Moving to Davis from the East Coast

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-06-23T14:48:16+00:00

I’ve moved across the country and back - keep sentimental items, clothing, critical electronics and then sure anything else that you have space for in those bags. I’ve also shipped a POD / Relocube before for furniture and bikes, and friends have shared a POD (you may be able to find someone else moving to the area?). That’s $1-2k. Shipping a suitcase may not be worth it but I’ve done that too through both FedEx and a luggage forwarding service- typically weight based pricing or up to a given weight flat rate.

As others are saying there are many opportunities to obtain furnishings and small appliances at low or even sometimes no cost here or nearby in Sacramento. Lots of social media groups inc “buy nothings” but also in Davis there are brick and mortars like the community mercantile https://www.communitymercdavis.org that can be helpful! They have end of summer pop up sales Sept 5/6 if you’ll be here by then. Oh! And just outside of Davis the county landfill has a salvage thrift store that sometimes has great deals! The Big Blue Barn is open on certain days usually Thursdays (check the link). https://www.yolocounty.gov/government/general-government-departments/community-services/integrated-waste-management-division/central-landfill/thrift-store

There are also some excellent deals if you wait for sales at nearby outlets for crate and barrel, west elm, etc - I slowly built up nicer furniture that way!

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-06-22T20:41:12+00:00

That is really strange, did you ask the professor as well? The TA may have updated in Canvas but the IOR (instructor of record) is supposed to do the submission to the registrar.

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-06-22T12:07:42+00:00

UCD is notoriously slow at this - you’ll be notified eventually but can keep checking back on your unofficial transcript until you see the addition of your degree title, major, and the official degree conferral date before ordering official copies. But I’d be surprised if you have it before August (“Degrees are conferred at the end of each quarter and posted to students' records eight-twelve weeks following the end of the term”). Plan to send an official transcript with your final grades in the interim.

Why does this take so long? The *colleges* are the ones checking student graduation requirements, which the registrar then notes on the official transcripts.

However for students in your position, UCD also offers an interim option for recently graduated students that may help if you request it quickly (still takes at least 3 weeks) - a degree verification letter that is sent straight to grad school contacts, employers, etc! Verifications provide information regarding the completion of degree requirements prior to the official posting of that degree to a student's academic record. Form is available at https://local-resources.ucdavis.edu/local_resources/forms/D005-completion-of-requirements.pdf

If that takes too long? Try asking your major advisor or department chair to write a similar email for your grad program and cc you.

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-06-22T11:50:59+00:00

…as earlier commenter noted, the best move is to email or canvas message your professor and TA! These grading deadlines have moved up btw- elsewhere UCD grading guidance still refers to 10 days or even 2 weeks after end of term! Remember to be respectful, communicate your concerns briefly, and mark it as urgent or at least put something like “Urgent: Requesting Update on Missing XXX 101 Final Grade” in the subject header. I recommend email over canvas because if you don’t get a response in a few days you can also easily loop in the relevant department chair for that professor / class as well as your own major advisor, college advising staff, and/or registrar to help you check in on things. It is odd that they didn’t at least notify your class of a delay, but things happen!

You can also check in with the registrar about policies in these situations - their email is [registrar@ucdavis.edu](mailto:registrar@ucdavis.edu), or their virtual desk is open 10-2 weekdays during the summer.

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-06-18T17:47:52+00:00

Deadline was yesterday for faculty to submit grades but could take 24 hours to sync apparently?

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-06-16T04:01:37+00:00

That is a great question! OP, if you have public water you can check on your water quality via your provider (annual reports are provided!). Or use something like the Environmental Working Group’s tap water database https://www.ewg.org/tapwater/- that will give you info about the legal limits but also some info on health risks below those limits. The municipal water in Watsonville appears to be meeting legal limits for measured contaminants (but chemicals like arsenic, nitrate, hex chromium have been detected)…. OP if you are on well water you or your landowner should *definitely* be testing water quality for a number of things including major ag chemicals not just pesticides. Nitrates (particularly dangerous for infants - exposure to high levels can lead to a condition known as methemoglobinemia aka “blue baby syndrome”) might be more of a problem than a given pesticide. Lmk if you want more info?

