My husband and I are saving thousands of dollars every year by growing our own vegetables in our backyard. We learn something new every year and this website has been made to share tips with other people that would like to grow some of their own food.

    It's true that if you are starting from fresh, it will cost a little bit of money to get started. However, once everything is set up, the cost is very small and the rewards are huge. The size of your family and how many vegetables you eat determine exactly how much money you can save every year. We do a lot of juicing, so we are saving thousands of dollars by growing some carefully selected greens.

    There is an amazing sense of accomplishment when you grow your own vegetables. Vegetables out of your vegetable garden don't get any fresher, tastier or more satisfying. The whole family can get involved in this hobby and kids will learn where food comes from and appreciate nature even more.

    Our approach to vegetable gardening is completely different from the normal one. We are doing it in the lazy way with zero digging and fertilizing(施肥). The way we grow our vegetables is to emulate natural ecosystems. No rows of carrots can be found in our garden beds. Rain forests seem to do just fine without human interference(干预) or having plants sown in rows, so we have applied the same principle to our vegetable garden and we care producing more vegetables than ever.

    By copying nature we spend little time working in the vegetable garden but get a much better crop than previous years when we followed the rules. What can I say? We're such rebels.(叛逆者）

    If you're encouraged by the tiny house movement and think 160 square feet is just enough for your needs, you may want to contact the Academy of Construction and Design (ACAD) at IDEA Public Charter School in northeast Washington.

    Students in the program built a micro house with a kitchen, a bathroom, a sleeping loft with space for a queen-size bed and a storage loft, all set on a trailer for mobility. The exterior of the house was part of a continuous living exhibit in 2015 and was moved to the IDEA campus so students could work with builders to complete the interior earlier this year.

    McMahon said the D. C. government's approval to push companies to hire District residents was at odds with the school system not preparing students for careers in construction, exploring or electrical work. McMahon gathered industry and community leaders to establish ACAD in 2005, and he said 100 percent of the companies he contacted responded positively to the idea, including major firms such as JBG, Clark Construction, Hines Construction and Boston Properties.

    “When students make the connection between what they are learning a potential career, their academics improve dramatically,” said Carol Randolph, chief operating officer of the D. C. Students Construction Trades Foundation. “Some of them who didn't think college was an option now have a better chance because their classes have become relevant to a job.”

    “We teach them life skills and explain that even if you start as a laborer, there are opportunities to move up quickly,” he said. “We rewrite the story for them and explain that they can work for a few years, make good money, get promoted, and start their own business or go to school with less debts.”

    “Parents and school advisor can be the biggest obstacles because of the negative idea of construction as a blue-collar career,” Karriem said. “I get middle-school advisor on board to talk about the opportunities this education provides. These kids are learning lifelong skills that can help them in other fields, provide them with income and allow them to take care of their homes.”

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    For the brave in the army, being sent away from home is just part of the duty. However, it's never easy especially for those with children. So, when I found out I was going to stay in South Korea for a year, I was nervous about how my five children, particularly my eldest daughter Abigail, would take the news since it meant I wouldn't be home to see her graduate from high school.

    To my surprise, Abigail told me not to worry and even suggested we make the news known among family members. "We've been lucky you haven't had to be sent abroad yet. Anyway, we can get connected through the Internet. See me on your phone." Abigail said. She stepped into many of my roles when I was gone. I wanted to find a way to thank her and show her how proud I was of her. I started planning the special surprise when my request to return home a few weeks earlier to attend Abigail's graduation ceremony(典礼) was approved.

    When my time in South Korea finally came to an end, I flew home, and stayed in a hotel. On Abigail's graduation day, I hid in an office behind the stage waiting until I heard her name called. I just kept thinking "Don't cry. Don't trip in your heels. Don't fall over." At last! Abigail was up on stage. I slipped up behind her, whispered in her ear, and around she turned! "I was just thinking, like, 'You aren't supposed to be here. What? What? How?' It was the biggest shock... I'm pretty sure my dad made people he didn't even know cry. Emotional for everyone." Abigail cried.

    You know what followed: embraces, kisses, tears, laughs, flowers, wishes...; aren't they what a family have in store?

The True Story of a Young Man

When Reginald Lindsay received a scholarship to Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia in 1967, what he wanted most was not a job with a good salary, but a chance to be a member of Congress as a southern representative. After earning his degree at Harvard Law School in 1970, he returned to the South to practice law among the poor. "I want to help them understand what their rights are and to help them achieve them," he said. Then he ran for political office at the local and state level until he was ready to try for Congress.

