I was never very neat, while my roommate Kate was extremely organized. Each of her objects had its place, but mine always hid somewhere. She even labeled(贴标签) everything. I always looked for everything. Over time, Kate got neater and I got messier. She would push my dirty clothing over, and I would lay my books on her tidy desk. We both got tired of each other.

    War broke out one evening. Kate came into the room. Soon, I heard her screaming. “Take your shoes away! Why under my bed!” Deafened, I saw my shoes flying at me. I jumped to my feet and started yelling. She yelled back louder.

    The room was filled with anger. We could not have stayed together for a single minute but for a phone call. Kate answered it. From her end of the conversation, I could tell right away her grandma was seriously ill. When she hung up, she quickly crawled(爬under her covers, sobbing. Obviously, that was something she should not go through alone. All of a sudden, a warm feeling of sympathy rose up in my heart.

    Slowly, I collected the pencils, took back the books, made my bed, cleaned the socks and swept the floor, even on her side. I got so into my work that I even didn't notice Kate had sat up. She was watching, her tears dried and her expression one of disbelief. Then, she reached out her hands to grasp mine. I looked up into her eyes. She smiled at me, “Thanks.”

    Kate and I stayed roommates for the rest of the year. We didn't always agree, but we learned the key to living together: giving in, cleaning up and holding on.

    Chinese colleges have come up with an unusual way to help freshmen settle in. They turn their gyms into campsites for moms and dads, some of whom have traveled thousands of miles across the country, to say goodbye.

For the past five years, Tianjin University in northern China has provided free accommodation for parents in what it calls "tents of love". Other schools let parents sleep on mats in school gymnasiums.

    "Going to college is a life moment and my parents didn't want to miss that," said Zhang Jinqi, a freshman at Tianjin University majoring in applied chemistry. His parents traveled with him on the 19-hour train journey from Jiangxi Province in southern China.

    Images of school gyms packed with parents have been widely shared on Chinese social media prompting a debate on whether China's only children are too coddled.

    Some have voiced criticism of Tianjin University, saying that they think both the parents and the children should be more independent.

    Xiong Bingqi, the deputy director of think-tank 21st Century Education Research Institute，thinks the problem is overstated. "It has always been a problem in China that at the start of every school year, colleges are packed with parents who come along to drop off their children and stay with them," he said. "For some families, it's their way to celebrate the first-ever family member who's able to go to college," Xiong added. "There's nothing wrong with sharing the happiness."

    Zhang's father said the decision to escort their son was a no-brainer. He and his wife are among the many "campers" who sleep in the 550 temporary tents set up in the Tianjin University gym.

    "My child has lots of luggage and we also want to go traveling," said his father Zhang Yonghui. "The hotels nearby are fully booked so I have to sleep in the tents."

    Their son also shrugged off the criticism although he said he was looking forward to living on his own for the first time. "Being accompanied by my parents doesn't mean I'm spoiled."

    There is an old style out there of young girls talking endlessly on the phone with one another. It's an idea that is far from untrue in many families. I remember being a twelve-year-old and spending some quality time on the phone with my girl-friends, even though we'd seen each other at school. I didn't really have anything to talk about, I guess, but I think I was just happy to have someone else to talk to and that someone wanted to talk to me.

    We call this phenomenon (现象) of girls going on forever over the regular phone “girl talk”. And these days, girl talk has spread far beyond the old phone-teens communicate with each other pretty much nonstop through cell phone, texting，online chat. Is girl talk a good thing? According to experts, it can be-in limited quantities.

    Girl talk has its place. But too much of it, especially the kind during which problems are talked about endlessly can be not such a good thing. Psychologists (心理学家) think that too much of that kind of talking can lead to emotional problems such as depression (沮丧) and anxiety. Girls, much more so than boys, will always think of a problem and get worried, making the problem worse other than solving it. The best way is to try to guide the conversation toward something positive, or to do something about the problem rather than sit around and chat about it endlessly.

    Most of us would be traveling for the rest of our lives if traveling abroad were not so expensive. But there is no need for you to cut down on the number of holidays you're having this year. Below are some of the cheapest places to travel to this year.

    Sri Lanka

    Great seafood, beautiful beaches, and amazing jungles await you in Sri Lanka. It is definitely one of the cheaper places to travel to as well. It will be possible for you to live in high-class hotels and resorts for as little as 70 dollars a night! If you don't want to spend that much money, you can find hostels, and smaller hotels for as little as 20 dollars a day. You can just spend the day exploring Anuradhapura or go adventuring in Habarana Lake as well!

    Hungary

    It might be surprising to see Hungary on the list of cheap places to travel to this year. It is located in the most expensive continent on the earth, after all. However, Hungary is the country where you get rooms for as little as 16 Euros, and beer for about 4 Euros each! This is definitely a bargain! You can get a travel card to use the public transport throughout the country, and save quite a few dollars on that as well. Spend a few nights in Budapest or head out to the northern hills where you can hike and swim in the clear lakes!

    Greece

    There was a time when Greece was unbelievably expensive, but due to its recent economic problems, Greece has become quite cheap to travel to. Price of accommodation and food is at an all-time low, so this might definitely be a great time for you to visit! There are some areas of the country that will be expensive like Santorini or Mykonos, but if you just want to explore local Greek culture, you can walk on the streets of Greece, or adventure across the smaller islands around like Kefalonia or Piraeus or Los!

The Power of Sound

The music of world-famous guitarist Gabriel Ayala can make you cheer or cry depending on the chords（弦）. As the winner of numerous musical honors, he said," I love the power of sound.

    He was also recently named Native American Music Awards Artist of the Year and he played at the inauguration（就职典礼）of President Barack Obama.

"My concerts are a journey for both my audiences and myself," he says. "Feelings and emotions are all over the board and I am the tool trying to convey those feelings, trying to paint a visual picture through chord changes. Sound conveys power, whether it's a well-performed craze or the wind blowing through the trees. Music isn't just a pretty melody also it's a visual performance that captures moments in life and puts them to music."

    Ayala also shares his gift with kids As a teacher with a master's degree he serves as an advocate（提倡者）for youth education by being a role model. He practices the philosophy of honoring elders, respecting women and loving children. He delivers a message lo youth that they can become whatever they dream of.

The music man has recently launched a non-profit foundation to work more closely with youngsters "I've been blessed in both my career and life and feel I need to give back to pay my respect and hanks for the gift I have owned and I can do that through music," he says.

    One of his experiences in giving back involved a high school class of some 200, which included a special needs group. I used my guitar as a tool to capture their interest and once I began playing, the whole behaviors of the class changed in a positive way. This was especially so for one of the disabled students whose hands would not allow him to even hold my costly guitar.

    When I put the valuable guitar in his lap and he started beating the heck out of it as hard as he could, there wasn't a dry eye in the house. That's the real reason I play music, not for fame or fortune but because music has the power to truly heal. The look on that boy's face was priceless.