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　　It had been some time since Jack had seen the old man．College, career, and life itself got in the way．In fact, Jack moved clear across the country in pursuit of his dreams．There, in the rush of his busy life, Jack had little time to think about the past and often no time to spend with his wife and son．He was working on his future, and nothing could stop him．

　　Over the phone, his mother told him, “Mr．Belser died last night．The funeral is Wednesday．” Memories flashed through his mind like an old newsreel(纪录片)as he sat quietly remembering his childhood days．

　　“Jack, did you hear me?”

　　“Oh, sorry, Mom．Yes, I heard you．It's been so long since I thought of him．I'm sorry, but I honestly thought he died years ago,” Jack said．

　　Well, he didn't forget you．Every time I saw him he'd ask how you were doing．He'd reminisce(回忆)about the many days you spent over ‘his side of the fence' as he put it,” Mom told him．

　　“I loved that old house he lived in,” Jack said．

　　“You know, Jack, after your father died, Mr．Belser stepped in to make sure you had a man's influence in your life,” she said．

　　“He's the one who taught me carpentry．I wouldn't be in this business if it weren't for him．He spent a lot of time teaching me things he thought were important… Mom, I'll be there for the funeral,” Jack said．

　　Busy as he was, he kept his word．Jack caught the next flight to his hometown．Mr．Belser's funeral was small and uneventful．He had no children of his own, and most of his relatives had passed away．

　　The night before they had to return home, Jack and his Mom stopped by to see the old house next door one more time, which was exactly as he remembered．Every step held memories．Every picture, every piece of furniture… Jack stopped suddenly．

　　“What's wrong, Jack?” his Mom asked．

　　“The box is gone,” he said．

　　“What box?” Mom asked．

　　“There was a small gold box that he kept locked on top of his desk．I must have asked him a thousand times what was inside．All he'd ever tell me was ‘the thing I value most',” Jack said．

　　It was gone．Everything about the house was exactly how Jack remembered it, except for the box．He figured someone from the Belser family had taken it．

　　“Now, I'll never know what was so valuable to him,” Jack said sadly．

　　Returning to his office the next day, he found a package on his desk．The return address caught his attention．

　　“Mr．Harold Belser” it read．

　　Jack tore open the package．There inside was the gold box and an envelope．Jack's hands shook as he read the note inside．

　　“Upon my death, please forward this box and its contents to Jack Bennett．It's the thing I valued most in my life．” A small key was taped to the letter．His heart racing, and tears filling his eyes, Jack carefully unlocked the box．There inside he found a beautiful gold pocket watch．Running his fingers slowly over the fine cover, he opened it．

　　Inside he found these words carved：“Jack, Thanks for your time! Harold Belser．”

　　“Oh, My God! This is the thing he valued most…”

　　Jack held the watch for a few minutes, then called his assistant and cleared his appointments for the next two days．“Why?” his assistant asked．

　　“I need some time to spend with my son,” he said．

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Life in 2060

　　Let us suppose it is now about A．D．2060．Let's make believe(假设；虚构)it is about sixty years from now．Of course, things have changed and life is very different．

　　Voyages to the moon are being made every day．It is as easy to take a holiday on the moon today as it was for the people in 1960 to take a holiday in Europe．At a number of scenic spots on the moon, many hotels have been built．The hotels are air-conditioned, naturally．In order that everyone can enjoy the beautiful scenery on the moon, every room has at least one picture window．Everything imaginable is provided for entertainment(娱乐)of young and old．

　　What are people eating now? People are still eating food．They haven't yet started to take on heir(继承)supply of energy directly as electrical current or as nuclear power．They may some day．But many foods now come in pill form, and the food that goes into the pill continues to come mainly from green plants．

　　Since there are several times as many people in the world today as there were a hundred years ago, most of our planet's surface has to be filled．The deserts are irrigated with water and crops are no longer destroyed by pests．The harvest is always good．

　　Farming, of course, is very highly developed．Very few people have to work on the farm．It is possible to run the farm by just pushing a few buttons now and then．

　　People are now largely vegetarians(素食者)．You see, as the number of people increases, the number of animals decreases．Therefore, the people have to be vegetarians and we are healthier both in our bodies and in our minds, and we know the causes and cure of disease and pain, and it is possible to get rid of diseases．No one has to be ill any more．

　　Such would be our life in 2060．

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　　Chinese girl looking for language exchanger

　　Posted Feb 10, 2010 16∶25　by Sophia

　　Tag：Seeking Language partners　Guangzhou　Sex：Female

　　Race/Ethnicity：Chinese

　　I am a Chinese girl in my 20's, can speak and write in English, but I'd like to make some improvement．People always look for making it better, right?

