Have you ever heard of a rattlesnake? It is a poisonous (有毒的) American snake.When it is angry or afraid, it makes a noise like a rattle with its tail. It's very scary. But Heather Ramirez and her husband, from California, in the UnitedStates, make a living in an unusual way. They are self-employed (自雇的) snake catchers!They catch snakes, especially rattlesnakes which have gone indoors, and returnthem to the wild.

    Heather describes her work as “protecting people from rattlesnakes — andprotecting rattlesnakes from people!” In the area where they live, rattlesnakesoften come face to face with people. They are found in stores, offices, housesand gardens. Heather explains that it's not the snakes that are moving into places where people live, but it's the other way round. The snakes lived in these places first and then the people built houses.

Most people who see a rattlesnake are feared. If you keep your distance,however, the snake won't bite (咬) you. In twelve years as a snake catcher, Heather has nevertouched a snake. She doesn't take the risk. She picks up the snakes with aspecial tool. This doesn't hurt them,but it keeps them at a safe distance so that they can't bite her.

    Heather and her husband are very busy because they are never off duty.Catching snakes is a full-time job and they don't often have a day off. Peoplecan get to them at any time of the day or night. Not everyone can do this job,but Heather doesn't want to do anything else. “I just love my job,” she says.

    While it is common for restaurant owners to connect with their customers, a restaurant owner in the U.S. is taking it to a whole new level. Tim Harries gives out free hugs（拥抱）to every customer at the end of each meal. The atmosphere（气氛）at his restaurant “Tim's Place” is so positive(积极的)that customers often call it the "World's friendliest restaurant”.

    "Tim's Hug” is in fact an item on the menu described as a "love” treat. Tim's hugs are doubly special because of everything he has achieved. The 26-year-old is probably the only Down syndrome sufferer(唐氏综合症患者)in the U.S. to own a restaurant，but he has several other things to be proud of— he's a skillful special Olympian, an excellent sailor, and all experienced fisherman. He was also chosen as Homecoming King and Student of the Year in high school! So when a man like Tim hugs you，it is sure to be a special and unforgettable experience

    When Tim expressed interest in opening a restaurant，Keith，a small businessman himself, supported him. Tim hired other people to manage the place and do the cooking, and he introduced the idea of free hugs. He realized that people want to feel at home at a restaurant. That is why he included "love” as all item on the menu. Customers can order the free hug from Tim，and even if they don't, he'll probably hug them anyway．

    The restaurant has been around since 2010，and Tim has given out over 19,000 hugs in the past five years — he keeps count using a special Hug Counter．Many customers love visiting "Tim's Place". "I've been coming here once a week." said Michelle Garth-Jones, a regular customer. "I love local restaurants, and this special one has a story that stays with you."

    Kacey Tucker is a 17-­year­-old girl. Her dad works in Saudi Arabia, so she and her family live there. Kacey usually rides her horse (马) to school.

    "I have two horses there, Jacob and Donald，" she says. "My sister, Melissa rides them now. "

    Kacey finishes all her middle school classes. She wants to go to a university (大学) in America. "I want to ride a horse to my school in America，" says Kacey. "And my cousin's university has a really clean and big barn (畜棚). " So Kacey joins her cousin's university. Kacey's cousin Amy is 18 years old. She's a university student in America.

    Kacey buys a horse in America. His name is Winston, and Kacey takes the horse to the university. She can ride the horse after school every day.

    One day, I was cooking with my friend Sandy in the kitchen. Suddenly, Sandy cut her finger. I went to her quickly. But to my surprise, I saw computer chips in her finger.

    "Now you know my secret, you have to die!" Sandy said and picked up the knife. "No, please, Sandy. Aren't we good friends?" I shouted. But before Sandy could say anything, she fainted.

    "Oh, Sandy!" I took her to hospital in a hurry. After a doctor checked her, he said, "I'm afraid we can't help her. Why don't you take her to a robot centre?"

    I hurried to a robot centre. A few days later, Sandy was well. She asked, "Mary, why did you save me even after I tried to kill you? "

    "Because I'm sure you are my friend. Can you tell me where you are from?" "I'm from another planet. It's far from here. Thank you, my friend Now I see how friendly people are on the earth." Two days later, a UFO came and picked her up. Since then I've never seen her.

From the Other Side

Lara and Tara are twins. They look like each other, but they are very different in everything else. For example, hot food is Lara's favorite, and Tara has a sweet choice.

However, this isn't the problem with the twin girls. They always argues that the opposite one was wrong. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}, while Tara thought mornings were fresh and it was difficult to stay up till midnight.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#} To put an end to their fights, their parents decided to create a small drama. They wanted the girls to understand that they were both correct from their own point of view. Their parents covered the girl's eyes with black ribbons (带、条), and brought them to the dining room. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Lara was asked to stand on one side of the board and Tara on the other. They couldn't see the other side of it. When the ribbons were taken away, they were surprised to see a huge board between them.

Now, their father asked Lara, "What's the color of the board?" She replied, "It's black!" {#blank#}4{#/blank#} She replied, "It's white!" The two girls began to argue again. While Lara was confident it was black, Tara was sure it was white. Then, they were asked to exchange (交换) their places. They couldn't believe their eyes. Tara, who insisted (坚持) it was a white board, saw a black one. Similarly, Lara, who argued the board was black, was surprised to see a white one. They understood that each of them was right in her own view. Most of us are like Lara and Tara. We are right most times, but insist that others are wrong!

I'm Lucy. I am a middle school student now. It seems that my life has changed a lot in the last few years. For example, I was afraid of the sea in the past because I didn't know how to swim.I now I am a good swimmer. I used to be short and was only 150 centimeters tall. But now, I'm ten centimeters taller than before.

As for food, I used to cat meat, but now I eat more vegetables. By the way, I love tomatoes best. When I was younger, I didn't use to read any books, but now I love reading novels, such as Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling. I love the magical world in the novels. When I was in primary school, I used to play football after school, but now I have to go home and do homework. I used to be afraid of exams, but now I think exams are necessary and useful.

In the past, I used to spend most of my time doing homework, but now I have more time to communicate with my parents. Every day when I finish dinner, I do my homework in the bedroom. Then I usually talk about something interesting with my parents.