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caroline94535

Happy Groundhog Day!!!

9 years ago
last modified: 9 years ago

It's Groundhog Day! My kind of Holiday!

Our sunrise today was at 0756; like the little cutie Punxsutawney Phil, I stepped out on the deck and saw my shadow!

Six more weeks of winter; that's time for me to finish tweaking the Purple Martin gourds and planning the gardens.

Groundhog Day is the perfect Holiday because...

I don't have to spend three days planning, shopping, prepping, and cooking a meal and then another day getting everything cleaned, stored, packaged, and frozen.

I don't have to decorate a thing.

I don't have to buy a thing.

Since few people get as excited about this chubby little rodent as do I, I don't have to plan anything social.

I DO get to take a long afternoon break and watch the movie Groundhog Day.

I DO get to eat Groundhog Food, which is 99% raw fruits and vegetables. My kind of a meal. Wash, chop, and chomp!

We have groundhogs here, locally called woodchucks, but they are still snuggled down in their winter-long deep hibernation. Another reason they are one of my spirit animals.

Fun Facts

Groundhogs are the largest species in the squirrel family.

Other names for groundhogs include woodchucks, and whistle-pigs.

Groundhogs are skilled climbers and swimmers, which helps them to escape less-skilled predators.

Groundhog burrows are so complex that each has its own "bathroom" chamber.

Groundhog burrows are known to have been responsible for uncovering a historic village in central Ohio - now a famous archeological site.

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Groundhog Day 2017:

Punxsutawney Phil made his annual prediction shortly after 7 a.m. this morning - 6 more weeks of winter.

See the article here: https://weather.com/news/weather/news/groundhog-day-did-punxsutawney-phil-see-his-shadow?utm_medium=email&utm_source=website&cm_ven=Email&cm_cat=

Comments (7)

  • 9 years ago

    Any reason for a party!! LOL We have groundhogs too. I don't know if they are out and about now, but they are big animals!! I like seeing them, mostly along the interstate for some reason. They don't come out to the road, but I often see them at the edge of the green space.

    I'm sorry you are getting more snow, Shades, that has to be exhausting at this point. We have really dodged the bullet so far this year. I haven't even gotten my shovel out yet. I hope I am not jinxing myself! :)

    caroline94535 thanked murraysmom Zone 6a OH
  • 9 years ago

    We have groundhogs here too, yellow bellied marmots. For years at the research garden outside my office we had Big Mama and her one litter a year. They were adorable and playful. Mama would gather the grass clippings from the little bit of grass outside my office window and didn't bother the plants in the garden.

    Then two years ago some sheds got moved off the pavement into gravel and with new den sites available, the population exploded, by last summer there were dozens. Live trapping couldn't keep up and eventually we had to resort to Marmot-ageddon. It was sad, because we were fond of (a few) of them. But the poop and smell, gnawed lines under a vehicle ($200) and eventually damage to the plantings meant they had to go.

    It's been clear but smoggy/foggy here all day, so that means 6 more weeks of winter, which for here, is an early spring. I doubt we'll get it. There's still three feet of beautiful snow on the ground, though it's supposed to warm up a bit next week.

    caroline94535 thanked stringweaver
  • 9 years ago

    Woodchucks/groundhogs here too but we don't look at them as fondly. Mean critters and very destructive as stringweaver said. I can't understand how they can handle the one they bring out every year. Must have been hand raised from a baby.

    No new snow. Sun for most of 2 days. Things are looking up. We'll be happy to only have 6 more weeks of winter. But I can see by the hay stack and the bagged feed it's getting closer.

    caroline94535 thanked User
  • 9 years ago

    Relieved we did not get the predicted 12 inches of snow. The storm swung a bit north so the brunt of it missed up. We did have a couple of inches and some ice pellets really late. Not really hail. More like hard tiny snow balls. Possibility of more of the same today. It is 30 degrees so fairly warm.

    Plans for today are to get into some mosaic work. Not on the hallway wall I have become board with it again. Doing straight fill in is so boring. I need some color in my life today.

    I am really looking forward to Spring here too. Not looking forward to all this snow run off. Hoping it goes off slowly. I did notice the snow pile on the side of the carport is shrinking. I believe from bellow and melting into the ground. It looks to be down almost a foot from the carport edge.

    caroline94535 thanked Shades_of_idaho
  • 9 years ago

    I noticed that here, too, shades. It's like all the snow is just shorter. It has to be from under it because the top still looks just fine.

    So glad you didn't get dumped on! What's the update on the grocery store?

    caroline94535 thanked User
  • 9 years ago

    I have no idea on the grocery store. I am 22 miles away and have not heard from any one that is in the know. I did hear the employees were all put to work stocking the new store instead of laying them off so that was a good thing and could speed things up. I will certainly find out next time I do go to town but no idea when that might be since I was just in town twice last week.

    There is also going to be a new store in Ontario that is said to be a good grocery store. It is called Winco. I have never shopped in a Winco so clueless. Friend said they are good grocery stores. I will shop the meat sales where every they are and call it good. It is really all I care about.

    Lightly raining now. Snow is sliding off house roof and one of those huge ridge pieces has come down. Made a big noise. Busy day for me and heading to bed.


    caroline94535 thanked Shades_of_idaho
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