33. The government provides homeless people____ nice houses.

What does taking a risk mean? It means trying challenging things even if they make you feel uncomfortable or afraid. One of the greatest risks I’d ever taken was playing a role in my high school’s fall play. I was not only a person who had ________ performance (表演) experience, but also I stuttered (口吃).

The ________ of performing in front of people made me worried. The reason why I ________ to perform was that I wanted to take part in my school theatre program.

On the day of the audition (试演), there were also some acting exercises to warm us up. We were divided into pairs to ________ parts of the play. I felt very worried. After I said some of the lines (台词), my partner said, “I ________ you are stuttering. Is that for dramatic effect or do you really stutter?” I was speechless.

When my ________ to audition came, my heart was beating fast. Across from me sat the director and his assistants (助手). Needless to say, I was really ________ my performance. I played the role of a man painter who pretended (假装) to be a woman. My partner was playing a businessman who wanted to marry me (the woman).We said our lines and, ________, I didn’t   stutter. We went through it several times, and finally it was over. I was so ________.

The next Monday I was told that I had made the play. How excited I was! It was a lot of fun doing the play, and it was clear to me that my stuttering couldn’t ________ me doing what I wanted to do, and taking risks was well worth the time and effort.

The Top 4 Lies Girls Hear

1. “You’ll never be good at math.”

It’s generally accepted that boys are good at math while girls aren’t. The fact is that it isn’t true—at least, it doesn’t have to be. When girls reach their teens, most of them lose their interest in math. They’re trying to be regarded as female (女性). They want to stay away from things that are boy things, and math is still considered a boy thing. Math class is hard, but if you gave it a chance you could be great at math, especially because you are a girl.

2. “Being skinny is good, and how you diet is your business.”

Lots of web sites tell visitors that losing interest in eating is a beautiful thing. These “skinny is better” sites are lying. Losing interest in eating is a disease, not a fashion statement. It can kill you.

3.“You don’t deserve (应得，值得) to make as much money as a guy.”

It’s said that women who work full-time earn about 23 percent less than guys earn. Once you see real women succeeding in cool jobs, you’ll truly get that you’re worth just as much as—or more than any guys.

4. “Caffeine (咖啡因) will help you study better.”

Caffeinated soft drinks have long been advertised as must-haves when you have to work very hard. But if you want to do your body a big favor, you’d better give up caffeine altogether.

Today, roller skating is easy and fun. But many years ago, it wasn’t easy at all. Before 1750, people never tried skating on wheels. That changed because of a man named Joseph Merlin. Merlin’s work was making instruments. In his free time, he liked to play the violin. Merlin was a man with many ideas and many dreams. People called him a dreamer.

One day Merlin received an invitation to go to an important party. He was very pleased and a little excited. As the day of the party came near, Merlin began to think. He wanted to find a way to make a wonderful entrance at the party. Merlin had an idea. He thought that he would attract a lot of attention if he could skate into the room.

Merlin tried different ways to make himself roll. Finally, he decided to put two wheels under each shoe. These were the first roller skate shoes. Merlin was very proud of them. He dreamed of arriving at the party and skating into the room while playing the violin. He was sure that everyone would be very surprised.

On the night of the party, Merlin rolled into the room, playing his violin. Everyone was really surprised to see him. There was just one problem. Merlin had no way to stop his roller skating. He rolled on, playing the violin. Then, with all eyes on him, Merlin hit into a huge mirror on the wall. The mirror broke into many pieces with a very loud noise. But nobody forgot Merlin’s wonderful entrance after that.

Have you ever wondered why birds sing? Maybe you thought that they were just happy.

After all, you probably sing when you are happy.

Some scientists believe that birds do sing some of the time just because they are happy. However, they sing most of the time for a very different reason. Their singing is actually a warning to other birds to stay out of their territory.

Do you know what a “territory” is? A territory is an area that an animal, usually the male, claims (声称) as its own. Only he and his family are welcome there. No other families of the same species are welcome. Your yard and house are your territory where only your family and friends are welcome. If a stranger should enter your territory and threaten you, you might shout. Probably this would be enough to frighten him away.

If so, you have actually scared the stranger away without having to fight him. A bird does the same thing. But he expects an outsider almost any time, especially at nesting (筑巢) season. So he is screaming all the time, whether he can see an outsider or not. This screaming is what we call a bird’s song, and it is usually enough to keep an outsider away.

Birds sing loudest in spring when they are trying to attract a mate and warn others not to enter the territory of theirs.

You can see that birds have a language of their own. Most of it has to do with attracting mates and setting up territories.

The speed and convenience (便利) of modern travel makes the faraway countries be reached quickly and easily now. Even though they now seem closer, they may still be different from your home country. So it is important to change your behavior so that you don’t insult or offend (冒犯) the local people. The following are some basic rules that will make communication easier, and your trip more enjoyable.

First, never raise your voice in order to make yourself understood. If you don’t know the word for something in the local language, try to draw a picture or point to an object. Before you travel, you can also learn some basic words or phrases of the local language, such as words for please, thank you, and may I, as well as basic greetings.

Second, consider the main religion (信仰) of the country you plan to visit and read about any taboos (禁忌) related to clothing. You can bring some clothes such as shirts or T-shirts that cover your shoulders, and long trousers.

Avoid topics that you think may be sensitive (敏感的). If a topic is sensitive in your own culture, it will likely be the same in other cultures. Feel free to show interest in the history and customs of the place that you are visiting, but don’t ask too many questions about why things are done in a certain way, because you may make the local people unhappy.

Keep in mind that in many cultures, showing affection (情感) in public is considered taboo. Kissing on the street or in public is unacceptable behavior and should be avoided. If you are unsure of how to behave, watch the local people and copy them.

Finally, if you wish to take a gift, do some research. The idea of the perfect gift is different greatly from country to country, and one of the easiest ways to offend someone is to give the wrong gift.

Life is filled with regrets (遗憾). Anyone around you will have no difficulty     71     telling his regrets. As we get older, we look back and wish that we had made better     72     (choice). What can we do to avoid future regrets?

Make better plans

If you start to do something, you need to make a plan before doing it. The earlier, the     73     (good). You will know what comes first and what comes last. You’ll also know what you should do and what you shouldn’t do.     74       changes happen, you can have more time to deal with them.

Live a more active life

You can go around more often. More outdoor activities can keep     75     relaxed and active. You also need to be kind. “Thank you” can bring a smile to someone’s face. Learn to say “sorry” and don’t be angry with     76     (other).

Find the right friend

A friend may make your life better and he or she can get your life worse as well. So you need to think     77     (two) when you choose a friend. Good friends will always better your ideas. When you get into trouble, ask others for     78     . That little help may get you good   results.

Never fear failure

Everybody     79     (fail). Even the greatest person failed. We should not fear failure because failure is not the end of the road. We must take failure as a chance to learn and improve ourselves.

Life is good. We don’t have to     80     in our past, but we do hope that we can plan better, live better, and work better when we have the chance to do so.