Reg grew up in a low-income Negro section of Birmingham, Alabama. Brought up by his grandparents after his parents were divorced while he was very young, Reg had been living through a period of far-reaching progress in race relations. In the summer of 1968 Reg himself became a good example of this progress when he became the first Negro student appointed to a special new program. The program introduced bright young students to the workings of the Georgia State government and encouraged them to seek employment there after finishing their education. "I've been lucky," he said. "I seem to have been in the right place at the right time."

But luck was only part of Reg's story, for he made the most of opportunities that came his way. He learned to read in kindergarten and began visiting the public library regularly to borrow books. His grandparents encouraged him, though neither of them had much education, and they bought him a set of encyclopedias. "I loved those books," he remembered. "I used to come downstairs before breakfast and read short articles. I enjoyed reading about famous men, and then I would pretend to be one of them. I guess it was partly a childish game and partly an escape. It wasn't too much fun to be a Negro when I was a kid." While studying for his bachelor's degree at Morehouse College, Reg worked on several political campaigns helping candidates get elected to government offices. At the same time he maintained a "B" average while majoring in political science.

With just two more years to complete at Harvard Law School, which also gave him a scholarship, Reg made a good start on his professional career. He said, "The good life for me is the kind of life where I can find satisfaction in public service." Then in 1975 he was the Massachusetts state commissioner of public utilities and from 1993 to 2009 he was judge of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts.

    Sagrada Familia (2, 056, 448 visits/year)

    Opening hours: 09: 00-18: 00 (October-March)    09: 00-20: 00 (April-September).

    Admission: $11, or $10 with the Barcelona Card.

    Disabled access: Yes

    The temple has been under construction since 1882 and they've still got another 30 to 80 years to go before it will be finished. The project's vast scale (规模) and its special design have made it one of Barcelona's top tourist attractions for many years.

    La Pedrera (1, 133, 220 visits/year)

    Opening hours: 09: 00-18: 30 (November-February)    09: 00-20: 00 (March-October)

    Admission: $9. 50. Save 20% with the Barcelona Card.

    Disabled access: No.

    This building used to be called Casa Mila, but nowadays it's more commonly known as La Pedrera. It was made of bricks and had colorful tiles (瓷砖).

    Barcelona FC Museum (1, 032, 763 visits/year)

    Opening hours: 6th April-4th October: (Monday to Saturday) 10:00-20:00; the rest of the year: 10: 00 to 18: 30.

    Admission: $8. 50 for entry to museum and an extra $17 for a guided tour.

    Disabled access: Yes.

    It is now generally considered as the best football museum in the world. You can see so many trophies (奖杯), pictures and statues of great football players. I'm not a football fan but I still enjoyed walking round this museum.

    Miró Museum (518, 869 visits/year)

    Opening hours: Check website for details as they vary depending on the time of the year.

    Admission: $8. Save 20% with the Barcelona Card.

    Disabled access: Yes.

    This museum has a wide range of Miró's works dating back as far as 1914. This artwork collection includes not only his paintings but also a good selection of sculptures.

Simply being quiet is a growing appeal. Lots of business have appeared to meet a rising demand for quiet time, from silent weekend getaways to silent dining, silent reading parties and even silent dating. Silence can mean different things to different people. We are usually silent only with those closest to us. So there is something almost radical(不同凡响的)about the recent trend towards enjoying silence with strangers.

Mariel started a regular silent reading party in Dundee just under a year ago. Readers bring their books and meet in a bar, where they read together in silence for an hour or sometimes two and then put their books away to chat and have a drink. "When the reading party starts, everything goes quiet," says Mariel," It's a little bit surreal (超现实的), especially in what is usually a noisy bar. However, there is something special about sharing the silence with others. It offers a chance to escape from reality; everyone is so busy with work and with technology being ever present. An event like this gives people the opportunity to escape these things for a while."

Honi Ryan is an artist based in Berlin who began hosting silent dinner back in 2006. The rules of the dinner are: no talking, no using your voice, no reading or writing, trying to make as little noise as possible, not connecting with technology, and staying for at least two hours. So far she has taken her silent dinner project to Mexico, the US, Australia and China. "It's evident that the age-old connections we make over food do not depend on the words around it. Silence creates the space for the people and places involved to fill with whatever is needed; it is quite different from our usual social behaviors."