Have you read any books by Washington Irving？Now I will tell you a story written by him. The name of the story is Rip Van Winkle, and it is also the name of the hero in this story. There are three characters in this story, Rip Van Winkle and his wife, Dame Van Winkle and their dog, Woof. Dame Van Winkle is a sharp-tongued (说话尖酸的、刻薄的) woman. Both Rip Van Winkle and the dog are terrified of her, even of her voice.

        There is a scene that can describe how Rip Van Winkle and his dog feel in front of Dame Van Winkle:

          Rip had just one way of replying to his wife's talk:  he only put his head back on his shoulders, looked up toward heaven, and said nothing. . . True, in the woods, Woof was as brave as an honorable dog should be， but as soon as Woof entered the house, his head bent low, his tail lay on the ground or curled between his legs. He went around the house with a guilty look, watching Dame Van Winkle out of the corner of his eyes, ready to run from the room at the slightest sign of her displeasure.

       This was the time when England ruled America. One day, Rip Van Winkle went into the mountain with his dog for an escape of his wife. He drank something given by some strangers and fell asleep. That was 20 years! His wife died and America got freedom from England, and I think that's what the story wants to tell us:  both the poor man's independence and nation's independence.

         Why does Irving's story attract people?  Because he wrote so vividly（生动地）. That sets me thinking:  How he observed things so carefully?  If you read through this story, you can't help smiling or laughing from time to time!

A.  B.  C.

D.       E.

    On October 28, 2018, a serious traffic accident happened in Chongqing. A bus and a red car collided(碰撞) at the second bridge of the Yangtze River. The bus ran out of control on the bridge and crashed into the river. All 15 passengers and the driver in the bus were killed.

    At the beginning of the accident, many people doubted that the red car was going the wrong way, causing the bus to fall into the river. Others guessed that the accident was caused by the driver's sudden illness. However, a few days later, based on the black box saved from the scene of the accident, together with the traffic records, the police announced the truth.

    Before the bus reached the bridge, a female passenger had a quarrel with the bus driver because she missed her station, but the driver refused to stop the bus. So they got into a fight. Because the speed was very high, the bus was out of control.

    People from all walks of life paid more attention to the accident and expressed their opinions. Some people think the woman passenger made the trouble without reason. She was regarded as the chief culprit(罪魁祸首). She shouldn't argue with the driver. Some people think drivers shouldn't fight with passengers and they should keep calm and put the passengers' safety first at any time. As for the other passengers, they failed to dissuade(劝阻) them in time. Maybe they didn't know the result would be so serious.

    Nowadays, hundreds of people die or get injured(受伤) on the roads every year in China. In my opinion, all of us should follow the rules and put the safety in our heart.

Information Card

Dear Alan,

    Guess what? I have a chance to choose my new place to live! I'm excited and a little nervous. Could you please give me some help?

    I'm not sure whether I should live in a house or in an apartment. On one hand, a house will be too big for just one person, so maybe I should rent an apartment. On the other hand, if I rent a house, I could find someone else to share with me. The only problem is that a house full of people might be too noisy for me. I prefer to have my own space. The city has some nice apartments, but they are also too expensive. However, if I could find a two-bedroom apartment and get a roommate, that would make it more affordable. I just need to search for a roommate who is neat and quiet. You know I can't live with someone who is loud and messy. I don't have a car, so I also need to think carefully about the location. I probably need to look for somewhere near a bus stop or an underground station. That way I will have more time to study and spend less time travelling.

    I'm looking forward to your reply.

Love,

Victor

    You must have heard about jogging(慢跑)as a popular way of keeping fit, but what about plogging? Plogging is a mix of jogging and picking up litter, coming from the Swedish phrase "plocka upp". It started as an organized activity in Sweden around 2016 and then spread to other countries step by step. For exercising, plogging is much better than simply running, because it provides changes in body movements by adding bending(弯曲), squatting(蹲) and stretching(伸展).

    As 2018's hottest fitness way, plogging has become popular in more than 40 countries, from the US to France and Australia to Thailand. The idea of plogging is to pay attention to environmental protection as well as physical health — to care for Mother Nature as well as your body. "I run a lot and I love to spend time in nature. When I find litter out in the woods, it makes me sad and a bit angry. Plogging is a natural way to do something about that," Tesch said." It's so easy to just pick up the litter and put it in the nearest bin, and it makes you feel that you're making a difference!"

    Have you noticed people jogging while carrying trash bags recently? Or running along with hands full of dirty plastic bottles? You might do soon! Because plogging has reached China. Olivier, a Frenchman married to a Chinese girl, began promoting(促进)plogging in Huizhou, Guangdong Province, back in April. He and his wife were the only ones doing it at first, he said, but the craze soon caught on. The couple have set up a WeChat group for people to learn more about plogging. Currently there are more than 100 people from different parts of the country in the group to take an active part in the environmental movement. In honor of World Environment Day this year, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China(中国工商银行)started plogging campaigns (运动)in 280 cities, attracting 13,000 people to join in.

    Plogging can be done almost anytime and anywhere, and costs almost nothing. Will you take it up?

    Good news or bad news? It depends on how you see things. You can be angry after being cheated. Or you can choose to move on with your life …

    Robert De Vincenzo, the great golfer (高尔夫球手), once won a competition, after receiving the check (支票) and smiling for the cameras, he went to the club and got ready to leave. While he was walking alone to his car in the parking lot, a middle-aged woman came over to him.

She said "congratulations" to him and then told him that her child was seriously ill and near death. She did not know how she could pay the doctor's bills.

    De Vincenzo was touched by her story, and he took out a pen and signed his winning check for payment to the woman. "Make some good days for the baby," he said as he gave the check to her.

    The next week he was having lunch in a country club when his friend came to his table. "Someone told me you met a middle-aged woman there after you won that golf competition." De Vincenzo nodded. "Well", said the friend, "I have news for you. She cheated you. She has no sick baby. She has not even married."

    "You mean there is no baby who is dying?" said De Vincenzo.

    "That's the best news I've heard all week," De Vincenzo said happily.

You can complain because roses have thorns (刺) , or you can be happy because thorns happy roses.