
A groundhog (not Phil)
Groundhog Day refers to a popular American folk tradition centered, in modern times, on the Groundhog Day Ceremony held annually on February 2 in Punxsutawney, western Pennsylvania. During this ceremony a groundhog, representing the semi-mythical '
Punxsutawney Phil', is observed leaving its burrow. According to tradition, if the groundhog sees its shadow it will return to its burrow, foretelling a further six weeks of cold weather. If the groundhog does not see its shadow,
winter ends and
spring weather is on its way. Needless to say, there is no scientific basis for this belief, and Phil gets it wrong more often than not!
The origins of Groundhog Day lie in Pennsylvanian Dutch traditions, and appear to relate to old beliefs that clear skies on the festival of
Candlemas (also on February 2) indicate an extended period of cold weather. Groundhog Day is now celebrated not only in Pennsylvania, but in other areas of the United Sates and in Canada.
Following the 1993 comedy '
Groundhog Day' starring Bill Murray, the term has become associated with unpleasant or tedious events that occur repeatedly without significant change. Lexico.com
defines it as "a situation in which a series of unwelcome or tedious events appear to be recurring in exactly the same way:
she lived an unrelenting Groundhog Day of laundry, shopping, and rearing us kids". The term was even used in the parliament of once-Great Britain when British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who is widely considered to be buffoonish, mendacious and incompetent but occasionally clever with words, referred to the long-running Brexit discussions as 'groundhoggery'.
Further reading:
2022 calendar as templates for
Word, Excel and PDF
A selection of calendar templates for 2022 in landscape and portrait orientation and with US federal holidays, suitable for a variety of applications.