Meet "Bill"

Sorry, you can't actually meet Bill in this post.  I don't have a picture of him, because he scampers away every time he sees me.  He's a flighty little fella.  But today's as good a day as any - well, really, a better day than any other - to introduce you to Bill.  Bill is a groundhog, and he seems to spend quite a bit of time on my property.  One of his hideouts is under my shed, and I've seen him in the garden a couple of times.  He's done some digging in the garden, but I have no idea what he's found (or hidden) there.

I think Bill is spending the winter on my property as well.  Groundhogs hibernate during the winter, according to Wikipedia, which would explain why I haven't seen Bill in a few months, and why he probably didn't emerge from his burrow this morning to check whether he could see his shadow.  It was a partly cloudy, partly sunny morning, so if Freeville Bill had emerged, and if the remainder of winter were predicated on whether he saw his shadow or not, it would be a toss-up.

Why did I name him Bill?  Well, that one's pretty easy.  My parents had a groundhog that lived under their deck and tore up their yard.  They named him Bob.  So picking a name starting with a B was pretty straightforward.  But I went with Bill because I have an uncle with that name.  Uncle Bill happened to be born on Groundhog Day.  And if I do say so myself, with his round face and moustache, Uncle Bill bears some resemblance to a groundhog as well.  So it was only natural to name him Bill.

Happy Groundhog Day!