House Sitting

    In many countries of the world people do what is called house sitting. It means that if owners of the house are going away, they want someone to come into their home and look after the house and maybe pets while they are away.

    In Australia, many people travel. After people retire, they might buy a van and travel all over the country. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    So if someone wants to travel or go away for some reason, they might want someone in their home to care for it and keep the gardens tidy. House sitters might have to care for pets. Also, quite a few people have swimming pools in their back yard and they need cleaning. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} I feel it is a great way of seeing the country, because you go and stay in a new city, get to meet new people, and have time to go sightseeing in a new area.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} There are websites where you find the advertisements by people who want to travel, and by replying to the advertisement, you can make arrangements to go and look after their home.

    There are some requirements to be a house sitter. You must be a trusted person, so that the home owner knows you will not steal anything. You must be able to go when the house owner wants you to go, so you need lots of free time. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} You need to be good with pets, able to care for cats and dogs, or other pets they may have.

    Some house sitting jobs are just for a few days or a couple of weeks while the house owners have a short holiday. Sometimes it is for much longer. We have had one house sit for six months, while the home owner travelled to Europe.

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Then you can travel to many different countries and stay there. One of  the important things to get is references from the home owners where you have stayed. A reference is a written letter to say that you are trustworthy and have looked after their home well. You can show these letters to possible house sitting jobs and they know you will do a good job.

A. I have done house sitting many times.

B. Thousands of people do this all the time.

C. It is also possible to do house sitting in other countries.

D. Generally you have many opportunities to get a house sitting job.

E. You must take a little care over what your description says about you.

F. This is an international house sitting service for all city and country areas.

G. You must have a good car, so you can travel to different parts of the country.

    It's an unquestioned truth of modern life that we are starved for time. We try our best to save bits of time here and there. Add it up, and we will finally do everything we want. But this idea has been completely backward. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} We build the lives we want, and then time saves itself.

    Do we really have no time? “I don' t have time" often means” It's not a priority(优先事项)". Time is highly flexible. We cannot make more time. However, time will stretch to accommodate what we choose to put into it. So not doing something is not a matter of lacking time; {#blank#}2{#/blank#}Actually it's a matter of choice.

    How do we treat our priorities? First, we need to figure out what our priorities are. Actually we may give ourselves a performance review. What did we do that made it so amazing? Next, we can write them into the next year's performance review. We will have a list of six to ten goals we can work on next year. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Scientists find the really good time to do this is Friday afternoon. Friday afternoon is what an economist might call the "low opportunity cost" time. Most of us do not sit there on Friday afternoon saying, "I am excited to make progress toward my personal and professional priorities right now." But we are willing to think about what those should be. So take a little bit of time on Friday afternoon, and make a list of three-category priorities: careers, relationships and self.

    It's about looking at the whole of one's time and seeing where the good aspects can go. There is time. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} And when we focus on what matters, we can build the lives we want in time we've got.

A. it's that we are too busy with it.

B. it's that we don't want to do it.

C. When do we plan our priorities?

D. Make sure there's time for the important things.

E. We don't build the lives we want by saving time.

F. Even if we are busy, we have time for what matters.

G. And then we need to break these down into doable steps.

How to Work Faster and Smarter

    As the old saying goes “work smarter, not harder”. What does that really mean? When there are deadlines approaching, how do you stay focused and get everything done efficiently? {#blank#}1{#/blank#}, but it is unclear where to start and when to take a break. These ways will help you to work faster and smarter.

    Don't multi - task.

    There is a wrong opinion that doing many things at once is productive. Instead, it leaves you half-focused and constantly switching attention. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}. Set a timer, and focus on that one task until it is completed. Then, take a break and move on.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}.

    What someone else thinks is urgent can create a sense of people's panic. If you know it is not important, do what is the most important first instead. You know best how to set your priorities and get your work done. So listen to yourself.

    Celebrate the little victories

    Projects take many steps until completion. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}. Rather than beating yourself up for what you haven't done yet, taking time to pat yourself on the back can give you the confidence to see it through to the end. Stop saying “I'm so busy” It is complaining, and complaining only makes you and everyone around you feel worse. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} This will encourage you to keep going.

