EVENTS

Aug.31-Sept.4,Laughter Bus

Cape Town, South Africa

Lovely sightseeing tour with laughter, fun and festivities. The tour departs(启程) from Cape Town towards the Garden Route, stopping at beautiful and interesting places, enjoying lunch at the seaside and sharing laughter with local communities. Cost:$800.

+277222-97454, info@laughterbus.co.za  Sept. 17-18, Laughter Yoga 2-day Certified Leader Training

Irvine, California, USA

10 am-5 pm daily at Irvine Valley College. Learn to laugh for health without the need of jokes. Start a laughter club, share laughter with elders and kids, and earn income sharing happiness. Includes practice with Jeffrey Briar. Costs: $ 295.

▪ (949)376-1939, JBriar@LYInstitute.org

Set. 30, Laughter is Serious Business Workshop

St. Albans, Hertfordshire, UK

A workshop for those who have completed Laughter Leader/Skills courses and want to get ideas and real advice on how to promote(提升) themselves. 10 am-3 pm with lunch break. Costs:￡100 (includes a￡25 DVD)

+44(0)1727-741-050, Jotte@unitedmind.co.uk Oct. 7-9, Laguna Laughter Club Mountain Retreat(静修)

Angelus Oaks, California, USA

Everyone is welcome on this three-day retreat in the pine forest of Redlands. Daily laughter yoga sessions, music, dancing, hiking, and vision-sharing. Costs:$150 (includes meals).

▪ (949)376-1241, Anne@LaughingAnne.com

Oct. 29-Nov. 5, Laughter Cruise in the Caribbean

The tour departs from Miami, Florida, USA. Daily laughter sessions, onboard programs, easy yoga classes, creating new exercises, fun and friendship! Holland America Lines. Costs: $719.

▪ (941) 349-6069, amy.ferrell@verizon.net

    You're happy to let your best friend borrow your mountain bike, but would you be willing to loan it out to a total stranger if you could make some money from the arrangement?

    That's the idea behind peer-to-peer (P2P) renting, a new model concluded by sites such as eBay and Craigslist. Instead of selling an idle (闲置) thing, you loan it to people in your town, get paid a small rental fee and gel it back when the borrower's done with it. In the past few years, almost a dozen websites have popped up promising to connect lenders and borrowers. For example, you can use GetAround to rent out your car or motorcycle, SnapGoods to rent out electronics and gadgets, ToolSpinner to rent electric drills and lawnmowers, Zaarly and Knb to rent out a little bit of everything else.

    Old as it may sound, P2P renting is more high-tech than before, with websites that avoid cash for credit cards. A user creates an online listing for the item she wants to rent out, choosing her own rental fee. When someone wants the item, he keeps it on an online calendar, and the two arrange a time and place for pickup. Each site operates a little differently, but all use technology to make renting easy, safe and relatively inexpensive.

    Why rent your idle things? You may not make a ton of money, but it is a good way to get some use out of idle things. The people who rent those goods are able to save thousands of dollars by renting instead of buying new.

    There may be other benefits. "It brings convenience, security and adventure," says Ali Hart, JustSharclt's spokesperson. “But, more importantly, we're really connecting people and building community, too."

    Get to know your neighbors and make a few dollars in the process? Sounds like a good deal.

    As technology develops, school students who are off class may have no fear of too much absence from class. A small robot may help those children recovering from a long-term illnesses in the hospital or at home. These children may feel isolated from their friends and classmates. The robot takes their place at school. Through the robot, the children can hear their teachers and friends. They also can take part in class from wherever they are recovering.

    Anyone who has had a long term illness knows that recovering at home can be lonely. This can be especially true of children. They may feel left out. Now these children may have a high-tech friend to feel less alone. And that friend is a robot. The robot is called AV1. AV1 goes to school for a child who is at home while recovering from a long-term illness. And the child's school friends must help. They carry the robot between classes and place the robot on the child's desk.

    A Norwegian company called No isolation created the robot. The co-founders of No Isolation are Karen Dolva and Marius Aabel. Dolva explains how the robot AV1 works. She says, from home, the child uses a tablet or phone to start the robot. Then they use the same device（设备）to control the robot's movements. At school, the robot becomes the eyes, ears and voice of the child. The child can take part in classroom activities from wherever she/he is recovering-whether at home or from a hospital bed. The robot is equipped with speakers, microphones and cameras make communicating easy.

    Alaska Airlines has the cheapest fares around, but you receive superb service unequal to its price. In case you don't know, Alaska Airlines does not just go to Alaska, but includes states such as Washington, California, and Hawaii. Our prices are reasonable and we offer great service.

