You're at dinner with your friends on Sunday and the waiter comes up to you and says," Is this going to be on one check or-"
＂Separate!" you all said, barely taking a breath to pause from your conversation.
And why would you? It's pretty usual to pay for your own meal, or to go Dutch.
But it wasn't always the custom to split the check when going out with friends. In fact, in early English society, it was seen as selfish to invite someone out to eat and not pay for their meal. The origins of the phrase" going Dutch" are a little complicated, but Steven Pincus, a historian from the University of Chicago who focuses on carly modern Europe, helped us track the complex history of this idiom.
We have to take it back all the way to the 1600s. During the Anglo-Dutch Wars, there were multiple conflicts between the English and the Dutch over trade and naval power. That led to a rise in idioms from the English regarding their enemy, the Dutch: phrases like" Dutch courage, "the false courage brought on by alcohol; or" Dutch reckoning, "which is a ridiculously high bill on which you've likely been cheated. This was because the English saw the Dutch not only as a trading enemy, but also as a people with questionable morals. The English" claimed that the Dutch had been completely corrupted by their commitment to capitalism. "(Funny how tides change, isn't it?)
Of course, as time changes, so does our sense of self. After all, who wants to pay for their friends' meals all the time? Maybe sometimes it's all right to do like the Dutch do.
Has your adult child ever accused you of being too critical? Not supportive enough? What about disturbing, or needy?
One way to handle complaints like this is to assume that your child is overly sensitive. There is such a thing as high sensitivity, which can worsen any problems between parents and adult children.
But imagine approaching your child's reactions as if it were a mirror. Instead of it being about your child's opinion of you, what if that feedback could tell you something about your own relationship with yourself?
It makes sense. Your way of being in the world is at its most basic, its most raw, when you interact with your own children, because often, it feels like you're talking to an extension of yourself.
On the upside, a self-confident, ambitious mom will encourage her adult child to start the shoot-for-the-stars business he's been talking about. Since she isn't afraid of failure herself, her child can count on her support if he wants to try something that clearly might not work out.
When the child says, "Thank you for supporting me in trying this new thing, "he's also holding up a mirror that says, "You're not afraid to try new things."
But the mirror reflects everything. We don't just have strengths. We're also troubled by doubts, fears, and limitations.
A mom who silently but constantly puts herself down will hardly notice that encouragement and appreciation are lacking in her conversations with her child. She doesn't speak that language; criticism is her native tongue.
Like a speaker of English who doesn't have to stop and wonder which form of a verb to use with a plural subject, the language of criticism rolls off her tongue without her having to think about it. When the child says, "You're so critical, "he's also holding up a mirror that says, :You're self-critical. "
A British father, digital product manager Nick Herbert, has invented an app, ReplyASAP, because his 13-year-old son wasn't responding to his calls or texts.
The app takes over a smartphone screen, locking the phone from further use and sounds an alarm that only stops when the receiver replies by text. It sounds like an invasion of privacy (侵犯隐私) and the latest attempt by distrustful parents to track and control their children. But this is fair enough-it serves these youngsters right for not replying.
Mobile phones are usually bought by parents primarily for safety reasons, but teenagers have" other important things". Sometimes, it's perhaps an entirely reasonable lack of interest in anything that "boring adults" have to say.
However, mobiles have also long been employed by teens in the ongoing war against parental control in their otherwise vivid social lives. Thus, texts and calls are ignored, with the teen pretending to have missed them or just simply ignoring them. At which point parents must stroke their chins and consider apps such as “ReplyASAP”.
It should be pointed out that Herbert's son wasn't doing anything wrong-he was merely distracted by co games. Most teenagers wouldn't be doing anything wrong, but that's not the point. While there are wider concerns about things such as ReplyASAP being used by adults to control and abuse partners, makers can't really be held responsible for their apps being misused. And where kids are concerned, it's all about Parental access and information. Parents not only have a right, they also need to know that their children are sate. It's this need, not the right, that I believe morally outweighs the child's privacy. Anyone who doesn't agree with me perhaps needs to experience the horror of not being able to locate their child in the small hours, long after they were supposed to be home.
A Cook's Dilemma
What to cook when you have guests? I always feel like I'm walking on eggshells when I have to prepare a dinner party for new friends or people I don't know well.
Others can't stand a particular vegetable. And even puddings have their critics. Attitudes towards food can be formed during childhood and have an effect on the rest of their lives.
President George Bush senior, for example, banned broccoli aboard the presidential plane, Air Force One. "I do not like broccoli!" the President said in 1990. "And I haven't liked it since I was a little kid and my mother made me eat it. And I'm President of the United States, and I'm not going to eat any more broccoli!"
Dr Emma Uprichard from the Oxford University published a study on food hates. They don't like milk puddings-semolina and rice pudding-often associated with school dinners of the 50s and 60s.
But it's not only bad memories that make us turn our noses up at certain foods. There are biological reasons too. Scientists researching human bodies say there are various groups of "tasters". I always keep my fingers crossed that none of my dinner party guests are in this group.
