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　　How many people have I met who have told me about the book they have been planning to write but have never yet found the time?Far too many．

　　This is Life, all right, but we do treat it like a rehearsal(排演)and, unhappily, we do miss so many of its best moments．

　　We take jobs to stay alive and provide homes for our families always making ourselves believe that this style of life is merely a temporary state of affairs along the road to what we really want to do．Then, at 60 or 65, we are suddenly presented with a clock and several grandchildren and we look back and realize that all those years waiting for Real Life to come along were in fact real life．

　　In America they have a saying much laughed at by the English：“Have a nice day”, they speak slowly and seriously in their shops, hotels and sandwich bars．I think it is a wonderful phrase, reminding us, in effect, to enjoy the moment：to value this very day．

　　How often do we say to ourselves,“I'll take up horse-riding(or golf, or sailing)as soon as I get a higher position,”only to do none of those things when I do get the higher position．

　　When I first became a reporter I knew a man who gave up a very well paid respectable job at the Daily Telegraph to go and edit a small weekly newspaper．At the time I was astonished by what appeared to me to be his completely abnormal(反常的)mental state．How could anyone turn his back on Fleet Street in central London for a small local area?I wanted to know．

　　Now I am a little older and possibly wiser, I see the sense in it．In Fleet Street the man was under continual pressure．He lived in an unattractive London suburb and he spent much of his life sitting on Southern Region trains．

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　　The year 2009 is the Year of Ox．The ox is a representative of the farming culture of China．In the farming economy(经济), oxen are the major animals pulling plows(犁)．

　　Of course, the good of oxen is not limited to plowing．In fact, they are seen as“boats on land”for their ability to carry loads．Besides, the whole body of an ox is full of treasures．Their meat and milk are food full of nutrition, and their skin can be used to make clothes and shoes．With all these qualities, oxen are regarded as generous creatures．

　　In the past, oxen played an important role in the spiritual life of the Chinese．Even today, oxen still play a special part in some folk activities．For example, some people who live in southwest China will cook cattle bone soup and share it among family members when holding the ceremony for children who reach 13．They believe that the cattle bone soup represents the blood relationship among family members．In order to express their love for oxen, people in some other areas will run to shake off diseases on the 16th day of the first month by the lunar calendar(农历), and during their run they will take their oxen along, which indicates they regard the creature as human．

　　Because of the contribution of oxen in their lives, the Chinese people are very grateful to the animal．In addition, the use of oxen in ceremonies and the thanks people owe to oxen help to develop various traditional customs, which becomes an important part of the folk culture of the Chinese nation．

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　　Vitamin D helps bones and muscles(肌肉)grow strong and healthy．Osteoporosis is a common problem as people get older．Low levels of vitamin D can lead to some problems which are mainly found in children．Also, more and more research is suggesting that vitamin D might help prevent many diseases．

　　The easiest way to get vitamin D is from sunlight．But many people worry about getting skin cancer and skin damage from the sun．Darker skinned people produce less vitamin D than lighter skinned people．Production also decreases(减少)as people age, and people living in northern areas have lower levels of vitamin D than people in southern areas as they get less sunlight．

　　Not many foods naturally contain vitamin D．Foods high in this vitamin include oily fish, such as salmon, tuna and mackerel, and fish liver oils．Small amounts of vitamin D are found in beef liver, cheese and egg yolks．But most of the vitamin D in the American diet comes from foods, in which it has been added, like milk．

　　Research in the last several years has shown that low levels of vitamin D may increase the risk of heart attacks in men and deaths from some cancers．

　　More doctors are now having their patients tested for their vitamin D levels．But as research continues, some experts worry that if people take too much vitamin D, it might act as a poison．Also, skin doctors warn people to be careful not to stay in the sun too long because of the risk of skin cancer．

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　　Teachers spend countless years trying to make history come alive for their students．But US Director Shawn Levy attempts to do this on film in the recently released Night at the Museum．

　　The film is adapted from Milan Trenc's book of the same name．It brings to life a world where dinosaurs wander the earth, a former president rides again, warlike early Asians return, and cowboys and Roman soldiers seek to bring back their old goals．

　　The familiar comedy star Ben Stiller acts as a luckless dreamer named Larry Daley．He takes a position as a night watchman at the New York Museum of Natural History．

　　On Larry's first night, he's left alone by the three aging guards he's replacing．They fail to inform him of the museum's rather unusual nightlife．

