In the early 1980s, one of our neighbors asked my mom if she would make a few gift baskets for her to give as gifts for the holidays. My mom agreed and news of the unique gift baskets my mum was making spread like wildfire throughout the neighborhood. My mum was busy throughout the holiday season, so she asked a friend to help her. When the orders continued after the holiday season for baby gifts, birthday gifts and more, it occurred to them that maybe this job could be turned into a business and they did it.

    My mum went into her business because she had a creative idea. She got orders and filled orders. But there was no purpose and no real strategy(策略). In 1991, my mum' s partner got into financial trouble and there was not enough money to support either my mum or her partner.

    So if you are led by your creativity or enthusiasm, make sure you ask yourself what you want out of your business. If you don't set goals, how will you know what direction to go in? Do you want to create jobs and growth in the economy? Are you looking for a hobby? You can't keep scores if you don' t know what game you are playing.

    After my mom's partner gave up, she had to abandon(抛弃) her business to support herself. She swore（发誓）she would run a business again and do it differently the next time. However, there wasn't a "next time" for her. She passed away just after her 51st birthday. She never had someone tell her how important having a goal was. She never had an opportunity to be everything that she could be.

    There are no right or wrong goals, only the ones that matter to you. Set them so that you can make progress and achieve success, whatever that may mean to you.

    Queensland is one of the most amazing states in Australia. It has some of the most beautiful natural scenery on the planet, with the Great Barrier Reef, rainforests and impressive beaches.

The Great Barrier Reef

    It is one of the world's largest natural features. It stretches more that 2,300 km along the north eastern coast of Australia from the northern tip of Queensland to just north of Bundaberg. The things that most surprise visitors to the reef are the colors.

Without doubt, the best way to see the Great Barrier Reef is by diving. If you have a little extra money and you are feeling a bit lazy, you can fly over the reef in a plane.

Fraser Island

    Another area of natural beauty is Fraser Island. This is the world's largest sand island. It's best visited from Hervey Bay on the mainland, where there are a number of places offering trips around the island. To fully appreciate Fraser Island you should go for three or four days. Attractions include some beautiful fresh-water lakes, particularly Lake Wabby and Lake Mckenzie. You can walk around these on white sands untouched by human footprints. Indian Head also has some beautiful views. Braver travelers can go and watch sharks circling the water hundreds of meters below.

The Whitsunday Islands

    It would be a pity to travel around Queensland without taking a trip around the Whitsunday Islands. They were named by Captain Cook in 1770, after the day on which he arrived. Here are some of the great things you can do there.

●Cruise around them on a relaxing trip.

●Take a sailing course.

●Look at the aboriginal (土著的) paintings in caves on Hook Island.

●Have fun in the water doing lots of water sports.

    So, will you be going to Queensland?

    To the people who came to Christopher Morley Park in Roslyn, he had no name. To them, he was “the ice cream man”. He was just two hands and a smile handing back ice cream from the van（面包车）window. To me, he was my older brother, Andrew.

    Once, he worked on Wall Street. But later he spent his days selling ice cream to an endless line of kids, moms and dads in swimming suits, perhaps daydreaming of a beach faraway.

    All day long, while he sold bags of potato chips, cans of soda, and all types of ice cream, he would do this sort of robotic motion—turn to the right, stoop down, hand the item out of the window and collect the money.

    His drinking days were over now. They neared their end one night after he took a severe beating when someone followed him home and robbed him when he was drunk. It left him memories of pain and misery. He was determined he would never take another drink again.

    One day years later, I went to look for him. I slipped into the high driver's seat and sat quietly watching him work. Occasionally, he would ask me to hand him a diet root beer or a bag of chips for sale, all the time bending over as he worked the long line.

    As I watched him sell ice cream from a van window, he taught me something about living this life that we all pass through too quickly. It was a lesson about trying to live it with grace and dignity and style, no matter what.

    He died in March 1999. He had served in the Army for two years in Europe in the 1950s. They gave him a soldier's funeral with a folded flag.

    We are lucky to live in a world that is full of incredible technology. Our living rooms are packed with computers, LCD TVs, video game systems, and Blue-ray players that help us enjoy the latest entertainment. Although these items bring us joy and convenience, they also create a lot of junk. Each device needs its own plug and adaptor to keep its batteries recharged, and over time these wires get tangled (缠绕在一起的). Thankfully, something has come along to help rid our homes of this mess while still supplying these devices with the power they need. It's called wireless charging and this trend is just starting.

