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    Nowadays, the Internet is usually one of the first places a lonely heart turns to as the following story shows.    

    A 63-year-old retired woman in Zhengzhou, made headlines two days after she posted an advertisement on her Wechat(微信) page, in which she said she wanted to find a young female companion for a trip to Sanya, China's Southern Hainan island, a local newspaper Dahe Daily reported. In the advertisement, the Chinese dama (Chinese term for middle-aged and elderly women) surnamed (a person's last name) Li said she is in good health, and she was particularly looking forward to a sea trip this winter.

    "I have a daughter who works in Canada, and I don't want to disturb her. My husband rarely has time to travel with me. But I'm afraid of traveling alone, so I am looking for a sweet, happy young woman, aged between 19 and 25 to travel with me. Hope she could chat with me, take photos with me."

    At the end of the advertisement, Dama Li showed her sincerity by saying she would be responsible for all the costs of the trip, including accommodation(膳宿) and air tickets, plus an iPhone 7 as a gift. Dama Li told Dahe Daily that she did not expect her advertisement to receive so much attention. "My phone keeps buzzing all the time. "However, some people question the truth of Li's advertisement. They say it might be organized by travel agencies aiming to promote(促进，推销) Sanya tourism, or even served as a promotional advertisement for real estate（房地产） on the island. Li denied those doubts and said all she wants is just to find a sweet "daughter".

    But Li's advertisement for a daughter has also received as many online mockeries(嘲笑) as positive feedback.

    Here are some tips that will help you get rid of anxiety over being phoneless or reduce your risk of phone addiction.

    Disable the Internet connection. Take up your courage to disable the Internet connection on your smartphone.{#blank#}1{#/blank#} Needless to say, you will save o lot of cash on it.

    Find your passion.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} Find your dream job and you will leave your “best friend” at least for a while. If you have nothing to do at home, try a new hobby that will distract you from all those apps and social media.

    Purchase an ordinary phone. No smartphones. No iphones. Remember those times when we used phones in emergency situations only or when we wanted to invite someone to a party.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    Don't let the fear control you. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Claim your joy. I can only speak for myself here, but I think that a smartphone is one of the worst inventions. It's useful and helpful at times, but it has ruined many happy lives and relationships. That's because we allow our phones to control us.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} The fear of being phoneless is a serious problem. It's like drug or cigarette addiction. If you want to change your life, sell your expensive smartphone, buy an ordinary one, and become a sociable person. There are so many wonderful people that can bring joy into our life. Chatting online is great, but chatting in real life is best.

A. Free your mind.

B. Choose other electronic devices.

C. Keep your mind sharp and alert.

D. Beat your social butterfly wings.

E. Those who love their jobs never feel exhausted and bored.

F. Thus, you'll spend less time with your phone and more time in real life.

G. I bet some of you remember times when few people had a phone at home.

    Welcome to your future life!

    You get up in the morning and look into the mirror. Your face is firm and young-looking. In 2035, medical technology is better than ever. Many people your age could live to be 150, so at 40, you're not old at all. And your parents just had an anti-aging(抗衰老的) treatment. Now, all three of look the same age!

    You say to your shirt, “Turn red.” It changes from blue to red. In 2035, “smart clothes” contain particles(粒子) much smaller than the cells in your body. The particles can be programmed to change clothes' color or pattern.

    You walk into the kitchen. You pick up the milk, but a voice says,“ You shouldn't drink that!” Your fridge has read the chip (芯片) that contains information about the milk , and it knows the milk is old . In 2035, every article of food in the grocery store has such a chip.

    It's time to go to work. In 2035, cars drive themselves. Just tell your “smart car” where to go. On the way, you can call a friend using your jacket sleeve. Such “smart technology” is all around you.

    So will all these things come true? “For new technology to succeed,” says scientist Andrew Zolli ,”it has to be so much better that it replaces what we have already.” The Internet is one example—what will be the next?

    Many years ago, there lived a poor fisherman. His only companion was his dog. They might be seen walking on the white sandy beach.

    The dog was always beside his master as the fisherman made his little boat ready to sail. When the man pulled out to sea each morning, the dog would run up on the high ridge (山岭). There he would sit and watch all day. The dog never moved until late afternoon when he saw the little boat return. Then he would race back to the shore to greet his master.

    As the years went by, the fisherman grew older. So did the faithful dog. The fisherman still went out to sea. The dog still watched for his return, sitting on the high ridge.

