions of Germany, they follow a bear since a bear leaving his hibernation is a sure sign of spring.
Bee Cave Bob Predicts Early Spring for Texas
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Tuesday, February 2 is Groundhog Day. While the rest of the nation typically turns to Punxsutawney Phil to see if spring will come early or we ll have more winter to wait through, Texans (of course) have to do our own thing.
We turn to Bee Cave Bob, an armadillo.
Sadly, the annual Armadillo Day festivities had to be cancelled this year due to health and safety reasons thanks to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
KVUE-TV reports that while the Armadillo Day party was cancelled, Bee Cave Bob