Groundhog Day 2012

Groundhog Day prediction 2012: Did Punxsutawney Phil see his shadow?

Published: Thursday, February 02, 2012, 7:26 AM     Updated: Thursday, February 02, 2012, 7:36 AM

 By Erik Gallant, MassLive.com 

Punxsutawney Phil, the weather predicting groundhog, is seen on his stump during the annual Groundhog Day festivities in Punxsutawney, Pa. in this file photo from Feb. 2, 2011.

It's an annual tradition in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania: when the groundhog speaks, we humans listen. His weather-predicting skills may only be accurate 39 percent of the time, but that hardly matters.

The rules of Groundhog Day are simple: if Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow, we can expect another 6 weeks of winter. If he doesn't see his shadow, it indicates that spring is "just around the corner."

What makes this small town in central Pennsylvania so special? As the vice president of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club explained to the crowd Thursday, "Our president is the only person in the world who is gifted to understand the language of Groundhogese."

On Thursday morning, Phil did see his shadow. Six more weeks of winter!

Phil immediately updated his Twitter account confirming the prognostication:

A terrifying shadow = 6 more weeks of winter! No complaining. We haven’t even had winter yet.

For many in the Northeast, another 6 weeks of winter may seem an unlikely prediction, considering the fact that winter has barely even arrived.

Indeed, one member of the crowd Thursday was heard shouting, "It's already warm enough to be spring!"

In recent years, Phil has embraced technology as a way of getting the word out, with the aforementioned Twitter account full of humorous observations like:

"All eyes are on me right now, and I'm mad with power!"

Fans and media organizations have also increasingly tried to read more into the groundhog's predictions. The Patriot-News recently ran a "scientific statistical analysis" to see if the predictions held any indicators for the 2012 presidential election.

Despite the modern flourishes, Phil's bread-and-butter remains emerging from his hole and whispering into the ear of a top-hatted man. We'll all have to wait and see if the groundhog's words of wisdom hold true.

The first day of spring is March 20, according to the calendar.

Martin Luther King Day

Martin Luther King Day is a federal holiday held on the third Monday of January. It celebrates the life and achievements of Martin Luther King Jr., an influential American civil rights leader. He is most well-known for his campaigns to end racial segregation on public transport and for racial equality in the United States.

Martin Luther King Day is a relatively new federal holiday and there are few long standing traditions. It is seen as a day to promote equal rights for all Americans, regardless of their background. Some educational establishments mark the day by teaching their pupils or students about the work of Martin Luther King and the struggle against racial segregation and racism. In recent years, federal legislation has encouraged Americans to give some of their time on this day as volunteers in citizen action groups. Martin Luther King Day, also known as Martin Luther King’s birthday and Martin Luther King Jr Day, is combined with other days in different states. For example, it is combined with Civil Rights Day in Arizona and New Hampshire, while it is observed together with Human Rights Day in Idaho. It is also a day that is combined with Robert E. Lee’s birthday in some states.

Read more...

Christmas Comes But Once a Year

[Infographic provided by Grammar.net]

Visit Friends and Family
Christmas is a time for appreciating those we care for. Take some flowers to your mom, or spend quality time with someone you haven’t seen for a while.
Send Christmas Cards
A pretty card brightens the darkest day, and sitting down to fill out a small box of them warms the spirit. Even a few Christmas postcards to one or two special people will spread “good cheer.”
Eat Turkey
By 4 p.m. on Christmas Day, seventy-five percent of America will be passed out on the couch, bellies stuffed, watching television in a “turkey coma.” Rise up and join them! Or rather, lie down and join them. Turkey is comparatively low in calories–perfect for gleeful gorging.
Give Presents
Again, Christmas is about showing friends and family that they are loved. Even the hardest heart melts to see the happiness on a loved one’s face when opening a Christmas gift.
Make a Wish
Christmas is a magical time of year. The next time you see a lighted tree twinkling in the darkness of your neighborhood, make a wish!
Pull a Cracker
Fireworks are not just for summer–there are Christmas “crackers” that look like big, jolly-colored Tootsie rolls, popular across the pond. Grasp it at both ends and yank. Bang! Inside is a small gift.
Light a Candle
People often light candles at Christmas in remembrance of departed or absent loved ones. If your spouse or kids are elsewhere, if you’re missing a parent, light a candle and spend some time with your happiest memories of that person.
Kiss Under the Mistletoe
It an old tradition to kiss to anyone standing under a sprig of mistletoe. Some not only follow this tradition, they cheerfully linger under it. Hang a piece in a doorway of yourhome for the holidays, and include some when decorating for holiday parties.
Sing a Carol
A rousing Christmas song can fire up the spirit, especially if sung in the shower, but if you’re asked to go caroling with friends, it can be great fun.
Hug Santa
An icon of love and giving, wrap that big man in the red suit in a hug the next time you see him, and it will probably make his day as well as yours.