    Wireless charging has a lot of potential for smartphones and other electronic devices. Electronic devices can absorb the electricity once they're placed on a special charging mat. There are several advantages that wireless charging offers over traditional methods. For starters, cords (电线) have a tendency to wear out with use. Wireless charging users never have to worry about buying replacement cords. Wireless charging is also far more convenient for medical implants, as patients won't need to recharge their devices through the skin using cords. In turn, this cuts down on the risks of infection. Wireless charging can also bring safety benefits, as wired charging devices that come in contact with water can increase the chances of getting an electric shock. Wireless charging gets rid of that danger completely.

    Still, there are a few drawbacks to wireless charging. The first is speed. It takes a bit longer to charge devices wirelessly than it does if the device is plugged in. The process also requires more heat, so devices tend to get a bit hotter, which could create other safety issues. Also, since devices must be left on a special pad while charging, it is harder to operate them while they are powering up. This limitation may be gotten rid of in the future, as researchers are developing transmitters (发射器) that can charge several different devices in a room without the need to connect to a charging pad. Although wireless-charging technology may be far from perfect, it seems like a step in the right direction as we move towards a less-tangled future.

    Kerala, India, has placed a tax on hamburgers, pizza and other fast food. The 14.5 percent tax will be added to foods at restaurants such as McDonald's, Pizza Hut and Burger King.

    The tax is being called a "fat tax" because it adds cost to foods considered high in fat and calories. It is the first fast food tax enacted in India, where obesity levels are rising in the growing middle class.

    Kerala's Finance Minister Thomas Isaac suggested the tax after learning of similar measures in other countries. He hopes it will get people to choose to eat healthy food, which he said is "going out of fashion."

    Dr. Anoop Misra at New Delhi's Fortis Hospital strongly supports the" fat tax" as a way to reduce the number of diabetes cases in young people.

    A government finance official in central Gujarat says that the state is considering a similar 14.5 percent tax." This idea can also be adopted in the state, as we also have high consumption of junk and unhealthy food," the official said.

    Critics of the tax say it probably will not stop people from buying fast food. IT engineer Gaurav Singh wants the government to focus on education and awareness instead of taxing fast food.

    "The one food that is eaten widely in Kerala is the 'paratha', which is basically high in fat, high in refined(精制的)flour, and it is cheap. It can't be taxed because it is highly unorganized."

    Some doctors and health experts say the tax should also include other snack foods and sugary drinks sold across the country.

    One fast food customer In New Dehli, Vijay Deoli believes the government should deal with more important issues. "First you have to clear up the air, the water, etc. This is a small thing."

    Others say the government should do more to bring attention to fast food and obesity rather than changing people's choices.

    Many health experts agree that bringing attention to the issue is important. But Dr. Misra thinks education alone does not work.

    He compared the tax to a law passed several years ago that got people to wear seat belts to avoid paying a fine. "Laws can change people's habits."

There are so many choices when you go shopping. You have to check the sell — by dates so that you know how long you can store and use the food you are purchasing.

But do you know that the best sell — by dates on food packaging don't really tell you if the food is safe to eat. The food may not last as long as it says if it isn't stored correctly at any point of the distribution chain. Now there is food packaging that can detect and change colors if the food has gone bad.

Each American wastes 103 pounds of spoiled food out of the refrigerator every year. The new smart packaging from Primitives Biodesign—a new company that operates out of a lab at Indibio, a biotech accelerator in San Francisco-can help to reduce this huge waste of food.

The basic material that doesn't contain sensing material is made from algae and can block oxygen more effectively than regular film, so the food stays fresher for a longer time. Since it is made from a natural substance, it can also break down in nature.

Making the film smart is the thorny part. Luckily, the team managed to use a process that is like the way nature responds to changes in the environment. The mechanism responds like the way flowers emit compounds to change colors.

"It could be supplement packaging that indicate when it's been tampered with by changing color to tell you that it's no ledger safe," says Kan. She explained that the new packaging can be used on food products to fell if the food has turned bad before someone has to smell or taste it.

The company has proven in lab tests that the technology works and now they are working on how to develop commercial uses for it. The added safety features will come out later. Helping to control food waste in products like meat or cheese which have high greenhouse gas emissions will also help to reduce climate change.