Lin King, chair of the Staff Assembly, says there was no ice cream at the Thank Goodness for Staff picnic this year for two reasons. One, they needed more volunteers to hand out the ice cream. Two, last year the ice cream was in plastic, non recylable containers. "We spent an hour picking up ice cream packages litter all over the site," said King.

The morning of Sept. 13, 2002, Oakland Raiders legend Jim Otto arrived at UC Davis Cancer Center bearing team jerseys and caps for the physicians, nurses and radiation therapists who had supported him through his battle against prostate cancer. In the years since, Otto has continued to thank the doctors, nurses and patients of UC Davis Cancer Center. On May 12, UC Davis gave its thanks, awarding Otto the UC Davis Foundation's 2006 Charles J. Soderquist Award for his volunteer leadership and support of philanthropy at UC Davis. "Jim Otto's work to advance the mission and vision of UC Davis Cancer Center is an inspiration to all of us," said Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef. ...

Former Aggie baseball player Dave McKae is pitching in the San Francisco Giants' minor league system. McKae, who graduated in 2005, went 3-2 last summer with a 2.45 ERA — which led the Giants minor league organizations — last summer for the Giants' A team in Salem-Kaizer. Now with San Jose, McKae, who was out of action with an injury this spring, is writing his own blog about life in baseball — see davemckae.blogspot.com. "After tomorrow, I just sit and wait for a call to be sent to the first-place San Jose Giants," he wrote May 4. ...

Speaking of baseball, former Oakland A's starter Ted Lilly's wife, Tasha, is a second-year veterinary medicine student at UC Davis. On May 11, the San Francisco Chronicle story quoted Ted, who now pitches for the Toronto Blue Jays, as seeking a return to the Bay Area, to play for the Giants where he'd be closer to his wife. Lilly is a free agent after this season. ...

The UC Davis Masters of Fine Arts Exhibition 2006 is a sneak peek into the next generation of art makers. The exhibition takes place at two campus locations: the Memorial Union Art Gallery and the Richard L. Nelson Gallery from June 2 through June 23. ...

The UC Davis men's and women's cycling club teams won the combined national championship by the largest margin ever — 531-409. The 2006 USA Cycling Collegiate Championships took place in Lawrence, Kan., last weekend. See http://sportclubs.ucdavis.edu/cycling for more details. ...

From the UC Davis English Club comes Produce, the club's first-ever poetry and short fiction book. It features the work of 20 UC Davis student authors in moe than 50 literary pieces. Produce will be available through the University Bookstore, and the Davis branches of Borders, Bogey's Books, Sweet Briar Books, and the Avid Reader a few days after the release party on May 18. For information, visit www.myspace.com/producemag or e-mail the editors at the.produce@gmail.com. ...

The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals on May 8 claimed that UC Davis is one of the worst offenders among universities in its laboratory treatment of animal subjects. Lon Kendall, the attending veterinarian at UC Davis who oversees animal care, strongly disagrees. "The animal-based research that occurs at UC Davis is closely monitored by the campus's Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee and the USDA to assure that research animals are humanely cared for," said Kendall, adding that all UC Davis animal testing is extensively monitored and more than 150 campus animal care staff, 13 veterinarians, and 20 veterinary technicians are involved in following animal care guidelines.