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　　Every Friday night the clerk at the food store in the Chevron gas station on Eagle Rock Boulevard and Avenue 40 offers us a discount on all the leftover(剩余的)apples and bananas．To get the best selection possible, my mother and I pile into our 20-year-old car and pull up to the food store at 5p．m．sharp, ready to get our share of slightly overripe fruits．

　　Chevron shopping started like this：One day my mother suddenly realized that she had maxed out(刷爆)almost every credit card, and we needed groceries for the week．The only credit card she hadn't maxed out was the Chevron card and the station on Eagle Rock Boulevard has a pretty big store attached to it．

　　Since our first visit there, I've learned to believe in flexibility(灵活性)．In my life, it has become necessary to bend the idea of grocery shopping．My mother and I can no longer shop at real grocery stores, but we still get the necessities．

　　Grocery shopping at Chevron has its shortcomings．The worst is when we have so many items that it takes the checker(收银员)what seems like hours to ring up everything．A line of anxious customers forms behind us．It's that line that hurts the most－the way they look at us．My mother never notices－or she pretends not to．

　　I never need to be asked to help the checker bag all the items．No one wants to get out of there faster than I do．I'm embarrassed to shop there, and I'm deathly afraid of running into someone I know．I once expressed my fear of being seen shopping at Chevron to my mother and her eyes shone with disappointment．I know that I hurt her feelings when I try to escape our weekly shopping trips．

　　And that is why I hold on to the idea of flexibility so tightly．I believe that being flexible keeps me going－keeps me from being ashamed of the way my family is different from other families．Whenever I feel the heat rise to my face, I tell myself that we won't always have to shop at Chevron－that just because at this point in my life I am struggling does not mean that I will always struggle．My belief in flexibility helps me get through the difficult times because I know that no matter what happens, my mother and I will always figure out a way to survive．

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　　What's in the news? Here are some articles from the Winfield Daily News．

　　Engaged to be married

　　Mr．and Mrs．Eduardo Silva of Bogota, Colombia, are happy to announce that engagement of their daughter Cristina Ana Silva to Gino Antonio Leone．Miss Silva is studying art history at Winfield Community College and Mr．Leone is working at the Roma Restaurant．The wedding will take place at St．Mark's Church in Winfield on October 5^th．The reception(接待)will be at the Roma．

　　Winfield Public Library is please to announce a special program to celebrate Black History Month．The well-known actor Albert Eaton will perform a one-man show named MLK：His life and Times．In the show, Eaton recreates(重现)the life and times of the late civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr．, through music and drama．Performances are at 3∶30 and 7∶30, Thursday through Saturday．Admission free．Telephone：5365400．

　　Mr．and Mrs．Leon Benjamin are proud to announce the birth of their first child, Andrea Jean．She was born at Winfield Hospital on June 9 at 11∶10 PM．

　　SPORTS

　　The parents' football team beat the students 4 to 2 in a wild and exciting match yesterday at Winfield Stadium．It was the first win for the parents since the yearly event started five years ago．Adela Logan led the parents to victory with three goals．Her son, Bob Logan, scored the only two goals for the losing team, it was both a happy and a sad day for the Logan family!

　　Ginny Lewis took the title away from defending state tennis winner, Susan Murray, yesterday in three straight sets, 6-1, 6-3, 6-4．This was the first time a Winfield student has played in the state finals．Ginny brought home a trophy(奖杯)and a ＄1000 prize for her studies at college．

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　　Since 1984, Philadelphia has been cleaning up its act．One by one, graffiti(涂鸦)-covered walls are being changed into outdoor art．So far, more than 1,800 murals(壁画)have been painted．Philadelphia now has more murals than any other American city．

　　The walls that were once ugly with graffiti are now covered with beautiful pictures of historical heroes and modern art, thanks to the Mural Arts Program(MAP)．Its work makes schools and public places attractive, and its citizens very proud．The program began as part of Philadelphia's Anti-Graffiti Network．Jane Golden is the MAP's artistic director．“When people ask me what our program is about,” she says, “I answer them with one word：hope．” Each year, the MAP offers youth art programs and workshops．Some one-time graffiti writers even help paint MAP murals．

　　The MAP's work, says Golden, is all about developing a sense of community(社区)．When a neighborhood requests a mural, the MAP works with the people there to develop a message．Some messages have been “Safe Streets,” “Love and Care,” and “Peace Walk．”

　　The MAP receives up to 50 requests for murals each week．Last year, the workers painted 140 murals．

　　“The making of a mural enters people's collective memory as an extraordinary, pleasant moment in neighborhood history” says Golden, who began as a muralist in Los Angeles．

