A man named Joe and his wife moved to a new farm with their three sons. They were settling into the new community when a nearby farmer told Joe that there was gold in the dirt of his new land. Joe took that statement as that there was actual gold in the land. He thought to himself, "I have three strong sons, I'll tell them about it."

Needless to say, his sons actually began digging in one corner with a certain width and kept going until they got to the end. Once they finished they would start another piece and go back the other direction. They began to realize that digging for gold was fun!

Seeing that, Joe thought he would plant some crops where the dirt had been turned thoroughly. He planted corn, tomatoes, and potatoes. His sons continued to dig through the soil, determined to find gold.

As each different crop became ready to be harvested, Joe started to realize that there was more than he and his family could ever eat. One of Joe's neighbors suggested that he set up a vegetable stand（摊）. Joe and his wife did that very thing. This process went on for three years and Joe and his wife became quite rich from it. They were even able to send their sons off to college.

Remember at the beginning of the story Joe was told by his new neighbor that there was gold in the land? Well, the truth is, Joe's understanding of the English language was less than perfect. His new neighbor friend actually told him that his land had rich soil.

Go out and pretend that there is gold in all your challenges so that you can be inspired to motivate（激励）yourself to allow the fate（命运）to provide all that you need. The fate will never give up on you, if you never give up on yourself.

What is eBay? The simple answer is that it is a global trading platform (平台) where nearly anyone can trade practically anything. People can sell and buy all kinds of products and goods, including cars, movies and DVDs, sporting goods, travel tickets, musical instruments, clothes and shoes— the list goes on and on.

The idea came from Peter Omidyar, who was born in Paris and moved to Washington when he was still a child. At high school, he became very interested in computer programming and after graduating from Tuft University in 1988, he worked for the next few years as a computer engineer. In his free time he started eBay as a kind of hobby, at first offering the service free by word of mouth. By 1996 there was so much traffic on the website that he had to upgrade(升级) and he began charging a fee from members. Joined by a friend, Peter Skill, and in 1998 by his capable CEO, Meg Whitman, he has never looked back. Even in the great economic crashes (崩溃) of the late 1990s, eBay has gone from strength to strength. It is now one of the ten most visited online shopping websites on the Internet. eBay sells connections, not goods, putting buyer and seller into contact with each other. All you have to do is take an e-photo, write a description, fill out a sales form and you are in business: the world is your market place .Of course for each item sold, eBay gets a percentage and that is a great deal of money. Every day there are more than sixteen million items listed on eBay and eighty percent of the items are sold.

About whether to live in the city or the countryside my friends have different opinions. To avoid the noise, smog, traffic, and crime in the city, most of them are moving outside the city.

One friend says, "The air is heavily polluted in the city, so I prefer to live outside, where the air is clean."

Another friend is unpleasant with the traffic, "Down town is crowded with cars! You can't find a parking place, and the traffic jams are terrible." Everyone is worried about crime, "The city is full of criminals(罪犯) —it's too dangerous."

For them, the rural(农村的) life is a cure for all problems, green grass, flowers, swimming pools, barbecues, and so on. Yet after they have lived there for a year, or so, they realize that rural life is not they were expecting. Why? Their gardens! They soon learn that the main part of rural life is yard work. After they work all weekend in their gardens, they're too tired to swim in their pools or cook some meat on their barbecues. And they can't live in the countryside without a car. Most of them moved to the countryside to avoid traffic, but now they're blocked on a busy freeway two hours every day to drive to work downtown.

My opinions about urban(城市的) life are different —I love to live downtown! Why? First, in the city, I can enjoy nature. I can walk through the park, smell the flowers, sit on the grass and visit the animals in the zoo. Yet I don't have to do yard work or feed the animals. Also, I can get everywhere by bus; if there is a traffic jam, I can walk home. I think the criminal life will reflect changes in society too; if people are buying homes outside the city, the criminals will soon follow. Criminals want to avoid noise, smog, and pollution, too. Then, overcrowding and crime will be problems of the suburbs instead of the city!

Children are losing the ability to play properly because they are being given too many toys and games, according to a new research.

The studies show that children, especially those under five, are often overwhelmed (不知所措) and actually play less than those with fewer toys. The studies show that giving children too many toys or toys of the wrong type can actually be doing them harm. They get overwhelmed and cannot concentrate on anything long enough to learn from it.

The conclusions have been backed up by British research looking at children with relatively fewer toys, whose parents spend more time reading, singing or playing with them. It showed such children surpass (胜过) youngsters from richer backgrounds, even those who could use computers.

Some parents notice the ill effect early. Orhan Ismail, a researcher saw a change for the worse in Cameron, his 10-month-old son, after he was given a lot of toys last Christmas.

Ismail said, "If there are too many toys in front of him, he will just keep flitting（掠过）around them and then end up going off and finding something like a slipper to play with. Now we just get out one or two toys and hide the rest in a box."

Alexander and her husband also decided to limit the toys their 6 daughters play with. She believed many toys limit children's imaginations. She said, "A Barbie can only work as a Barbie. But a cardboard box can become anything. The only limitations are in the child's mind."

