A Special Appointment

    Years ago I moved to Woodland Hills to take a job in a small hospital's emergency department. No one wanted to work on Christmas Eve, so the shift (轮班) went to me. I kissed my family goodbye and went off to spend the night in the hospital. It was a thankless job.

At 9 pm, the ambulance brought in a man in his 60s who was having a heart attack. His face was pale, and he was frightened. The whole night I did my best to save his life. Before I left in the morning to spend Christmas with my family, I stopped by to see how he was doing. It was still tough, but he had survived the night and was sleeping.

    The following year I got Christmas Eve duty again. At 9 pm sharp, the ward clerk told me there was a couple who wanted to speak with me. When I approached them, the man introduced himself as Mr. Lee and said, “You probably don't remember me, but last Christmas Eve you saved my life. Thank you for the year you gave me.” He and his wife hugged me, handed me a small gift, and left.

    The following year a new doctor had joined the group, but I wanted to see if Mr. and Mrs. Lee would return. This time, I volunteered for the shift. I kept an eye on the door. Once again, at exactly 9 pm, the Lees appeared, carrying a warmly wrapped bundle. It was their new grandchild. Mr.Lee, his family and I spent 13 Christmas Eves together. In the later years the staff all knew about the story and would work to give me time with him in the break room, where we spent a half-hour each Christmas Eve.

    The last year I saw him, he brought me a gift. I carefully opened the package and found a crystal (水晶) bell inside. It was engraved (镌刻) with a single word: Friendship. Now, my family, friends and I ring that bell every Christmas Eve at exactly 9 pm and offer our best wishes to the man who we won't forget.

    The loneliest chimp(黑猩猩)in the world just got the best surprise—a hug from a new friend．Ponso has been by himself for nearly three years，finding himself alone after his wife and children died on the island where they were abandoned by a medical testing company many years ago．

    For years a nearby villager named Germain has been Ponso's only company，visiting him so often to bring bananas and bread—the chimp's only source of food on the tiny island．It was clear how much Ponso missed companionship when he was recently visited by Chimpanzee Conservation Centre Director Estelle Raballand．The chimp immediately embraced Estelle Raballand in a huge hug and laughed as she reached out for him，with his smile from ear to ear．

    For those who know Ponso's backstory，his immediate ease and trust in humans might be surprising．Ponso was one of 20 chimps，all between the ages of 7 to 11 years old，relocated to an island off the Ivory Coast after being used for testing by the New York Blood Centre．After the tests were completed in 2005，the lab reportedly transferred the chimps to a string of islands，occasionally dropping off food and water because there was none in the chimps' new homes．

    Disease and hunger soon left only Ponso，his mate and their two children standing．But at the end of 2013 they died within days of each other and Ponso was now completely alone．

    A group called SOS PONSO is trying to raise money for the poor lonely chimp，already achieving its goal of $20,000 - all of which will be used for Ponso's care．

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    Good writing starts with good ideas.If you write about things that you care about,you will write better.If you write about things that you don't care about,you'll be bored and your paper will not have many good ideas.

    Once you have a good idea,the next step is organization（组织）.Think through your paper before you start.Write an outline.You need to know what your main points are before you start your first paragraph.Use 2-4 main points, one paragraph each.

    In your central paragraphs,be concise and specific（简洁具体）.Give examples with details,not just general ideas. If you can say the same thing with fewer words,do it!Don't use big words.

    When you finish writing,look at your outline again.Did you really follow it or did it change as you wrote?Many times you find different ideas as you write.Look at your central paragraphs.What are their main ideas now?Are theses ideas in the introduction?I often write the introduction again to fit the paper after I finish writing.

    How do I book a place on Airbnb?

    When you book a place on Airbnb, you are making arrangements to stay in Someone's home. Each host has their own style of hospitality, starting with how. They like to get to know their guests. Some hosts want to approve reservations, while others are comfortable letting you book their place instantly without waiting for approval.

    ⒈Complete Your Personal Details

    In either case, it's important to know that Airbnb is a community that relies on trust. Complete your personal details before you request a reservation with a host, so they can know a little bit about you when they confirm. Your personal details should include photos and verifications (证明）, especially because some hosts require guests to have a profile photo and verified ID in order to book.