  Vocabulary for Christmas
  Carol: a Christmas song.
  Chimney: a brick column that vents fireplace smoke through the roof. Santa is said to climb down the chimney to deliver toys to the children.
  Christmas Eve: the day before Christmas.
  Egg Nog: a traditional holiday drink made with eggs, often containing rum.
  Mistletoe: a leafy plant with white berries.
  Reindeer: a cold-climate relative of the caribou. Nine are said to pull Santa’s sleigh: Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen, and Rudolph.
  Sleigh: an open-topped vehicle pulled by livestock, having runners instead of wheels. Santa loads his with a bag of toys for the children.
  White Christmas: a Christmas where snow has fallen.
  Xmas: abbreviation for Christmas.

A Norman Rockwell Thanksgiving

from BigThink, Bob Duggan, Nov. 22, 2011

You can have your Martha Stewart Thanksgiving(tm) with theAleppo pepper-rubbed roast turkey if you wish, but give me the good, old-fashioned, Norman Rockwell version any day. Rockwell’s classic painting (detail above, full picture here) of Grandma lugging in the gigantic bird on a platter as the patriarch awaits his carving duties and the surrounding adults and kids drool in anticipation will always be the quintessential image of Thanksgiving to me. And, yet, when Rockwell painted that iconic scene, it was March 1943—months away from Thanksgiving. The painting, titled Freedom from Want belongs to a series of works Rockwell titled the Four Freedoms after President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s 1941 State of the Union address in which FDR outlined what he saw as the four essential freedoms that all people in the world should enjoy. When you look for the roots of the Norman Rockwell Thanksgiving, you won’t find it in the stuffing or the cranberries (and certainly not in an Aleppo pepper rub)—they’re in the simple idea of human, not just American, freedom.

In that State of the Union address FDR gave seventy years ago, he announced the following:

In the future days, which we seek to make secure, we look forward to a world founded upon four essential human freedoms.

The first is freedom of speech and expression—everywhere in the world.

The second is freedom of every person to worship God in his own way—everywhere in the world.

The third is freedom from want, which, translated into world terms, means economic understandings which will secure to every nation a healthy peacetime life for its inhabitants—everywhere in the world.

The fourth is freedom from fear, which, translated into world terms, means a world-wide reduction of armaments to such a point and in such a thorough fashion that no nation will be in a position to commit an act of physical aggression against any neighbor—anywhere in the world.

That is no vision of a distant millennium. It is a definite basis for a kind of world attainable in our own time and generation. That kind of world is the very antithesis of the so-called “new order” of tyranny....READ MORE

Where Did Halloween Come From?

   

"Trick or treat" evolved from a notion that when hungry ghosts are trying to eat you, a person only survives with protection from the saints.

Big Think presents a video of Sharon Gannon explaining the beginnings of Halloween traditions.

Watch her explaination and read along with the transcript.

Then listen, and repeat along with the Halloween conversation on LEC.

... and have a safe and Happy Halloween !!

Labor Day

Many people think of Labor Day as the end of summer. But what's today's holiday really about?

The first Monday in September is Labor Day, a special day to celebrate working people.

Who first came up with the idea of a workers' holiday? There is still some doubt. The idea may have come from Canada, where Labour Day parades have been held since 1872.

