Punxsutawney Phil wore Reggie White jersey and danced with Eagles fans at Reading Terminal Market

In a corner of Reading Terminal Market Thursday afternoon, dozens of Eagles fans danced to the “Pennsylvania Polka” and “Motownphilly” with a Punxsutawney Phil mascot dressed in a Reggie White jersey to celebrate Groundhog Day and get pumped up for the Eagles Super Bowl run.

No, the previous sentence was not generated by a state-sponsored AI bot. This is real life in Philly a little more than a week before the Eagles head to the Super Bowl. And it is glorious.

“I love this! It’s a Philly thing. It’s the way we act, it’s what we do, it’s us,” said Shelia English, 73, of Upper Darby, who stopped to dance. “Nobody else got it. It’s not a Jersey thing. It’s not a Virginia thing. It’s a Philly thing.”

The dancing Punxsutawney Phil mascot belongs to the Pennsylvania General Store, whose Reading Terminal Market location he danced in front of Thursday. The mascot is not affiliated with the real prognosticating groundhog, but he is “the cousin from Philadelphia,” said Ingrid Gendall-Conrad, spokesperson for the store.

“We just think this is such a unique and fun PA- centric holiday and wanted to join in on the fun with our own fun twist and let our local pride fly,” she said.

Those who danced with Phil — from kids to senior citizens and from cops to men in business suits — were rewarded with a free cookie, whether they danced for 10 seconds or two minutes.

“I get a cookie? I would have done that for free!” one man said.

Punxsutawney Phil’s playlist consisted solely of tunes from or relating to Philly, Pennsylvania, and the Eagles. Of course there was Elton John’s “Philadelphia Freedom” and Hall & Oates’ “You Make My Dreams Come True,” but there was also the Eagles fight song and Steve Miller Band’s “Fly Like an Eagle.”

While some mistook Phil for a bear, and others didn’t even realize it was Groundhog Day, for many, it didn’t seem to matter why there was a mascot dancing in a food market. He was dancing in an Eagles jersey, and that was good enough reason to join in on the party.

“I love it! Philly fans are the best fans around,” said Ronald Amos, 61, of Northeast Philadelphia. “We know how to celebrate and have a good time.”

In many ways, Punxsutawney Phil’s 90-minute dance party was perfectly Philly. It brought strangers together, it showed Philadelphians can party anywhere at any time, and it was really weird.

It was so weird, in fact, that half the people who walked by didn’t bat an eye, because this is Philly, and stuff like this happens here all the time.

Go Birds.