　　Meanwhile, I also like to meet more friends if we really have some topics to share．

　　And if you are in Guangzhou or visit here, I am more than willing to show you around in my spare time．

　　Reply to happycora@hotmail．com or call 15015704625

　　Tianhe nice apartment for share

　　Posted Feb 24, 2010 16∶47　by Vivian

　　Tag：Seeking roommates　Guangzhou　Tianhe District　Up to 2000 RMB

　　I have a room available for rent in a shared apartment in Central Tianhe district．

　　The room has a big window with a nice view．The apartment itself is on the 22th floor of a new secure building on Tianhe Bei Lu, about 10 minutes walk from metro stations(地铁站)on lines 1 and 3, as well as buses and other transportation methods very close．

　　If you are interested, please feel free to phone me(Vivian)on 13145751201(message preferred), or email me on vivian liu2003@hotmail．com．

　　Business Interpreter/Guide

　　Posted Feb 26, 2010 08∶46　by Sony

　　Tag：Business Services　Guangzhou　Baiyun District

　　Dear Foreign Friends, I am a professional interpreter, now looking for a Freelance interpreter job urgently．Please read my CV at below：

　　Name：Sony Song

　　Gender：Male

　　Age：22 years old

　　Education：Studied English in Da Shan Foreign Language College

　　Birth：9th Oct 1987, Luohe city, Henan province, China．

　　Ability：Speak fluent English, know Guangzhou city very well, can also guide you to Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Dongguan, Shunde, Macao, Hongkong, etc．

　　Contact Detail：E-mail/MSN：sonysong4@hotmail．com; cell phone：15112015812

　　Looking for flat

　　Posted Mar 11, 2010 14∶03　by Lucy

　　Tag：Apartments wanted　Guangzhou

　　Hello,

　　This is Lucy coming from Peru and looking for a short term flat, from 15th April until 4th May 2010．If somebody can give some information, send me pictures, price and address．

　　Email：lucitamaron@hotmail．com; cell phone：13800013900

　　Thanks a lot in advance!

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Advantages and Disadvantages of Mobile Phones

　　Nowadays, nearly everyone has a mobile phone．In our daily lives we make phone calls to others, and we need to send messages to exchange information．Now, you can surf the Internet by using your mobile phone．I have to say that I enjoy using my phone, but I am worried at the same time：Is it healthy and safe to use?

　　Mobile phones have many advantages．Firstly, we keep in touch with people by using them．Because of our busy life, we have little time to meet friends and our beloved ones．Thanks to mobile phones, we can tell them how everything is going．When an emergency happens, we can call for help using our phones．It is convenient and important in our lives．

　　But every coin has two sides and it is the same with mobile phones．As people are used to making phone calls, they are spending less and less time with their family and friends．Phones give them more excuses to stay out of reach．Because of the convenience, the love and care between people has changed into a few words in a message or a phone call．For students, there are more chances to get distracted(分心的)from their lessons．When I was in middle school, I often looked out of the window to rest my eyes, but now I spend those moments on my phone．

　　In the end, I hope you can think about the advantages and the disadvantages, and use your mobile phone correctly．We humans created mobile phones, and we should keep them under control．

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　　Monty Roberts was the son of a poor family．He liked horses．He had a dream to own a horse ranch(大牧场)ever since he was a little child．

　　One day when he was at high school, he was asked to write a paper．It was about what he wanted to be and do when he grew up．He worked hard on it, and wrote a seven-page paper．In the paper he described his dream of owning a big horse ranch someday．

　　The next day he handed it in to his teacher．Two days later he received his paper back．On the front page was a large red F(fail)with a note that read, “See me after class．”

　　He went to see the teacher after class and asked, “Why did I receive an F?”

　　The teacher answered, “This is an unrealistic dream for a young boy like you．You come from a poor family．You have no money．Owning a horse ranch needs a lot of money．You have to buy the land．There’s no way you could ever do it．” Then he added, “Write this paper again．If you write it with a realistic plan, you may receive a better grade．”

　　After sitting with it for a week, he turned in the same paper, making no changes at all．He said to the teacher, “You can keep the F and I’ll keep my dream．”

　　Monty kept his dream and worked very hard．Today he owns a large horse ranch with a big house on it, and he keeps that school paper he wrote on the wall of his sitting room．

　　Last summer the same school teacher came to visit him．When the teacher was leaving, he said, “Look, Monty, when I was your teacher, I was something of a dream stealer．During those years I stole a lot of children’s dreams．It was lucky that you hadn’t given up yours．”

　　Don’t let anyone steal your dream．Follow your dream, no matter what．

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Suppose you work in a big firm and find English very important for your job because you often deal with foreign businessmen．Now you are looking for a place where you can improve your English．Here are some advertisements about English language training from newspapers．You may find the information you need．