Some historians say a machinist named Matthew Maguire started the holiday. Maguire was a union leader in New York City. In 1882, Maguire called for the city's workforce to lead a "festive parade through the streets of the city." More than 10,000 workers marched through New York City.

Labor Day was later officially recognized by several states, beginning with Oregon in 1887. It became a national holiday for all workers across the U.S in 1894.

That year, President Grover Cleveland wanted to heal wounds from a conflict between workers and big companies that started with the Pullman Railroad Strike. During the strike, more than 250,000 railroad workers from 27 states fought with the country's biggest railroad companies for higher pay and shorter workdays. President Cleveland wanted Labor Day to recognize the contributions of workers to the American economy.

These days, Labor Day means many things to Americans. It heralds the start of the pro football season, and the start of a new school year for many students. It's also a time for parades and fireworks, and for enjoying the last days of summer.      from scholastic.com

 Hope you had a happy day!!

WATCH A SLIDESHOW

Check out these facts and figures about workers in America.

4th of July

"Hallowed be the day, forever bright its memory in the heart of the Nation.
Sing to it, poets;
shout to it, freemen;
celebrate it with bonfires, parades, and triumphant assemblies"(Daily Alta California, 4 July 1855).

Independence Day honors the birthday of the United States of America and the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. It's a day of picnics and patriotic parades, a night of concerts and fireworks, and a reason to fly the American flag.
See much more about Independence Day on usa.gov.

Take a look at The History Channel,  the Boston Pops Spectacular, or the Fourth of July Celebrations Database.

You can also revisit some of our older posts on the 4th of July here at Cultural Access

• The History of Independence Day
• Declaration of Independence
• Fireworks
• Fourth of July Word Origins

Father's Day

Father's Day is a special day to honor fathers and grandfathers. It is on the third Sunday of June. Fathers receive cards and gifts on Father's Day. It is important to thank your father and grandfather for all the things they do.
Father's Day was started in 1910 by Mrs. John Dodd of Spokane, Washington. The custom spread throughout the United States and in 1936 a national Father's Day committee was formed. Headquartered in New York City, the committee annually selects a Father of the Year. Some of the fathers who have won this title are Douglas MacArthur, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and Harry S. Truman.

When is Father's Day? It is on the third Sunday of June. We celebrate it by giving cards and gifts to our fathers and grandfathers. We say "Happy Father's Day!"

Some Father's Day reflections from ABC

Flag Day

Flag Day is on June 14, a day when all Americans celebrate the flag by showing respect for the flag and its makers and its designers. One of the main symbols of the United States of America is the flag.

The original U.S. flag was authorized by Congress on Saturday, June 14, 1777. It had 13 stripes - 7 red and 6 white - that represent the original 13 colonies. There were 13 white stars in a blue field representing a new constellation.

Since 1777, there have been different versions of the flag that have been adopted. The red and white stripes with blue constellation have remained the same. Each state in the union is represented by a 5 point star. The number of stars have changed as states joined the union. There are currently 50 states that belong to the United States of America.

History Of Flag Day From Veronica

Memorial Day, 2011

Memorial Day, which falls on the last Monday of May, honors the men and women who died while serving in the American military. Originally known as Decoration Day, it originated in the years following the Civil War and became an official federal holiday in 1971. Many Americans observe Memorial Day by visiting cemeteries or memorials, holding family gatherings and participating in parades. Unofficially, at least, the long Memorial Day weekend marks the beginning of summer. In 2011, Memorial Day is observed on Monday, May 30.

They fought that we might live in freedom.
Thank you.

 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

Look through this photo album for more Memorial Day images.

Memorial Day

Memorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May (May 30 in 2011). Formerly known as Decoration Day, it commemorates U.S. soldiers who died while in the military service. First enacted to honor Union and Confederate soldiers following the American Civil War, it was extended after World War I to honor Americans who have died in all wars.

Memorial Day often marks the start of the summer vacation season, and Labor Day its end.

Thanks to Larry Ferlazzo for this list of best sites to learn about Memorial Day -

EL Civics has a good Memorial Day Lesson

Here’s a Memorial Day Quiz designed for English Language Learners.

