Everybody has one of those days when everything goes wrong. This is what happened to Harry.

    He got up one morning very late because he had forgotten to wind up his alarm clock（闹钟）. He tried to shave（刮脸）quickly and cut himself. When he got dressed he got blood all over his clean shirt, so he had to find another one. The only other shirt that was clean needed ironing（熨）, so he ironed it. While he was ironing it, there was a knock at the door. It was the man to read the electricity meter（表）. He showed him where the meter was, said good-bye and found that the iron had burnt a hole in his shirt. So he had to wear the one with the blood on it after all. By this time it was very late, so he decided he couldn't go to work by bus. He telephoned for a taxi to take him to work. The taxi arrived and Harry got in and began to read the newspaper.

    In another part of the town, a man had killed a woman with a knife and was seen to run away in a taxi. When Harry's taxi stopped outside his office, a policeman happened to be standing there. He saw the blood on Harry's shirt, and took him to the police station. He was kept till 3 o'clock in the afternoon before the police were sure that he was not the man they wanted. When he finally arrived at the office at about four, his boss took a look at him and told him to go away and find another job.

    Many years ago, people relied on the sun, the moon and stars to find their way around. Later, the compass was introduced. And now, we have satnav（卫星导航）systems to guide us. A satnav system uses groups of satellites to show the user's location. They send information to a receiver, such as a smart phone, to show us where we are.

    The earliest built satnav system is the Global Positioning System, which belongs to the US. Then there is Russia's Global Navigation（导航）Satellite System, the European Union's Galileo and China's own satellite navigation system, BeiDou.

    On October 14, 2017, an ARJ21-700 plane, which was the first domestically-produced jet equipped with the BeiDou navigation system, successfully completed a test flight. The results showed the performance of the system developed by China matches that of similar systems produced abroad, according to the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China.

    Since its introduction in 2000, the Beidou navigation system has seen increasing numbers of applications linked to everyday life, from shared bikes to farming.

    When it comes to shared bikes, smart locks that support BeiDou chips offer more accurate positioning than others, making it easier to find a bike.

    Farmers can use BeiDou-enabled tractors to plow（犁）the soil and use unmanned aircraft with BeiDou to sow seeds, which can improve efficiency and make better use of resources. BeiDou's farming applications have spread from Heilongjiang province to Beijing, Liaoning, Shanxi, Hubei and other regions across China.

    With its many uses, the Beidou navigation system is even playing a big role in the Belt and Road Initiative（— 带—路）. “To date, the BeiDou system has covered most parts of the Asia-Pacific region, as well as counties along the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21^st Century Maritime Silk Road” said Yang Changfeng, Chief designer of the BeiDou system.

    Today, there are more than 20 BeiDou satellites above our heads, and China plans to launch even more this year to expand the BeiDou network to better serve the Belt and Road Initiative.

    “As BeiDou expands its overseas reach, it will be increasingly popular in the logistics （物流）industry,” said Miao Qianjun, secretary-general of the navigation services association. “Ships, for example, can use it to position themselves while sailing across oceans to European countries, no longer limited to Southeast Asian regions in the near future.”

    Many people, some even at a very young age, set the goal of graduating from college. One American woman in Texas waited a long time for her chance to reach that goal.

    The woman, 85-year-old Janet Fein, received her bachelor's degree (学士学位) from the University of Texas in December, 2018.

    Fein has had a full life. She raised five children and then had a career as a secretary (秘书) until she retired at age 77. But even then, she was not ready to take it easy and rest during a well-earned retirement. She decided to major in sociology (社会学).

    Fein grew up in the Bronx area of New York City. In high school, she just wanted to finish and get a job. After graduating early, at the age of 16, she went to work as a secretary.

    After getting married, she spent 18 years staying home with her children. She held several jobs throughout her life, including being a secretary at a Dallas hospital. That is the job she retired from in 2011. She received an associate degree (专科学位) in 1995. But she also wanted to earn a bachelor's degree. Fein took part in a state program that lets people who are 65 and older take free classes at public universities in Texas.

    She kept going to class even as her health condition worsened. During her studies, it became necessary for her to use a walker to get around and she needed oxygen (氧气) too. She also developed knee problems. So, Fein took online classes to finish the last part of her degree requirements.

    Renee Brown is one of Fein's care-givers. She says Fein has also inspired her. At 53, she plans to begin nursing school to further her career. Brown says Fein told her, "Renee, you can do it. If I can do it you also can do it, and you will feel so good about it. "

    Alan Naiman was known for being very careful about how he spent his money. But even those closest to him had no knowledge of the fortune he quietly gathered and the last act he had planned.

