You may know the English letters A, B and C. But do you know there are people called ABC? You may like eating bananas. But did you know there is such thing as a “banana person”? How strange! Are these people from “another earth”? No. They are just Chinese people like you and me.

    ABC means American-born Chinese. An ABC is a Chinese, but was born in the United States. Sometimes, people call an ABC a “banana person”. A banana is yellow outside and white inside. So, when a person is a banana, he or she is white inside-thinking like a Westerner and yellow outside-looking like a Chinese.

    Do you know why? Usually, ABCs know little about China or the Chinese language. Some of them don't speak Chinese. Also, they are not interested in Chinese politics.

    But if ABCs cannot speak Chinese, can we still call them Chinese people? Yes, of course. They are Chinese. They are overseas (海外的) Chinese. These people may be citizens(公民) of another country like the US, Canada or Singapore. But they have Chinese blood. Their parents, grandparents or even great-grandparents were from China. They all have black eyes and black hair. But they are not Chinese citizens. They are not people of the People's Republic of China. For example, we all know the famous scientist C. N. Yang (杨振宁). He got the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1957. Chinese people love him. But he is an American citizen.

    A thief entered the bedroom of the 30th President of the United States, who met him and helped him escape punishment.

    The event happened in the early rooming hours in one of the first days when Calvin Coolidge came into power, late in August, 1923. He and his family were living in the same third­floor suite (套房) at the Willard Hotel in Washington that they had occupied several years before. The former President's wife was still living in the White House.

    Coolidge awoke to see a stranger go through his clothes, remove a wallet and a watch chain.

    Coolidge spoke, “I wish you wouldn't take that.”

    The thief, gaining his voice, said, “Why？”

    “I don't mean the watch and chain, only the charm (表坠). Take it near the window and read what is impressed on its back.” the President said.

    The thief read, “Presented to Calvin Coolidge.”

    “Are you President Coolidge？” he asked.

    The President answered, “Yes, and the House of Representatives (众议院) gave me that watch charm. I'm fond of it. It would do you no good. You want money. Let's talk this over.”

    Holding up the wallet, the young man said in a low voice, “I'll take this and leave everything else.”

    Coolidge, knowing there was $80 in it, persuaded the young man to sit down and talk. He told the President he and his college roommate had overspent during their holiday and did not have enough money to pay their hotel bill.

    Coolidge decided to offer the man and his roommate two rail tickets back to the college. Then he counted out $32 and said it was a loan (借款)．

    He then told the young man, “There is a guard in the corridor.” The young man nodded and left through the same window as he had entered.

C

    The idea of spending a year away from home is something that attracts nearly everyone. So why is taking a gap year still considered the wild card（百搭牌）?

    Choosing to take a year out can help you gain valuable experience as well as give you the opportunity to save up some funds to help you with accommodations when you go to university.

    For a teenage student, the prospect of providing for yourself, miles away from home, can be discouraging. But with an increasing number of gap year companies providing travel and trips abroad to suit any need, it is becoming easier to tailor a dream trip.

    You can also find gap year companies that cover everything from internships（实习）abroad to paid work and volunteering. Such companies offer ideas and inspiration to kick-start your travelling dream.

    But gap years don't have to be all about travel. You can have a beneficial year out of education and stay right where you are. Stephanie Wood wants to be a mental health nurse, but with related health courses being some of the most exclusive and competitive around, she is taking a year off from education in order to gain an edge through work experience: “My plan is to get a job that directly relates to my course for the next few months. Working there over a stretch of time will both give me an impression and insight into the working world of nursing—knowledge to help me through university when I choose to go.”

    Gap years aren't for everyone. Readjusting to an academic timetable after spending time abroad can be a shock. You also need to consider the practicalities, from financing your gap year to surviving without home comforts.

    Alaska Airlines has the cheapest fares around, but you receive superb service unequal to its price. In case you don't know, Alaska Airlines does not just go to Alaska, but includes states such as Washington, California, and Hawaii. Our prices are reasonable and we offer great service.

