[ameliaevard]

This is my last blog post for this class, which means I’ll have finished my very first class at UC Davis. Exciting! The quarter is almost over, and it definitely went by fast. Before coming to Davis, I didn’t really believe all the people who would exclaim or make a big deal out of how fast the quarter system is, but now I know I should have. Looking back on what we did in this seminar, I really enjoyed it. Even if I didn’t like all the activities we did every week, I am glad to have had the opportunity to take a class that radically departs from the typical lecture hall setting and gave me a chance to get to know other students.   

[mmaands]

There is never a lack of options here in Davis. Whether it comes to food, clothes, bikes, stores! It’s every hungry individuals dream. Whether your stomach is craving Thai, Italian, American, Chinese, and dessert food. Davis is ready to accommodate everyone and anyone’s cravings. For a small town,...

[ameliaevard]

I definitely agree with you about there being tons of interesting food options here in Davis. What’s your favorite that you’ve tried so far? I’ve been meaning to get sushi, did you think Fuji’s was good? I’ve eaten at a couple downtown restaurants, but there are so many I’ll probably never try them all the whole time I live here! Somewhere I enjoyed a lot was Crepeville. I got breakfast there with my parents when they were visiting. It reminded me a lot of a place we have at home called Crepevine, I actually thought they were the same place at first.

[ameliaevard]

Last week our theme for class was the “cafe culture” in Davis. I would definitely describe myself as a coffee person, so I have to say this was my favorite week theme by far. We met for class at Mishka’s Cafe, a coffee shop by the Amtrak station that is perhaps the most well-known in Davis. Nearly every seat in the crowded room was filled with students studying, socializing, or reading. Mishka’s is known for being a good study spot when you want to get off campus and away from the library or dorms, something I’ll definitely keep in mind next time I have a lot of work to do.

I ordered a latte before class (with soymilk, which to my disappointment they charge extra for). At around $4.00, its definitely more expensive than Starbucks, although I guess they count on Davis’ intense corporate aversion to make up for that. And according to their website and coffee cup sleeve, all the coffee they serve is “guilt free” because it is fair trade sourced. Fair trade is a movement that aims to help producers and workers in developing countries and to promote sustainability. However, in recent years there has been a lot of controversy and critique surrounding the practice, and in particular the certification body of Fair Trade USA. They have begun to extend certification eligibility to more farms–– including plantations, instead of remaining limited to small farms and cooperatives. Fair trade certification has in some instances become simply a marketing tool, which makes me very interested to find out more about Mishka’s sourcing process and where their coffee comes from.

International coffee relations aside, I enjoyed my latte and returned to Mishka’s on Saturday with some friends. One of my friends from home came up for a visit, and as a fellow coffee lover wanted to check out the coffee shops Davis had to offer. We went to Mishka’s in the morning after checking out the Farmer’s Market, and sat outside in the nice weather (in the infamous lighter-than-a-dog aluminum chairs). This time I just got brewed coffee, which I liked maybe more than my latte from Friday. The medium roast was delicious, with a really balanced flavor.

Mishka’s blends good coffee with a classic coffee shop space. I know I’ll be spending a lot more time there throughout my time here at Davis.

[ameliaevard]

The second guest speaker for class this past week was Corey Larue, an artist and former Davis student. He talked to us about art, his own personal story, and his journal “The Oddity,” which I received a copy of. He had a lot of interesting things to say about growing up in Oakland and getting started doing art with graffiti. I wish he had talked more about his magazine. I wanted to know how he got it started and why does it, as well as where he gets submissions. I really like small publications like this, in highschool I was an editor on my school’s Literary Magazine, which although it was called the Literary Magazine published mostly art and photography done by students. It was very similar in format to Corey’s publication, so I wish we had had a chance to hear more about it. His magazine reminds me of zines, which are small, self-published magazines that deal with all kinds of topics. They can be on anything from cooking to music to how to dye your hair pink. They are usually hand-drawn and assembled, and have a very DIY aesthetic, which Corey really emphasized in his talk to us. I’m looking forward to perusing this issue of The Oddity more, and hope to learn more about small Davis publications in the future, because they really are the future of alternative literature.