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　　Last fall was a first-of-its-kind season．I did not arrange any after-school classes for my children．No swimming．No music lessons．No play dates．Nothing．

　　Once they finished their homework, they were free to do what they pleased, but only one hour of TV．In the beginning, my sons, Ben, 11, and Nick, 9, were anxious about this sudden, unplanned freedom．I had to push them out of the door with a ball, a bike, and so on．“Play!” I ordered．

　　I learned that this new plan takes time, patience and a lot of faith in the theory that having excellent grades isn't really important．

　　When my older kids, now in college and high school, were young, I brought in the rules of modern parenting．They are unspoken, but followed carefully．First, you must let your child have all kinds of activities．After all, you never know where you'll find a genius．Second, if the child shows the slightest talent, the activity must be pushed with lessons, special coaching(辅导)and practice of several days a week．Every minute should be taken and every minute has a purpose．That was really too much for my children．

　　Now with the new plan, we told stories and we listened to music．And the kids played with bikes, balls, and whatever was handy．Nobody kept score．In fact, the boys played outside so much that the lawn(草地)was worn down to the soil in places．They've made friends with those who come from all over the neighbor hood to play games．

　　We like those peaceful evenings．Ben and Nick have a good time this fall, Maybe that's because the time off has allowed us to enjoy each other's company．

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　　You wake up in the morning, the day is beautiful and the plans for the day are what you have been looking forward to for a long time．Then the telephone rings, you say hello, and the drama starts．The person on the other end has a depressing tone in his voice as he starts to tell you how terrible his morning is and that there is nothing to look forward to．You are still in a wonderful mood? Impossible!

　　Communicating with negative people can wash out your happiness．It may not change what you think, but communicating long enough with them will make you feel depressed for a moment or a long time．

　　Life brings ups and downs, but some people are stuck in the wrong idea that life has no happiness to offer．They only feel glad when they make others feel bad．No wonder they can hardly win others' pity or respect．

　　When you communicate with positive people, your spirit stays happy and therefore more positive things are attracted．When the dagger(匕首)of a negative person is put in you, you feel the heavy feeling that all in all, brings you down．

　　Sometimes we have no choice but to communicate with negative people．This could be a co-worker, or a relative．In this case, say what needs to be said as little as possible．Sometimes it feels good to let out your anger back to the negative person, but all this does is to lower you to that same negative level and they won't feel ashamed of themselves about that．

　　Negativity often affects happiness without even being realized．The negative words of another at the start of the day can cling to(附着)you throughout the rest of your day, which makes you feel bad and steals your happiness．Life is too short to feel negative．Stay positive and avoid negativity as much as possible．

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　　Harry Houdini was one of the greatest American entertainers in the theater this century．He was a man famous for his escapes－from prison cells, from wooden boxes floating in rivers, from locked tanks full of water．

　　He appeared in theaters all over Europe and America．Crowds came to see the great Houdini and his “magic tricks．”

　　Of course, his secret wasn't magic or supernatural powers, it was simply strength．He had the ability to move his toes as well as he moved his fingers．He could move his body into almost any position he wanted．

　　Houdini started working in the entertainment when he was 17, in 1891．He and his brother Theo performed card tricks in a club in New York．They called themselves the Houdini Brothers．When Harry married in 1894, he and his wife Bess worked together as magician and assistant．But for a long time they were not very successful．Then Harry performed his first prison escape, in Chicago in 1898．Harry persuaded a detective to let him try to escape from the prison, and he invited the local newspapermen to watch．

　　It was the publicity that came from this that started Harry Houdin's success．Harry had fingers trained to escape from handcuffs and toes trained to escape ankle chins．But his biggest secret was he unlocked the prison doors．Every time he went into the prison cell, Bess gave him a kiss for good luck – and a small skeleton key, which is a key that fits many locks, passed quickly from her mouth to his．

　　Harry used these prison escapes to build his fame．He arranged to escape from the local prison of every town he visited．In the afternoon, the people of the town would read about it in their local newspapers, and in the evening every seat in the local theater would be full．What was the result? World – wild fame, and a name remembered today．

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　　Teach children basic safety around dogs and review regularly：

　　·Do not approach an unfamiliar dog．

　　·Do not run near a dog or scream．

　　·Remain still when approached by an unfamiliar dog．

　　·If you are knocked over by a dog, lie still and hold your breath．

　　·Do you play with a dog unless watched by an adult．

　　·Immediately report stray(流浪的)dogs, or dogs displaying unusual behavior to an adult．

