So our furry groundhog friend Punxsutawney Phil (pronounced: Frank) has dashed our hopes of seeing an early spring. In his annual weather forecasting ritual, Phil searched carefully for his shadow, which if seen would signal a continuation of winter, and then according to his exclusive contract with the makers of Nordica skis declared that there will be 26 more weeks of winter, all of it in Colorado.
But Phil has more incentive than mere money to declare more winter. He was pulled from hibernation to make his forecast. Yes, this is a uniquely American ritual: We wake up a soundly sleeping animal, yank him from his warm bed into the freezing February air, and immediately expect him to be chatty about the weather. Of course he's going to forecast a longer winter. He needs to make up for lost sleep time. So as long as we keep rudely waking Phil every year, he's gonna keep on forecasting winter.
Or maybe Phil has gotten wise over the years and has a double stand in for him, while he continues to snore happily somewhere in his burrow, and pays the double from his Nordica money.
That's what I would do.
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