    Alaska Airlines is generous. For each bag you check in, it must weigh 50 pounds or less, which is extremely generous for domestic flights. Your baggage is allowed to be up to 62 inches in length. You're also allowed one carry-on bag in addition to one personal item which can be a purse, a laptop computer, or a briefcase.

    Not only do we give you the cheapest airfare, but we offer you a visa card which you can earn plenty of miles on. Upon approval, you will receive 25,000 Bonus Miles. From then on, for each dollar you charge to this card, you will receive 3 miles and there's no limit to the amount of miles you can earn. You also receive a $99 round-trip discount code for a Companion Ticket each year for using this card. This is a sweet deal and very generous. Think about all of your purchases you make during the month. Now multiply that by three. You're talking about a free trip cross country in just a few short months. Wow!

    Alaska Airlines receives great reviews for its performance, punctuality, and professional service. In addition to its great reviews from customers, Alaska Airlines has received lots of awards and recognitions. Network Carriers in North America has rated Alaska Airlines for the highest in customer satisfaction for the past 4 years. We have also received the Executive Travel's leading edge Award. We were also named on the 2011 Washington Green 50 list.

    Alaska Airlines is quickly gaining the recognition it deserves. We're adding higher expectations to the flying experience. Try it out.

When I was a kid, my mom liked to make breakfast food for dinner every now and then. And I remember one night in particular when she had made breakfast after a long, hard day at hospital.

On that evening so long ago, my mom placed a plate of eggs, sausage and extremely burned toast in front of my dad. I remember waiting to see if anyone noticed! Yet all my dad did was to reach for his toast, smile at my mom and ask me how my day was at school. I don't remember what I told him that night, but I do remember watching him spread butter and jelly on that toast and eat every bite!

When I got up from the table that evening, I remember bearing my mom apologize to my dad for burning the toast. And I'll never forget what he said: "Honey, I love burnt toast."

Later that night, I went to kiss daddy good night and I asked him if he really liked his toast burnt. He took me in his arms and said, "Your momma put in a hard day at work today and she's really tired. And besides, a little burnt toast never hurt anyone!"

You know, life is full of imperfect things and imperfect people. What I've learned over the years is that learning to accept each other's faults is one of the most important keys to creating a healthy, growing, and lasting relationship. This good quality is the base of any relationship—husband­wife or parent­child or friendship! As far as I'm concerned, I'm not the best engineer as expected. However, I have made my efforts. That's enough.

So learn to take the good, the bad, and the ugly parts of your life. Burnt toast isn't a deal­breaker! Don't put the key to your happiness in someone else's pocket but into your own. You will appreciate the value of every soul including yourself.

This winter, the U. S. state of California received unusually large amounts of rain and snow. Now, people worry that some areas will flood as the snow in the Sierra Nevada Mountains melts (融化).

Ron Caetano lives about half-way between the cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco. He is preparing to leave in case his community, called the Island District, floods.

More than 100 years ago, the Island District area was under a large lake named Tulare Lake. At one time, Tulare Lake was the largest freshwater lake west of the Mississippi River. But reservoirs (水库) and watering systems for agriculture caused it to disappear. However, in very rainy years, farmland can still get covered with water.

Experts say reservoirs near the area will likely receive three times more water than they can hold this year. That means officials must increase the amount of water they release (释放) from the reservoirs. If too much water is released, the area might flood.

The Island District has organized a community network to help prepare for floods. People are placing sandbags close to elderly neighbors' houses to block possible flooding. And they are looking at reports from water officials, county officials, and from each other.

California has had very dry weather in recent years. Both cities and farm communities acclaimed this year's winter rains. If the weather gets warmer slowly, the snow will not melt quickly and there may be little or no flooding. But if the weather gets hot quickly, that will bring trouble from too much melting snow.

Officials announced plans to close parts of Yosemite National Park because of threats of flooding. The park is about 270 kilometers east of San Francisco in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

Nicholas Pinter is with the University of California, Davis Center for Watershed Sciences. He said the lake's size has always changed because of California's weather. He described the surrounding area this way. "It has been an engineering problem all along," he said. "This is a bathtub (浴缸) with no way out."