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　　Many of us don't pay much attention to the importance of eye care．It is said that if you take care of your body, then you can surely be healthy．That is why our eyes should be given a lot of care．Natural eye care should be put in a number one place．

　　There are several causes leading to poor eyesight like not enough food, genes(基因)and aging(老化)．Televisions, computers and reading are also the causes of having poor eyesight．If you happen to work in front of the computer, it is best to take a break every once in a while．Something dirty can cause redness and they will make you feel uncomfortable．It is bad for your eyes, too．If this happens, the best way is to clean your eyes by using cold water．You must also try your best to protect your eyes from harmful things．For example, sunglasses are not just for fashion but they can also serve as a great way to protect your eyesight form UV rays．

　　Eating healthy foods will do good to your eyesight．Remember that vitamins A, C and E are good for eyes．Try to eat food groups that have these vitamins．And you should do eye exercises because exercise protects your eyesight, too．If a person exercises regularly(定期地)and eats the right kind of food, his eyes will stay in good condition for a long time．

　　All above are natural ways of eye care that help us keep healthy eyes．Being happy all the time can be helpful to a person's eyesight, too．In a word, eye care is very important, no matter how old a person is．

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　　Shopping on the Internet is becoming more and more popular．Why do people use the Internet to shop? Some people say it is more convenient．They don't have to leave their homes to order something; they can shop for anything they want at any time; they can find things for sale that they can't find in the stores near their homes．Still other people say they can find better prices on the Internet．

　　If you want to buy something on the Internet, you need a credit(信用)card．You have to type your credit card number and information on the website(网页)and send them to the store over the Internet．You have to be sure that the store will not use your information in the wrong way．You don't want someone to get your credit card number, so be careful with it, beause people sometimes steal(窃取)credit card numbers from stores．

　　The Internet is also a good place to go window-shopping．Window-shopping is when you look at the things for sale in a store, but don't plan to buy anything．In window-shopping you can see what kinds of things you are able to get and how much they cost．Some stores like Ross Stores have a website for information about their stores, but not for shopping．Some stores have a website for information about their stores, and can shop on-line there, such as Office Depot, Payless Shoe Source, Safeway．Some stores like Amazon．com are only for online shopping．

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　　When we think of leadership, we often think of strength and power．But what are these really, and how do they operate?

　　Leadership today is not about forcing others to do things．If this is even possible, it is short-term, and tends to backfire．If you order someone to do something against their will, they may do it because they feel they must, but the anger they feel will do more harm in the long-term．They will also experience fear．

　　Fear causes the thinking brain to shut down, making the person unable to function at his or her best．If they associate you with this emotion of fear, they will become less functional around you, and you will have succeeded in not only shooting yourself in the foot, but possibly making a very good employee or partner unable to perform effectively．Fear has no place in leadership．

　　The way we influence people in a lasting way is by our own character, and our understanding and use of emotion．We can order someone to do something, which may be part of the work day; or we can employ them at the emotional level, so they became fully devoted to the projects and provide some of their own motivation(积极性)．Today’s work place is all about relationships．

　　Anyone works harder in a positive environment in which they’re recognized and valued as a human being as well as a worker．Everyone produces just a bit more for someone they like．Leaders understand the way things work．They know the pay check is not the single most motivating factor(因素)in the work life of most people．

　　The true strength of leadership is an inner strength that comes from the confidence of emotional intelligence---knowing your own emotions, and how to handle them, and those of others．Developing your emotional intelligence is the single best thing you can do if you want to develop your relationships with people around you, which is the key to the leadership skills．

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　　Surfing－the art of riding a wave on a pointed board－is the wildest, fastest natural water sport known to man．In recent years, it has developed into a major sport around the world, from Australia to South Africa．Hawaiian experts risk(冒…之险)their lives on huge, thirty foot swells(浪涛)against the wind of Oahu; Californians of all ages go out the year-round．

　　In the winter, surf-riders put on life-suits to ride grave waves so cold that their flesh turns blue．Surfing is no sport for weak persons．Swimming a quarter of a mile or more and pushing a surfboard out to where the swells are just right for riding can be real work．Then, at exactly the right moment, you climb up the wave and go fast across the face of a powerful swell with the white water jumping at your feet．The huge wave bites at your shoulder, threatening(威胁)at any moment to smash your flat．In the next several seconds, a cool head and lightning－quick action back to the pressure of the attacking wave will bring your board under control for that great ride down the back of the great, green mountain of water．Once on the beach, you know why surfing is growing in popularity as an international sport, and you’re glad to be a member of this new water world．

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