The British don't eat horse meat. Brazilians like a black bean stew with pork which, in the experience of a Brazilian cooking for friends here in London, isn't popular with Kurdish people. Sometimes I think the life of a host would be easier if we could just serve everybody a simple omelet, seasoned with love and friendship.
A. And food is about cultural diversity too.
B. Some eaters are picky and don't like cheese.
C. It can be hard to decide which foods to prepare in a party.
D. It showed common categories in the foods British people reject.
E. We should approach food as a source of much more than nutrition.
F. The one they call" super tasters" are more likely to hate bitter foods.
G. It left a bitter taste in the mouth of the American farmers who produced the vegetable.
In 1914, World War I broke out. After hearing about all the men being1to fight in bloody battles, Edith decided she must help. So she went to Brussels in Belgium, where her hospital had been2to a Red Cross hospital to care for war3
There, she encouraged the nurses to treat4soldiers that came through their doors,5which side they were fighting on.
In August 1914, German forces6into Belgium and took control of the country. It was at this time that Edith made a decision that would change her fate-she decided to help British, Belgian and French soldiers7to Holland, a 'neutral (中立的) country 'where they would be8.
Working closely with a9network of people, she sheltered Allied (同盟国的) soldiers in her hospital10they wove well and then sent them out through a(n)11passage. She also helped to12them with a bit of money and secret13for their escape.
14time, the German police began to suspect Edith, and her colleagues urged her to run away to save herself. Edith refused, and15staying and helping Allied soldiers leave Belgium.
But in August 1915,16struck when a Belgian spy discovered the secret passage17the hospital and reported it to the authorities. Edith was arrested and kept in prison. Many people felt she should be treated with18, given that she had done so much work to help and look after both Allied and German soldiers.
19, their cries went unheard, and following a short20, Edith was found guilty and shot by a
German firing group in Brussels.
A year off- also called a gap year-is not a new concept, but there's now a focus on making the most of this break from academic life. Long gone (be)the days of just hanging out on a beach or backpacking round the world. While that is still an option, a gap year is now (much) about gaining skills that (help) you in later life. The BBC' s Smart Consumer podcast spoke to a student called Meg, said" I just always had in the back of my mind I'd spend a year on something productive and something that would just be good fun. "
Doing something productive is (exact) what students are being encouraged to do because doing more purposeful things like work experience or voluntary work helps them acquire skills to use when competing for place at university. It looks good on their CV and makes them more employable.
While the benefits of taking a gap year are clear (see), some students worry they can't afford it. Another student, Tom, told the BBC that to him, a gap year was an 'alien concept'. He said" it would have been far too expensive it's not something that I would have been able to rely on my parents or family (member) for. "But some experts say that it needn't burn a hole in your pocket; you don't need to travel far and you can even earn money doing paid work.
假定你是某国际学校向日葵美术社（Sunflower Art Society)的成员，请你用英文为美术社的网站写一则纳新启事。内容包括：
1）成员要求；
2）社团宗旨；
3）主要活动。
注意：
1）词数80左右；2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Notice
阅读下面短文，根据所给情节进行续写，使之构成一个完整的故事。
I'd just returned from the local hospital where I'd held my first grandchild in my arms for the first time. What a beautiful child! She was named after her grandmother, Betsy. How I wished that my wife were here to see the healthy baby of Grace, our only daughter.
I knew what Betsy would have wanted and expected me to do on this grand occasion of the birth of our granddaughter, so I beaded for her favorite department store to select as a gift for our daughter.
Shopping here would cause me to feel that Betsy was still with me and could share the joy of the birth of her first granddaughter.
There was a clerk, an attractive middle-aged woman with her name tag "JOY". Her fingers lingered over a pair of diamond earrings." How about these?" she said to an elderly man. He held them up. "Oh yes, these are very pretty, "he said. He then turned to me, "What do you think? Would these be a good anniversary gift for my wife?"
"They'll be a wonderful anniversary gift, "I said, and I wondered how many years he and his wife had been married. I thought of all the years Betsy and I had shared. "When your wife wears them, they'll remind her of your love."
"That's precisely what I want them to do, "he said, smiling.
Joy asked, "What anniversary will this be?" The old man's eyes sparkled as he answered, "You'll never guess." Joy then said, "Well, diamonds are traditionally given for the sixtieth anniversary."
"You're wrong, "he said. "It's our first anniversary!" Joy looked as surprised as I felt, as the man said, "I still can't believe my good fortune the second time around, finding someone as wonderful as my wife Helen.”
"Congratulations,” Joy said. "Your wife is lucky to have such a generous husband. The first anniversary is supposed to be a paper gift. "
"Do you think I should-or even could-ask Helen to wait 59 years for her diamonds?”
Joy's eyes opened wide, "Oh, I didn't mean-”
1）所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2）应使用5个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3）续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
4）续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph 1:
The old man said to Joy, "I hope you young people will remember to live each day with meaning."
Paragraph 2:
While she wrapped them, I took a deep breath and asked Joy, "Do you have dinner plans?”
