Holidays

    More and more people like bicycling and it is no surprise. It's fun, healthy and good for the environment. Maybe that's why there are 1.4 billion bicycles and only 400 million cars on roads worldwide today. Bikes can take you almost anywhere, and there is no oil cost!

    If you get on a bicycle and ride it, you may discover something new all around you. Stopping and getting off a bike is easier than stopping and getting out of your cars. You can bike to work and benefit from the enjoyable exercise without polluting the environment. You don't even have to ride all the way.

    Folding bikes work well for people who ride the train. Just fold the bike and take it with you. You can do the same on an airplane. A folding bike can be packed in a suitcase. You can also take a common bike with you when you fly. But be sure to look for information by getting on airline websites. Not all airlines are bicycle friendly to travellers.

    Here are some of Health Benefits of Bicycling：

    Bicycling helps to prevent heart diseases.

    Bicycling helps to control your weight.

    A 15­minute bike ride to and from work three times a week burns off five kilos of fat in a year.

    Bicycling can improve your mood.

    Exercise like bicycling has been shown to make people feel better, more relaxed and self-confident.

    Bicycling is healthier than driving.

    A child who suffers bullying (霸凌) usually has low self-respect and their ability to learn and be successful at school is greatly lessened. Therefore, bullying must be stopped.

    The best and most obvious way to stop bullying in schools is for parents to change the way they treat their children at home. Of course, this is much easier said than done and everyone treats their children differently. Bullies, however, come from homes where physical punishment is used and children have been taught that physical violence is the way to handle problems and “get their way”. Bullies usually also come from homes where the parents fight a lot, so they have been modeled on such violence. Parental involvement is often lacking in bullies' lives and there seems to be little warmth.

    Early intervention (干预) is truly the best way to stop bullying, but parents of the victims or therapists (治疗师) cannot alter the bully's home environment. Some things can be done at the school level, however.

    Most school programs that address bullying use a multi-faceted (多方面的) method to the problem. This usually involves the advice of some sort, either by peers, a school adviser, teachers, or the principal.

    Hand out questionnaires to all students and teachers and discuss if bullying is occurring. Define exactly what constitutes (构成) bullying at school. The questionnaire is a wonderful tool that allows the school to see how widespread bullying is and what forms it is taking. It is a good way to start to solve the problem.

    Get the children's parents involved in a bullying program. If parents of the bullies and the victims are not aware of what is going on at school, then the whole bullying program will not be effective. Stopping bullying in school takes teamwork and concentrated effort on everyone's part. Bullying also should be discussed during parent-teacher conferences and PTA meetings. Parental awareness is the key.

    In the classroom setting, all teachers should work with the students on bullying. Oftentimes even the teacher is being bullied in the classroom and a program should be set up to teach about bullying. Children understand modeling behaviors and role-play and acting out bullying situations is a very effective tool. Have students role-play a bullying situation.

    Attractions in Wisconsin

    Wisconsin Historical Museum

    30 N. Carroll Street on Madison's Capitol Square

    Discover Wisconsin's history and culture on four floors of exhibits. Open for public program. Admission is free.

    Open Tuesday through Saturday, 9:00 am -- 4:00 pm.

    (608) 264-6555 www.wisconsinhistory.org/museum

    Swiss historical village

    612 Seventh Ave., New Glarus

    The Swiss Historical Village offers a delightful look at pioneer life in America's heartland. 14 buildings in the village give a full picture of everyday life in the nineteenth-century Midwest.

    Tue.—Fri., May 1^st —October 31^st , 10:00 am—4:00 pm. Admission is $20.

    (608) 527-2317 www.swisshistoricalvillage.com

    Artisan Gallery & Creamery Café

    6858 Paoli Rd., Paoli, WI

    One of the largest collections of fine arts and crafts (手工艺品) in Wisconsin. Over 5000 sp. ft. of exhibition space in a historic creamery. While visiting, enjoy a wonderfully prepared lunch at our café overlooking the Sugar River. Just minutes from Madison!

    Gallery open Tue. —Sun., 10:00 am—5:00 pm.

    Café open Wed. —Sat., 11:00 am —3:00 pm.

    Sun. brunch with wine, 10:00—3:00 pm.

    (608) 845-6600 www.artisangal.com

    Christopher Columbus Museum

    239 Whitney St., Columbus

    World-class exhibit–2000 quality souvenirs (纪念品) marking Chicago's 1893 World Columbian Exhibition. Tour buses are always welcome.

    Open daily, 8:15 am – 4:00 pm.

    (920) 623-1992 www.columbusantiquemall.com

I was ever bullied badly when I was in high school. One kid in particular would try to make me feel worse in every way he knew. For example, he would throw stuff at me constantly, hit me on the head, punch me, call me ugly and stupid, make fun of me and, of course tell me he would beat me up if I ever fought back. It was like his daily mission. And it was my daily mission to just get through the day. What could I say? It made my world very small because that was my main focus—just surviving. Everything else fell by the wayside. Unfortunately, that included any form of social life. So not only was my world tiny, but it was very lonely.

    Looking back to that time, which was about 11 years ago, my biggest mistake was not bringing anyone into that world of mine. I was too proud and embarrassed to get help. I would rather not face the fact that I needed help because in my mind, that would mean that the bully had won. It would also mean that I was weak.

Let me just say this—-bullying someone is a weak choice. The only reason why they come after you is that they don't think you will do anything about it. Does that make anyone strong? Absolutely not. Be stronger. Reach out to a parent, a teacher or a friend for help. Simply admit that you are struggling and need help.

    You can put it like this: Somebody who is weak and trying to build himself or herself up has chosen to do that by putting me down. The only reason why they are doing it is that I am nice and I haven't done anything about it yet. Well, I am through putting up with this. I have basic human rights that they are trying to take away to feel better and that is just not OK. How do I handle this the right way? I don't want the pain cycle to continue and I don't want to become someone I don't want to be.

I will close by saying this—-I am not just surviving. I am just enjoying my life. I graduated from college with honors, by the way. You don't have to wait to live. Do something today.

Oxford English Dictionary (OED) announced on November 23 for the first time that it has chosen not to name one single word of the year, but many words for the "special" year 2020. Describing 2020 as "a year which cannot be neatly summarized in one single word". OED said on Monday that there were too many words to sum up the events of 2020. From more than 11 billion words found in web-based news, blogs and other text sources, its lexicographers(词典编纂者)revealed what the dictionary described as "great shifts in language data and frequency rises in new words" over the past 12 months.

Most words of the year are coronavirus-related, including coronavirus, lockdown, circuit-breaker, keyworkers and face masks. The report said the word "coronavirus" dates back to the 1960s and was previously "mainly used by scientific and medical specialists". But by April this year it had become one of the most frequently used nouns in the English language, beyond even the usage of the word "time". It said use of the word "pandemic" has increased by more than 57,000 percent this year.

The revolution in working habits during the pandemic has also affected language, with both "remote" and "remotely" seeing more than 300 percent growth in use since March. "On mute(静音)"and "unmute" have seen 500 percent rises since March, while the words "workation" and "staycation" also increased drastically.

Casper Grathwohl, the president of Oxford Dictionaries, said. "I've never witnessed a year in language like the one we've just had. The Oxford team was identifying hundreds of significant new words and usages as the year unfolded." "2020 has been filled with new words unlike any other," Grathwohl added.

The OED's announcement mirrored the huge influence of the COVID-19 on the people from all walks of life. To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Germany, Russia and the United States are racing against time to develop coronavirus vaccines.