Yes Man Changed My Life

    Yes Man is the best book I've ever read. It's the true story about the life of Danny Wallace. Before Danny Wallace became the 'Yes Man', his life was boring and he felt old. So he decided to make things more exciting. He started saying “Yes” to every question people asked him. And he did it for a whole year. From the day he started, it completely changed his life.

    It's an interesting story. When I finished the book, I also wanted to change my life. So I had a holiday and became a 'Yes Man' for a week. This is what happened.

    I started on Saturday morning. At 10 in the morning, I got my first question. I saw a poster in the window of a travel agent (旅行社). I needed a holiday so I went in. A lady asked me where I wanted to go. But before I could answer, she said, “A beach holiday, sir?” In fact, I don't like beaches, I like cities. But I said, “Yes.” Five minutes later, everything was ready. My flight was the next day.

    I arrived at my hotel at lunchtime. It was very, very hot. I just wanted to have a rest, but the guide said, “we have a bus to the beach in ten minutes. Do you want to go?” I said, “Yes.”

    It was about 40℃ at the beach. A man asked me “Sunglasses? Do you want sunglasses?” I had a pair of sunglasses in my bag, but I said “Yes.” Five minutes later, another man came，“ Beautiful hat, sir?” I said, “Yes.”

    Three hours later, I had two pairs of sunglasses and three hats. It was difficult to carry all my new things back to the bus.

    I decided: no trips tomorrow, just rest. When I got back, the guide asked, “Oh, there's a water skiing course tomorrow. Do you want me to book a place for you?” I can't swim very well and I don't like the sea. I wanted to cry.

    When a man was walking along the street, he saw a woman carrying a large box. It was half in and half out of her car. So the man went up and said, "The box looks very heavy. Let me give you a hand. "

    "That's very kind of you, "the woman said, "I'm having a lot of trouble with it. Maybe it sticks（卡住）in the car door. "

    ""Together we'll soon move it," the man said. "I'll get in and take the other end." And he got in the car.

    "Right," the man said. "I'm ready," and he began to push the box hard.

    For several minutes, the man and the woman tried to move the box. Soon they felt very tired.

    They rested for a moment. Then the woman said, "Let's try again. One, two, three!" They went on moving the box At last, when they were exhausted, the man said, "I'm sorry, but I don't think there's any way to get it out of your car. "

    "Get it out?" the woman cried. "I'm trying to get it in! You know?"

Do your parents like the music you are interested in? What do they think of the music you like? What kind of music do they like?

When I was a teenager, my parents were never interested in the music I liked. They said it sounded like"a lot of noise". At the same time, my father regularly described the music that he liked as"beautiful".

As it turns out, my father is not alone. As I've grown older, I've often heard people of my age say,"Today's music is terrible." Why do many old people just dislike new music?

The mere exposure effect may explain this. It means the more familiar we are with something, the more likely we are to prefer it. When we were in our early teens, we usually spent a lot of time listening to music and discussing it with our friends. The songs and artists that were popular during this time became familiar to us. After we turn 30 years old, working and raising a family take up most of our time. Instead of discovering new music, we listen to old favorites that connect us to a simpler time. Studies show that by the time they turn 33 years old, most people have nearly stopped exploring new music.

But I think there is another explanation for why older people don't like new music. Most popular music, after all, is not written for them. It is made for young people. Punk, rap, hip-hop, heavy metal and many other types of music began as youthful rebellions(叛逆) against out-of-date ways of doing things, so they naturally attract younger people.

Do your parents hate the music you like, too? Now, after reading this article, you know that there is nothing wrong with that.

It was Saturday morning when I was six years old. Christmas was still three weeks away, but everyone in town was 1 . Santa Claus, the Father Christmas, was coming in our small Irish town.

The main street was full of children. They cheered 2 as the band passed by. Santa followed on a white 3 . He waved to the crowd while shouting, "Ho! Ho! Ho!" But just as he passed me, his beard （胡须）fell off.  That was when I knew Santa wasn't real and started to4 . Tears were welling up in my eyes.

The man on the horse was my dad.5 ,1 wasn't surprised. Dad was always the most popular person in our town. He sang in church, acted in the theatre and even 6 on TV

Thirty years later, my dad visited me in New York City. It was his 7 time in the United States, and he felt like a very excited child.Atdinner, he told me a story.

Back in the 1950s, my dad left school at the age of 16 to work in a small 8. One summer, his Uncle Ben came home from the US. He told Dad to go to America with him. But my grandma wasn't 9 with the idea. My dad was the only breadwinner in the family. In the end, he stayed and never left.

At that moment, I understood that Dad was once young. Father Christmas also had dreams. But he10 those dreams for______his family. What would he have become if he had gone to New York? Could he have become a famous singer, actor or dancer?

Sadly, dad just worked in that small factory for 40 years.