Recently, my mother asked me to drop off some letters at the post office and pick up some stamps for her. Without giving it a thought, I took the letters and purchased her stamps.

    A few days later, she mentioned that one of the letters I had mailed was missing a stamp, and asked me if I had put a stamp on it. She had remembered asking me to put a stamp on it, though I certainly had not heard her. So, unfortunately, it looked like the letter, which was a bill of course, would come back marked "Return to Sender for Insufficient Postage". A few days went by and I returned to the post office to pick up our mail. While I was there, I saw the postmaster and happened to tell him about Mom's letter missing the stamp. I asked him to be on the lookout for it coming back. It was then that he told me his story. "You know," he said, "I immediately saw after you had dropped the mail off that your letter was missing a stamp. I also noticed that it was a bill for a credit card company. I thought to myself that you have always been kind to me and my partner, and I wanted to return the favor. So, to prevent your mother from getting charged a late fee from the credit card company, I took money from our change dish (extra pennies for folks who need one), and purchased a stamp for you."

    When I heard it, I couldn't believe it. What a blessing that was! I thanked him over and over again for putting the stamp on the letter for us. Then, I immediately dumped(倾倒) all the change out of my purse and into the penny dish in order to help others out in the future. When I got home, I was able to tell Mom the good news. This was kindness karma(因果报应) in action, I believe!

My Favourite Travel Books

    The Old Patagonian Express by Paul Theroux

    Choosing my favorite Paul Theroux book is like picking my favorite place in the world: It's impossible to settle on just one. But The Old Patagonian Express, which is about a train journey Theroux made from Boston, USA to southern Argentina, is right up there at the top of my list. Theroux has a wicked sense of humor. He brings so much wisdom and experience to his travels.

    Walden by Henry David Thoreau

    If he were alive today, Thoreau would probably frown if he heard someone refer to Walden as a travel book. But I regard it as a travel-writing masterpiece. I went into the woods, he writes, because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. That's the same spirit of discovery that defines so many great contemporary travel records.

    The Dharma Bums by Jack Kerouac

    Like so many people, I fell in love with Kerouac's novels in my late teens and early 20s. On the Road gets all the press, but I always love The Dharma Bums. Kerouac beautifully captures the romance of California trains, Berkeley, and backpacking in the Sierras. It's hard to read this book without wanting to leave for the mountains to brainstorm bad haikus on the trail and cook canned macaroni and cheese over a crackling campfire.

    Confucius Lives Next Door by T. R. Reid

    This is sort of A Year in Provence in Japan, only the cross-cultural differences are much greater. Reid and his family moved to Tokyo when he became the chief for The Washington Post, enabling him to uncover truths about the country. Among the highlights are his observations about Japanese schools, including Yodobashi No. 6 Elementary School, where his daughters were greeted by the whole school staff.

    Africa is a very diverse land with many different tribes. One tradition that many of these groups share is painting or marking their bodies and faces in color. They do this for many reasons. Some marks are used to identify people as part of the group. Other marks are used for ceremonies such as wedding and during times of war. Let's look at some different examples of body painting.

    Red is a common color in body painting because it often represents health and long life. Among the Masai of East Africa, when men are old enough to marry and make decisions for their people, they participate in a special ceremony in which they paint their heads and faces red. This ceremony takes place every seven to fourteen years, so there is not an exact age for participating in it.

    The Samburu, also from East Africa, like to paint their faces and hair red because they think it looks pretty.

    The Masai men also have a unique way of showing that they are brave. To show that he has killed a lion, a man will paint his body with a natural white material, making special marks to represent this accomplishment. The Masai men also use this white to show that they are no longer boys and are considered adults.

    One quite unusual example of face painting is done by the Wodaabe people of West Africa. Once a year, they have a beauty contest for men. The men paint their faces yellow and red. Then they add white and black circles and lines. Black paint is used near the eyes and on the lips to draw attention to the whiteness of their eyes and teeth, which the Wodaabe consider most beautiful. The women then decide which man they like best.

