Hanukkah on the Beach (Chicago, IL)

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

28th of Kislev -- Last night it snowed in Chicago and I wanted to capture the beauty of the lake with the snow.  It was about 17 degrees outside.

"I was trying to daydream, but my mind kept wandering."

Photographs by Vicki Polin

Music by Led Zepplin - "Thank you"


It was a cold November day. I think it was around 30 degrees. While I was walking I noticed a woman undressing and getting ready to go for a swim in the lake. When I asked her if she was OK? She responded in a thick Russian accent. This isn't cold. I take a swim every day, even in the heart of winter.

Gillson Beach (Wilmette, IL)

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

Growing up this was one of my favorite places to hang with my friends.

Music: Fiddler on the Roof - "Far from the home I love"

Beaches - Walking Along The Shore

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

I needed to go for a long walk today, so I strolled along various beaches.

Music by Jewel - "You were meant for me"

Sunset Over Lake Michigan - Shabbat Shalom

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

The sun was setting so I had to pull over to capture the moment.

Music: Fiddler on the Roof - "Sabbath Prayer"

The Innocence of Childhood

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

I stopped by the beach to capture the waves on a cold and stormy day in Chicago. My thoughts were with a friend, who is struggling with some childhood abuse issues. As I was taking these pictures, a particular song from Fiddler on the Roof kept playing in my head. As I put this video together it all just seemed to fit together.

Music: Fiddler on the Roof - Chava Ballet Sequence.

A Cold November Day At Montrose Harbor (Chicago, IL)

© (2010) Filmed by Vicki Polin
It was a cold November afternoon that I went to the harbor to capture the waves.

Strolling Around The Bird Sanctuary of Montrose Harbor (Chicago, IL)

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

This is for my friends who are feeling traumatized after they vote today. It's so sad and scary the choices we have been given. Hope this helps to get you out of that voting funk.

It was a beautiful fall day when I went for a stroll in the bird sanctuary in Montrose Harbor in Chicago. It was so odd that I heard so many birds, but never saw any.

Music by Don McLean - Babylon

Birds at an Evanston Beach

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

As I walked along the beach I took time to capture the moment on a brisk fall day.

Music by Joan Baez - Strange River

Walking Along the Lake

© (2010) photographs by Vicki Polin
Went of a long walk along the lake on a very windy day


Music: Suzanne Vega "Toms Diner"

Jewish Survivors of Sexual Abuse/Assault are NEVER ALONE!

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

Yesterday while going on my daily walk I took the following photographs that I put up on YouTube. As I was taking them I kept hearing the song "Castle of the King" in my head and started thinking about the hundreds or maybe thousands of Jewish Survivors I've spoken to over the years. So many of those who have been sexually abuse/assaulted shared with me how they felt as if they didn't fit within any Jewish community. Many stating that they felt that because they were sexually violated that their communities saw them as damaged goods, not worthy of being apart of a place they once felt was home. Others felt as if they were just outcasts or misfits.

As we all know, so many Jewish survivors of sex crimes have walked away from observing in the way they once did, stopped practicing altogether or have converted to other faiths. Every time I hear the song "Castle of the King" I'm reminded of this plight; for that reason I am dedicating this film clip to them, to let them know that they do belong, that they are loved and are not ALONE!

I hope you find this film clip healing!

Music by Ayelet HaShachar - Castle of the King
Location: Grosse Point Lighthouse (Evanston, IL)

Downtown Chicago from the Adler Planetarium

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

I wandered around the grounds just outside of the Planetarium and the 12th St. Beach, where you can see Adler Planetarium, Soldier's field, Field Museum, Burnham Harbor, Navy Pier, the John Hancock Building, Sears Tower, Mc Cormick Place, Standard Oil Building, Steel Factories in Gary, IN, Grant Park, Northerly Island and much more.

Music by Paco Pena - Granadinas

Sunset on Sheridan Rd - Between Chicago and Evanston

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

I ended up walking up Sheridan Road just as the fog was lifting and the sun was setting. Absolutely perfect time for picture taking. It was sort of eery watching the sunset over the cemetery, and then this song by Joan Baez started playing in my head as I began to remember various things from my childhood.

Music By Joan Baez - The Dream Song

Messages in the Sand (Chicago, IL)

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

It was so strange that two blocks away from Lake Michigan it was a bright sunny day, yet by the shore it was incredibly foggy.

There's times I take pictures and put music together with the photographs and it just comes out perfect. This batch of pictures is one of those times it happened. The pictures are in the sequence that I took them. The way it went with the music was spontaneous.

These pictures were created in honor of everyone involved in the Anti-Rape Movement

Music by Ayelet HaShachar - Darashti Et Hashem

Buckingham Fountain - Downtown Chicago

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

Had a few minutes to stroll around Buckingham Fountain

Quick Trip to Springfield - Capital of Illinois

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

Here's pictures from my 20 minute walk on the street that Abraham Lincoln Lived on.

Music by Mystic Warriors

Strolling Along Touhy Beach (Rogers Park - Chicago)

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin
A childhood friend asked me to take pictures of Touhy Beach, one of her old stomping grounds as a child. It was a beautiful fall day, with temperatures in the lower 50's.

Music from the movie - Somewhere In Time

Summers End - Bahaii Temple (Wilmette, IL

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

I took a stroll through the gardens of the Bahaii Temple, knowing this was near the end of the life of the garden for the year.

Music from the movie "Somewhere in Time" - Old woman

Surfing - Chicago Style (Rogers Park - Touhy Beach)

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

I was standing at Touhy Beach. The surfers were launching somewhere between Jarvis Beach and where I was standing. They were going out at least a mile out into the lake. It was about 52 degrees out by the lake or cooler.
I'm still learning how to take action shots, so some of the pictures are a bit fuzzy.

Music by Dick Dale - Ghostrider in the Ski

Farwell Pier and Beach (Rogers Park - Chicago, IL)

© (2010) Photographs by Vicki Polin

Everyday I go out for walks for exercise and am trying to visit different places in the Chicagoland area each time I go. I often take my camera with me to document the beauty I see.

I was looking up the history of the Farwell Pier and learned that it was originally built by JV Farwell, prior to the great Chicago Fire. It was a part of his estate, which at the time was NOT a part of the city.

Music by Jewel - Who Will Save Your Soul