The Smiles (2)

  I joined some clubs this semester. So my schedule was always that full. And I had to go to the elementary school to stay there on weekend. Because the club decided that we would held an activity there. The school was in Taoyuan. Which means I had to go back to my home on Friday, and I could only stay with my family for one day.  

  I didn't argue with my parent when they complain that I joined too many clubs. Because I was too tired to fight with them. They asked what for? You only feel exhausted and you spend lots of time and money, but you get nothing.  I knew they were worrying about me, I understood that they just want me to take care of myself. And since I'm not the person who is good at taking care of myself, they usually help me to. But I just went to take a shower because I wanted to gain more sleeping time. When I was in the bathroom, something suddenly stroke my mind. I remembered that I didn't have a sleeping bag, then where am I supposed to sleep when I am in the elementary school? So I rushed out and asked my mom whether there was one at home. She pondered for a while, and said no. At that moment, I decided that I would sleep on the floor of that school and freeze to die. And I went back to take the shower again. When I came out, no one was there. I didn't think too much, I just wanted to go to bed and shut my eyes. 

  When I finally finished everything, I heard a sound. That was the sound of the gate of our basement. I knew my parent were out, but I didn't know what for, especially at ten o'clock in the evening. I thought they were having a walk along the street. But they came home with a sleeping bag.  I was shock at first, and then I asked them where did they get this. Of course they bought it, I asked a silly question, but the reason why I was shock was not because how they bought it, but when they bought it. It was really dark out side, and nearly there were no stores opening. But they kept searching the sleeping bag for me. 

  My dad put down the sleeping bag, with a smile but also a worried look. His lips rose a little bit, just a little bit but I could see all the details that he was truly happy because his daughter is not going to be frozen for sleeping on the floor. He felt satisfied, and his eyes also smiled. My mother smiled too. Her smile was really big, so big that her cheeks were so bright and round. Her eyes became so thin and slim when she smiled. Her teeth all came out to see me. It was the most beautiful scene I ever seen. And the vision became a little bit blur, for there was some tears rolling in my eyes. 

  It was just a simple movement, so simple and so little, but so warm. I smiled too. I didn't know how I look at then, but I'm sure that picture was beautiful. Because my heart was full of warmth and gratitude. I love my parent, and I appreciate what they have done for me. When we were little, we might not understand the hard-work they did for us. And we might even blame them for doing this. But now I understand some feeling of my parent. And I am really grateful. I know they really care about us. They love me and will continue to love me with all their hearts. 

The smiles

  There are many people around me. And the most important part of my life would be family, and then friends.
  I remembered last friday,when I finally was available to go home, I had another appointments on last saturday and sunday. There was an activity of the club, and we had to stay in the elementary school for two days. And when I got home, I realized I didn't have a sleeping bag. I asked my mothere whethere there is one at home, but there was none.
  Then I took the shower, I didn't think too much. When I finally finished it, my parent weren't there. And then they came home after a while. They took a sleeping bag, and I asked them where they bought it. They just smiled at me, and put the sleeping bag on the floor. They felt like they had finished something. They felt satisfied for I don't have to worry anything anymore. I couldn't get my eyes off them. Their smiles are still so vivid. My mother's mouth rose just a little bit, and her face was pale and there were some wrinkles when she smiled. Especialy around her eyes, there were so many. And when she smiled, her teeth would shine and her smile, people may thought ordinary and simple, but for me it is the most beautiful thing in the world. And my father, although he smiled, but with a little bit concern and worry. I know that look, he worried if I would be too tired. But he tried to hide so that I wouldn't worry about him. But devil is in the detail, and I know that we all know each other's thoughts. He turned his head. And I looked at another direction.
  There was nothing to explain, neverless I know what is the most important to me and I want to do my best to protect something I really care, my family.

