Groundhog Greetings
We recently discovered there is a festive parade in the town of Essex, Connecticut, on Groundhog Day! (February 2) It was fun to see people from near and far celebrating the occasion (also known as Candlemas and Imbolc) by wearing groundhog hats, watching the parade, and then following the procession while banging on pots and pans brought from home. It’s nice to have a holiday to brighten up the season between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox!
If Candlemas Day is bright and clear, there’ll be two winters in the year.
~ Scottish Proverb
We brought our groundhog, Basil, and his new son, Basil, Jr., along with us. The day was not bright and clear in Essex so perhaps there will be only “one” winter this year. Enjoy the parade!
Next year I will try to get a few pictures of all the folks clanging on their pots and pans!
Glad you got out and about! Looks interesting. yet I wonder how happy most of these folks would be if they had groundhog’s in their yards, eating their plants and gardens.
We have several… there are many groundhogs in the area!
OK, Jeff, house centipedes in your living room don’t bother you, but groundhogs in your yard do! 🙂 Oh well, to each his own, I suppose if I was growing my own food I’d be a little less enchanted… I remember my father building all kinds of crazy fences, in mostly failed efforts, to keep the woodland creatures out of his vegetable garden.
LOVE the photos, especially the one of Tim with the Basils. Too cute. My nephew would love these car photo, also. I had no idea that Ground Hog Day and Candlemas were one and the same, by the way. Thanks for sharing.
Hugs from Ecuador,
Kathy
Thank you, Kathy! It was fun having the camera out again, and the day wasn’t as cold as some of the ones we’ve been having whenever the “polar vortex” dips down here for another visit. My guess is that Candlemas was substituted for Groundhog Day or Imbolc, the way Christmas replaced Yule. Hugs to you from Connecticut! 🙂
Oh how FUN to join the event vicariously through your photographs! Like Kathy, I especially enjoyed the one of Tim with the Basils.
The Basils were a hit. One of the passengers in an antique car called out to Tim and asked him where he got the groundhogs. Of course he had no idea – I had to respond that they were gifts from my sister! 🙂
The Basils look as if they were thoroughly enjoying their day. It looks to be an enthusiastic and fun celebration!
Would you believe that I actually strapped them in the back seat with a seat-belt for the the ride to and from the parade? It was a good day for them! 🙂
The old cars are wonderful, aren’t they? And all of those little groundhogs are so cute. That’s a great photo of Tim too, with the Basil’s. 🙂
It’s a good thing that so many folks with old cars seem to enjoy showing them off in parades – it makes attending the event far more appealing for the men. 🙂
What a fun event! We need events like this to get us through the long winter months.
We certainly do! We felt so lucky that it wasn’t snowing or raining or bitterly cold that particular day…
I love a parade ! Love the hats but in this awful cold winter would lament the lack of ear flaps. What a wonderful excuse to have some fun !
Have you seen the movie “Groundhog Day” with Bill Murray ?
Yes, we have “Groundhog Day” on DVD and watch it every year on the appropriate day. 🙂 Do you have a lot of parades up there in Nova Scotia, Sybil? St. Patrick’s Day is coming next month – we have a parade but no movie for that one. 🙂
How very fun to see what a Groundhog’s Day parade looks like! Thanks for sharing the pics with us, Barbara. By the way, did you get some of that snow that blew into the East last weekend? Fortunately, we missed it for once.
Did you notice the green car with the Michigan license plate, Kathy? I thought of you when it passed by us. 🙂
We’ve been getting snow every three or four days – we’ve already accumulated more inches of it and more bitterly cold temperatures than average for the winter here. It sounds like you’re buried under snow out there on the Upper Peninsula. Hope you’re keeping warm!
What fun, Barbara … love these ‘old-fashioned’ celebrations! XO (And one winter is enough – we have 2-3 ft piles of snow everywhere. And it is still brutally cold)
This winter has definitely been one for the record books – even more so where you are located, Diane! It was a stroke of luck that Groundhog Day brought peasant weather here for the parade! 🙂 Will be thinking of you digging out…
Hi. It would be fun to drive in one of those old cars. Jane
I agree, Jane. These folks must love any chance they get to take their antiques out for a parade!
Love this! And how I would love to bang those pots and pans to send away the winter blahs. Very interesting people and cars. Cute that you brought your mascots with you and Tim. Happy Winter.
Perhaps next year we should go together, Susan, and bang our pots and pans along with the other spectators/participants! We were thinking of having lunch at the Griswold Inn before the parade next time – it would be fun to have you and your husband there, too!