The History Channel has a great Memorial Day site.

Social Studies For Kids has a good description of the day called Memorial Day: A Time For Reflection.

Arlington National Cemetery has a large collection of images in their photo galleries

Here’s a cloze (fill-in-the-blank) exercise from Glencoe about the day.

The Orange County Register has an accessible interactive graphic about Memorial Day.

ESL Holiday Lessons is a good resource that provides audio support for the text.

Memorial Day Across America is an online video from MSNBC.

Paying Tribute is a slideshow about Memorial Day from MSNBC.

Honoring The Fallen is a similar slideshow from CBS News.

Mementos Adorn ‘Saddest Acre’ is a slideshow from CNN.

Honoring Those Who Served Us is a slideshow from MSNBC.

Here’s a list of interesting facts about Memorial Day that wouldn’t be accessible to ELL’s, but teachers could certainly modify them.

The Military Times has an amazing presentation honoring those who have been killed in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The Military Times also offers a panoramic tour of Arlington National Cemetery.

CBS News has an online video of President Obama visiting Arlington National Cemetery. The Associated Press has a similar video

CNN has a slideshow of the same visit.

Take a Memorial Day Quiz for ELL’s

Memorial Day 2009 is a series of photos from the Big Picture.

Voice of America Special English has an accessible explanation of the holiday and provides audio support for the text.

Memorial Day Observations is a slideshow from The New York Times.

Here’s an audio slideshow of Memorial Day in Washington, D.C.

Flags in remembrance at Arlington National Cemetery is a Washington Post slideshow.

Honoring The Fallen is a CNN video on the same activity at Arlington.

“Iraq & Afghanistan War Casualties” is a pretty amazing interactive graphic from CNN showing all U.S. casualties from both wars.

Cartoonists Honor Heroes is a collection of editorial cartoons related to Memorial Day.

Women In Uniform is a slideshow from MSNBC

ABC News has several related videos:

Remembering Those Who Died, 2010

Celebrating Memorial Day In Iraq

War Vets Rev Up Washington

Memorial Day Messages

Try-out this Pre-Intermediate English Lesson – Memorial Day from ESOL Courses

How We Bury The War Dead is a slideshow from The Wall Street Journal.

Honoring America’s Fallen Heroes is a slideshow from MSNBC.

Honoring The Fallen is a Fox News slideshow.

CNN has several related videos on this page.

Faces Of The Dead is a New York Times interactive

The Great Unknowns is a New York Times graphic

Silence, ceremonies mark sacrifice of military is a CNN video.

Memorial Day is a slideshow from The Wall Street Journal.

The Holiday Season

The Christmas season, the holiday season, or simply the holidays is an annual festive period that surrounds Christmas and various other holidays. It is generally considered to run from late November to early January. Its relation to Christmas in official use by schools and governments has resulted in controversy. It incorporates a period of shopping which comprises a peak season for the retail sector (the "Christmas shopping season"), and a period of sales at the end of the season (the "January sales").

The exact definition, name, and celebratory method of the period varies from culture to culture. The majority of Christian denominations in the U.S. celebrate Christmas beginning with Advent between November 27 and December 3 and ending after the Epiphany on January 6. Eastern Orthodox churches observe the Nativity Fast from September 1 through December 24 and the holiday season lasts through January 7th. In medieval pagan cultures, the season began after All Hallow's Eve (Halloween) and lasted through the Twelfth Night.  The season in the United States encompasses at very least Christmas Eve through New Year's Day  (the usual period for school vacations) but is now generally considered to begin with Thanksgiving and end after New Year's Day. The U.S. Fire Administration defines the "Winter Holiday Season" as the period from December 1 to January 7.  Some stores and shopping malls advertise their Christmas merchandise beginning after Halloween or even in late October, alongside Halloween items. 

