Events: Michigan Groundhog Day

When my mom and step-father moved to Novi we added a new member to the family – “Charlie” the groundhog! There were great amounts of entertainment value in watching an overly plump groundhog run from my 5 pound poodle. Hilarity and gales of laughter could be heard when he ran (and I use that term loosely), wiggling, squeezing and wedging his was into his burrow under our small backyard shed. Imagine almost any cartoon character going through and getting stuck in a small space and you’ll get a great mental image of the events! Groundhogs can be fun animals to watch, which brings me to my topic.

Saturday is Ground Hogs day, the eagerly anticipated celebration of the coming of spring. The legend is based on an old Scottish couplet, "If Candlemas Day is bright and clear, there'll be two winters in the year." So if the groundhog sees his shadow, it means six more weeks of winter. If he does not see his shadow, it means spring is just around the corner! Locally there are a couple of fun events celebrating the day.

Take the entire family out to the Howell Conference & Nature Center (1005 Triangle Lake Road, Howell 48843) to view Michigan’s own "Woody the Woodchuck’s" annual spring weather prediction.
Michigan’s Ground Hog’s Day celebration is a must see for locals, so stop by for pancake breakfast, to have your picture taken with the furry beast or simply to see when spring will arrive. Woody's prediction happens at 8:15 a.m. SHARP! For more information call 517-546-4185 or visit the Howell Conference & Nature Center website.


For those of you that can’t even manage to burrow out of your own wintry homes, Punxsutawney Phil wants to text you the results of HIS weather predictions. He'll be broadcasting his weather prediction on Tuesday to fans who sign up by texting the word "Groundhog" to 247365, or follow him on Facebook and Twitter @GroundhogPhil.