Standing in the shower waiting for the water to het up could be a thing of the past, along with all the wasted water. Three and a half years ago, Lindy Honeychurch, a thirty-year-old Australian full-time mum living on a farm outside Launceston, didn't consider herself a very good water saver. Neither did her partner who often complained about it with good reasons. Their farm had to rely on tank water and solar power, which meant water had to be trucked in if he tank water ran out in summer.

    “I looked at where I could save because I could lead an easier life without the complaint,” she said. Modeling her idea on a car thermostat(恒温器), Lindy used her kids' magnetic(磁的)drawing board to design a device that diverts the cold water back down the hot water pipe. “The first aim when I started designing was to keep it really small and simple without having to use power. I wanted to keep it as something that everyone could use,” said Lindy.

    She got a patent for her design and took it to some engineers to have it tested out. At first, even though the engineers were amazed that she wasn't an engineer, she said she sometimes found it hard to be taken seriously. “My age was a real factor because in the plumbing(管路系统)and manufacturing industries you're dealing with people who've got a lot of experiences,” she said. But the engineers soon saw the potential of her design, which she estimated would save average families between 14,000 to 22,000 liters per year.” when you transfer that to the dollar savings on tank water that you have to buy, it can be a saving of $600 per year,” said Lindy.

    Armed with positive feedback from engineers and people using rainwater tanks, her design proved a great success. Soon she found a manufacturer early this year, and completed a state government commercial ready course to help her research, her markets and distribution channels. With an Australian Standard for her device just approved, she's about to start manufacturing and wishes to see her products on the shelves within the next few months. Once that happens, Lindy plans to return to being a full-time mum.

    Growing ups I always envied my friends who lived in one town in their whole lives. Coming from a military family makes this impossible. My brothers and I soon found that if we didn't like a place we lived in, we'd soon be moving to a new place. Through all the ups and downs, I now realize that' everything I've done, seen, and learned has made me into the person I am today.

    The field day was the best day ever created. Being good at sports which I had done together with parents seemed to help me find my position at a new school. Despite the hot weather in San Antonio, Texas, I had to take outdoor activities. Sometimes we •took the family mountain biking after school. My brothers and I were arranged to join in the swim team and practice yoga. These are the things I remember about my childhood. Now I thank my parents for teaching me these vital principles, which I will have with me the rest of my life.

I was always the shy girl and afraid to be myself. This didn't bother me until I reached junior high school, when some girls judged me by what I wore, who I talked to and how skinny I was. I felt like I'd never done anything wrong to deserve such criticism. It was not until last year that I realized that I had to stay different from them and live my life according to my principles. I decided to be my own person. I never thought that being nice could cause me to be disliked. Anyway, I began hanging out with girls who had a lot in common with me like preferring outdoor sports. They were accepting and non-judgmental. I am now content in u knowing that I am my own person and don't let others control my life.

    There was a boy and his family was very rich. One day his father took him on a trip to a place. He wanted to show his son how poor people were there. They spent several days on a farm. There were many poor families living on the farm.

    On their way home, the father asked the son, “How was the trip?” “It was great, Dad,” the son answered. “Did you notice how poor people were there?” asked his father. “Oh, yes.” said the son. “So, tell me,” said his father. The son said, “Well, we have one dog and they have four. We have a pool in our garden, while they have a river that has no end. We have expensive lanterns, but they have stars above their heads at night. We have only a small piece of land to live on, while they have the endless fields. We buy our food, but they grow theirs. We have high walls around our houses to protect us, but they don't need walls, because their friends will protect them.”

    The father had nothing to say. Then the boy added, “Thank you, Dad, for letting me see how poor we are.”

    TODAY, Friday, November 12

JAZZ with the Mike Thomas Jazz Band at The Derby Arms Uepper Richmond Road West, Sheen DISCO Satin Sound Dieo. Free at The Lord NApier, Mort Iake High St., from 8 a.m. to 8p.m. Tel: 682—1158.