Paragraphs p.47

Summary:
  Martin is the boyfriend of Hadley, the author of this article. He came from a broken family and became one of the members of the gang. Hadley was attracted to him because of his bad boy image and he brought excitement that she couldn't feel before. Before she met Martin, she was obedient and good.
  She started to ditch school, she lost her friends and made her family feel sad.  And one day at the party she had a breaking point. Some people came to their house to hunt Martin. And Martin's uncle was dead because of the gun shot. Since then, Hadley had more and more arguments with Martin. Martin was farther from her and closer to the gang. Now he's in the jail. And Hadley prayed every night hope that this will be the last time. She becomes sober and starts to contact with her family again and has an education.

Reaction: 
  "She is the dumbest girl I have ever seen". That was my first idea that just popped out of my brain when I finished the story. How can a girl leave her family and her friends to hang out with someone like that who is not being considerate and violate? I thought girls are smarter now and because of high education, we can "choose" our mates wisely. We don't have to be chosen by them. We have the "choice". And I got to say, that girl made a very bad choice. But you can't expect everyone's life just so smooth going. Someone must pass through some obstacles then he or she can finally realize the warmth from his or her family. 
   Like my sister, she doesn't appreciate what my parent have done for her. Sometimes she said some bad words and even hoped that she came from a family which there were no parent. And I just felt angry whenever she had that kind of thought. I wish one day she can understand that our parent are the two people who love us more than anyone in this world. 

The First Car Accident

  I got the driver license after the exam. I remember this happened in the summer. And my parent encouraged me to have the diving classes so that I could help them while they are busy. And I said yes because then I could drive my friends or my family to anywhere I want. And that's the beginning of the next following tragedy.
  When I got the driver license, I couldn't wait to drive the car on the "real" road. So the next day, I did. But I only tried this in the remote area because I was still a "fresh" driver. At first it all went well. The road was big, wide and only with few cars. The most important was that it was straight forward. I started to feel confident about it. So I drove the car on the roads which were in the downtown. And it all went quiet well  until I wanted to park the car in the garage. In front of our garage, there was our neighbor's garage. So the passage  between these garages were narrow. I tried first to turn, then I drove forward. But just when I drove forward, I didn't do well on measuring. So I bumped into the garage of our neighbor. And the sound was big and I was panic. I didn't know what to do. I only heard the footsteps of my whole family. They were first shocked. And my father just awkwardly helped me to drive the car into the garage. The neighbor wasn't home. Or if they heard of it, they would rush to run down to there to see what was happening.

  I went to see whether anything was broken and we should compensate them for their loss. Fortunately there wasn't any big  bad thing happened. I was safe and my parent told the neighbor the truth. And they didn't mind so we didn't pay any money. But since then, I fear sometimes that I might do this again. I was fear to drive the car into the garage. I was fear to park the car beside the road. I was even fear to let my family or friends to take a ride.  But my father encouraged me to practice more because he came through all this just like I did. I guess everything is hard to begin, all you need to do is to practice more to get familiar with it.

Topic Sentence 2~6

2.  Making barbecue could be very complicated, but exciting. The process of creating the barbecue is even more fun and important than the result.  First, the family has to decide on matters such as exactly what kinds of food and in what quantities.  Next, shopping is often done by two or more family members, while the others stay at home to prepare the grill, the table, and the tableware.  When everyone is ready to start grilling, the smells from the roasting food and the sound of the crackling coals make everyone super hungry.  A constant stream of people and dishes floods out from the kitchen onto the backyard table, just like ants finding and saving their food.  Finally, when all the food is ready and the cold drinks have been poured, a barbecue symbolizes summer itself.

 3.  You can’t have the same night lifestyles out of Taipei. If you are a resident of Taipei and travel overseas, one of the first things you will notice is that during the evening hours, cities seem to close their doors before the night has even begun.  Supermarkets, department stores, and drugstores close before 9:00 p.m.  Movies stop playing and buses and subways stop running before midnight.  The sidewalks are nearly empty, and few cars venture forth on the streets.  In Taipei, however, one can play 24 hours every day.  Movies run until the early hours of the morning, KTVs and MTVs operate 24 hours, and crowded discos and pubs play loud music to dancers and drinkers until dawn.  In Taipei, the nights are as busy as the days.