[ameliaevard]

This week for class we met in our computer lab classroom in the basement of Olson. While I was initially disappointed we wouldn’t be biking off somewhere exciting for the afternoon, it ended up being an interesting class. We had two guest speakers, the first of whom was from the Davis Shakespeare Ensemble. He talked about what exactly it is they do as well as his experience working for and forming the group. He has extensive experience in theater and doing all kinds of Shakespeare productions, including working at the Ashland Shakespeare Festival and one in Utah. I found that really interesting because several years ago in middle school I went on a trip around Oregon with my parents. The purpose of our trip was actually to deliver a little fishing boat we had inherited to my uncle who lives in a houseboat on the river in Portland, since he had a lot more use for it than we did living in our Bay Area suburban town. Since you have to drive so slowly when towing a boat behind you on the highway, we decided to make it a road trip by necessity. We traveled to several places, spending time with my Uncle exploring Portland as well as stopping to go to the Shakespeare festival in Ashland. It was an experience that I really enjoyed. We see Othello in a big, outdoor theater and also explored the cute downtown area. The theater we saw Othello in is called the “Allen Elizabethan Theatre” and is apparently one of America’s oldest Elizabethan theaters. I remember there being very minimal set design when I saw the play, which allowed the focus to remain entirely on the actors beneath the stars. I imagine the outdoor Shakespeare productions here in the Davis Arboretum probably have a similar feel.  

Here is a photo of my parents in Lithia Park, a beautiful park in Ashland.

A photo of the outdoor stage where I saw Othello. 

[cmcaulfield-blog]

The town of Davis to me has quickly become what id like to think of as a hidden gem. Going into the school year I was excited to head to college but definitely a little bit skeptical because every time I would tell people, “I’m going to Davis” when asked the question where I’m heading for...

[ameliaevard]

I totally relate to having always passed Davis on the freeway on the way to more exciting places like Tahoe, but never actually stopped and explored. I actually have always had a lot of friends who lived here, but I never visited them. In fact, several of those friends just moved to Berkeley and adopted the slogan "Death before Davis" because they think it is so boring. Of course if you've lived somewhere your whole life you'll find it boring! I agree that Davis has a lot of awesome things to explore and discover and I'm looking forward to my adventures here. 

[alyssaindavis]

I’ve always wanted to ride this carousel. It reminds me of the one in Central Park in New York. I think there is one there but I really just think that because I saw it in the movie “Now You See Me”. Maybe that’s where they got the idea to have a carousel here (from NYC, not the movie). It seems random to me but it’s still pretty cool.

[ameliaevard]

I really want to ride the carousal, too. Maybe we should do that for class one day. It probably has an interesting story about why its here in Davis! Have you ever been on the big carousal at the Boardwalk in Santa Cruz? That one is really cool.

[ameliaevard]

I have been a Unitarian Universalist since I was very young, so naturally when I came to Davis I joined the campus group. I was expecting to meet new people and maybe have some cool experiences, what I did not expect was the opportunity to get lost in a 40 acre corn maze in the dark. Today I went…

[jannyexploresdavis]

Woah! This looks awesome! Seems kinda scary though considering that you had to figure out how to get out of that thing in the dark. I know there’s also a corn maze in Dixon. I don’t know if that’s the one you went to but I heard a lot of stuff about that as well. I definitely want to experience it one of these days. 

[ameliaevard]

Yeah, the one I went to was in Dixon! It's just about a 15 minute drive from here, you should definitely check it out before the end of the season. But you should go during the day, the dark was scary. 

[ameliaevard]

Last night I met some old friends who live in Davis for dinner at their favorite Davis spot, Burgers and Brews. It was extremely busy, especially considering that it was a Wednesday night. But the food was really good, I would definitely recommend you guys all check it out. I had a tofu burger which was very tasty.

Prior to dinner in downtown, I had a chance to walk around the Wednesday farmer’s market for the first time. There were tons of families with their kids hanging out and getting dinner, something I’d definitely like to do at some point. I wandered up and down the main part, eating lots of fruit samples and looking at what there was to buy. I saw all kinds of vegetables, local honey and baked goods. I’m glad I got to check it out, because yesterday was the last Wednesday market of the year. Luckily, the Saturday one is year round!

[ameliaevard]

This past week for class we went to the Hattie Weber Museum. Apparently the museum used to be the Davis public library, although it was a very small building so it must not have been too big of a library. The museum had all kinds of photos and artifacts about the development of Davis, ranging from Native American baskets to photographs of all the churches currently in Davis. It had a very charming, home-made feel to it, from the handmade display boards to the carefully arranged old typewriters. It was pretty packed full of historical Davis things. What caught my eye most were the older bikes they had on display, and the accompanying information about UC Davis. Since we're UC Davis students, I found that historical information most relatable and interesting to look at. I also really like bikes, and was amused that the bike they had on display "typical of students in the '60s" looked very similar to my own (it was even the same color) and the bikes that many other students still ride here. I guess that is a testament to their durability.

  The other thing that drew my attention was the historical photos of Davis. I am from a small town in the Bay Area that was previously filled mostly with apricot orchards. My dad and his family are from there, and the town is proud of its agricultural heritage. I've heard stories from my aunt about getting a job picking apricots in the summer, and our local history museum looks much like the Hattie Weber museum, with lots of old photos and dioramas. Because I've been exposed to this aspect of my town's history for most of my life, it was neat to be able to compare and contrast it with what we learned about the history of Davis. 