　　Soon Larry finds himself chased down the hallways by the very lively skeleton of a dinosaur, in the middle of a confrontation(交锋)with Asian warriors．He is caught in a territorial battle between a cowboy and a Roman general and meets face to face with former US president Teddy Roosevelt, played by Robin Williams．

　　They are each from an exhibit that has come to life through the magic of a priceless Egyptian tablet．

　　While the film fails to develop very much in some areas(for example, Larry's troubled relationship with a son), it does have enough special effects, and jokes to engage the audience．

　　Bottom Line：Definitely not Oscar-worthy, but a great way to relax during a holiday．

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　　If you have ever been sad because of failure, please remember, for often, achieving(获得)what you set out to do is not the important thing．

　　A boy decided to dig(挖)a deep hole behind his house．As he was working, a couple of older boys stopped by to watch．“What are you doing?”asked one of the visitors．“I want to dig a hole all the way through the earth!”the boy answered excitedly．The older boys began to laugh, telling him that digging a hole all the way through the earth was impossible．After a while, the boy picked up a jar．He showed it to the visitors．It was full of spiders, worms and other insects．Then he said quietly and confidently,“Even if I can't dig all the way through the earth, look what I found along the way!”

　　The boy's goal was far too difficult, but it did cause him to dig．And that is what a goal is for－to cause us to move in the direction we have chosen(选择), in other words, to cause us to dig!

　　Not every goal will be fully achieved．Not every job will end successfully．Not every dream will come true．Not every love will last．But when you fall short of your aim, maybe you can say,“Yes, but look what I found along the way!Look at the wonderful things which have come into my life because I tried to do something!”

　　It is in the digging that life is lived．And I believe it is joy in the journey that really matters．

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　　Tell your car to make a phone call without holding the phone．Tell your car to send an e-mail without touching the computer．Or even tell your car to send a call for help．Sound like something from a science fiction movie?Well, thanks to a new“talking car”, this is soon to become a reality．

　　Road Track, the Israeli producer of Chevrolet, has built a computer platform(平台)called Chevy Star．It offers the driver a wide range(范围)of things you can get with your voice．

　　It uses a box, the size of a mobile phone, attached to the rear(back)view mirror．The driver can use it to be in constant contact with Road Track's offices．Many operators work round-the-clock there to answer the phone and respond to the needs of drivers．

　　To get into the car, the driver has to say a secret code, such as“open sesame”, for the doors to open and the engine to start．

　　As soon as he enters the car, the driver has three buttons：one for emergencies, another for telephone calls and a third for practical information．

　　When the driver presses the emergency button, the operator calls the car to ask if there's a problem．If the driver is lost, the operator can use detailed maps to help the driver find his or her way．

　　“It depends 100 percent on the voice, so you don't have to take your eyes off the road or hands off the wheel to use it．You just speak out and then the operator gives you directions,”said Danny Laguno of Chevrolet．

　　The operator is also alerted(警觉)when the driver hits the brake too hard．And if operators find a problem anywhere on the car, they warn the driver straight away．Need to make a phone call?Just press the button and read out the number to dial．E-mail can also be read．

　　The driver also has many practical things to choose from：the weather, the latest world or local news, what's on at the cinema or theatre．

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　　It was a proud moment for all Chinese when 8, 000 picture-perfect soldiers, tanks and missiles, 60 beautiful floats(花车), and 100, 000 well-trained people all passed by Tian'anmen Square and 151 planes flew over Beijing on October 1．

　　President Hu Jintao, in a Mao jacket, reviewed the thousands of soldiers．“Today a socialist China that faces the future is standing tall and firm in the East,”he announced．

　　China holds grand celebrations every 10 years to celebrate the founding of the country．But this year's parade topped those in the past．

　　Behind the celebrations is the great progress China has made．When the country was founded, it was poor, but now China has the world's third largest economy．

　　China has more Internet and mobile phone users than anywhere else and is the world's largest car market．

　　Almost all Chinese families have at least one television and, in the cities, a washing machine－rare things 30 years ago．Some 15 million families own cars, said Xinhua News Agency．

　　On the parade floats could be seen models of high-speed trains, giant computers, cars and bundles of wheat and rice．

　　“I never thought China would be able to have such a great celebration, and at a time when the world economy is slowing down．The parade showed me how powerful my country is and it makes me feel proud of it,”said Jia Yanxin, 16, from Beijing Yuying High School．

