Did you know that the celebration of Groundhog Day began with Pennsylvania's earliest German settlers? They brought with them the legend of Candlemas Day, which states, "For as the sun shines on Candlemas Day, so far will the snow swirl in May..."

The settlers found groundhogs to be in profusion in many parts of the state. They determined that the groundhog, resembling the European hedgehog, was a most intelligent and sensible animal and therefore decided that if the sun did appear on February 2nd, so wise an animal as the groundhog would see its shadow and hurry back into its underground home for another six weeks of winter.

Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow, so there will be six more weeks of winter weather. I'm never quite sure how much longer that is than "there will be an early spring" if he does not see his shadow.

If the winter blahs get you down, try getting out to one of our chapter's events! We would love to see you.

February meeting. Scott Butler, a usability professional with Progressive Insurance and owner of Ovo Studios, will show us how we can apply usability methods easily and cheaply. He will introduce simple and effective ways to get the feedback you need to improve the usability and quality of your products. More information.

Upcoming events

• 2/9/2005: Webinar, "Adobe Acrobat 7.0"
• 2/10/2005: Monthly meeting, Scott Butler on Usability Testing (see above)
• 2/16/2005: Webinar, "Global Diversity: Cross-cultural Communication Awareness"
• 2/17/2005: Networking Luncheon, Reserve Inn, 30 W. Streetsboro St., Hudson
• 3/9/2005: Webinar, "That's a Good Question!"
• 3/10/2005: Monthly meeting, Georgia Roeming on "Translation: A Writer's Guide" at the Holiday Inn in Independence

National conference is coming soon! Experiencing Technical Communication, STC's 52nd Annual Conference, will be held May 8-11, 2005 in Seattle, Washington. More information.

Employment committee improves our job listings. Brian Baddour reports on how some behind-the-scenes work has improved our chapter's job listing process. Full story.

STC national elections coming soon. The annual STC election will have choices for both candidates for office and for changes to the ByLaws of the international Society. Full story.

January meeting wrap-up. Paul Hanisko of Master Printing treated NEO STC to a fast-paced standing room only presentation about printing documents. Full story.

Time to renew those memberships! We hope you will stay with us! Full story.

President's column. Kim Lindsey reminds us to renew our memberships and vote in the upcoming STC election. Full story.

Hot job opportunities. Check out some of the recent postings on our jobs page. Full story.

Web site review: Engrish.com provides a humorous reminder of what can happen when design takes precedence over content. Full story.

The Helpline. Some web sites that provide help for the color-impaired. Full story.

Congratulations to our new senior members! Full story.