One {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(rain) night I was driving along a lonely highway {#blank#}2{#/blank#}I saw a man walking rapidly ahead of me along the side of the road.It was pouring rain and I slowed down to avoid splashing him as I went by.

    He misunderstood and thought I was offering a ride，and ran towards my car. He was very tall and had a full beard, {#blank#}3{#/blank#} scared me. I stepped on the gas pedal  {#blank#}4{#/blank#}（leave）quickly and I saw the look of total despair in his eyes. Suddenly，all fear was  {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(go) and I backed up and unlocked my car door，praying this was not the {#blank#}6{#/blank#}(big) mistake in my life but somehow knowing it would be okay.

    The man's truck had got stuck {#blank#}7{#/blank#}the mud. He {#blank#}8{#/blank#}(walk) for miles.No one would pick  {#blank#}9{#/blank#}up and his wife was giving birth to their first child in the hospital. He had cried at the thought that he might not be there. {#blank#}10{#/blank#} fortunate), we arrived in the hospital before his son was born.

    I am a huge fan of thrift shop (旧货店) and have several that I check out every weekend. It's how I relax and get some time to {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (I). I actually look forward to it every week.

    One of my favorite shops started discounting certain pieces of clothing by 90%. I was {#blank#}2{#/blank#} (disappoint) at first that I couldn't benefit from this, because none of them was in my or my husband's size.

    Then it {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (occur) to me that I could stock up on sweaters and jackets for the coming cold weather and donate them {#blank#}4{#/blank#} the homeless shelter! In the last couple of {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (week) I've gotten six huge bags of clothes for under $20! I try to get unisex (男女皆宜的) colors and styles in case there are women {#blank#}6{#/blank#} need clothing, too.

    I went to the shelter today to drop off the clothing. It was pouring with rain, and there were several people huddled (挤成一团) inside {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (wait) for lunch. One poor man was lying on the wet floor. I asked him {#blank#}8{#/blank#} he wanted something dry to lie on and gave him a sleeping bag. He was thrilled and said he {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (real) needed one.

    Before dropping off the clothing I put {#blank#}10{#/blank#} smile card into one of the jacket pockets!

    Do you like trying different things? Are you afraid {#blank#}1{#/blank#} things that you think you're bad at?

    Last year I started to learn Tai Chi (太极)in order to improve my health and reduce my stress. It was something new for me, and I found it to be quite difficult, very {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(difference) from anything I'd ever learned before. Small {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(move) are important in Tai Chi. I was used to being fast and active , {#blank#}4{#/blank#} to learn Tai Chi I had to learn patience. Now I've found that I'm a much more patient person than before, and Tai Chi isn't nearly as difficult as it {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(be) before.

    We tend {#blank#}6{#/blank#}(like) things we are good at that's normal. For example, I'm naturally very good at badminton and tennis, but I'm very bad at anything {#blank#}7{#/blank#} involves keeping balance, such as skating, skiing and gymnastics. Tai Chi has {#blank#}8{#/blank#}(great) improved my balance which has been a very good thing for me.

    My point is that you can keep {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(do) the things you know you're good at and live in your comfort zone, or you can try something new. If you don't try new things, you'll never know what it would be like to try something new to challenge {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(you). It will definitely pay off in the end.

    Fewer than one in seven people can {#blank#}1{#/blank#} ( correct) identify common washing symbols while a {#blank#}2{#/blank#} (three) of people admit they never check instruction labels (标签). Some seven in ten say they ever had machine-washed clothes that should {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (go) to the dry cleaners because they failed to look at the labels.

    The ignorance about {#blank#}4{#/blank#} clothes should be cleaned can cost families thousands of pounds, according to a sample test of householders by a school uniform supplier.

    Men are the worst offenders with more than three quarters always using the same program on a washing machine regardless of the instructions. Almost half of {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (woman) used just three programs. {#blank#}6{#/blank#} is said that the lack of understanding over symbols is destroying thousands of pounds worth of clothing {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (treat) improperly.

    While almost eight {#blank#}8{#/blank#} ten people believe it is important to check the labels on their clothes, less than half look at them when {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (buy) new clothes. Some nine out of ten said they were unaware that some clothing should never be put in the drier.

    The labels are there to show how clothes should be treated. This {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (help) information can save time and ensure clothes to last longer.