Oh, Paczki Day!

Being a Polish - American, with a strong Polish community in my city ( my own uncle Chet Zablocki actually had a radio show, "The Polka Party", for many years with his first wife, Helen [who died in 1968] and then with his second wife, Sharon. When he died in 2004, Sharon continued the show and it is still going on Sunday mornings, now in its 63rd year!), i can't help but be surrounded by the little puffy, filled powder sugar coated doughnuts that every grocery store, snack shop, and bakery seems to have tons of on this day!

 

 

Paczki Day precedes the beginning of Lent, and the baking of paczki is traditionally a way to use up all of the fat, sugar, and fruit in the house--things forbidden during the strict Polish Lenten season.

While i consider myself a poor stereotype of a Polish person (who prefers Italian food, doesn't like chicken, and can't Polka to save her life), no one has much trouble talking me into one or two of these edible Tribbles on Fat Tuesday! Guess i'll be giving up FOOD for Lent!

OOPS!

You may have noticed that my blog themes keep changing lately - of course i, not being extremely computer literate, keep trying to change backgrounds and stuff and then can't get back to my original theme! Arrgh! At least it's still legible, but I'm not happy. Bear with me a little while longer and i'll straighten it out (hopefully...)

Animal Abuse (With Love...)

Our two pet cats, Crickit and Skeeter, are indoor/outdoor cats, but they only are allowed out when one of us are also out. AND they have been trained to stay in the yard (Seriously!). We do have a 6 ft privacy fence around 80% of our backyard, so it wasn't as difficult as it sounds, but still, they are very good and don't try to climb the fence or get out. They DO chase bunnies, but stop when i yell at them, amazingly. So they don't wander, but they cannot be described as strictly housecats, either. Crickit's my garden buddy, she wants to be out as much as i do, but Skeeter- not so much! If it's cold or windy or wet, she's happy to sit in her window and look out at the weather. Of course, they do not go out at all in the winter months, but they(especially Crickit) don't understand why they can't go out, if it's sunny and they're warm INside, and commence to sit by the door, crying.So i remind them why they can't. Once a year, generally during one of our biggest snows, they get tossed into a snowdrift!

Crickit negotiating her way out

 It's also a reminder about how good they've got it, in case they've forgotten why these mean humans are holding them hostage in the house. It works - i don't hear any complaints from them for weeks! It's not total abuse - Crickit just sits there for a minute, gives me an "Are you nuts?!" look, then slowly (like it didn't bother her all that much) walks to the back door, shaking the snow off her paws.

All that's left of her ordeal

Another Snowfall...

                                  So we had a snowfall. 3- 4 inches, tops. Can i complain? Not hardly,considering this same weather system dumped about three FEET in the Washington DC area yesterday!                                     

 It was pretty windy, too, so the snow cover was very smooth and pristine. i took these pics of the garden this morning, before any of our snow shoveling, footprints, or the animals spoiled the surface.

It's hard to imagine this all leafed out and green......but here's a reminder!

Hogs Of The Ground

Here's the scoop about Groundhog Day (Not the movie!)

The largest Groundhog Day celebration is held in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, USA, where crowds as high as 40,000 have gathered to celebrate the holiday since at least 1886. They have a resident groundhog by name of Punxsutawney Phil . On February 2, (Groundhog Day) of each year, the town of Punxsutawney celebrates the beloved groundhog with a festive atmosphere of music and food. During the ceremony, which begins well before the winter sunrise, Phil emerges from his temporary home on Gobbler's Knob, located in a rural area about 2 mi (3.2 km) east of town. According to the tradition, if Phil sees his shadow and returns to his hole, the United States will have six more weeks of winter. If Phil does not see his shadow, spring will arrive early.The date of Phil's prognostication is known as Groundhog Day in the United States and Canada. During the rest of the year, Phil lives in the town library with his "wife" Phyllis. A select group, called the Inner Circle, takes care of Phil year-round and also plan the annual ceremony. Members of the Inner Circle are recognizable by their top hats and tuxedos.

                                                                Courtesy Wikipedia              

We have our own groundhog for this area,Holland Huckleberry, known affectionately as "Hucky", owned by Charlie Hoag (Holland is one of our suburbs).

                                                                                        Courtesy Toledo Blade

Some 10 years ago a coyote killed a mother groundhog on the Hoags' property. A day later, Mr. Hoag found the young orphan, maybe 3 weeks old, tops. Nursed to health by the Hoags, the critter has been the couple's house pet ever since.

Anyway, Hucky DIDN'T see his shadow, indicating an early Spring! Woo Hoo! Hey, this time of year, we cling to anything that hints of winter's end. Trouble is, six weeks from now will be mid March, and it's usually still winter weather here regardless! "Early Spring" is just wishful thinking!

Anyway, I wish Hucky a good year; apparently 10 years of age is quite old for a hoggie!