4.  Dictionaries are not just for you to look up words, but also have other functions that you may not notice before. We all know about looking up words in dictionaries, and perhaps finding cities in an atlas or a description of some fact in an encyclopedia, but few of us realize that these books can also be a source of pleasure.  Dictionaries, for example, not only contain the meaning and pronunciation of words.  They can also tell us where the words come from or how to distinguish similar words.  Atlases, too, not only show maps of countries; they contain interesting information about race, language, history, and biology.  Encyclopedias can be entertaining: just choose one, open it up, and start learning about something you never knew before!  We too often use reference books in a hurry; we should realize that they can be as much fun as they are useful.

 5.  Taking trains is a fashion that will never fade. In this modern world with faster means of transportation available to more people, the train nevertheless continues to be popular.  In most countries, train tickets are often sold out.  Why do so many people want to take the train?  Perhaps it is because they are reasonably priced--cheaper than an airplane--and have large windows from which we can comfortably view the passing world.  Maybe trains are popular because they never get stuck in traffic jams, as cars and buses often do.  Another reason may be that trains are older and sometimes seem a little romantic.  For whatever reason, do not be surprised to see people preferring trains to other modes of transportation far into the future.

 6.  Do you know the differences between snack food, junk food, and fast food? Actually, they are easy to distinguish.  Snack food refers to any food which is eaten between the three primary meals of breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  Snack food can be any kind of food, such as leftovers, fruit, candy, and a sandwich.  Junk food refers to any food which is not nutritious and may actually be bad for us, such as candy, deep-fried meat, and doughnuts.  Finally, the term fast food is used for foods cooked at fast-food restaurants.  Some fast food is also junk food, as it contains too much salt and oil.  In short, when you want some snack food, don’t eat junk food or fast food!

Cellphone Missing

  When i went abroad, i lost my passport on the airplane and my cellphone on bus. It seems like i am a blurred person and always get myself into troubles. i was terrified of losing my passport. And i feel sorry that i have to feel this fear again when i lost my cellphone yesterday.

  Yesterday morning, i was going to take a bus. And i found a seat so i sat down. And my stop was finally coming. I got up without any conscious that my cellphone was leaving on the seat. And i just went to class. But i didn't need it so i hadn't discovered that it had missing. And when i was about to have a lunch with my friends, i couldn't find it. I was panic and my tears couldn't stop shedding. My friends were all very concerned and they tried their best to help me by searching the internet, calling numbers of the bus stop and so on. I was terrified that i couldn't do anything. So i dropped out of some classes that day.
  And there is one friend i would like to particularly thank her because she drove me all the way to the bus stop to ask whether they found it. i felt warmth when i was in despair. There were many people tried to make me laugh and when i finally found my cellphone, they were truly happy for me.
  I am glad that in my whole life, i meet many nice people. And although yesterday i almost lost my patience when i was talking on the phone with the police. I still don't like their complicated applying process and i hate it. But still i learned many knowledge and this event will keep me alert.

When i'm down

  Recently i am busy between the clubs and scholarship. I am not that kind of person that follow the schedule. Actually i don't even have one. Still I finish my homework before the deadline. And as a result, i didn't do well on my report.  
  I didn't feel sad. Because i already knew what i will get. I once hear someone said that if you want something to be successful, then spend more of your time in it. I chose to finish the things in the club first. And i am responsible for that choice. No one force me to choose, i chose by myself. Therefore i didn't blame for anything or anyone but me. Because i promised myself that i would do better in the sophomore year. I don't want to be like in freshman year, lazy and muddled. Well, it's easy to say but it's hard to do. I am just greedy because i want a little bit of this and a little bit of that. And eventually i didn't do anything well. But i am not kind of that girl that will easily be frustrated. Because i know what i want to achieve in this year. So i will continue to do those things that i think are right.

