February 2, 2015 – GROUNDHOG DAY – NATIONAL HEAVENLY HASH DAY

                                                 GROUNDHOG DAY

Will he see his shadow or will he not?  That is the question!
Groundhog Day is celebrated on February 2nd, each year in the United States and Canada.  For a nice welcomed break during the winter, on this day the groundhog awakens from his nap and goes outside to see if he can see his shadow.  It is believed my many that if the groundhog sees his shadow that there will then be six more weeks of winter. If this is so,  he then retrieves back into his den and goes back to sleep.  If he is not able to see his shadow, the groundhog remains outside to play and people celebrate believing that spring is just around the corner.
As the Germans settled in the hills of Pennsylvania, they brought this tradition with them.  The tradition was based on Candlemas, which is the day that is the midpoint between winter and spring.
Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania has been chosen as the site for the annual Groundhog day event.  Thousands of people come to the town of Punsxutawney on Groundhog Day for this day of celebration.
Although already a well known day, Groundhog Day received widespread attention as a result of the 1993 film Groundhog Day, which was set in Punxsutawney and portrayed Roger Rininger as the groundhog.
GROUNDHOG DAY HISTORY
An early American reference to Groundhog Day can be found in a diary entry, by storekeeper James Morris, dated February 4th, 1841, of Berks County, Pennsylvania.
” Last Tuesday, the 2nd, was Candlemas day, the day on which, according to the Germans, the groundhog peeps out of his winter quarters and if he sees his shadow he pops back for another six weeks nap, but if the day be cloudy he remains out, as the weather is to be moderate.”

National Heavenly Hash Day – February 2

NATIONAL HEAVENLY HASH DAY

National Heavenly Hash Day is celebrated annually on February 2nd.
According to Mahalo.com, Heavenly Hash recipes vary from ice cream, to brownies and cookies, and to a gelatin based dessert with rice, marshmallows, and fruit. Most heavenly hash recipes contain either marshmallows or a marshmallow crème or fluff. Over the years many ice cream brands have added their version of Heavenly Hash Ice Cream to the freezer shelf. Bryers, Edys, Ben and Jerry, and Sealtest have all made commercial versions of the chocolate dessert.
Forr a list of many Heavenly Hash recipes, go to http://www.cooks.com/rec/search/0,1-0,heavenly_hash,FF.html
Source:  http://www.mahalo.com/national-heavenly-hash-day