"Hundreds of hipsters in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, are gearing up to watch a rented groundhog whisper in the ear of ex-mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa in McCarren Park on Saturday to see whether they'll be getting six more weeks of winter. The loopy local twist ahead of Feb. 2, Groundhog Day's official date, is the brainchild of 26-year-old event organizer Riley Callanan - who shelled out $2,250 to rent the varmint from an animal rental service."
""Last year when I passed off the black-tailed prairie dog as the groundhog, it was $550 for the hour,'' the political journalist told The Post. This year, Callanan is upgrading to the real thing - who like his most famous groundhog brethren Punxsutawney Phil is from Pennsylvania - after her wildly popular first time publicly celebrating the day last year drew 500 people and turned into a bar crawl."
"Sliwa told The Post he's happy to join the jaunt, despite "not getting many votes in Williamsburg. "Millennials, a lot of GenZers, they're trying to keep this tradition alive, and I obviously want to applaud them for doing it,'' he said. But the GOPer said he will not be holding up the groundhog "Lion King"-style, instead leaving that duty to the groundhog's trainer who will be on hand."
Hundreds of people in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, will gather in McCarren Park to watch a rented groundhog whisper in the ear of ex-mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa to predict whether there will be six more weeks of winter. Organizer Riley Callanan paid $2,250 to rent the groundhog after previously using a black-tailed prairie dog; last year’s event drew about 500 people and turned into a bar crawl. The Brooklyn groundhog carries the nickname Wolfgang after a public vote. The event logged over 1,400 RSVPs on the Patiful app and drew strong millennial and Gen Z interest. Sliwa declined to hold the animal directly, citing lack of handling skill and concern about past mishaps.
Read at New York Post
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