The precise definition of feasts and festival days that are encompassed by the Christmas and holiday season has become controversial over recent decades. Traditionally, the only holidays included in the "season" in the U.S. were Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve, New Year's Day and Epiphany. In recent times, this definition has begun to expand to include Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Thanksgiving and Black Friday. Due to the phenomenon of Christmas creep and the informal inclusion of Thanksgiving, the Christmas and holiday season has begun to extend earlier into the year. 

adapted from Wikipedia.com

Thanksgiving

In 1621, the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast that is acknowledged today as one of the first Thanksgiving celebrations in the colonies. For more than two centuries, days of thanksgiving were celebrated by individual colonies and states. It wasn't until 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, that President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national Thanksgiving Day to be held each November.  Congress finally made Thanksgiving Day an official national holiday in 1941.

Today Thanksgiving is still about giving thanks, but wouldn't be Thanksgiving without family, turkey, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie and football

Here are some interesting Thanksgiving facts from the History Channel -

• The American Automobile Association (AAA) estimated that 38.4 million Americans traveled 50 miles or more from home over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend in 2009.
• According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Minnesota is the top turkey-producing state in America, with a planned production total of 45.5 million in 2009. Just six states—Minnesota, North Carolina, Missouri, Virginia, and California—will probably produce two-thirds of the estimated 2750 million birds that will be raised in the U.S. this year. 
• In a survey conducted by the National Turkey Federation, nearly 88 percent of Americans said they eat turkey at Thanksgiving. The average weight of turkeys purchased for Thanksgiving is 15 pounds, which means some 690 million pounds of turkey were consumed in the U.S. during Thanksgiving in 2007.
• Cranberry production in the U.S. was approximately 709 million pounds in 2009. Wisconsin, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon and Washington are the top cranberry growing states.
• Illinois, California, Pennsylvania and New York are the major pumpkin growing states, together they produced 1.1 billion pounds of pumpkin in 2008, with a combined value of $141 million.
• The sweet potato is most plentifully produced in North Carolina, which grew 874 million pounds of the  popular Thanksgiving side dish vegetable in 2008. Other sweet potato powerhouses included California and Mississippi which produced 437 million pounds and 335 million pounds, respectively.
• The first time the Detroit Lions played football on Thanksgiving Day was in 1934, when they hosted the Chicago Bears at the University of Detroit stadium, in front of 26,000 fans. The NBC radio network broadcast the game on 94 stations across the country--the first national Thanksgiving football broadcast. Since that time, the Lions have played a game every Thanksgiving (except between 1939 and 1944); in 1956, fans watched the game on television for the first time.

“Thanksgiving Facts.” 2010. The History Channel website. nov 22 2010, 10:08 http://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving-facts.

For more info on Thanksgivign see Thanksgiving on the Net.

Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

The Macy's Parade in New York City is a favorite Thanksgiving day tradition.

Originally known as Macy's Christmas Parade—to signify the launch of the Christmas shopping season—the first Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade took place in New York City in 1924. It was launched by Macy's employees and featured animals from the Central Park Zoo. Today, some 3 million people attend the annual parade and another 44 million watch it on television.

Tony Sarg, a children's book illustrator and puppeteer, designed the first giant hot air balloons for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1927. He later created the elaborate mechanically animated window displays that grace the façade of the New York store from Thanksgiving to Christmas.

Snoopy has appeared as a giant balloon in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade more times than any other character in history. As the Flying Ace, Snoopy made his sixth appearance in the 2006 parade.

“Thanksgiving Facts.” 2010. The History Channel website. nov 22 2010, 10:08 http://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving-facts.

Veterans' Day

On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month of 1918, an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, was declared between the Allied nations and Germany in the First World War, then known as "the Great War." Commemorated as Armistice Day beginning the following year, November 11th became a legal federal holiday in the United States in 1938. In the aftermath of World War II and the Korean War, Armistice Day became Veterans Day, a holiday dedicated to American veterans of all wars.
Bagpipes, parades, American flags and marching veterans are all part of Veterans' Day celebrations in big cities and small towns across the country. It would be hard to find a family, much less a community, without a veteran to remember and honor. 
The United States of America will never forget that Freedom is not free.

The History Channel has several Veterans' Day videos available, including the  History of Veterans' Day.