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 phone. 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 noticed 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.

    Jiajia, a third grader who was born with anemia, a medical condition in which there are too few red cells in blood, wrote an affecting article that moved many netizens.

    In the article, she shared her biggest wish: to survive so she could take care of her grandparents. Jiajia, 9, currently lives in the city of Suining in Sichuan province. In the article, she writes, "My heart gets heavier each time I see my grandma cry for me. If I ever get to grow up, I will take good care of her."

    Jiajia contracted pneumonia when she was 4 months old. Since then, she has required a blood transfusion every two weeks.

    After her parents' divorce, her grandparents took her in and faced many challenges in the process of raising her. The girl's article was only 235 words long, and it was handed in as a school assignment.

    Nevertheless, Jiajia's words "deeply impressed" her elementary school teacher, who then posted the article online, where it struck a chord with many people.

    Up till now, a fund started by teachers at Jiajia's school has reached more than 30,000 RMB, which will be put toward Jiajia's future blood transfusions.

    Yosemite is a national park in California. It is very beautiful and big. The park includes more than 760,000 acres (英亩) in the California Mountains. Most of the park is wild (荒凉的).

    The part of Yosemite that everyone likes is Yosemite Valley. It is a small valley that is 7 miles long and less than 1 mile wide. It has tall rock walls and streams that flow down in waterfalls. More than two million visitors come to the valley each year.

    It's said that the number of visitors is more than the land can hold. The valley has 4,500 camping places. It has a hotel that can hold 4,000 families. This is still not enough to serve all of the visitors. The valley has grown so big that it has a lot of traffic.

    A worker says the park is trying to keep the beauty of the park and let everyone visit. Some areas have been rounded up (圈起来) to keep people away and planted with seeds to try to keep them beautiful.

    A former worker thinks Yosemite should get more money to take better care of the park. He would also like to teach people what the park service is trying to do.

    Some people are trying to save Yosemite Valley. A plan has been made to remove some buildings. There will be fewer cars allowed inside the park. More buses will help get people around.

    In America, each of the states likes to promote itself with a slogan (口号). I currently live in Utah, where the slogan is '“Life Elevated”. It's a nod to outdoor entertainment in the hill country, including the ski industry. I previously lived in Colorado, a land with red dm. great mountains and golden plains. The slogan there is ''Colorful Colorado”. Years ago I lived in the “Peach State” of Georgia, and I grew up in New Mexico as a little boy, whose slogan is “Land of Enchantment (魔力)”.

    We never seemed to get away from dust in New Mexico, so I appreciate the story of a newcomer to the Land of Enchantment who learned about dusty wind. She was visiting an antique shop and the owner wiped down every item before showing it. The newcomer said, “Everything gets dusty here pretty quickly, doesn't it?” “That's not dust, honey,” the shop owner replied, “That's ENCIIANTMENT”. That made the problem more acceptable or at least can be live with. An escalator (自动扶梯) broke, so he posted a sign to warn customers. He chose not to use the traditional “Out of Order” or “Do Not Use” warnings. Instead, his sign read, “This Escalator Is Temporarily a Stairway”. He turned a minus into humor and made it a plus.

    And in fact there arc sonic things, like the weather, we can't change. All we can change is our ways that we think and feel about them. I believe one of the best techniques to do this is to find some humor in the situation. Finding something amusing or enjoyable of difficulty, a troublesome problem can be one of the most creative and effective things we can do. Sometimes the only sense you can make of a situation is a sense of humor.

    The impression you make at the beginning of an interview is very important. Employers often decide to hire someone in the first three minutes of the interview. They judge you by your appearance, attitude and manners.

    A friendly smile when you walk into the room is important. A smile shows a confident and positive attitude.

    When you introduce yourself, make eye contact with the interviewer. Some interviewers offer a handshake. Others don't.

    Try to be as natural as possible. But pay attention to your body language. The way you sit, walk, gesture, use your voice and show feelings on your face is all part of your body language. It makes the interviewer know how you feel about yourself and the situation you are in. Are you feeling positively about yourself? Your abilities? Your interest in the job?

    Speak clearly and loudly enough. Show interest and enthusiasm in your voice. When you speak, look at the interviewer. Also, don't say negative things about yourself, or former employer.

    Listen to questions carefully. If you don't understand a question, ask the interviewer to repeat or explain:

    "I'm sorry, but I didn't catch that."

    "I'm not sure exactly what you mean."

    Almost everyone is nervous in a job interview. Interviewers know that. They don't expect you to be totally calm and relaxed. But they expect you to try to control your nervousness. They expect you to show confidence in your ability to do the job.

    At the end of the interview, thank the interviewer for her or his time.

    It's a good idea to send a short thank-you letter right after the interview, or deliver it by hand.

    Phone the company if you have not heard anything after one week. Ask if they have made a decision about the job.

    Good luck!

    The McDonnells lived in a small brick house in Larchmont, a suburb of New York City. Jim was foreman of mail carriers at the post office where he had worked for 25 years. Married in 1960, he and Anne were childless.

    On the evening of the eleventh anniversary of their marriage, carrying out the garbage, Jim McDonnell slipped on ice­coated steps, and struck his head. A few days later, driving to work, he lost control of the car, hit a telephone pole, and banged his forehead against the windshield. The following day he fell off the stairs, and again he banged his head. Found unconscious, he was hospitalized for three days with a cerebral concussion(脑震荡). One day in the same month, Jim borrowed a friend's station wagon and drove to Kennedy Airport to pick up Anne's brother and family. When he returned the borrowed car at 10 p.m., he was unaware that the wallet containing his identification had slipped out of his pocket onto the floor of the station wagon. After that, he was never seen again.

    So what really happened to Anne's husband? During his walk home, Jim had indeed blacked out(昏厥), losing all ability to remember who he was and where he lived. What happened then is unclear. The next thing he knew was that he was in downtown Philadelphia, a city he had never visited before. Seeing signs advertising the services of a James Peters, a real estate broker, Jim adopted James Peters as his own name. He had no past; his only reality was the present. James Peters got a Social Security card, which could be obtained at that time without showing a birth certificate, and took a job in a health club. He next worked at a cancer research institute, cleaning out animal cages. He also got a night shift job at the P&P luncheonette, where he became well known for his omelets, as well as his courtesy and good humor.

    About a month before Christmas 1985, colleagues noticed that Jim had grown unusually quiet and depressed. Something seemed to be turning in his mind. On December 22, Jim had fallen and banged his head. The next day at work he seemed distracted, and late that afternoon he had fallen again, striking his head. On December 24, he awoke feeling confused, yet delighted. After almost 15 years, he knew who he was! He was James A. McDonnell, Jr., of Larchmont, New York. His wife's name was Anne.

    Anne had just returned home from Christmas Mass, where she lit candles and prayed for Jim. A light snow was falling, and she was in a hurry to leave for Christmas dinner at her sister's before the roads grew slick. Then the doorbell rang. "Oh my," she thought, "this is not a good time for a visitor." Anne opened the door — and saw a man with a full white beard. Immediately she recognized Jim. She couldn't speak.

    To Jim, Anne looked a little older, but prettier too. His heart overflowed.

    "Hello, Anne," he said.