Edison had quick mind about inventions, but not always about other things.

    One day he received a notice. It said he must pay some money to the government by the next day. If he was late, {#blank#}1{#/blank#}. Edison went to the city office. Many people were waiting there in line to pay. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}, his mind was busy with ideas about a new invention. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}, the man behind it said to Edison “Young man, what's your name?”

    Edison looked at the man in surprise. “ I don't know,” he said.

    “Then I can't help you,” the man said, and told him to leave.

    Other people paid the money, but Edison stood there, and tried to remember his name. The day ended, {#blank#}4{#/blank#}.

    In the street, {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. He had to ask the friend what his name was.

    Members of an international organization are called the Global Greeters. They offer travelers the chance to get to know a city as well as local people do.

    Unlike the professional guides(专业导游), the volunteer greeters act more like neighbours. They take visitors to visit the city–either on foot or public traffic—to discover favourite neighbourhoods, cafes and parks.

    All the programs work a little differently, but the basics(基本项目) are the same. The tours are free and last anywhere for two or four hours. Volunteers can be all ages, and their ages and interests try to match the travelers.

    New York City(USA)

    Big Apple Greeter is the pioneer “welcome visitor” program founded in 1992 by New Yorker Lynn Brooks. More than 300 volunteers now can welcome guests from all over the world in 22 languages. Greeters explain the New York City subway and bus systems and show guests around one or more of their favourite neighbourhoods. Like many greeter organizations, Big Apple accepts online donations to help with its daily costs.

    Houston(USA)

    Houston Greeters will organize activities such as golf, biking or an outing to an Astros game(太空人队的比赛). Another activity is to arrange a tour in need of a particular interest.

    Chicago(USA)

    Chicago Greeters help visitors visit one of the city's many famous neighbourhoods. The group organizes walks through Ukrainian Village on the Near North Side and Andersonville, home to Scandinavian restaurants and shops and Middle Eastern bakeries. Guides will also organize tours around themes such as fashion, film or public art.

    France

    In France, English speaking volunteers for Parisien d'un Jour lead visitors through hidden corners of Paris, often ending with a lively discussion on a café balcony. Guides in Lyon organize walks around themes such as shopping, markets and sports.

A .Christmas Day

    It is the biggest and the best-loved holiday in the United States。The Christmas tree is very popular during this time．

B .Halloween

    This holiday comes on October 31．Children make all kinds of masks(面具)and go from ho use to house to play the game called “Trick or treat".

C .New Year's Day

    It is a legal holiday in the United States．Most people have a day off from work．They say “Happy New Year to you and your family” to each other to express their hope for the happiness in the new year．

D .Valentine's Day

    Valentine's Day is a day for lovers and one of the loveliest holidays in the United States．It comes on February l4th．

E .Lincoln's Birthday

    The holiday is celebrated to memorize one of America's most admired presidents．Lincoln．It is on February l2th．

F .Thanksgiving Day

    The holiday is on the fourth Thursday of November．On this day Americans usually have Thanksgiving dinner with their family．Turkey is one kind of the traditional foods．

G .Memorial Day

    Americans celebrate this holiday on the last Monday in May so that all can enjoy a three-day weekend．It is a day to memorize those people who have lost their lives for their country．

H．Independence Day

    Independence Day is a holiday throughout the United States．It is America'-s most important holiday．

    Go travelling, that's one of the best ways for you to learn.

    Once you have decided your destination(目的地), the next step in planning a trip is to book your flights. Learning how to find cheap flights will help you a lot and you can save a lot from the biggest travel cost.

    As a travelling family, if you travel abroad and it's a long hard flight, I suggest that you plan your trip in advance so that you can get to your destination as quickly as possible, to make the trip more comfortable that your budget(预算) allows! If it's your one-and-only dream vacation for the year, I recommend you pay a little bit extra money for a high-quality airline and fly directly too!

    When searching for cheap flights online, we always start with Skyscanner, which is one of our favourite booking sites. Skyscanner is a comparison(比较) site that searches millions of flights from over a thousand airlines, and once you've found your flight on it, you are taken to the airline to make your booking with no extra money added. Download the new Skyscanner App, which makes it easier for you to find the best travel deals. It's an all in one search engine app with flights, hotels and car hire involved.

    Other credible flight search engines include Kayak, Hipmunk, Google Flights and Momondo.

    After you found your best flight on the search engines, do directly to that airline's own website and see if you can get it for cheaper tickets. Many airlines have lower fares only available on their own site.

{#blank#}1{#/blank#}Have you ever hiccupped(打嗝)in a quiet room full of people? Have you ever hiccupped so hard that you had to stop what you were doing? The hiccup is a problem that almost everyone has experienced.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#}People get hiccups for some reasons. Hiccups might result from eating or drinking too much or too quickly. A sudden change in the stomach's temperature, such as drinking hot water immediately after drinking cold water, may also cause hiccups. They may even happen because of being excited or being under a lot of stress.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}Ideas on how to stop hiccups have been created, shared, and tried for years. However, what works for one person may not work for everyone. Perhaps the most common method people use is to hold their breath for a few seconds. If this doesn't work, you can try swallowing(吞下)hard while holding your breath. There are also some strange-sounding ways, like drinking a lot of water.

   {#blank#}4{#/blank#}A young girl named Mallory Kievman couldn't make her hiccups go away. She knew that sweet and sour things were commonly used to cure hiccups, and she knew that swallowing hard could also help. She decided to use the two ideas to make a special lollipop(棒棒糖). After she failed many times, Mallory invented a lollipop that worked by putting water, sugar and vinegar (醋)together.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#}Mallory wanted to find out whether her lollipops would help others. She gave her lollipops to friends. Most of them were cured of their hiccups after eating the lollipops. Mallory entered a competition with her lollipop and won three awards for her creative idea. She was successful.