By May, after three months, I had lost22pounds and reached my goal of 115 pounds. My friends would say “Alice, you look great!” or “How did you lose so much weight?” Those compliments made me feel good and confident.

    Soon I dropped to110 pounds. A few of my friends told me that I needed to stop dieting, because I was starting to look sick. They brought me a present—— a bag of chocolates, which I later gave to my sister. My mother would come to my room, with tears in her eyes, and have long chats about how harmful this diet was and begged me to stop. My dad would leave worried messages on my cell phone at school, telling me that it would do serious harm to my body.

    By mid-June, when school was coming to an end, I was down to an only alive state of 95 pounds. All of a sudden, I knew I had to do something. I guessed the number itself scared me. I recalled my doctor. He told me about a girl who was 95 pounds and was at the risk of dying. I knew I was putting my life at risk, but for what? To make those who love me worried? Was it worthwhile to be thin?

    Now I realize that models in magazines, TV and movies are not realistic. The price to pay for the “perfect body” is living with a dangerous and sometimes deadly eating disorder. And there are more important things to think about than how thin you are.

    They say if you love your job, you'll never work a day in your life. We say if you travel for work, you'll never have a boring commute(上下班往返) a day in your life. If the typical 9-to-5 isn't working for you, here are some options that will pay you to travel. No matter your current skill set, you can probably do it somewhere else.

Represent abroad

    The State Department is actively hiring Foreign Service Officers, and it's probably easier than you think to become one. You'll have to a lot of tests, but if you pass, you'll spend the next years of your life working around the world. A Junior Foreign Service Officer starts at $71,000 a year.

    Teaching English as a Second Language abroad is one of the best ways to deepen understanding of another culture. There's no need to be a certified English teacher in order to go abroad. In this program in China, soon-to-be teachers go abroad to obtain their Teaching English as a Foreign Language(TEFL) certifications. A beginning teacher in China will earn $2,500 for working six months, plus room and board.

    A cruise ship is a floating village. Therefore, any job that you could have in a village you could have onboard a ship-even auctioneering(做拍卖师). Carnival is hiring an art auctioneer to work aboard a luxury cruise ship. The only qualifications necessary are a college degree and public speaking skills. Going…going…sold.

Write the rails

    Writers can reimagine themselves as rail-surfing Jack Kerouacs, crossing the country and writing from coast to coast on the Amtrak Writer's Residency. The application process consists of two questions, as well as the opportunity to provide up to a 20-page writing sample. Amtrak will select 24 writers to participate in the program with the help from a panel of judges. Although the project won't replace a full-time job, it's really a fun opportunity. The application period for 2016 has closed, but applications will reopen in the fall.

    My elder cousin Ted liked complaining almost about everything. When he faced a problem, he always chose to complain about it instead of finding a way to solve it. That was not right. Ted was healthy and had received a good education. He should and could find a good job and work hard to feed himself, but he just complained all day, drifting from one job to another. One day, I read about a farmer called Chris and told Ted about the farmer.

    Chris works hard, performs many jobs around the farm. But Chris is not exactly like other farmers. What makes him different is that he was born without arms or legs. But this has not stopped him from working hard and getting things done.

    Now, you may ask, is this possible? Like many other amazing people who have no arms or legs, Chris does not focus on what he can't do, but rather on what he can do. And he can do a lot! He drives farm vehicles and looks after crops. Once you see Chris in action, you will think there is nothing he could not do.

    Chris is a great example of a person who is making the most of his gifts. His positive attitude and courage make him a true inspiration.

    After I told Ted about Chris, he became silent. Compared with Chris, Ted was much luckier. Then luckily, I saw Ted's change.

    Do you like complaining? If you do, think about Chris. Such a man chooses to stay positive. Why don't we?

    We moved to Elmont in 1956. I was 4 years old. Elmont was a wonderful place to grow up. There were lots of kids, great schools and we had a big yard. My father, Nicholas Denaro, believed that grass was not just to look at, but that children were meant to play on it. We played games and badminton there. A white fence separated our backyard from a small wood. My friends and I jumped the fence and entered the woods.

