Some British and American people like to invite friends for a meal at home. You should not be upset if your English friends don't invite you home. It doesn't mean they don't like you.

    Dinner parties usually start between 7 and 8 p.m. and end at about 11 p.m. Ask you hosts(主办人) what time you should arrive. It's polite to bring flowers, chocolates or a bottle of wine(酒) as a gift.

    Usually the evening starts with drinks and snacks. If you want to be very polite, say how much you like the room, or the pictures on the wall. But remember—It's not polite to ask how much things cost.

    In many families, the husband sits at one end of the table and the wife sits at the other end. They eat with their guests(客人).

    You'll probably start the meal with soup or something small, then you'll have meat or fish with vegetables, and then dessert followed by coffee. It's polite to finish everything on your plate and to take more if you want it.

    Did you enjoy the evening? Call your hosts the next day, or write them a short “thank you” letter. British and American people like to say “thank you, thank you, thank you” all the time!

    Tony stops his car by the side of the road. He is very tired and wants to get some sleep. Just when he lies down on the seat, a man comes and asks him the time. He looks at his watch and says, “It's a quarter past eight in the morning. “ Tony tries to sleep again, but there is another knock on the window of his car. “Sir, do you know what time it is, please?” a woman asks. He has to look at his watch again and tells her, “It's half past eight a. m..”

    Tony can't sleep well because there are too many people knocking at his window. He writes a note and puts it on the window of his car. It says, “I don't know what time it is!”

    Once again Tony tries to get some sleep. Just at that time, a young man knocks at his window and says, “Hi, sir ! It's a quarter to nine a.m. now!”

    In 1978, I was working as a nurse in a small town about 270km away from Sydney, Australia. I was looking forward to having five days off from duty. Unluckily, the one train a day to my home in Sydney had already left. So I thought I'd get a ride.

    I waited by the side of the highway for three hours, but no one stopped for me. Finally, a man walked over and introduced himself as Gordon. He said that although he couldn't give me a lift, I should come back to his house for lunch. He noticed me standing for hours in the November heat and thought I must be hungry. I was doubtful as a young girl but he promised me I was safe, and he also offered to help me find a lift afterwards. When we arrived at his house, he made me sandwiches. After lunch, he helped me find a lift home.

    Twenty-five years later, while I was driving to a nearby town one day, I saw an elderly man standing in the glaring heat, trying to get a ride. I thought it was another chance to repay(回报) someone for the kindness I'd been given many years earlier. I pulled over and picked him up. I made him comfortable on the back seat and offered him some water.

    After a few moments of small talk, the man said to me, "You haven't changed a bit, even your red hair is still the same."

    I couldn't remember where I'd met him. He then told me he was the man who had given me lunch and helped me find a lift all those years ago. It was Gordon.

I sat on the steps next to Peter and watched him play his new guitar. His left hand worked the strings(弦)1 his right hand played.

" Just in time for the school talent show next   2 ,"I said.

" Are you doing anything for the talent show, Jeremy?" Peter asked.

" No,"I said." If I were a little   3 , like you, 14 years old, maybe I could, too. I believe you' ll win the first prize this year."

" Maybe," said Peter,"I'm playing a song I4 myself."

" You write your own song?"

" It's not   5 ," he said." My song is called ' Two for One'. I got the   6 easily from a two- for- one sale at the store. And I liked the sound of ' Two for One'.7 song goes like this: ' Two for one, two for one, that's the way to have some fun.'I haven't written all the words yet."

The next morning, I saw Peter was so 8 . His right arm was broken.

"I got   9 when playing baseball yesterday," he said," Now I can't be in the talent show next week."

Peter and I10 each other worriedly. Then I had an idea.

" We could sit next to each other on the stage," I said," You could play the left- hand parts, and I' ll play with my right hand."

Peter's eyes were11 and lively." It might work," he said.

I sat   12 him on the top step.

" Where can I put my right hand while we   13 ?"

" Put it on my shoulder," I told him," We' re14 aren't we?"

Our song answered that question. We finished writing the words together15

" Two for one, one for two, see what two good friends can do!"