The museum is located on the very edge of the grassy park where the Davis Farmer's Market is held on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and is open only during the same hours as the market, making them a nice complement to each other. I suggest checking it out for a neat piece of Davis history. 

[alisonlouie-frs-deactivated2014]

Joe Wenderoth mentioned that Davis is not a part of America. He said that when you enter Davis, you stop being in America, and when you exit the city limits, you return into America.

Wenderoth is originally from Baltimore, Maryland. I don’t know much about Baltimore, but from the pictures that...

[ameliaevard]

I was also thinking about Joe Wenderoth's comment about the Dollar Tree because I went there yesterday. I'm not sure if he was joking or not, but I didn't feel unsafe at all. And I got a cool shirt at Goodwill!

[ameliaevard]

Maize Maze

I have been a Unitarian Universalist since I was very young, so naturally when I came to Davis I joined the campus group. I was expecting to meet new people and maybe have some cool experiences, what I did not expect was the opportunity to get lost in a 40 acre corn maze in the dark. Today I went with the UU Campus Ministry group to the Guinness World Record-holding World's Largest Corn Maze, hilariously named Cool Patch Pumpkins. As you might guess it also has an attached pumpkin patch, but I decided I probably wouldn't have room in my dorm room for a giant jack'o'lantern, even if that would be fun. Although technically in Dixon I think the corn maze counts as a Davis cultural experience. We went in the evening since that's our club's usual meeting time, but it definitely made the maze a lot spookier than if it had been sunny out. I personally forgot to bring a flashlight so I had to stick close to the group so I didn't fall in one of the many ruts between the corn rows. Armed with flashlights and maps, we tried to find our way through the massive labyrinth. I had never been to a real corn maze like this before; I think my only related experience was a children't hay bale maze when I was younger. This was much different! I was surprised at just how tall the corn was. The field doesn't just serve as a maze, too. According to the back of my map they actually do harvest it in November. They also ask you not to swear because "the corn has ears." In the end, my group got tired and cold after about two hours running around the maze. We took a "shortcut" and cheated our way to the exit. Based on the experience of a few people who had gone last year, if we had stayed and actually finished the whole maze without cheating it probably would have taken a few more hours. It turns out the world's biggest corn maze might be a little too big, after all!

[alisonlouie-frs-deactivated2014]

Save the date! November 8th!

My cousin’s band is going on tour and making a stop in Davis. They’ll be playing at the Robot Rocket Residence (633 M Street, corner of M and Colgate).

If anyone is interested, here’s the Facebook event link (don’t let the cover photo scare you away…) 

https://www.facebook.com/events/686642801347614/?notif_t=plan_edited

[ameliaevard]

Nice! That looks really cool, I'd love to check it out. What kind of music do they play?

[alisonlouie-frs-deactivated2014]

Found this behind-the-scene video of the Davis Mural Team putting up the “Still Life with Billie Holiday” mural! 

[mmaands]

That’s so awesome I didn’t realize how many people came together to do this piece, I assumed it was one person. Cool find!

[ameliaevard]

Wow, that was really neat seeing the process of creating a mural and just how many people are involved. I never knew they use a projector to get the design on the wall! Although I guess that makes sense especially for this particular mural since it is so precise and supposed to look like a regular painting, as opposed to the colorful splashy one which I doubt anyone traced on meticulously beforehand. 

[ameliaevard]

This is a "poem film" from several years ago that I found on Joe Wenderoth's youtube channel. I enjoy his writing style, but this video also appealed to me because of his speaking intonation and style. The slowness of his voice adds a weightiness. I hope to find more of his poetry that I can read online. 

[ameliaevard]

This week we met partially in the classroom and spent the second half going to the poet Joe Wenderoth's house. He writes poetry and collects a lot of art in his house, much of it historic racist art found by him and his wife. He also holds poetry readings in his unique backyard, which I have attached a photo of. His house is, as he described it, an "artist house" full of eclectic art and clutter to foster creativity. He lives in east Davis, so I think my favorite part about class this week was the longer bike ride we had to take to get there. We passed the Goodwill, which I plan to explore later this week. As freshmen we spend so much of our time just on campus or in downtown, I thought it was great to get out of that bubble and see some of the rest of Davis.  

[alisonlouie-frs-deactivated2014]

Davis Art Walk (aka THE FIRST IN THE NATION TRANSMEDIA ART WALK!!!!) 10/11/13

[ameliaevard]

Some more photos of the art in Davis. The innovative "transmedia" component of the art walk means you can scan codes with your phone to find out more about the pieces. They link to videos and other information that gives context to the piece. I unfortunately wasn't able to try it while walking around because my phone doesn't have the capability to read the RFID chips.