　　Despite the pride, China still has a lot of progress to make：although it is the third largest economy in the world, the average urban income(15, 781 yuan in 2008)is still low．Also, there is a widening gap between rich and poor and environmental problems．

　　However, the celebration was not just a showcase(展示)of the country's success．It was not just a parade．It was the Chinese people's march into their own future, as China Daily said．

　　“China has grown from a baby to a grown-up with responsibilities．I believe it will go much further over the next 10 years,”said Gong Chen, 16, from Beijing No．8 High School．

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　　Aaron Carter isn't like other teenagers．He doesn't go to school, and he's already got a job．He is a big pop star．A few years ago he started his singing with Crazy Little Party Girl, which became a hit at once．Now he goes around the world and his songs are in the tops．

　　Because he's traveling around all the time, Aaron doesn't have to go to school, but don't envy him too much－he still has to do lessons and homework．And he is good at learning．

　　“I have to fit my schoolwork around my singing,”he explains．“But I'm lucky because I have a private tutor who travels with me．I sometimes have to have lessons on a plane．That's really interesting!”

　　Aaron's favorite subject is math but he hates history．He knows clearly that having a good singing career doesn't mean he can go without schoolwork．

　　“It would be easy to think that I don't need to do well in exams, but that would be crazy,”he says．“It's important to get my qualifications(资格)so that I have something to fall back on．Besides, it's interesting to learn about other people and cultures．”

　　Aaron's favorite type of music is rock‘n’roll．“The best thing about being a singer”, he says,“is that you get to travel all around the world．But the worst thing is that you're away from home so much that you don't get to see your friends or family．”

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To all of you at Chinese love links,

　　I am 44 years old and never married．I have always wanted to find that perfect someone that I dream about．For about the last five years I have almost given up the hope of ever finding the one I truly wish to spend the rest of my life with．

　　I have always tried to be a nice guy．I had found your website some four or five months before．I did not know what to expect．I don't know how to speak Chinese and never thought truly of how I was to an Asian woman．

　　Well, I had a lot of replies from some very nice and pretty women．I had a hard time finding only a couple to write to．But one stood out from the rest．She was cute, nice and seemed to hold a lot of the same values as I do．In a short time I had decided to write only to her．We communicated via e-mail 2～3 times a day and phone calls once or twice a week．

　　I went and met her and her family only a week ago．Her name is Ying and she lives in Nanning．I found Nanning to be one of the most beautiful cities I had ever been to．We had even decided to marry and I wanted to bring her to the USA under the fianc-e visa．Not only did she meet everything I had ever hoped to find in someone else but turned out to be what every woman should be like, at least the ones I have met．We plan to marry as soon as she is here and start a family together as neither of us has children but we both want them．

　　So to anyone out there reading this, I can only say this：You may not find what you are looking for if you're not honest with your partner and yourself．This site worked for me mostly because I was honest with something that I wanted in someone else．When I did find her, love can work even across the other side of the world, between language differences and cultural differences．I wish you all luck in finding your perfect match．I have finally found mine and wish to give all my thanks to those at Chinese love links to help make it happen．

Sincerely yours,

Arthur

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　　The further we dive into the 21st century, the more we find technology becoming a necessity(必需品)－and not just in our personal lives．

　　Some schools are investing(投资)in the latest technology to help students' learning．

　　For some math classes at Coral Springs High School in Coral Springs, Florida, the SMART Board plays a role in lectures．The SMART Board, an interactive(互动的)whiteboard that hooks up(连接)to the teacher's computer, comes with a pen tray(盘)．Anything written on the pen tray will show up on the SMART Board screen．

　　“It was so cool, and it helped a lot,”said Taylor Kourim, a student at Coral Springs High School．“The teacher could load graphs(图表)onto the background, which helped when we were learning graphs．”

　　Western High School in Davie, Florida, has a science building devoted to new technology．Projectors(投影仪)built into the classroom ceilings are connected(连接)to DVD players and video cameras．

　　“It's definitely a lot easier…because the document(文件)camera will show students everything that needs to be shared with the class,”Western High student Alan Goldman said．

　　At West Broward High School in Pembroke Pines, Florida, technology is everywhere．Every classroom has projectors, DVDs, sound systems, cameras, iPods, computers and video players．

　　However, technology has its bad points．

　　At Cypress Bay High School in Weston, Florida, some teachers expect their students to download and print their homework at home from teacher websites．

　　“I think it's great that we can get our homework over the computer,”Cypress Bay student Rebecca Schechner said．“However, we have to go online and print our homework by ourselves．”