A. Take breaks

B. Sometimes we know what to do

C. Urgent doesn't necessarily mean important

D. You are on your way if you are taking action

E. You may have a sense that nothing gets complete this way

F. Instead of it, say “I have already come so much closer to my goal”

G. Break down your project into these steps, and then have a happy dance each time you complete a step.

    Everyone knows that fish is good for health. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}But it seems that many people don't cook fish at home. Americans eat only about fifteen pounds of fish per person per year, but we eat twice as much fish in restaurants as at home. Buying, storing, and cooking fish isn't difficult. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}This text is about how to buy and cook fish in an easy way. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}Fresh fish should smell sweet: you should feel that you're standing at the ocean's edge. Any fishy or strong smell means the fish isn't fresh. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}When you have bought a fish and arrive home, you'd better store the fish in the refrigerator if you don't cook it immediately, but fresh fish should be stored in your fridge for only a day or two. Frozen fish isn't as tasty as the fresh one. There are many common methods used to cook fish. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}First, lean it and season it with your choice of spices(调料). Put the whole fish on a plate and steam it in a steam pot for 8 to 10 minutes if it weighs about one pound. (A larger one will take more time.) Then, it's ready to serve.

A. Do not buy it.

B. The easiest is to steam it.

C. This is how you can do it.

D. It just requires a little knowledge.

E. The fish will go bad within hours.

F. When buying fish, you should first smell it.

G. The fats in fish are thought to help prevent heart disease.

When the moon passes between the Sun and the Earth, the resulting view of the Sun is called a solar eclipse(日食). Solar eclipses are beautiful astronomical events and many people across the world travel to faraway places to get a clear view of the phenomenon. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Others choose special eyewear.

It is believed that a pregnant woman with a baby should not view a solar eclipse. They are often told that their child will be badly formed if they view a solar eclipse. However, various scientific authorities have stated over and over again that there is no harm at all in viewing a solar eclipse with the right eye gear. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

It is important, however, that you view a solar eclipse with the right eye gear. Staring right at the sun could permanently damage the eyes. It is wrong to assume that the sun can be looked at after the moon blocks out a majority of it. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

If you want to view the eclipse, you have to get special glasses. As opposed to popular belief, sunglasses and dark films do NOT protect our eyes. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}You can do this by fixing a telescope and focusing the image onto a sheet of paper. You can clearly see the eclipse on the sheet of paper. You should never look directly at the eclipse through the telescope.

Similarly, you can make a tiny hole on an opaque(不透明的) sheet of paper and let the light passing through fall on a sheet of paper. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}Alternatively, you can watch it live on TV which is the safest way of viewing a solar eclipse!

A. It is best if you purchase eye wear.

B. So they need not worry to view a solar eclipse.

C. Viewing a solar eclipse directly is a strict no-no.

D. Some of them watch the event through special, telescopes.

E. This method is an effective way to watch an eclipse as well.

F. To safely watch a solar eclipse, wear protective eclipse glasses.

G. The best way to see a solar eclipse is by viewing its projected image.

A writing club is a group consisting of writers who meet together to share and comment on manuscripts (手稿). People who write stories, poetry, or even non-fiction articles can join a writing club. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}But the usual site is in a library, bookstore, private home, or a school.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#}Joining a club allows writers to understand the challenges of being a writer. And members of a writing club can receive constructive criticism (评论) from their fellow writers so that they can learn how to make their articles stronger. Moreover, commenting on other writers' manuscripts allows them to see what makes a writing piece interesting or boring.

If a writer wants to become a member of a writing club, he can find one by contacting the public library or a local university. Many writing groups will advertise for new members in local newspapers as well. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

But sometimes, no matter how a writer has tried, he may still experience extreme difficulties finding a writing group to join or finding a writing group suitable for him. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} He only needs to advertise for desired members by posting online, placing an ad in local newspapers, etc.

For many writers, the journey of writing is demanding. For example, writing can be troubled by lack of inspiration. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}So joining a group of writers can be the ideal way a writer can improve his writing skills and assist others with their manuscripts.

A. And writing can be a lonely task.

B. There are many benefits of joining a writing club.

C. Members of a writing club should know each other.

D. If that happens, the writer can start his own club.

E. Joining a writing club has advantages and disadvantages.

F. It's also possible to find writing clubs on the Internet.

G. A writing club can have meetings just anywhere.