A Long Lustrous Winter

Yes, it is Groundhog Day.  Again.  We woke up a tiny bit earlier today, and put the celebration on the big screen.  It was a live feed from Punxsutawney, which I can't believe I got right with spelling there.  Anyway, it starts with fireworks, and a bit of a concert and after that some dancing, usually featuring the song "Shout."  Mommy was using the puppet you see above, an old friend of ours, to dance during "Shout," and Madison was loving it so much she started making her own movie recording of the dancing groundhog.  Anyway, we watched as the Inner Circle marched in, those guys with the top hats, and meteorologically inspired nicknames.  The President of the Inner Circle is able to understand Phil, the immortal groundhog, as he prognosticates the next six weeks' worth of weather.  This morning, there were gasps and cries to the heavens as Phil told them that sadly, he saw his shadow.  There'll be six more weeks of winter.

The South's answer to Phil, General Beau, similarly declared he saw his shadow.  Winter continues.  The good news about General Beau is that he is now at a new park, Dauset Trails Park.  It's further away from us here, but from all accounts, it's a much nicer location.  Things wen smoothly there this morning, except for the fact that (1) it was extremely cold, and (2) this groundhog also declared six more weeks of winter.

Yet Phil Conners sums it up with a nice speech in the movie "Groundhog Day."

"When Chekhov saw the long winter, he saw a winter bleak and dark and bereft of hope.  Yet we know that winter is just another step in the cycle of life.  But standing here among the people of Punxsutawney and basking in the warmth of their hearths and hearts, I couldn't imagine a better fate than a long lustrous winter." - Phil Conners

Winter is just a season, and a temperature.  A relentless temperature, sure.  But there's still a lot to celebrate this time of year, including small groundhogs.

At work, Daddy finished up the messages for the upcoming series.  It's going to be called "Legends," and will have some pretty decent messages within.  The devotional is the next thing he's been writing on.  We've had some great feedback about these, so it continues.  Daddy has his material in several churches now, which is indeed an honor.

Madison got her grades back today, and did not do well on her fractions.  This might be the first "C" I've ever seen her get.  It was a 79, so it was close to a B.  But it was somewhat stunning to see a lower grade come back home.  She does get an opportunity to do a retake, so she should do better next time.  Especially after Daddy and she go over the test and fractions on Sunday.  We'll have a little time for that Sunday afternoon, so we'll be studying in that direction a little more.

Tonight's "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." suggests that Phil Coulson knows he's dying.  We watched this episode tonight, and it was a little on the gory side, with lots of Kree being killed in slightly awful ways.  The team is intact though, all returning back to the present time, presumably.  Friday night is "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." night for us, as we huddle in the upstairs room to watch it on television.  I know we'll be doing that a lot during the Winter Olympics, which are coming up soon.

We went to bed tonight, hunkered down under our blankets, snuggling and warm.  We read from our books, said our prayers, and it was off to hibernate for the night.

We stay indoors a lot lately, but it's okay.  That'll make the spring time weather even more enjoyable. And despite the fact that it's been so cold for so long, we're basking in the warmth of our hearths and hearts, and enjoying this long lustrous winter.