Polar Bear Plunge

Have you ever thought about going for a swim in 48-degree water? You know, they do those polar bear swims up in Boston, New York, Michigan and other places where it is really cold this time of year, and it's fun tradition to go for a quick dip in the frigid waters of the local lake (or ocean). Well, thanks to a few crazy friends of mine, that tradition was started here in Acworth about 6 years ago, so today was no different. So what do you think I did today? Yup, sure enough I took a dip in Lake Alatoona, at a crisp 48-degree water temperature. Luckily, it was beautiful 60-degree weather outside with sunny skies, so it wasn't as difficult as prior years. And yes, that means I have done this before and when the air is cold, it just makes it that much harder.

I'm not really sure why I do this, I guess its just something fun and crazy and different, and why not start out a new year on that note? This year it was a large crowd, close to 30 or so people who "took the plunge". Proudly enough, I just dipped into my shoulders, while several other people dove in and swam around. I saw no need in actually swimming nor getting my hair wet, and when we all had enough of it, we got out after 30 seconds or so. Of course there were two crazy folks who were trying to be the winner for longest time spent in the lake, and after almost four minutes, we told them they were both winners and out they came.

So heat kind of crazy holiday tradition to you have? Anything that you do that has been passed on from your family, or have you started something new? Did you make any New Year's Resolutions this year? I didn't. Now there are certainly things I could change in my life, but I'm not quite ready to make those changes, and that is something that has to happen in order to make a resolution work. You must be ready for it. Once you are, go ahead and make the commitment. There is no need to wait until Jan. 1st to make a change in your life, any day will be fine. Some days are better than others based on what is happening in your life. but if you choose to make a change, make sure it is deep within your subconscious mind. If you don't truly want or believe in something, it won't happen. Daily affirmations, visualizations, and meditation or prayer can make these changes happen.

Happy New Year, happy swimming, and have a wonderful 2012!