    ⒉Find the Right Place

    With over 800,000 unique listings around the world, you'll want to make sure the place you choose has everything you need for a comfortable and memorable trip. When searching for a place, make sure to include your dates and number of guests to get the most accurate pricing. Read reviews, descriptions, house rules, and facilities for each place to see if it's the right fit for your trip. You can always contact the host if you have any questions about their home.

    ⒊Book It!

    You've found the perfect place, and now it's time to make it official. This is where the host's preferred way of booking will determine how you'll confirm your reservation.

    Instant Book

    For hosts who don't want to approve each reservation, you'll see a button on their listing that says Instant Book. Like the name suggests, you can confirm a reservation at these places right away.

    Request to Book

    Many hosts prefer to approve reservations before they're final. In this case, you'll see a button on their listing that says Request to Book. To submit a reservation request, you'll need to enter your payment details.

    Hosts have 24 hours to accept your request, and your reservation is automatically confirmed once they do.

    Pre-approvals and Special Offers

    If you decide to contact the host to ask questions before attempting to book, the host may respond to your message by inviting you to make a reservation with either a Pre-approval or a Special Offer. A Pre-approval is an invitation to finish booking for the dates and number of guests you noted in your message. A Special Offer gives the host the opportunity to provide special pricing, dates, and other reservation details before you book.

    The boy sat on his chair, with his hand above the keyboard. He thought about what to write.

    He recalled that the competition deadline was merely a week away. But he still had not even started on his piece. He looked at the brochure again." WRITING COMPETITION!" the title read. His mom had encouraged him to enter the writing competition, and now he was taking it on as his personal task for the holidays.

    As the boy reflected on his previous writing efforts, he realized how hopeless his task of winning was. Every story he ever wrote was based on other stories. He had little imagination, and unfortunately, imagination was the key to writing.

    Suddenly, he had a brainwave. This time, he came up with an original and imaginative story.

    The words shot towards him like a storm of leaves. Words were coming easily, flowing through him, faster than he could type. He typed faster than he ever had before. He continued to type, amazed at how easy writing this story was. The boy could not stop writing. He looked at the word count and saw the number" 248" staring right back at him. He was not even halfway yet.

    Then he heard the call of his mother saying time for bed. He continued writing the piece, ignoring her. He had to make up for the time he had lost thinking about a topic to write.

    Finally, he finished. The word count now read"498".

    "Perfect," he thought," just under the word limit." He knew this was the story that would win.

    He went onto Google and searched for the competition. He found the page but there was no "Enter" button.

China' Forbidden City—-traditionally off-limit at night for anyone except emperors and visiting dignitaries (显要人物)—- was decorated with lanterns as China celebrated the end of the Chinese New Year holiday. The complex, home to Chinese emperors for five centuries, was opened at night for the first time since it was reopened as the Palace Museum 94 years ago.

    The complex and palace walls were illuminated with red lanterns and a light show, designed to recreate the feelings of the royal court, while the China National Traditional Orchestra and the Peking Opera performed. An image of a treasured scroll called A Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains was cast onto the palace roof.

    Most of China's 1.3 billion people, however, had to watch the show on television. Only 3,000 people were allowed in: 2,500 invited guests and 500 people who booked their tickets online. "The 3,000 visitors can show off for the whole year," one person said on Weibo. When booking for the second day opened at midnight, the booking system crashed for more than an hour due to great demand. The free tickets were quickly taken when it reopened. A lively secondary market soon appeared. Scalpers were selling tickets for as much as 9,999 yuan on online trading sites.

    The Palace Museum is now on a campaign to attract more visitors, with its former curator Shan Jixiang saying he wants to make traditional Chinese culture more accessible to the general public. More than 80 percent of the palace is now accessible to visitors, up from 30 percent in 2012. Shan has set a target of 85 percent by 2020 to mark the palace's 600^th anniversary. Creativity today has made the Palace Museum younger and drawn traditional culture closer to the public.