    As you travel, enjoy the beautiful and bright colors of Africa.

    The cost of living in countries like the U.S., Britain, Australia or France has skyrocketed (飞涨) in recent years. However, if you are willing to leave your country and explore life in other areas, there are many countries boasting an extremely cheap and low cost of living. Check out the following countries when planning your next move.

    Ecuador

    Ecuador is similar to the United States in many ways, and as a result has become a popular American getaway. They even use the U.S. dollar for their currency. In this country, it is cheaper to eat out every day than cook for yourself on a budget in the U.S. You can even buy a property for around $50,000 and hire someone to tend to it while you are away.

    Mexico

    Although the country is known for its poverty-ridden streets, there are many wealthier areas that provide every facility you might need. You can live off a mere $700 to $800 a month in Mexico, and this includes rent for a nice place, facilities, food, and any sightseeing.

    Argentina

    Argentina has been a popular tourist destination for many years. It has great restaurants, a rich history, and many places to explore. Not to mention, it is not very expensive to live there. A decent sized home can cost around $139,000, which is relatively cheap in relation to homes in the United States.

    Vietnam

    Vietnam has also become a popular tourist destination in recent years. There are many million dollar luxury homes by the beach, but you can find a modest flat or small home for around $25,000 to $50,000 if you search in the right areas.

    A new study, a project of the researchers from the University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania, finds the fitness tracker probably does not help with weight loss.

    The devices are designed to record your physical activity. They are usually worn around the wrist, where they measure a person's heart rate. The research team looked at two groups of individuals. The first wore a fitness tracker and took part in health counseling (咨询) with experts to consider the best weight-loss plan. The researchers compared this group with people who only got health counseling.

    The study found that those only speaking with the health experts lost nearly 6 kilograms, but those using a fitness tracker lost only 3.5 kilograms. John Jakicic, the lead researcher, questioned the use of electronic devices for weight control in place of "effective behavioral counseling for physical activity and diet."

    The study involved 470 subjects aged between 18 and 35. Some of them were overweight, while others were considered obese (肥胖的). Over three fourths of the subjects were women. All the subjects were told to increase physical activity and start on a low-calorie diet. They had their weight measured once every six months. After six months, researchers divided the group into two parts: one continued with monthly counseling, while members of the other group were given a fitness tracker. Eighteen months later, both groups "showed significant improvements in fitness, physical activity, and diet," with no major difference between groups. However, when it came to losing weight, the people who only spoke with experts lost nearly twice as much weight.

    Jakicic said, "the study's findings are important because effective long-term treatments are needed to address America's obesity." More information is needed, he added, to learn how to best use these devices to change "physical activity and diet behaviors" in adults who want to lose weight.

    Darrell Blatchley, a marine biologist and environmentalist based in the Philippine city of Davao, received a call from the Philippines, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (渔业与水产资源局) early Friday morning reporting a death of a young whale.

    When the necropsy (尸检) was performed, Blatchley told NPR, he was not prepared for the amount of plastic they found in the whale's stomach. "It was full of plastic nothing but nonstop plastic." he said "It was filled to the point that its stomach was as hard as a baseball." That means that this animal has been suffering not for days or weeks but for months or even a year or more," Blatchley added.

    Blatchley is the founder and owner of the D'Bone Collector Museum, a natural history museum in Davao. In the coming days, the museum will display all the items found in the whale's system. Blatchley and his team work with the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources and other organizations to assist in rescue and recovery of marine animals.

    "Within the last 10 years, we have recovered 61 whales and dolphins just within the Davao Gulf," he said. "Of them, 57 have died due to man whether they took plastic or fishing nets or other waste, or gotten caught in pollution — and four were pregnant."

    Blatchley said he hoped that the latest incident would launch the issue of plastic pollution in the Philippines and across the globe. "If we keep going this way, it will be more uncommon to see an animal die of natural causes than it is to see an animal die of plastic," he said.