Last summer holiday, I got a job working at a coffee shop.

    One rainy day, one of my regular customers(顾客）camein. He looked upset. He said he wanted to get in bed, pull the sheets(被单) up over his head, and stay there for a few years. I knew that he was unhappy.

    Before he left, I handed him a bag along with his iced coffee. He was surprised, since he hadn't ordered anything but coffee. I had given him his favorite type of doughnut(油炸圏饼).

  "It's on me," I told him. "Have a nice day. "

    He smiled and thanked me before heading into the rain.

    The next day, it was still raining. I spent my afternoon hanging out the window handing people their orders. I was wet and cold. Worse, no one was tipping(给小费）that day.

    In the evening, the customer from the day before drove up to the window. He handed me a pink rose and a note. He said that not many people took time to care about others today. With a friendly wave, he drove away.

    I ran to the back of the shop and read the note. It read:

Christine，

    Thanks for being so sweet, kind yesterday. It is so nice to meet someone who's so nice. Please don't change your ways! Have a great day!

—Hank

    After that, whenever I felt upset, I thought of Hank and his kindness. Then I would smile，hold my head up high, clear my throat and ask politely, "How can I help you?"

    I' m ready to do my first jump 10 months after a skydiving (特技跳伞) accident. I can't wait! That accident almost killed me and it made me stay in hospital for half a year. During the boring long days, I didn't feel glad to be alive. I was wondering how I could live without my favorite sport.

    It all started one evening after a nine-to-five day. I was sitting on the sofa when an ad (广告) came on the television. "Try skydiving," it said. The next day, I went to the skydiving school in my town. At the end of the day's lessons, I knew I found the fight sport for me.

    I will never forget my first jump. Five of us walled to the runway and got into a plane. I was scared, but the others were tailing and joking, and I started to feel a little relaxed. It was a beautiful, cloudless day and the sun was just going down. Soon it was time to jump. As I jumped from the plane, I shouted. But then everything became quiet. It was the most wonderful four minutes of my life.

    From the first jump, I was hooked. I started spending all my free time skydiving . It became my reason for living. Things were going really well. Then an accident happened on my 104th jump. I broke my both legs, right arm and nose. I stayed in hospital for six months, but I still couldn't forget skydiving.

    My mother couldn't understand why the only reason I wanted to get better was to go skydiving again. But for me, skydiving is life, and life is skydiving.

(I: Interviewer S:Sadie)

I: What are you doing here in Milan, Sadie?

S: I'm working. There is a big fashion show here.

I: Are you staying in a hotel?

S: No,I'm not. I'm staying with friends.

I: Are you having a good time in Milan?

S: Yes, I am. I'm enjoying it very much.

I: Now Sadie, tell the listeners, what are you wearing now?

S: I'm not wearing anything special! I'm just wearing jeans and a T-shirt.

I: Thank you, Sadie. It's nice to talk to you.

When I was fourteen, I made my first visit to the United States. It wasn't the first time I had been abroad. Like most English children, I learned French at school. And I had often been to France, so I was used to speaking a foreign language to people who didn't understand French. I believed that I wouldn't have any 1 problems when I went to America. So I was really looking forward to having a nice easy holiday there.

How2 I was! The misunderstanding (误解) began at the airport. I was looking for a public telephone to call my friend Danny who had been in America for two years and told her that I had arrived. A friendly old man saw me looking confused and asked if he could 3 me.

"Yes," I said, "I want to give my friend a ring."

"Well, that's nice," he said. "Are you getting married? But aren't you a bit too 4 ?"

"Who is talking about marriage?" I replied. "I just want to give my friend a ring to tell her I've arrived. Can you tell me 5 the phone box is?"

"Oh! I see. " he said, "There's a phone downstairs."

When Danny and I met up, she explained the misunderstanding to me. Then I knew "Give somebody a ring" could mean deciding to get engaged or marry someone else. I felt shamed for myself.

"Don't worry," she said to me. "I had so many difficulties at first. There are lots of words which the Americans use differently in meaning from the British. You'll soon 6 all the funny things they say. Most of the time British and American people understand each other!

When you look at me now, you won't believe that I once weighed over 300 pounds. Yes, I used to be a really 1 girl. I never worried about it until I had a medical examination one day. 

The doctor told me that I was having heart trouble. He said it would be 2 if I could lose some weight. Then I decided to make a 3 .

After a year and five months, I lost 104 pounds. I didn't have any expensive food, medical treatment or camp- style exercise. So what was the secret to my 4 ?

First, I looked through the Internet for some 5 on losing weight. Of course, I saw many advertisements(广告), but I bought nothing. The only thing I did was change my bad6 . I stopped having drinks with too much sugar and 7 my love for sweet cakes. Now I have got used to eating a lot of green vegetables and using vegetable oil only. I 8 eat after 6:30 p. m. because it's unhealthy to have a late dinner. Also, I 9 for 15 to 20 minutes five days a week to keep fit. 

People sometimes say, " You don't need to tell me what to do. I've known it already!" The fact is that knowing what to do and doing what you know are completely 10 . The important thing is to know what to do and then keep doing it.