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I Was Hesitant To Raise My Hand
“Has anyone visited Israel?" That was the question my professor asked to the class as we were discussing cultural differences. The question seemed innocent. Academic. In good faith. Then someone laughed. Not loudly. Not aggressively. Just enough. A few others joined in. I was hesitant to raise my hand. but I did anyway. I was the only one in my class that did. Maybe the laughter didn’t mean anything, I thought to myself. Or maybe it did. Even though I knew I was safe, I
Feb 282 min read


Poems From Aba
We own two bookshelves that have inspired two homes. The mahogany stretches from the floor to the heavens, decorated with classic English novels...
Feb 288 min read


Her Maiden Voyage Excerpt
The sky was unnervingly clear after four days of nothing but fog and clouds. I wandered the ship's halls, learning and relearning the passages that wound through and around the heart, like veins pumping blood...
Feb 2814 min read


How the Spirit of Purim transcends into Rocky Horror
I recently attended UCSB’s The Rocky Horror Picture Show Shadow Cast production,
which UCSB’s Creatures of the Night Production Company puts on once every quarter...
Feb 282 min read


“These are crazy times”
ICE is attacking the American dream, politicized AI burner accounts are arguing with each other on X about it, all the while the president promises to find the gold from Fort Knox.
Feb 283 min read


Diving into Jewish Studies with Corelle Gabay
President of UCSB’s Jewish sisterhood, Achayot, and board member of just about every Jewish organization at UCSB and beyond, Corelle Gabay got together with Fig and Vine to tell our community about her experience in Israel at the Mayanot Institute for Jewish Studies over Winter Break...
Feb 284 min read


When Hate Crosses the Threshold: Antisemitism and the Targeting of Jewish Greek Life
In the early hours of Shabbat morning on Jan. 10, the UC Santa Barbara residential AEPi house was trespassed on and vandalized with a swastika on a bathroom mirror...
Jan 303 min read


Finding Fulfillment: A Mission to Clean Up the Golan Heights
Endless rolling hills, refreshing swimming holes, ancient volcanic geology, and centuries of history. The Golan Heights is a stunning breath away from the hustle and bustle of Israel’s center, and a place I am lucky to call home. While my family has been settling into our new house on Kibbutz Kfar Haruv, I have been exploring the southern Golan and embarking on as many hiking trails as I can. Though I am thrilled to report back with sights of impressive basalt columns and tow
Jan 305 min read


Meet Daniel Dunietz
Food and Judaism have long been connected — from latkes and matzo brei, to jachnun, and yes, even gefilte fish....
Jan 303 min read


January Recipe!
Winter Quarter is famously the quarter in which everyone’s immune systems fail in tandem and the inevitable flu or cold makes its way around campus and takes out the entire student body...
Jan 301 min read


New Year, New Jews!
For this New Year’s horoscope, I’ve dived deep into the stars, searching for all the shining signs of what this year could hold for the readers of Fig and Vine...
Jan 304 min read


Kiddush Cups and Red Solo Cups: A Take on Shabbat in Isla Vista
There’s something so absurd, yet beautiful about Friday night shabbat in Isla Vista. If you have ever been in Isla Vista on a Friday night, you would have noticed the theatrical display of drunk college students wandering the street, loud music, people moving in every direction, and packed parties in every corner of the square-mile neighborhood...
Nov 30, 20254 min read
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