    Alaska Airlines is generous. For each bag you check in, it must weigh 50 pounds or less, which is extremely generous for domestic flights. Your baggage is allowed to be up to 62 inches in length. You're also allowed one carry-on bag in addition to one personal item which can be a purse, a laptop computer, or a briefcase.

    Not only do we give you the cheapest airfare, but we offer you a visa card which you can earn plenty of miles on. Upon approval, you will receive 25,000 Bonus Miles. From then on, for each dollar you charge to this card, you will receive 3 miles and there's no limit to the amount of miles you can earn. You also receive a $99 round-trip discount code for a Companion Ticket each year for using this card. This is a sweet deal and very generous. Think about all of your purchases you make during the month. Now multiply that by three. You're talking about a free trip cross country in just a few short months. Wow!

    Alaska Airlines receives great reviews for its performance, punctuality, and professional service. In addition to its great reviews from customers, Alaska Airlines has received lots of awards and recognitions. Network Carriers in North America has rated Alaska Airlines for the highest in customer satisfaction for the past 4 years. We have also received the Executive Travel's leading edge Award. We were also named on the 2011 Washington Green 50 list.

    Alaska Airlines is quickly gaining the recognition it deserves. We're adding higher expectations to the flying experience. Try it out.

    Generally speaking, waiting rooms are always filled with a lot of impatient people. However, a project carried out by The Observer suggests that people regard these spaces as a place of refuge (避难), a window in their tightly scheduled lives.

    Ella Doroudy, Margate Station

    We were at the beach for the day, and now are on our way home. We don't have to wait very long, because we checked the timetable so we got here in time for the train. I just chat with my mates, really, and listen to music until the train comes. Waiting with other people is easier because you can kill time when you're talking about stuff.

    Caroline Lacey, Streatham Dental Center

    I don't really get nervous about seeing the dentist, but since these two fillings (补牙的材料) came out I've been in sharp pain. It's very bright and airy here, so it's quite calming. Usually I kill time by reading magazines. I've been coming to the dentist as and when I need to, but now it's got to be regular.

    Katie Hawkins, Model Casting

    I was a bit late today, which I'm quite pleased about because some of these girls have been waiting ages. I can't help but look at everyone else a bit — I look at the other girls and think: "I wonder if they'll like her better than they like me." While I'm waiting, I'm thinking: "Oh come on. I do have a life!"

    Paul Thomas, Royal London Hospital

    I feel pretty indifferent (满不在乎的)  while I'm waiting here, to be honest. It's something I've got very used to since my motorbike accident seven years ago. I've had about 32 operations so far. It's no good rushing in thinking you're going to escape in five minutes, so I just sit back and people-watch, really.

    Ask any group of teenagers in the UK what they most like to eat, and foods like pizzas, curries, pasta, burgers and chips are bound to get mentioned and many young people would probably also list hanging out at the local fast food restaurant as one of their favorite pastimes (消遣).

    But what teenagers like to eat is not necessarily what they should be eating. According to the National and Nutrition Survey, far too many young people in the UK between the ages of 14 and 18 consume too much fat sugar and salt in their diet and take in too many calories. Meanwhile their intake of starchy carbohydrates (含大淀粉的碳水化合物), fibre, iron, vitamins and calcium is too low.

    For a growing body, eating foods containing plenty of calcium, such as milk, yoghurt and cheese, is particularly important as calcium is essential for the development of healthy, strong bones. Similarly, foods that are rich in iron are good for young, rapidly developing bodies, so red meat. bread, green vegetables, dried fruit and tonified(使增强体质的) breakfast cereals are also recommended.

    It is during our teenage years that habits of lifestyle can become entrenched (根深蒂固的),so it is crucial (全关重要的)that young people are educated about what foods arc good for them. In 2005, in an attempt 10 change eating habits and open teenagers' minds to new flavours and new tastes, celebrity chef Jamie Oliver launched a "Feed Me Better" campaign. As part of a television series Jamel School drivers, he worked with teachers and cooks in a number of schools across the UK to provide more healthy, nutritious school meal opt ions. Although there was initial resistance from sonic teenagers and parents. the campaign was generally hailed (把...... 誉为)as a huge success and helped to influence governmental policy on nutritional standards for school meals.

    No one expects to end the teenage love affair with fast and junk food but. hopefully, if projects "Feed Me Better" and the government's own "Change for Life" campaign continue to give out the right messages, more young people will understand the importance of balancing occasional treats with healthier food options.