  And luckily i have a group of friends that will listen to me and help me unleash my negative emotions. Yesterday i went with my roommates and we had a great time playing bowling. And of course we shared many funny things. I realize that there are many other important things too. Although now we study separately, but i will always cherish this special friendship.

  However i will continue to be that positive girl and be passionate about the things i do. And i won't be so easily to be defeated. Nothing is easy to achieve, but if you don't try hard, there is no way to success. And when i'm down, i know i always have a group of friends behind my back supporting me. So if you have the same problem like me, why don't you just slow down and take a break! And when you are ready, don't hesitate. Just fight for it!

What is the most important skill in the 21 century?

  There is a new cell phone coming soon. And then less then a month, another new cell phone is about to come. The change of technology is fast and silent. People are getting used with these changes and adapt to this kind of life.
  So i would say the most important skill in the 21 century would be the ability of keep learning new knowledge and learn it deeply. The environment  changes fast. If you don't let yourself fit in to the order, then try to make yourself more valuable. Never try to learn something new because your boss told you so. But to achieve the better level and to persuade excellence. Eventually the success will come to you.
  I've seen many people complained that there are more new stuff they aren't familiar with and there are new generations going to replace them just because they know something new. But i think the problem isn't about the new generations but about the fast changes of this world now. In case of the danger of being replaced by them, you should first increase your knowledge. Not trying to catch up this world's trend but to be on the top of it. And last, you always keep a passionate heart to learn something new. You'll find that nothing can beat you down easily.

Massage

  I went to massage today. Recently i had headache and my body's situations were bad. So i went there with my roommate.
  At first there were some choices, and with different choices there were different prices. So we both chose the 400 NT dollars massage. And we can have a massage above our waist for thirty minutes. We prostrated ourselves comfortably and began it.
  He started from my neck, and then shoulder to the waist. The whole process i was in pain, tickled but relax. During this process, the one who did massage for me said i had seldom stretch my muscles. That's why i often felt pain when he pushed some places of my body. It was a special expierence, and i like this way to relax.
  I recommond you guys to try it. Although i screamed very often and had a very awkward memory. Forgive that i can't tell more details about my awkward expierence because it was really embarassing. But i can surely tell you that you got to try at least one time in your life time.
  And that's my funny story this week. I will share the next story with you guys next week. See you next week!

ME

   My name is Ann. I'm from Taoyuan. I live in a family with my parents, a one-year younger sister, and my brother who studied in junior high school.

  My parents are both teachers who teach in the elementary school, i guess that is why i'm competitive. When i was 7, i was eager to be number one so that my parents could be proud of me. But as i growing up, i found out that there are many other important things. Being number one wasn't the only option to make them proud. Although they disagreed since they thought studying is the only way to make sure my future is well-going. I wanted to do something different.

  I started to rebel against them.  I joined many clubs because i wanted my school life not just being boring but exciting and colorful. And i did have an "okay" balance during homework and fun. i say okay because i am not satisfied with my scores of big exams. Honestly i'm still a little bit regret that if i studied harder then i would get into another university. But it doesn't matter anymore. Because this is my choice, and i'm the one who will be responsible for what i chose.  And i'm glad my parents support my choice and still love me for who i am.

  I'm lucky to have them. And i am also lucky to have many good friends. I think the greatest advantage about joining clubs is that you can meet many nice people and have a chance to become friends. I prefer myself as an outgoing girl because i like to make friends. I think life without friends is miserable. And i like to smile. In my opinion, "smiling is the best language through all over the world." I like to make people laugh so i can see smiles and warmth. I think it's one of my skills to make people laugh and i think it's a good thing.

  Well, i guess that's the best i can do to introduce myself. But if you want to know me better, why don't you start trying to know me first? Maybe we'll become friends!