Experts hesitate to put a figure on the number of toys children should have, but many believe two dozen is enough for children of preschool age.

How to Fight Laziness?

Lazy people will never gain anything in life. However, laziness can be defeated once a few changes have been made in your mind.

 Many people lack sleep constantly, since they stay up too late and get up too early to prepare for work. These people have little motivation (动力) once they arrive home. Laziness works hand in hand with a lack of motivation and a tendency to put off things. By adjusting your sleep schedule to provide a few more hours of meaningful rest, you can fight laziness throughout the day.

Another way to fight laziness is to change your mind from passive to active. Some people treat their lives as if they were pushed from task to task. Others take a more positive approach, viewing each task as a challenge they must overcome alone.

Some people fight laziness by removing the temptations (诱惑) that surround them. A television in the living room may provide entertainment, but watching too much TV often contributes to laziness.Complete a few tasks and reward yourself with what you enjoy, such as a good dinner or a film.

Laziness can also be a lasting problem at home. Couples and children may all have different energy levels, but laziness can be spread if not dealt with immediately.Be the first to collect and wash dishes after a meal. Others at home may finally follow your example and perform their own tasks. It is difficult to practice laziness when you are surrounded by motivated people.

Enough exercise and a balanced diet can help you to develop a healthy lifestyle, thus enabling you to have more energy and help lift your spirits.

A. To fight family laziness, set an example.

B. One way to fight laziness is to get enough sleep.

C. Knowing how to fight laziness is important.

D. Finally, taking exercise regularly can help you fight laziness.

E. With strong determination, you will be able to achieve your goal.

F. Create a reward system for yourself, just as parents do for a child.

G. Laziness sets in when you no longer feel in charge of your own life.

Many years ago, Dad worked as a farmhand (农场工人).At that time, he had a horse. Every Saturday he1 to the town after dinner and spent a few hours on social 2 with other farmhands, such as drinking, chatting, and playing cards in the cafe. On Saturday evenings, the cafe was 3 because many farmhands were there. Before midnight Dad returned home on his horse, quite satisfied with his 4. In his words, he 5 thought of changing his job.

At the age of 31, Dad married my mother who was a schoolteacher. In the following spring I came 6 into the world. Life became hard, so my mother felt 7. She told Dad that they must make a 8.

My mother had 9 of how some famous persons, especially Thomas Edison who was born in a poor family, fought against fate and achieved greatness and 10. And she 11 that I would some day become a great leader 12 men or cities and Dad should be a successful businessman. So she 13 Dad to give up his job as a farmhand, sell his horse and 14 a small business of his own. And I went to high school and college. She even sent me abroad for15 education when I graduated from college. Under the drive of my mother's hope, Dad and I 16 what we have today. Dad runs a big international 17 and I am a successful lawyer 18 great fame in my country, 19 not a leader as my mother expected.

Dad said, without my mother, we wouldn't be what we are today; at least, he would remain a farmhand.20 he got a lesson of life —sometimes we really need drive from outside.

In order to learn a foreign language thoroughly, we should keep the following four things in mind. Firstly, we must be able to understand the language when we hear spoken. Secondly, we must be able to speak it correctly, confidence and no hesitation. (three), we must be able to read the language and fourthly, we must be able to write it. We must be able to compose sentences that are grammatically correct. We must know to arrange sentences in paragraphs so as to write a good letter or composition.

There is no easy way to succeed learning a language. A good memory is of great help, but it is not enough (simple) to memorize rules from a grammar book. It is not much use learning by heart long lists of words and their (meaning). We learn words not by ourselves, in sentences. We must learn by using the language. If we are satisfied with only a few rules we (memorize) so far, we are not really learning the language. It is a good idea to learn through use for those are studying a new language. Practice is very important. We must practice speaking and writing the language as much as we can.

增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（︿），并在其下面写出该加的词。

删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。

修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。

注意：1．每处错误及其修改仅限一词。

2．只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。

Dear Jim，

I am so glad that you are interested with my new flat. Now I would like tell you something about it.

Locating in the north of the city, this Residential Center is small with only six building. My flat, which covers the area of 96 square meters, is in the fourth floor in Building 2. It consists of a sitting room, a bedroom, a kitchen and a toilet. When you enter into the flat, you will find yourself in the sitting room. The sitting room is the part that I like best, because it is brightly with a lovely balcony, which I can enjoy the beautiful garden below. Although my flat is small, I like them very much because it is comfortable.

Best regards,

Yours,

Li Hua

1）多记一些惯用词组(set phrases)和句型结构(sentence structures)，把它们组织在一起造句；

2）大量阅读可以提高写作水平；

3）多背诵一些好的短文；

4）写日记(keep a diary)是提高写作的好方法。

要求：

1）开头已给出，不计人总词数；

2）不要逐字逐条翻译，可以适当增加细节, 词数100个左右。

Dear Li Hua，

I have received your letter

……

Yours,

Miss Wang