It's Groundhog Day

I know, I know. Usually I will use this day to remind people to eat crepes as it is Candlemas Day (You can click on "crepes" and get the recipe - remember to eat crepes or suffer the sadness of financial insecurity for the rest of the year - oh, wait). However, I spotted this blog entry last year a few days after February 2 and loved it so much, I wrote most of this 2009 post on February 3, 2008. It is the day the Giants won the Super Bowl. George Bush is still President, but when this comes out of draft form, he won't be. And yesterday was also Super Bowl XLIII, so congratulations to the six-time Super Bowl Champions Pittsburgh Steelers. Here is an embed to the Super Bowl Ads from yesterday.



So to the topic of Groundhog Day. The blog post that got me going is here. Here's the gist. This person took notes through the course of watching Groundhog Day and believes that Bill Murray's character lived through the same February 2 for 4 years.

These are the days actually seen in the movie:

1. February 1
2. February 2, #1
3. "You're playing yesterday's tape"
4. "Meet me in the diner", "Don't drive on the railroad tracks"
5. Punches Ned
6. "Nancy Taylor, Lincoln High!"
7. Bank robbery -- "I've seen this film over 100 times"
8. Interrogating Rita
9. "Sweet vermouth on the rocks with a twist"
10. "I like to say a prayer and drink to world peace"
11. "I studied 19th century French poetry." (He has a good French accent on the quotation, and is a good dancer.)
12. Insincere snowman. Slapped in the face.
13. Slapped in the face.
14. Slapped in the face.
15. Slapped in the face.
16. Slapped in the face.
17. Slapped in the face.
18. Slapped in the face.
19. Slapped in the face. Notices ice sculptures.
20. "Rough night."
21. "It's cold out there every day."
22. "What is... Mexico."
23. "A thousand people waiting to worship a rat."
24. Smashes clock.
25. Smashes clock.
26. Smashes clock on floor, kidnaps groundhog, blows up.
27. "Aw nuts." Drops toaster in bathtub.
28. Steps in front of truck.
29. Jump from bell tower.
30. "I'm a god." "I've been stabbed, shot, poisoned, frozen, hung, electrocuted, and burned." Throwing cards: "Six months, four to five hours a day."
31. Gives money to bum. First piano lesson.
32. Second piano lesson.
33. Has learned ice sculpture.
34. Not bad at piano.
35. Hits on Ned, takes bum to hospital.
36. Feeds bum, gives CPR.
37. Final Groundhog day! Very good at piano.
38. February 3.

Now, beyond the days we actually see, much time is implied:

• Between days #6 and #7, at least 100 days passed: the time to see the movie 100 times, and also to fully memorize the plan for the bank robbery.
• Between days #11 and #12, he may have just memorized a single quotation (but his accent is good) and he may have already known how to dance (but that seems unlikely). So I think we can assume at least a few months passed.
• Between days #21 and #22, he memorized the entire Jeopardy show, which would take at least a few viewings. It's possible he did that while learning piano, or French.
• Some time before day #30, six months of card throwing. But that could have all been after midnight, and overlapped with any other activities.
• We saw "burned" and "electrocuted". That leaves at least five days (and presumably more) for "stabbed, shot, poisoned, frozen, and hung."
• How long does it take to learn ice sculpture, if that's all you do? Six months? A year?
• How long does it take to become a good piano player, if you begin in your early 40s when you have your first lesson? Consensus among those present at casa del jwz was "at least two years."

So. Based on evidence presented in the movie, he re-lived February 2 for at least four years.