I've been thinking about Groundhog's Day, and I've decided it is an almost perfect holiday. It has a supernatural component, of course, addressing the huge question of the return of spring. But its timing, half way between the winter solstice and the spring equinox has a sort of pseudo-scientific basis.
My daughter and I were up early to watch Puxatony Phil not see his shadow, and we both cheered at the outcome. Tears streamed down my face, as I imagined flowers blooming, and the warm sunny days ahead. Winter in the northeast really sucks, and these groundhogs really give us something to look forward to.
Here in my hometown, Mayor Bloomberg snubbed Staten Island Chuck (Chuck did bit the mayor a few years back) and I'm pretty sure that Chuck confirmed Phil's predictions. I'm pretty sure the mayor missed the event because he is so engaged in the round-the-clock negotiations
[1] to end the school bus strike that has turned my life (and the lives of more than 100,000 families) upside down.
The mayor has proclaimed that the way to balance the city's budget is to fire all current school bus drivers, and replace them with new, inexperienced bus drivers making $4 less per hour. Although it sure sounds like a good and fair plan, I sometimes wonder if the mayor knows as much about creating effective policies as Phil and Chuck know about the weather.