　　·Avoid direct eye contact with a dog．

　　·Do not disturb a dog who is sleeping, eating, or caring for baby dogs．

　　·Do not pet a dog without allowing it to see sniff you first．

　　·If bitten, immediately report the bite to an adult．

　　A study on fatal dog bites lists the breeds(品种)involved in fatal attacks over 20 years．It does not find specific breeds that are most likely to bite or kill．Each year, 4．7 million Americans are bitten by dogs．These bites result in about 12 deaths every year：about 0．0002 percent of the total number of people bitten．These few deaths offer little information about breeds involved in dogs of a particular breed, and no way to determine which breeds are more likely to bite or kill．

　　Many practical alternatives hold promise for preventing dog bites．For prevention ideas and model policies for the control of dangerous dogs, please see the American Veterinary Medical Association Task Force on Canine Aggression and Human – Canine Interaction：a community approach to dog bite prevention．

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The CEO of Apple, Steve Jobs' story about death

　　When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like：“If you live each day as if it were your last, someday you' ll most certainly be right．” It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself, “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?”

　　Remembering that I' ll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choice in life．

　　About a year ago I was diagnosed with cancer．The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that was incurable, and that I would live no longer than three to six months．My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which is my doctors' code for preparing yourself to die．

　　I lived with that diagnosis all day．I was completely in despair．Later that evening, I had another examination and my wife told me that tumor turned to be curable with surgery．I had the surgery and I' m fine now．

　　This was the closest I've been to facing death．To tell the truth, no one wants to die．And yet death is the destination we all share．No one has ever escaped it．It clears out the old to make room for the new．Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away．

　　Your time is so limited that you shouldn't waste it repeating someone else's life．Don' t be trapped by dogma(教条)－which is living with the results of other people' s thinking．Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice．And most importantly, have the courage to follow your heart．It somehow already knows what you truly want to become．Everything else is secondary．

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　　Why do we play sports? You might say “to get exercise” and you'd be right．To have fun? That's true, too．But there's more．In fact, there are at least 5 more reasons．According to the Women's Sports Foundation, girls who play sports get a lot more than just fit．

　　Girls who play sports do better in school．You might think that playing sports will take up all your study time．But research shows that gilrs who play sports do better in school than those who don't．Exercise improves learning, memory, and concentration, which can give active girls an advantage in the classroom．

　　Girls who play sports learn teamwork and goalsetting skills．Sports teach valuable life skills．When you work with coaches, trainers, and teammates to win games and achieve goals, you're learning how to be successful．Those skills will serve you well at work and in family life．

　　Sports are good for a girl's health．In addition to being fit and keeping a healthy weight, girls who play sports are also less likely to smoke．And later in life, gilrs who exercise are less likely to get osteoporosis(骨质疏松症)．

　　Playing sports improves self-confidence．Girls who play sports feel better about themselves．Why?It builds confidence when you know you can practice, improve, and achieve your goals．Sports are also a feel-good activity because they help girls get in shape, keep a healthy weight, and make new friends．

　　Exercise cuts the pressure．Playing sports can reduce stress and help you feel a little happier．How? The brain chemicals released during exercise improve a person's mood．Friends are another mood-lifter．And being on a team creates tight bonds between friends．It's good to know your teammates will support you－both on and off the field!

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　　The famous director of a big and expensive movie planned to film a beautiful sunset over the ocean, so that the audiences could see his hero and heroine in front of it at the end of the film as they said goodbye to each other forever．He sent his camera crew out one evening to film the sunset for him．

　　The next morning he said to the men, “Have you provided me with that sunset?”

“No, sir,” the men answered．

　　The director was angry．“Why not?” he asked．

　　“Well, sir,” one of the men answered, “we're on the east coast here, and the sun sets in the west．We can get you a sunrise over the sea, if necessary, but not a sunset．”

　　“But I want a sunset!” the director shouted．“Go to the airport, take the next flight to the west coast, and get one．”

　　But then a young secretary had an idea．“Why don't you photograph a sunrise,” she suggested, “and then play it backwards? Then it'll look like a sunset．”

　　“That's a very good idea!” the director said．Then he turned to the camera crew and said, “Tomorrow morning I want you to get me a beautiful sunrise over the sea．”

　　The camera crew went out early the next morning and filmed a bright sunrise over the beach in the middle of a beautiful bay．Then at nine o'clock they took it to the director．“Here it is, sir, ” they said, and gave it to him．He was very pleased．

　　They all went into the studio．“All right, ” the director explained, “now our hero and heroine are going to say goodbye．Run the film backwards so that we can see the ‘sunset' behind them．”

　　The “sunset” began, but after a quarter of a minute, the director suddenly put his face in his hands and shouted to the camera crew to stop．

　　The birds in the film were flying backwards, and the waves on the sea were going away from the beach．

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