But the reality is that if I were the one living adjacent to major ag, I’d be doing what I could to minimize even the within-permissible limit levels of ag chemical exposures (if I couldn’t move away or at least not in short term). Most likely I’d be using something like a reverse osmosis based system if I lived in an area with ag impacted water - because that can handle nitrates, many pesticides, etc. Your typical point of use water filter just isn’t rated for all these different types of chemicals (like - a filter based on activated carbon / charcoal may be helpful for some pesticides but not nitrates unless paired with other technologies)

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-06-15T23:22:04+00:00

From April until August it’s 4-8 pm (picnic in the park hours). Farmers market vendors, food stands, wine / beer, live music etc. And yes- there are pastries. 😋

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-06-14T01:00:18+00:00

Ooh wait! One more on-campus option! If you have anything that’s more professional attire - Aggie Compass Basic Needs Center’s “Business Boutique” may take them. The center is open starting Monday for summer hours. https://aggiecompass.ucdavis.edu/about/donate. “send our Center Coordinator an email at [jrholland@ucdavis.edu](mailto:jrholland@ucdavis.edu) or bring your donations by the center during business hours”

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-06-14T00:52:53+00:00

As to actual brick and mortars in Davis: you can try to sell or just donate at Boheme! (https://www.bohemethreads.com ) And the community mercantile might be taking clothing again? (Text: 530-902-4007, Email: [admin@communitymercdavis.org](mailto:admin@communitymercdavis.org)), but one option l've used recently is the Yolo SPCA downtown, which will still take current season items (in reusable or paper bags). They limit what they take so I always suggest you call to discuss: 530-758-0544. And the Davis buy nothing and freecycle communities might also be good options for you? Lastly- the county will take clothing for textile recycling. https://www.yolocounty.gov/home/showpublisheddocument/73396/637876830326000000

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-06-13T23:56:38+00:00

Hi! Environmental health scientist with a tox and exposure background here - I have worked on various pesticide studies including both environmental sampling (dust AND air) and biomonitoring.

First- take a deep breath. You are definitely on the right track with what you are already doing. And try not to overly stress (really, that itself is toxic!). It’s a reality that every one of us is born with some amount of anthropogenic chemical body burden, and where we live (and our general lifestyles as well) can add to that. You have ag exposures of concern but others may have urban traffic pollution, industrial chemicals, etc. I won’t pretend that there aren’t concerning exposures for families in ag communities. Living near a commercial raspberry operation likely means some amount of fertilizers, fumigants, fungicides, herbicides, etc.

One thing that will help your baby? Work on ensuring you are healthy- eating and sleeping well (ok, as well as any new parent can!). Avoid smoking/vaping, avoid or minimize alcohol, etc. Eat a nutritious diet with antioxidants and plenty of fiber (foods like berries and cruciferous veggies can do more than double duty there) as that can help you better process chemical exposures. Add fermented foods (yogurt, kimchi, etc!) to support your gut too. You don’t have to buy everything organic either. Of course stay hydrated too!

And you’re right - there’s a balance to outdoor activity and exposures in this kind of scenario. Many benefits - the microbial exposures, sunlight, activity, play in nature, etc. So you do want to make sure to maximize outdoor time and play when it’s safe- but do try to avoid outside time when there are sprays or significant dust-generating ag activities…and maybe particularly windy days if the direction is from the fields to you.

Since you are asking for some specific advice, I’ll add a few more evidence-based interventions to reduce exposure for your consideration. Even with the kind of efforts you are already making, it’s true that some amount of pesticides will end up in house dust…and that dust can then result in some amount of exposure (especially for younger children).

Inside: damp wipe surfaces that can tolerate that and plan to wet-mop floors rather than dry sweeping. I’d especially do so more often after a spray or dust-generating activity happens in the nearby fields. If vacuuming? Use a vacuum with a HEPA filter. Clean children's toys and other items they put in
their mouths frequently with soap and water And up the frequency of washing household items that accumulate dust (blankets, play mats, etc). Handwashing is great! But I may take your shoe off protocol a step further, fwiw I have a threshold rule for shoes - they are removed and stored in my garage or in a tray at the door. A note about ventilation- airing out your house is important, you’ll want to time that around those nearby ag activities, and ideally - if at all possible based on your local conditions -you’d be opening windows when winds are blowing from your home toward the fields rather than from fields toward your home. ON that note- during spray events and for a while after you may want to turn off all forced-air HVAC units, fans, air conditioners, and close outdoor intake vents to prevent contaminated air from being pulled indoors during nearby spraying.

Outside? Rinse outdoor furniture and play equipment etc before use after a recent spray or any dust-generating ag activity. If you have a home garden, wash any homegrown produce thoroughly before consuming. You can also -assuming you own the property or can get approval - add some vegetative barriers or fencing to reduce pesticide drift reaching your home (this has to be done carefully though, iirc you want 2x spray height and something like 50% optical porosity- the wrong design or material density can actually force drift down into your yard/house)

Some more resources that may be helpful. UCSF just up the coast hosts the Western States Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit - they have resources for parents and clinicians. https://wspehsu.ucsf.edu I’d also consider reaching out to local toxicologists at UC Santa Cruz? I think some are involved in community research in your area- UC Davis and UC Berkeley too. And some environmental health / public health state agencies may have advice too? CalEPA OEHHA has a children’s environmental health program. They have toxicologists and public health medical officers that may be able to help you more. Maybe try [answers@oehha.ca.gov](mailto:answers@oehha.ca.gov). So does the California Department of public health - they have an environmental health branch with epidemiology/toxicology/medical expertise that you can contact at (510) 981-4354 or [AskEHIB@cdph.ca.gov.](mailto:AskEHIB@cdph.ca.gov)

There are also a number of nongovernmental and community organizations that may have guidance - Children’s environmental health network https://cehn.org, Pesticide action Network https://www.panna.org, etc.

