【推荐1】How to learn new things

Is it ever too late to learn a new skill? The answer is: absolutely not! Learning new things is beneficial at any age. It can change your life in many ways — from giving you a career promotion to helping you discover a new passion. All you need is enthusiasm, focus, and some helpful learning strategies.     1    

Classes offer informative, guided instruction on your chosen discipline. Check out the course listings at your local community college or look for class offerings at local churches, free schools, community recreation centers, and cultural centers.     2    

The most effective way to learn something is just to do it!     3     For example, you want to learn a programming language. Try it out rather than spending all your time in a textbook! Learn by coding a small program and working out the bugs yourself.

Teaching a skill enables you to understand it better. Why? Because by teaching someone else, you first have to think critically about the skill or subject and break it down into easily explainable pieces. Ask a friend or coworker if you can discuss what you’ve been learning with them. Make an informative presentation about the subject or start a blog about your learning process.

A test will show you how much of the material you remember. Quizzes aren’t the most fun part of learning, but sometimes they’re exactly what you need.     5     Find a practice exam online or draw up your own test that you can use to grade yourself. Testing shows you how well you’ve mastered the material so far and what you might still need to work on.

【推荐2】Everyone wants to be regarded as a reliable person. Being reliable is really necessary when it comes to maintaining(维系)friendships and doing well at work. Read on for ways to be more reliable.

Try not to over-promise.     1    But it could lead to bad results when you take on too much, and then can't keep it. So next time you are asked to do something, weigh the pros and cons (权衡利弊)and take time before you respond.

    2    If you’re uncertain about hanging out with someone, say so sooner rather than later. Nothing is worse than showing up to meet someone, only to put them off five minutes before they should arrive. Don't be this person. Offer an apology, and cancel the plan well ahead of time.

Don't demand credit. People who demand praise for the things they've done often lose the goodwill that comes from the help they provided.     3    So there's no need to post it on Facebook or go fishing for praise.

Respect everyone's time. The biggest rule of reliability is to have respect for other people's time. If you tell someone you can meet at a certain time, you've made a promise.     4    When you're late, you're wasting other people's time at will. And you may therefore give others an impression of being untrustworthy!

Be as truthful as possible. If you failed to finish the work on time, say so. If you don't understand the task, be honest about it. Don't hide or bend the truth and avoid spreading unreliable information.     5    

【推荐3】The pandemic has been particularly hard on people working for tips. Some haven’t been able to do their jobs at all while others don’t interact with customers the same way. Just as many services have changed, so should tipping. Some old standards no longer seem fair, and several newer ones will apply long after the pandemic is over. As for specific situations, here’s what the experts recommend:

FOOD AND DRINKS

Restaurant workers

OLD RULE:Leave a tip only when you dine in.

NEW RULE:Always tip, even for takeout.

TIP: 15 to 20 percent when you dine in, and 10 to 15 percent on takeout or delivery orders.

HOME DELIVERIES

Package delivery drivers

OLD RULE:Don’t tip.

NEW RULE: Show appreciation if you get deliveries more than once a week.

TIP:   Drinks, snacks, or $5 to $20 if a package is particularly heavy or large. Postal workers cannot accept cash or gifts worth more than $50 per year. UPS tells drivers to decline tips unless a customer insists. And FedEx bans employees from accepting cash or cash equivalents (such as gift cards).

PERSONAL SERVICES

Ride-share drivers

OLD RULE:Tip in cash.

NEW RULE:Ask your driver. The Lyft and Uber apps let you add gratuities, but some drivers prefer cash.

TIP:15 to 20 percent.

Hotel housekeepers

OLD RULE: Tip at the end of your stay.

NEW RULE:   Many hotels now do housekeeping by request only, so tip every time you ask them to come.

TIP:A few dollars per night, plus $5 for any extra requests, such as asking for additional toiletries.

Next time, you’re unsure whether a tip is in order, follow this simple rule: When in doubt, tip. “Tipping well is one way to make things easier for someone else.”

【推荐2】Night fell. A policeman was patrolling(巡逻) in his block when he noticed a man leaning against the doorway of a restaurant. “It’s all right here, officer, I’m waiting for a friend. 20 years ago tonight, I dined here with Jimmy Wells, my best buddy. I was to leave for the West the next day. We agreed to meet here again 20 years later.” said the man, striking a match to light his cigar. “Hope your friend comes around.” said the policeman, passing on along his beat.

20 minutes later a tall man in a long overcoat went directly to the waiting man. “Is that you, Bob?” he asked doubtfully. “Is that you, Jimmy Wells?” cried the man. “Oh!” exclaimed the new arrival. “It’s Bob! How has the West treated you, old sport?” “It’s given me everything. You’ve changed lots — so tall by two or three inches.” “I grew a bit.” “Doing well here?” “Moderately. Come on, let s go to my place and have a good talk. ”

The two hit the road, arm in arm, with one boasting his career in the West. At the corner stood a drug store, brilliant with electric lights. When they came into this glare, each of them stared at the others’ face.

The man from the West stopped and released his arm, “You’re not Jimy Wells. 20 years is not long enough to change a man’s nose from a Roman to a pug.”

“It sometimes changes a good man into a bad one,” said the tall man. “You’ve been under arrest for ten minutes, ‘Silky’ Bob. Chicago thinks you may have dropped over our way and wires us she wants to have a chat with you. Before going to the station, here’s a note to you from Patrol man Wells.”

The man unfolded the note, reading:

“Bob: I was at the appointed place on time. When you struck the match, I saw it was the face wanted in Chicago. Somehow I couldn’t do it myself, so I went around and got a plain clothes man to do the job. JIMMY.”