A garden that's just right for you
Have you ever visited a garden that seemed just right for you, where the atmosphere of the garden appeared to total more than the sum(总和) of its parts? 16 . But it doesn't happen by accident. It starts with looking inside yourself and understanding who you are with respect to the natural world and how you approach the gardening process.
●___ 17
Some people may think that a garden is no more than plants, flowers, patterns and masses of color. Others are concerned about using gardening methods that require less water and fewer fertilizers(肥料). 18 . However, there are a number of other reasons that might explain why you want to garden. One of them comes from our earliest years.
● Recall(回忆)your childhood memories
Our model of what a garden should be often goes back to childhood. Grandma's rose garden and Dad's vegetable garden might be good or bad, but that's not what's important. 19 --how being in those gardens made us feel. If you'd like to build a powerful bond with your garden, start by taking some time to recall the gardens of your youth. 20 then go outside and work out a plan to translate your childhood memories into your grown-up garden. Have fun.
| A． |
Know why you garden |
| B． |
Find a good place for your own garden |
| C． |
It's our experience of the garden that matters |
| D． |
It's delightful to see so many beautiful flowers |
| E． |
Still others may simply enjoy being outdoors and close to plants |
| F． |
You can produce that kind of magical quality in your own garden, too |
| G． |
For each of those gardens, writer down the strongest memory you have |
Do you have a spare room in your house? Do you like to share your driveway in front of your garage with others? Many people are benefiting from this new business of renting．
Perhaps the best-known example of a company in this field is Airbnb—an American web business which allows you to rent out your spare room to holidaymakers．It says it operates in34，000 cities and it has 800，000 listings of rooms and apartments．
A British company is doing something with parking spaces．JustPark’s founder，Anthony Eskinazi，says，“when I had the original idea．I spotted a driveway close to a spots stadium．It would have been so convenient if I could have just parked in that driveway rather than in a commercial car park．”Around 20，000 people have advertised their spaces on the website，and he says around half a million drivers use it．
They are people who run things like traditional hotels and commercial car parks．They are afraid of ending up losing money．
Regulations for these new businesses are unclear．How will renting out your driveway affect your neighbour? Because this is a new business world，those rules aren’t there yet．
| A．They seem to have occupied the majority of the market． |
| B．Both of these can help you make money． |
| C．And there is another problem． |
| D．And his great idea has proved a success． |
E．But the new business of renting has its competitors．
F．There are many ways to earn money．
G．A commercial ear park is inconvenient．
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Tips on buying outdoor solar lights
As solar lighting is becoming useful for homes, many different such outdoor lights can now be found in supermarkets. Here are some helpful tips for customers.
Does your area receive enough direct lighting?So you shouldn’ t even give it a thought if you live in an area that doesn’t get much sunlight. These lights need direct sunlight, or they just won’t work very well.
The expensive one usually means good quality. Choosing the cheapest ones will result in many problems. For once, it’s best to buy more expensive lights of high quality.
At least you should know the difference between a $ 10 light and a $ 45 light.
Buy lights that require less installation(安 装 ) .
Most solar lights are simply driven into the ground. Therefore, you shouldn’t deal with the difficulty in installing a system that involves anything more than that. You don’t need to buy lights that require half an hour each to plant into the ground because that’s just a waste of time.
Make sure the lights can store enough energy.
Different solar lights can store different amounts of energy. Therefore, you should choose lights that are able to store enough energy to last for a few hours or more, at least those that will last from nightfall throughout most of the night and part of the morning.
| A．Without sunlight, solar lighting is useless. |
| B．Buy many solar lights instead of just one or two. |
| C．It means some will stay lit longer than the others. |
| D．Choose something a bit more expensive for once. |
E. Solar lights are becoming more and more popular.
F. That doesn’ t mean you have to spend all your money.
G. They should take a few minutes each to get into the ground.
Change is scary. It can go hand in hand with the fear that we might hurt someone else if we think about ourselves. The truth is that you’re so much more courageous than you give yourself credit for and far stronger than you realize. Here are some ways that you can use to help yourself make the process of creating change more manageable.