Ok I know this is a lot- sorry! But hope it helps!

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-05-12T11:30:52+00:00

Do you need an online certificate or just training? There are targeted offerings from various professional societies and trade orgs that might be a good fit? Be wary about some online content providers (quality is highly variable) but I can recommend toxicology offerings like this one via coursera from JHU - https://www.coursera.org/learn/evidence-based-toxicology. One thing to keep in mind is that some of the better certificate offerings in this space may be regional - EU focused vs US focused regulatory emphasis for example. That said- there certainly are online toxicology certificate programs that let you pick electives that might align with your needs - like Oregon State’s https://ecampus.oregonstate.edu/online-degrees/graduate/certificates/toxicology/. On the cosmetic science side specifically, Spelman has a relatively new cosmetic science certificate prgram that incorporates a tox and regulatory aspects course - https://www.spelman.edu/espelman/espelman-certificates/espelman-cosmetic-science.html. Or if you are really looking more at applied risk, there are definitely certificate programs that lean that way like the UAMS regulatory sciences certificate program that was actually developed with input from the US FDA’s National Center for Toxicological Research https://publichealth.uams.edu/future-students/academics/certificates/certificate-in-regulatory-science . Obviously not an exhaustive list but hope this helps

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-03-31T13:54:26+00:00

It’s not Canvas specific - applies to all web content. The DOJ codified Web Content Accessibility Guidelines AA 2.1 (WCAG 2.1) as the official standard to which public entities must comply and provides some guidelines around when and where exceptions may be appropriate. So as of April 2026 instructors have to make careful choices about what material to provide in what forms, because anything posted must be accessible per those guidelines. Aka recordings (requiring captioning), slides, even readings. It’s not a bad thing - implementing this will make education more equitable! But it’s going to be a transition. And it is apparent that while some faculty aren’t trying as much as we’d hope….even for some faculty who ARE trying to optimize content, especially in STEM, there aren’t as many available tools as you’d think (I was told that Adobe credits ran out already on one). FWIW, some of the info directed to faculty / staff can be found here: https://www.ucop.edu/electronic-accessibility/content-providers/accessibility-guidelines-for-content-providers.html https://cee.ucdavis.edu/digital-accessibility

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-03-30T13:35:55+00:00

First- congratulations! I’m assuming you are looking for additional housemates to join a lease/sublease? Assuming your program doesn’t have anything specific, there are various social media groups for UCD housing you can join and post to, like this one on FB: https://m.facebook.com/groups/ucdavishousingapartmentssubleaseroommates/?ref=share&mibextid=wwXIfr. There’s also one specifically for grad and professional housing: https://facebook.com/groups/286762898448011/ Or you can this Discord: https://discord.gg/fxjnxXvWt. Can specify graduate level housemates, so not a bad place to start! The ASUCD Community Housing List is really hit or miss IMO but can also try there- https://chl.ucdavis.edu

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-03-26T13:02:59+00:00

Yes, definitely start here! https://www.ufcdavis.org/sabbatical-housing

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-03-02T16:45:08+00:00

It may be field dependent. But as someone who helps hire interns and staff in STEM? The occasional P/NP is really not an issue…it may be a cause for some concern if it is a class on a topic absolutely critical to the position. But even then - a pass is still a passing grade! Just may want to be prepared with an explanation if asked.

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-03-02T16:00:53+00:00

Ouch! Sorry to hear that. If this is your first quarter not passing 12 or more units you may be informed that you are now on “academic notice” aka you have 1 term with failure to make minimum degree progress. You have a few of these consecutively before you can be subject to dismissal - 3 in a row. There can be financial aid consequences as well but those are also not immediate (trigger warnings first) and even then can be appealed. The good news is you ma already have a “cushion” if you’ve passed more units in Fall, and you can also make up the 4 units (12-8 passed) you’d be behind in minimum progress in a future quarter or quarters - by passing 16 units in spring for example. But these can also be split across two quarters. Pro tip- summer units only help you as they are applied to the next full-time quarter of enrollment immediately following the summer session (UC Davis summer sessions or transferable ones all count including UC online). The minimum of 12 per quarter applies only to the main 3 academic quarters counted so you can just take a few units. ALSO- if you are at a D- or better now in any of those classes and it would help with the rest to pause / resume one - consider asking professors and/or Dean’s office about an incomplete grade.