    SATURDAY, November 13

    JAZZ Lysis at The Bull's Head, Barnes. Admission 60p.

    MUSIC HALL at The Star and Garter, Lower Richmond Road, Putney, provided by the Aba Daba Music Hall company, Good food and entertainment fair price, Tel: 789-6749

    FAMILY night out? Join the sing along at The Black Horse. Sheen Road. Richmond.

    JAZZ The John Bennett Big Band at The Bull's Head, Barnes .Admission 80p.

    THE DERBY ARMS, Upper Richmond Road West, give you Joe on the electric accordion (手风琴). Tel: 789-4536

    SUNDAY, November 14

    DISCO Satin Sounds Disco, free at The Lord Napier, Mort Lake High Street, from 8am. to 8 pm.

    FOLK MUSIC at The Derby Arms. The Short Stuff and residents the Norman Chop Trio. Non-remembers 70p. Tel: 688-4626

    HEAVY MUSIC with Tony Simon at The Bull, Upper Richmond Road West, East Sheen.

    THE DERBY ARMS, UpPer Richmond Road West, give you Joe on the electric accordion.

    Forest Schools originated in Sweden in the 1950s and spread to other countries, particularly Denmark where they have become an important part of the Danish early years program.

    In a typical Danish Forest School, young children from 3 years are taken into the forest for 4 hours each day of the week. They take no toys with them, but instead use only what the forest provides (and their imaginations) to develop their games. There is a primitive hut in the forest, which is used in extreme weather. Activities are child-led and fun, such as finding small animals or stomping in puddles. Because of high adult to child ratios, children can safely try out activities which are often considered too dangerous, such as climbing trees or lighting fires, and by dressing the children in good protective clothing, they are able to play freely. By setting children small manageable tasks at which they are unlikely to fail, and giving genuine praise, children's independence and confidence grow.

    A Swedish scientific study found that children in the Forest School are more balanced and socially capable, have fewer sick days, are more able to concentrate and have better co-ordination than the city nursery children. The primary reason appeared to be the greater opportunities to play in nature, so that children play for longer at a time, tending not to disturb each other as much as children in the city nursery. The study observed that where children were interrupted, they became irritable, their stress level rose, and their ability to concentrate fell.

    The study also showed that the Forest School children had 25 % fewer sick days than the city children. One reason for this is that the air is nearly always better outside than indoors. Outside a child is not so exposed to virus and bacteria and not so likely to be infected by other children. Another reason may be that, since stress has been shown to have a negative effect on the immune system, high stress levels may be weakening the city children. The Forest School children, on the other hand, are in a pleasant, natural, fun and less stressful environment.

    When I was a kid, I loved reading history, science fiction, detective stories, but especially comics. I had piles of them and kept talking my Dad into making more shelves for me. One day, I read about a 13-year-old boy who had actually written one of my favorite comics, Legion of Super-Heroes, and I said, “I can do that too.” That year, I was two years younger than the writer.

    Three years later, a friend and I started our own fan magazine about comics. It became the first place that regularly told people when their favorite comics were coming out and writers and artists were working on them. Because of the magazine, I won the awards for The Comic Reader, but more important, it got many of the people in the field to know who I was.

    One day when I was visiting DC Comics for news for my next issue, one of the editors a chance to write text for his comic. Suddenly, at 16, I was getting paid to write.

    I was able to pay for my college classes working as an assistant editor at DC Comics and learned how to write comics stories while I was there. I wrote hundreds of stories. Over the years, I worked as an editor and an executive (主管) for the company, eventually serving as a president and publisher, until earlier this year. Now I'm back to my first love, writing comics again.

    Every morning, I open my e-mail and find pages of art sent in by artists across the country who draw my stories. When I'm tired of working on the stories, I can go online and find my readers commenting on my stories or telling me when I make mistakes.

    Keep reading and writing, it's a wonderful way to live.