Ground Hog's Day - Shadow or No Shadow

February 2, 2010 - Today is Ground Hog's Day and according to legend if the Ground Hog sees his shadow we will have six more weeks of Winter. If only that were true. I would be thrilled if I thought there would only be six more weeks of Winter, but the truth is we will probably have another 10 to 12 weeks of Winter, in which case we will skip over Spring, slide into our 20 nice days of Summer, and begin to experience the cool breezes of fall, which brings us back to winter.

Based on the news today, the Ground Hog did see his shadow, although I don't know how, it would presume that there was a sun shining. Well maybe in Punxsutawney, Pa there was a glimmer of sun. But here, where I live, there was not a chance anyone or any animal could see his shadow as they would have had to fight the blinding snow that was coming down, that all our weather channels referred to as 'light flurries'. I have three inches of 'light flurries' on my driveway. I guess it's better than the time I spent two hours shoveling 'party cloudy' off the driveway. So while I want to hang on to the happy thought that in six weeks I will see signs of Spring. Some budding flowers, coming up through the ground, a glimmer of leaves beginning to sprout on the trees, and I might even see some green grass peeking through the last of the snow. I am reminded that there have been several, no many, Aprils when I had to put a winter coat over my new spring outfit, and trade in the cute strappy sandels for my boots, due to many inches of snow that had just fallen. I am also reminded of the time I was so excited to see my tulips just break through the soil (those same tulips that took me many hours to plant digging through the soil, with heavy gloves on so I could avoid all the bugs, that I hate, that are in the soil)only to see them die several days later, when we had an 'unexpected' snow storm blow through Chicago. And of course there is that one Mother's Day, yes you heard me, Mother's Day, when it dropped down to a cool 32 degrees.

So Spring may be here in six weeks, I doubt it. And we may have seen the last of the snow, fat chance. And maybe warmer weather is ahead, if you live in Florida. But for me, who lives in Chicago, I'm a betting girl, and this girl is betting we have not seen the last of winter yet, not today, not tomorrow, and not six weeks from now. Anyone want to bet the odds against me....