It wasn't quite the same on Alki Beach New Years Day. The annual Polar Bear Swim, organized by community activist Mark Ufkes is normally attended by more than 700 people, all running at top speed into Puget Sound for a frigid dip to shock the system and start the new year off with a bang. 

But given the pandemic, it just wasn't to be. So, Ufkes, in an announcement made in advance, said he would still be there but this time stakes with pink ribbons would designate individual spots where smaller groups could take the plunge and practice social distancing. 

The result was still funny, and full of shrieks and laughs, just on a smaller scale.

Mark's message this year was, "We get to wash away the complexities of the previous year.... and we get to bathe in the unlimited opportunities that the new year provides. It's all about attitude. You gotta buckup, get out of your comfort zone and go for whatever you want in life. If you don't go for it, it won't come to you."