Mohawk Valley Almanac
November 2021
Holidays and Observances in November
November 1 All Saints’ Day
November 2 All Souls’ Day; Election Day
November 4 Will Rogers Day, Oklahoma
November 7 Daylight Savings Time ends at 2:00 A.M.
November 10 U.S. Marine Corps Birthday
November 11 Veterans’ Day; Remembrance Day in Canada
November 12 Elizabeth Cady Stanton Day
November 19 Discovery Day, Puerto Rico
November 25 Thanksgiving Day
November 26 Black Friday; Acadian Day, Louisiana
November 27 Small Business Saturday
November 28 First Sunday in Advent; Chanukah begins at Sundown
November 29 Cyber Monday
November has cloudy skies, falling temperatures, cold rain or snow and shorter days. After Daylight Savings Time begins on November 7, sunset remains before 5 P.M. until early February. October had exceptionally warm temperatures, often 10-15° above normal. November average high temperature of 48°F and low of 31°F it will seem much colder.
Most years, November mornings are often below freezing as the cold season begins. The first Measurable snow begins in November, a strong preview of winter, especially in the Adirondack North Country and snow belt areas. Some years the cold and snow continue without any interruption. However, it is not yet cold or snowy enough for skiing or snowmobiling which begin in mid-December or early January.
While many indoor winter sports such as swimming, wrestling, volleyball and gymnastics are important to some, ice hockey and basketball are the really popular sports locally. High school basketball is an important social event, especially in smaller villages and towns. Many in the area also closely follow the Syracuse Orange. But Utica has long been a hockey town. The Utica College Pioneers and the American Hockey League Utica Comets, affiliated now with the New Jersey Devils, are both very popular. While we are still under often confusing restrictions about mask mandates and size of indoor crowds, it is as yet unclear how much, if any, impact the Covid pandemic will have with possible canceled games or limits on crowd size.
Election Day on November 2 in odd numbered years are primarily local in nature, for city and village councils and county legislatures. Though these governments may affect us on a daily basis more than federal government, the voter turn out is typically much less than during Presidential election years or even numbered years when Congressional and Senate elections are held.
Veteran’s Day on November 11 has some outdoor celebrations, often sparsely attended related to the weather. The past few years, along the Utica Parkway there has been a welcome display of 1,000 flags during the first part of November, an impressive remembrance of those who have bravely served our country.
Thanksgiving Day on November 26 is a semi-religious national day of Thanksgiving, with family gatherings and traditional foods. While turkey remains the most popular food, different ethnicities and vegetarians celebrate with their own traditional foods quite different from turkey, potatoes, squash, cranberries, and pumpkin pie. This is closely followed by Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday, among the busiest shopping days of the year, kicking off the holiday season.
Unfortunately, we are still in the midst of a major pandemic. Many people think, with some justification, that it is not yet quite the time to attend large, close indoor gatherings or to travel. There are many often confusing (and sometimes unenforced) mask mandates on public transportation and some (but not other) schools and universities, sporting events, concerts and theater productions. Public events and large family gatherings will occur on a greater scale than during the “lock downs” of last year, but yet likely on a smaller scale than in 2019.
Despite strong and often sincere differences of opinion on mask and vaccine mandates, one should respect mask and vaccine mandates on airlines, work and other public places and events. To have a sense of public civility return would be something to be truly thankful for as we begin the holiday season.
In the Night Skies
Rise and Set times of Sun, Moon and Visible Planets, November 1, 2020
Sun Rises 7:37 A.M. Sets 5:51 P.M.
Waxing Gibbous Moon Rises 3:21 A.M. East Sets 4:35 P.M. West
Mercury Rises 6:09 A.M. Southeast Venus 8:09 P.M. Southwest
Mars Not Visible
Jupiter Sets 1:05 A.M.. West
Saturn Saturn 11:41 P.M. Southwest
Moon Phases for November
November 4 New Moon Rises 7:09 A.M. East Sets 5:53 P.M. West
November 11 First Quarter Rises 1:49 P.M. SE Sets 11:37 P.M. SW November 19 Full Beaver Moon Rises 4:46 P.M. NE Sets 7:11 A.M. NW
November 27 Last Quarter Rises Yesterday Sets 1:13 P.M. NW
The Crescent Moon joins Venus in the southwest on the 7th. Jupiter, Saturn and the Moon form a triangle on the 10th, and the Moon is below Jupiter on the 11th. Venus is at its farthest southwest, instead of the usual west in mid-November. On the night of the 18th-19th, there is a nearly total lunar eclipse. The Moon becomes a coppery red as it is 98% eclipsed in the pre-dawn hours low in the western sky.
We make the semiannual time change back to Eastern Standard Time (EST) from Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) at 2 A.M. Sunday November 7 and sunset comes before 5 P.M. until the Cross Quarter Day (Groundhog’s Day / Candlemas) on February 2.