    One early morning in September, the fisherman was getting his little boat ready. All at once the dog began to bark. He circled around the fisherman and tugged at his trousers. The fisherman could not remember when he had seen his dog act so strangely. He patted the dog's back, thinking the dog wanted to play. But nothing made any difference. Then the man climbed into the boat and sailed away. The dog went to his watching place, still barking.

    There were other fishing boats out that morning. Suddenly the soft wind changed. It began to blow wildly. The fisherman's boat was seized by the wind and whirled around (随风旋转) .The sky darkened. Rain began to fall.

    "It's a hurricane!" said the fisherman." The man thought of his dog at once. Had the dog left the ridge and run home? Or was he still sitting there? The fisherman tried to drive his boat and turn it toward the shore. Suddenly a great wave swept over his head and tossed the boat away (卷走).

    The next morning, the hurricane was over. The families of the other fishermen ran to the shore. They watched for the return of the boats. They waited and waited, but no one returned. Then the people went slowly back to their homes and started a new life. As they rebuilt their village, no one gave a thought to the fisherman's dog.

    Several months later a group of villagers was out gathering sea grapes (海葡萄). They noticed what appeared to be the figure of a dog sitting high on the ridge.

    "Look" said one." Isn't that the old fisherman's dog?"

    "How could it be, after all this time?" said another.

    When the man reached the spot, he found only a rock—a rock shaped like a dog. But as soon as the people looked up again, they saw the stone dog. He just sat there on top of the ridge, waiting, waiting…

    People can't see you when you're speaking on the phone, but they can hear you. So, the way you speak is especially important. In fact, researchers have calculated that 80% of communication over the phone is through your tone of voice; and only 20% is from the words you use. Here are our top tips on how to speak over the phone.

    ①Facial Expressions

    Your facial expression can influence your voice. For example, if you smile, your voice will sound warm and friendly, just the opposite, if you have an angry look on your face, it can make you sound unpleasant.

    ②Volume

    If you speak too loudly, you could sound angry. And if you speak too softly, it'll be difficult to hear you. So, speak loudly enough to be heard clearly, but not so loud that you're shouting.

    ③Pace

    The pace of your voice is how quickly you speak. And this can show how you feel. For example, an angry person might speak faster than normal. Or a downhearted person might speak very slowly. Try speaking a little more slowly than normal. This will make you sound confident, and it'll make it easier for the other person to understand you.

    ④Gestures

    Gesturing can influence the tone of your voice. When you gesture, you bring more air into the lungs, which can make your voice sound warmer. Gestures are also useful to help you stress the right words or even find the words you need. The best thing about gesturing during a phone call is that no one can see what you're doing, so you can gesture as wildly as you like!

    ⑤Movement

    If you're feeling nervous, stand up and move around. It will reduce the nervousness in your body and help your voice to sound more confident.

    ⑥Pauses (停顿)

    Using pauses every now and then can help you to slow down. This will make you sound more confident and in control. Also, if you pause after giving some new information, it'll give the other person time to understand it. At the same time, listen to how the other person uses pauses. They could tell you something about the speaker's feeling. For example, when a speaker is really angry, he might use pauses and says, "I…am…so…angry…"

    A while back I caught a news report on something called couch surfing and the network of trusting souls who make this phenomenon possible. They offer to put up travelers free of charge and help them on their ways. At first, it sounded unbelievable. I mean, inviting strangers into one's home for one or two nights? Give me a break.

    However, I was intrigued. I decided to find it out. The only way to truly learn about this phenomenon was to dive in. So I planned a trip to Finland, a country I've always wanted to explore. I would couch surf at every stop there.

    If ever any anxiety existed when stepping into the unknown, it disappeared when my first host met me at the train station. Ari looked like my idea of a typical Finn: tall and blue-eyed. Finns were also supposed to be famously reserved (寡言少语的). Ari was anything but. He was a live wire, giving me a warm welcome and walking with me to his apartment, where he showed me the sleeper sofa, served me tea, and engaged me in warm conversations. He also handed me a key to come and go as I pleased.

    If this was what couch surfing was all about—trust and friendship—then I had gotten off to a good start. As I boarded my next train to continue my journey, I began to think about this couch-surfing idea. What encouraged these people to open their homes to strangers? I concluded that there was a desire to lend a hand to like-minded folks who might enrich their own lives.

    Seven cities in 14 days. Seven hosts. Seven new friends. If couch surfing taught me anything, it's this: Most people are good and generous. Where will couch surfing take me next? Who knows? But I can't wait to find out.