    Naiman died of cancer at age 63 last January. The man from the American state of Washington gave most of his money to groups that help the poor, sick, disabled and abandoned children.

    He gave them $11 million. The large amount of his fortune shocked the groups that received his gifts and even his best friends. That is because Naiman had been known to repair his own shoes with duct tape. He had sought deals to buy food from grocery stores at closing time and taken friends out to lunch at low cost restaurants.

    Naiman died unmarried and childless. He loved children but also was intensely private. He saved, invested and worked extra jobs to gather money. He rarely spent the money on himself after seeing how unfair life could be for children who suffer most.

    Naiman was a former banker who worked for the past 20 years at the state Department of Social and Health Services. He earned $67,234 a year and also took on side jobs. Sometimes, he worked as many as three at a time. He saved and invested enough to make several millions of dollars. He also received millions more from his parents after they died.

    He left $2.5 million to the Pediatric Interim Care Center in Washington. The center is a private organization that cares for babies born to mothers who abused drugs and children with drug dependency. The center used the money to pay off its mortgage (按揭) and buy a new vehicle to transport the children.

    Naiman gave $900, 000 to the Treehouse, where children without parents can choose toys and necessities for free. Treehouse is using Naiman's money to expand its college and career support services Statewide.

    Washing habits have changed over the years. In the 16th century, most people had a bath once a month…if they were lucky. Up until the 1950s, it was once a week. Only just recently has the concept of daily showering become popular. But now, according to the New York Times, things are changing again.

    The latest trend is known as "soap-dodging". It basically consists of washing less, having fewer showers and using less soap. "I just wash my hair once a month now," said Brett Dawson, a 32-year-old management consultant. "I have just one bath a week," said Miriam Bayliss, a 28-year-old accountant.

    And it appears to be growing in popularity. A poll last year for tissue manufacturer SCA found that 41% of British men and 33% of women don't shower every day. And 12% of people have a proper wash just once or twice a week. Further research by Mintel found that more than half of British teenagers don't wash every day-with many opting for a quick spray of deodorant (除臭剂) to mask any smell. But why?

    There are a variety of reasons. Some claim that daily hair-washing is unnecessary. Commentator Matthew admitted that he hadn't shampooed his hair for a decade. Others say they just don't have the time. In 2008, the chemist Boots reported a 45% rise in sales of dry shampoo - a product that can be sprayed on hair between showers.

    And some people want to help the environment. "I limit my showers to about twice a week," said Nigel Hamerstone, a 42-year-old architect. "The rest of the time I have a sink wash." he adds. "I believe that I'm as clean as everyone else, and it's helped get my water consumption down to around 20 litres a day - well below the 100 to 150 average in the UK."

    So, will you be joining the new "washing revolution"?

    "Mummy, I don't know what to play with." Steve interrupts his mother, who is talking to a friend, for the fourth time. "You've got a room full of toys!" his mother says, impatiently. In fact it is the jumble of toys which is to blame for four-year-old Steve's lack of interest in his dolls, cars and stuffed (packed) animals. Each morning he tips out three washing baskets of toys all over his floor, listlessly pulls out something and shortly after is standing at his mother's desk or following her into the kitchen saying: "Mummy, I am bored."

    A family therapist (心理医生) explains why children lose interest when they have a whole "toy shop" at home: "According to their brain development, little children are not in a position to judge the quality of a variety of things at once. There is always just one favorite toy for the moment. All the rest is left lying about." What can parents do to stop their children from being oversupplied with toys? Under no conditions simply make something disappear without the child's knowledge. If he/she takes no more notice of a toy, a parent can ask if it can be stored or given away. Be warned though the child will always say he/she wants it then! A talk with relatives and friends may also help. Lyn is the mother of four-year-old Jessie, and we like her way. A small set of shelves in her child's room holds the toys and books that are the current (at present) favorites. When it seems to her that her daughter is tired of these toys, they put them away in a box together and select some other toys from a cupboard in another room. The box of "old" toys goes into the cupboard. When her child says she is "bored", they also get something from her cupboard - it may be something she has had for some time but because she hasn't seen it for a while it is almost like a new toy.

    Some favorite toys stay out all the time, and there is collection of dolls which sits in the corner, but in this way Lyn has found that she has fewer toys to put away at the end of the day and her daughter always has something "fresh" to play with.