Pocket Tape-Recorders “Family and Home Magazine” test what's on the market now.

1）Pearlcorder S702 $64

    This simple model at the bottom of the Olympus range scored the most points for its excellent quality of recording. Background noise hardly affects the sound and recording from a pocket is perfectly possible, but it doesn't turn off automatically.

Tape length: 30 minutes per side. Weight:240g.

2）Sony M9 $49.95

    Small and very good looking, sony's latest offering scored most for appearance. Sounds clear, but there is slight machine noise. The big control buttons are a great improvement on some of the complicated little controls on other tape-recorders. Doesn't switch off automatically but a red light shows if the machine is still running.

   Tape length: 60 minutes per side. Weight: 195g.

3）Sony M400 $115

    Lots of little control buttons that make a noise and are difficult to use . Recording was good but machine noise lost points. Tape counter and automatic switch-off when tape has finished recording or rewinding are useful Tape length: 60 minutes per side. Weight: 230g.

4）Imperial OEM. MC $29.95

    Cheap and simple compared with the rest, but recording was good as long as there was no background noise. Use only its own make of cassette. No light to show it is on; no fast forward button and the record button makes a loud noise.

    Tape length: 30 minutes per side. Weight: 285g.

5）Philips 585 $80

    Handsome and simple to use, but recording is very poor at more than the recommended distance of 5 cm-designed for dictation. No recording light. Tape length: 15 minutes per side. Weight: 220g.

    March, April and May are months full of festivals and events all over the world. Here are four wonderful festivals around the world that happen in spring. If you want to know more about them, please click here or visit http://www. buddhanet. net/festival, htm/.

SongKran—Thailand

Dates: 13th-15th, April

    In Thailand, people celebrate a festival called Songkran, when people head out to the streets with water guns to spray everyone who walks past.

Naghol—Vanuatu

Dates: Every Saturday from April to May

    Every year, villagers come together to celebrate the harvest of yams, an important part in the people's diet in Vanuatu. The festival is most famous for its “land diving ceremony”. During the ceremony men and boys dive to the ground from high wooden towers with only two thin vines (藤) attached to their ankles.

Cherry Blossom Viewing—Japan

Dates: The cherry blossom season is different from year to year depending on the weather forecast.

    The festival is well-known. Japanese celebrate the days when the flowers finally blossom. Only a few days later, the petals (花瓣) fall to the ground, like pink snowflakes. That means the traditional festival only lasts for several days. In Japan, almost everyone has picnics in the parks to view the flowers.

Sinhalese New Year—Sri Lanka

Dates: 13th or 14th, April

    Just like in many other countries in South or South East Asia, this is the time when the Sinhalese celebrate the traditional New Year, an ancient celebration which marks the end of the harvest season and is one of two times of the year when the sun is straight above Sri Lanka. There are a lot of delicious foods during the celebration.

    Now is the best time for Hong Kong shopping lovers, as most shops and markets are having their seasonal sales. With the same amount of money, you can find different kinds of goods in this city. Women, young and old, rarely resist the attraction of this shopping paradise(乐园) at this time of year. Lovers will surely have an exciting Christmas and New year's Eve celebrations at the Time Square or in the western styled bars. Spending your holiday in Hong Kong will be easy too, as several packing tours are available from CZL Travel Service, with four-day tours for less than 15,000 yuan.

    Tour package 1(3,200 yuan): a 4-day-tour including three nights' accommodation(住宿), science helicopter flight, night ferry tour of Victoria Harbor and shuttle bus to the park to view the city at night.

    Tour package 2(1,880yuan): a 4-day-shopping tour including three nights' accommodation, tour to Golden Beach and the Vex work Museum, shuttle bus to the Peak and shopping opportunities.

    Tour package 3 (1,480 yuan): a 4-day-DIY-tour including three nights' accommodation in a four-star hotel and total freedom to do what you want, when you went.

Outdoor Science Field Trips!

    It is never too early, or too late, to encourage a child to read. With the chill (寒冷)of winter upon us, the following is a list of wonderful stories with winter and or snow themes.

    Waiting for Winter

    It was written by Sebastian Meschenmoser. A little squirrel(松鼠), who has never seen snow, is determined that he will not miss it this year. He gets the help of his good friends, a bear and a hedgehog, trying to stay a- wake until they can all see the first snowfall of winter. This book is a wonderful story to read aloud to young children or for older children to read by themselves.

    The Snowy Day

    The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats is a short read, but since its first publication it has been loved by millions. It tells about a beautiful story about the magic and possibility of the first snowfall of winter, which appeals to young and older children.

    The Polar Express

    Popularized by the 2004 Warner Brothers all-digital film, The Polar Express was first published in 1985. The hero of this story is a boy who is given the opportunity to receive a gift from Santa himself. A magical train appears outside his bedroom window» taking him away on a fantastic journey to the North Pole.

    Mr. Willowby's Christmas Tree

    It was written by Robert E. Barry. Mr Willowby orders a lovely new Christmas tree, and when it is delivered to his home he finds it far too tall. He has the top of the tree cut off in order to make it just the right height. This book follows the treetop on its journey through the forest, where it brings the joy of the holidays for some woodland creatures. This book teaches us a valuable lesson about the joy of giving, and happiness that it can bring to the hearts of recipients (接受者).

At some point, something will have to be done about the stuffed toys（毛绒玩具）. I haven't counted them because, truthfully, I'm not prepared to know how many there are. Lately, our neighborhood's message boards are filled with posts about parents trying to make space, to clear out the things their kids no longer need. The tone of some of these posts can best be described as "emergency". "Help!" they sometimes begin. "I have to get this out of my house."

"The proliferation（激增）of children's toys is the outcome of a long, gradual cultural change," says Gary Cross, a professor at Pennsylvania State University. To understand how we got here—drowning（淹没于）in all those stuffed toys and bricks—it helps to look as far back as the late 19th century. "Parents were no longer passing their jobs on to the children," Cross says. "Instead, they connect across generations through the gifting process. From the early 20th century on, goods became the things that define relationships between family members, and the way of marking success as a family."

Then, how can parents deal with the proliferation of children's toys at home? Naeemah Ford Goldson, a professional organizer, is also a mom of two. In her own home, Goldson likes to include her kids in the work of sorting out their toys. They know that the items they don't need anymore will be given to people who can use them, to families who might not be as fortunate as theirs. "Doing so helps them build those habits of letting go," she says, "so then they don't become adults who are too dependent on material things instead of experiences, or people, and the memories we make with people."

Her idea made sense. She told her 5-year-old they should pick some to give to kids in their community who came from another country and had to leave their toys behind. She immediately took a pink bear from the pile.