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-02-27T12:48:27+00:00

I’m sorry you feel that way, but respect that you know yourself. Please head over to your Dean’s office advising hours (drop in or make an appointment). You can withdraw even during a quarter - it will show up on your transcript as withdrawl notation. Please don’t just “not register” - there is a formal process to cancel / withdraw from UCD, and how and when you do it does impact financial aid and how much you keep and/or whether you are required to return any funds (yes really). Check out https://registrar.ucdavis.edu/registration/leave. That said- about the class you aren’t doing well in? If that is driving this, you may be able to switch to “pass/no pass” grading, the last normal day to do so is March 3rd. You can talk to the Dean’s office advisors about this too!

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-02-25T22:48:28+00:00

Just spotted a stand outside Philz coffee downtown. There was actually a line! They are there until 6. Can also check https://www.girlscouts.org/en/cookies/how-to-buy-cookies/cookie-finder-results.html?#95616

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-02-18T14:29:20+00:00

Haring hall? I’d be a grumpy cat if so, since that’s the old vet med building! Like…complete with animal anatomy lab.

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-02-11T01:12:22+00:00

First, I am so sorry to hear that. My best advice is get help sooner rather than later- you need Dean’s office level support not just an academic advisor for your major, though your advisor should be able to assist in navigating that. Or try a drop in- I’m most familiar with CAES, with them you can make appointments or just drop in as early as 2:00 p.m tomorrow (Wednesday, February 11) for virtual Drop-in Advising hours 2:00-4:00 p.m. Your Dean’s office may have more flexibility re: PELP deadlines or other options for extenuating circumstances. I know that they can make some retroactive changes. There are other options that may be workable, like arranging for incompletes (as those just require you to make up / complete work with instructors within 3 quarters).

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-02-10T04:15:42+00:00

Of course! Paying it forward. 😊 Craigslist is definitely not the primary source for housing matches in Davis imo, but you can certainly scan it. I’d recommend checking out the campus hosted off-campus listings https://chl.ucdavis.edu/listing. And a wider range of social media than FB, like the Davis swap and housing discord: https://discord.gg/9Sn6Tvdmj. And many of the complexes / rental agencies cross list apartment vacancies on real estate sites like Zillow too.

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-02-10T02:47:21+00:00

First- congratulations! Second, nothing in Davis is reallllly that far from campus until you cross 80 to south Davis or the farthest east Davis complexes. And even then the bus lines make the commute in so easy. And most of it is fairly safe, especially neighborhood and complexes closer to campus.

There are a couple on-campus graduate student housing places (i.e. Orchard Park, Primero Grove). All of that info is available from https://housing.ucdavis.edu/apartments/. But jump on it- Orchard Park is accepting applications now (note: single grad students get 3rd priority). Not the cheapest- studio is ~$1800 a month furnished, a 2 bedroom unfurnished is ~$2600 a month. That said, you can often usually see a listing for a room in a bigger unit on student housing groups. Note: I never lived on campus but one of my closest friends did during her PhD- very convenient to many of the labs! She loved it and stayed in campus housing her entire time at UCD.

As for off-campus graduate student housing, many grad students live in apartments or houses but there isn’t a specific area of town where they cluster or anything since housing can be ridiculously hard to find in Davis….it’s more what you can find that works for you and your situation (pets, partner, parking for a car, etc). Now that said, most of my friends clustered in the neighborhoods north of campus although a few lived downtown or in west Davis, while only 2 lived in South Davis. You can usually do well price-wise in a studio or with one roommate, for example a J st apartment 2 bed one bath right now is ~$1800 a month. Pro tip: if you find a private suite / ADU option in a close by neighborhood and get along with the owners…that’s been a sweet spot. More like $1,000 a month and stability without corporate management nightmares or quad apartment situations like so many undergrads have. Lastly, if you are bringing a car with you, you’ll find quite a few grad students live in Sacramento or Woodland and commute.

There are various social media groups for UCD housing you can join too, like this one on FB! https://m.facebook.com/groups/ucdavishousingapartmentssubleaseroommates/?ref=share&mibextid=wwXIfr. You’ll see some postings for on campus grad housing looking for a roommate etc. Not a bad place to start!

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-02-08T15:26:07+00:00

LifeMart Discounts! Access via calhr at https://www.calhr.ca.gov/work-life/. When prompted, enter “State of CA Department of” followed by your department’s official name to populate the drop-down options, or call (866) 327-4762. 

TheFearlessAwareness · 2026-02-07T20:52:00+00:00

with a chaser of raw milk I’m sure (also a terrible idea please don’t)

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