    My father had the most amazing hand. He could fix anything. He gave those amazing hands to his son, my younger brother, Frank, who also became handy around the house. But my father saved his green fingers for me. He grew flowers, tomatoes, strawberries and figs（无花果） and he shared his love of gardening with me.

    Fourteen years ago, I went to a local nursery and bought a fig tree for Dad for Father's Day. My mother, Bridget Denaro, called it the best gift I could have given him. He planted it exactly in the middle of the front yard.

    He loved that tree and enjoyed delicious figs every year, except just after Sandy hit in 2012. He was so disappointed when cold weather just after the super storm froze all the remaining figs.

In 2015, my father died of aspirating pneumonia(呼吸性肺炎) at 97. We sold our family home of 61 years last year. We left behind Dad's tree, full of figs waiting to ripen. We considered taking it with us, but decided that his Father's Day fig tree belonged to Elmont. The new owner generously allowed me to take some branches so that I could have a precious reminder of my much-loved father and the Elmont home.

    Beneath the water in the China's Qiandao Lake lies a hidden treasure. The ancient city of Shi Cheng (also known as Lion City), located in the province of Zhejiang, has been submerged underwater for 53 years. Shi Cheng was founded about 1,300 years ago in a valley surrounded by the Five Lion Mountains. When the Chinese government decided they needed a new hydroelectric power station (水力发电站)， a dam and man-made lake were constructed and the city was left at the bottom of this new body of water. Now, it sits at depths ranging from 85 feet to about 103 feet.

    Much like the Machu Picchu ruins in Peru, this underwater city remained forgotten until some renewed interests lead to its rediscovery. Qiu Feng, a local official in charge of tourism thought about utilizing Shi Cheng for entertainment on the lake and as a destination for diving clubs. On September 18, 2001, scuba divers made their first attempt underwater. "We were lucky. As soon as we dived into the lake, we found the outside wall of the town and even picked up a brick, "Qiu told Guangzhou Daily in an interview. More research was conducted, and it was discovered that the entire town was intact (1881), including wooden beams and stairs. After the initial findings, international archaeologists and a film crew then recorded the preservation of the lost ruins.

    Looking at surface of the lake, dotted with over 1,000 islands, you'd never know that an entire city was below.

    It's incredible to think that after all this time, the structure still remains intact and we could one day visit it. Until then, Shi Cheng will continue to remain inconspicuously submerged.

A latest study on people who eat red meat has found they have higher risks of heart disease and early death. The finding goes against other recent research that suggested removing meat from one's diet has few health benefits. The two opposing findings can make it difficult for people to make sense of what can seem to be conflicting messages on food.

Duane Mellor, a dietician at Aston University, and other researchers say that after examining research on the subject, moderation may be the best way forward. "In this case, eating a certain amount of meat, including red meat, is likely to be safe," Mellor said. "However, in the interest of health, reducing meat intake to the recommended less than 70 grams per day would be sensible."

A researcher with ties to the meat industry published a report on the subject in 2019, saying that people should not reduce the amount of red meat they eat. Some experts criticized the findings because they were in conflict with dietary advice from international agencies.

The latest study found that eating two servings a week of red meat or processed meat was linked to a 3% to 7% higher risk of heart disease and also a 3% higher risk of all causes of death. Norrina Allen, a co-leader of the latest study, said the health risk is small but people should try to change their diet. "It's a small difference, but it's worth trying to reduce red meat and processed meat." She added that eating red meat is also regularly "linked to other health problems like cancer."

The World Cancer Research Fund says red and processed meat may cause cancer. It recommends eating red meat with an upper limit of 500 grams cooked weight per week-and "little, if any" processed meat. They said on average, adults should reduce the amount of meat they eat by 50% and they should eat twice as much nuts, fruits, vegetables and beans.