Make change into small bite size pieces. Remember that as long as you attempt to take regular practice towards your goal, such as eating more healthily every day, or walking twenty minutes a day, you’re heading in the right direction to make changes.
From a habit of keeping a diary every day. Writing a journal every night before going to bed can effectively help you cope with the emotional impact of the change process. Go to grab a pen or pencil and remember a journal is not for being neat and tidy with good spelling.
Rest is essential to success. Have a rest and take timeout to build your energy. if we don’t give ourselves time to rest, we just end up burning out by the constant striving and worry. As we don’t have the energy to keep going, we have to give up!
Just accept it! I’m sorry to say that unless some people are really secure in themselves and truly happy in their own life, they’re never going to like your changes. This has nothing to do with whether they love you or not. They are just for self-preservation! Th
erefore, giving them a little time to adjust and get used to it.
| A．No one else is going to like your changes. |
| B．Don’t try to eat the elephant in one sitting. |
| C．It is a step into the unknown. |
| D．Keep repeating your small steps over and over again. |
E.It’s not being lazy to have timeout.
F.It’s a private place where you can speak out your inner thoughts.
G.Creating change is about building your character.
Why have you been so successful in reaching some of your goals, but not others? If you aren't sure, you are far from alone in your confusion. It turns out that even brilliant, highly accomplished people are pretty lousy when it comes to understanding why they succeed or fail. The intuitive answer — that you are born predisposed to certain talents and lacking in others — is really just one small piece of the puzzle. In fact, decades of research on achievement suggests that successful people reach their goals not simply because of who they are, but more often because of what they do.
1. Get specific. When you set yourself a goal, try to be as specific as possible. "Lose 5 pounds" is a better goal than "lose some weight," because it gives you a clear idea of what success looks likeAlso, think about the specific actions that need to be taken to reach your goal.
2.
Given how busy most of us are, and how many goals we are juggling at once, it's not surprising that we routinely miss opportunities to act on a goal because we simply fail to notice them. Did you really have no time to work out today? No chance at any point to return that phone call? Achieving your goal means grabbing hold of these opportunities before they slip through your fingers.
3. Know exactly how far you have left to go.
Achieving any goal also requires honest and regular monitoring of your progress — if not by others, then by you yourself. If you don't know how well you are doing, you can't adjust your behavior or your strategies accordingly.
It is my hope that, after reading about the nine things successful people do differently, you have gained some insight into all the things you have been doing right all along. RememberIt's never what you are, but what you do.
| A．Wait for opportunities to appear |
| B．Seize the moment to act on your goals |
| C．Here are things successful people do differently |
| D．Next I’ll talk about my own experience on how to achieve success |
E. You don’t need to become a different person to become a more successful one
F. Check your progress frequently-weekly, or even daily, depending on the goal
G. Knowing exactly what you want to achieve keeps you motivated until you get there
The Secret Behind a Great Person
A long time ago I watched a video of Josh Groban singing Vincent. It was a beautiful song and I loved it. I got interested in what the song is about.
The song is about a 19thcentury Dutch painter, Vincent van Gogh. Unfortunately, he didn’t enjoy all the fame and wealth that his paintings should have brought him. He died when he was only 37 years old.
At that time only a few people knew his work and even fewer appreciated it. For years he had mental illness. He only sold one painting in his lifetime and badly needed financial support.
Even so, he still managed to create lots of great paintings. What was it that made it possible? The answer is that he had a strong supporter, his younger brother Theo. Theo supported Vincent financially, but more importantly, he continued to believe in his brother no matter what happened. I think it’s safe to say that Vincent was able to become a great artist because of this unfailing support from his brother.
There is an important lesson here: never underestimate (低估) the value of a supporter. Having someone who believes in you through the difficulties makes a big difference. You might not realize it, but much of what you have achieved is most likely because of your supporters.
| A．If you have such a supporter, express thanks to him. |
| B．Moreover, he went through many difficulties in his life. |
| C．His letters to Vincent were full of praise and encouragement. |
| D．His paintings are among the most famous and expensive in the world. |