【推荐1】One day Howard had to go to New York for a meeting. He flew to New York and called a taxi. He told the driver the address of the hotel and sat in the back seat. Then the driver turned around to speak to him.

“Congratulations!” he said. “You’re my first passenger and this is my first day as a taxi driver, but you don’t have to worry. In my job I had lots of driving experience and I know the city very well. “That’s good,” said Howard, “I’m sure you’ll be a good driver.”

“Thank you,” said the driver. He started driving towards the hotel.

Howard looked at his watch and noticed that he was early for his meeting. He decided to ask the driver to take him to a bookstore. He leaned（靠）forward and tapped him on the shoulder.

The driver screamed and made the taxi go suddenly across the road. It almost hit a bus and another car. Then it almost hit a pedestrian（行人）crossing the street, who screamed and jumped out of the way.

Howard was afraid. He shouted at the taxi driver. “Be careful!”

The driver screamed again, and the taxi went suddenly to the other side of the road and almost hit a truck. The truck driver shook his fist angrily. Then the taxi went into the sidewalk, just missing two more pedestrians. Then it crashed into a store window with glass falling over it.

The driver looked at Howard. Then slowly he began to laugh, He laughed and laughed.

“It’s not funny,” said Howard. “You could have killed somebody!”

“I’m sorry”, said the driver when he stopped laughing. “I thought I was still in my old job. When you tap me on the shoulder and talked to me, I got really scared.”

“What was your old job” asked Howard. “Didn’t I tell you?” said the driver. “I used to drive a car that carried dead bodies to funerals（葬礼）.”

【推荐2】Research among 2,000 adults showed that about four out of five find small talk with colleagues in the office annoying, especially if it involves football or children. Talking about the weather, or asking someone how their weekend was, was also listed among annoying subjects, according to the study by Hyper Recruitment Solutions.

Most of those surveyed said they had experienced rudeness at work, including being reprimanded（训斥）in front of colleagues or personal remarks about their clothes or possessions.

Half of those asked admitted to avoiding making coffee for themselves at work so they didn’t have to make one for colleagues. A report said, “While employees are direct on some issues, they’d rather avoid the situation completely than feel it is a duty to make coffee for others.”

The report also suggested most employees found that physical contact in the workplace was acceptable, including a kiss on the cheek, high fives or hugs. Ricky Martin, founder of Hyper Recruitment Solutions, said, “We often hear and read in the media how physical contact at work isn’t acceptable, yet the results suggest otherwise. Of course, physical contact isn’t always appropriate or well received, so I would advise it should be essential to be aware of factors such as personality, religion and culture.”

What might be regarded as friendly in one culture may be considered as deeply offensive in another. However, as the results suggest, should the relationship be there and requited（回报）, it shouldn’t be frowned upon（反对）for colleagues to hug, give high fives or give one another a pat on the back.

【推荐2】In about a week I will start one of my most expected adventures ever. Sarek National Park will be a mission. It is not a place for the unprepared. It is a place for adventurous hearts who are looking for solitude (独处), wildness and a connection with nature that is hard to find on our planet these days. High up in the north of Sweden at the border with Norway, it is called the last European Wilderness.

The preparation for this trip started a few months ago. I tried to prepare in the best way possible as this is uncharted territory for me. It will be the first hike really off the beaten path. I will not go into details until I get back and actually know what I am talking about.

There are a few things to keep in mind when you plan to hike in Sarek National Park. First of all, there are no huts or any accommodation. If you are at the heart of Sarek you will be at least a 4-5 days hike away from the next mountain hut. So this means I will have to carry everything I need for 8-10 days. The biggest part of the load will be food. There are no paths or waymarks. I will have to make my own route with GPS and maps.

In addition, the weather can be very challenging. Sarek is the area in Sweden with the heaviest rainfall. It is also known for strong wind and there’re not many places to shelter from it because there are hardly any tees. It is important to bring professional hiking gear (装备). Finding and choosing a good campsite might take some time as well.

【推荐3】I went to the bus station for a long trip yesterday. Feeling very bored, I had nothing to do but wait on the bus as there was still about half an hour to go. But it gave my curious eyes enough time to look around. The bus station is a noisy and restless world, where people from all walks of life come and go. Looking around, I saw people saying goodbye to their families and peddlers (商贩) selling their bottled water. My sight finally rested on a girl who sat by the window on the bus next to mine and buried herself in a book.

The moment I caught sight of her, my heart just skipped a beat. And then, it beat so fast. All that just happened in the blink of an eye. We were about four meters away from each other and only blocked by the windows of our buses, but I could not have a clear view of her face from behind, only a view of her back. I thought that she was young for vigor of youth from her long hair.

She kept reading without a move, so I supposed what she was reading was so appealing that she did not move her sight a little except for turning over the pages. She paid attention neither to the crowd outside nor to the passing of time. It is actually rare to see a young woman concentrating on reading in such a noisy bus station and what she was reading doesn’t matter. It was really a touching picture since in this material world there are still people willing to sit quietly and read. Which one of us would like to find time to read since we have long been distant from books, the carrier of words?

The time finally came with a bell ringing. Maybe I could never see her again, but this beautiful encounter should last in my memory for the rest of my life.