1 . Travelling with friends can be an amazing experience where you could make lifelong memories or it could ruin your friendship.     1     Here are some rules you should follow to make sure your next trip with friends goes as smoothly as possible.

    2     Sure, you and your friends probably have some similar interests, but that’s not always the case. In an effort to keep everyone happy, go over travel plans and expectations ahead of time. Have each person categorize activities or sights into “must-see”, “want to see” and “would go if we have time”. Plan accordingly and make sure everyone can see some of their top attractions.

Communicate and respect each other. Everyone has personal preferences when travelling— from getting the bed closest to the bathroom or sitting in the airplane’s window seat. But sometimes things don’t go as you like. In this case, share your requirements directly with your travel companions.     3     Have a conversation when problems arise, for communication is the key.

Don’t disappear. When travelling with a group — or even just one other person — you may want some alone time. That’s completely fine, but make sure your friends know where you are and have a way of contacting you.     4    

Get off your phone. Of course, your friends will understand if you need to take a call from a family member, or in the event of a work emergency, but other than that, try to stay off your phone.     5     After all, the appeal of this type of trip is to spend time with friends. Just enjoy it!

A．Give each other some space.

B．Include at least one activity for everyone.

C．So it’s important to make sure you and your friend(s) are on the same page.

D．At the same time, listen to their concerns and be respectful of them.

E．Don’t respond to less important work contact or send messages frequently.

F．It’s especially true of travelling in foreign countries or unfamiliar places.

G．And remember that consideration and respect go a long way.

2 . The Price of a Dream

I grew up poor. We had little money, but plenty of love and attention. I understood that no matter how poor a person was, they could still afford a dream. My dream was athletics.

By the time I was sixteen, I was good at baseball and football. My high school coach was Ollie Jarvis. He not only believed in me, but taught me the difference between having a dream and showing conviction (信念).

One summer a friend recommended me for a summer job. This meant a chance for money in my pocket — cash for dates with girls, certainly, money for a new bike and new clothes, and the start of savings for a house for my mother.

Then I realized I would have to give up summer baseball to handle the work schedule, and that meant I would have to tell Coach Jarvis I wouldn’t be playing. I was afraid of this, but my mother said, “If you make your bed, you have to lie in it.” 

When I told Coach Jarvis, he was as mad as I expected him to be. “Your playing days are limited. You can’t afford to waste them,” he said.

I stood before him with my head hanging, trying to think of the words that would explain to him why I dream of buying my mom a house.

“How much are you going to make at this job, son?” he demanded.

“Three point twenty-five an hour,” I replied.

“Well,” he asked, “is $3. 25 an hour the price of a dream?”

That question exposed the difference between wanting something right now and having a goal. I devoted myself to sports that summer, and within the year I was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates to play rookie-league ball, and offered a $20, 000 contract. I signed with the Denver Broncos in 1984 for $1.7 million, and bought my mother my dream house.

1. Why was the writer grateful to Coach Jarvis?

A．Because Coach Jarvis made him set a goal.

B．Because Coach Jarvis supplied him with new clothes.

C．Because Coach Jarvis gave him financial support.

D．Because Coach Jarvis helped him show conviction.

2. What did the writer want to do when he was offered a job?

A．Balance summer baseball and the work schedule.

B．Refuse the job offer for summer baseball.

C．Give up summer baseball for the job.

D．Ask his coach Jarvis for advice.

3. Which of the following can replace the underlined part “If you make your bed, you have to lie in it.” in paragraph 4?

A．You must eat the bitter fruit of your own making.

B．Believe in yourself, but above all be patient.

C．You must rely on yourself first, then others.

D．A good beginning makes a good ending.

4. What did the writer do at the end of the story?

A．He failed to buy his mother a house.

B．He succeeded as a sportsman.

C．He became a successful businessman.

D．He made some money in the summer job.

3 . A new study in the journal of Tourism Analysis shows frequent travelers are happier with their lives than people who don’t travel at all.

Chun-Chu Chen, an assistant professor at Washington State University, conducted a survey to find out why some individuals travel more frequently than others and whether or not travel and tourism experiences have a lasting effect on happiness and wellness.

The results of his analysis show individuals who pay more attention to tourism-related information and frequently discuss their travel plans with friends are more likely to go on regular vacations than those who aren’t constantly thinking about their next trip. Additionally, participants in the survey who reported regularly traveling at least 75 miles away from home also reported being about 7% happier when asked about their overall well-being than those who reported traveling very rarely or not at all.

“While things like work, family life and friends play a bigger role in overall reports of well-being. The accumulation (积累) of travel experiences’ does appear to have a small yet noticeable effect on self-reported life satisfaction,” Chen said.

Participants in the study were asked about the importance of travel in their lives, how much time they spent looking into and planning future vacations, and how many trips they went on over a year. They were also asked about their life satisfaction. Out of the 500 survey participants, a little over half reported going on more than four pleasurable trips a year. Only 7% of respondents did not take any vacations.

As travel restrictions (限制) due to COVID-19 pandemic begin to relax in the future, the research could have important effects on both tourists and the tourism industry. Based on the results of the study, Chen said travel companies, resorts and even airlines, could launch social media campaigns, such as creating signs about the scientific benefits of vacation, to spark people’s interest in discussing their opinions about travel.

1. What is the benefit of frequent travelling according to the study?

A．Getting more tourism information.	B．Making more friends.
C．Bettering tourism industry.	D．Improving one’s well-being.

2. What does Paragraph 5 mainly talk about?

A．Why the professor carried out the study.

B．How the participants felt about the survey.

C．What the participants were interviewed about.

D．What the participants panned to do in the future.

3. What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A．Tourism industry should improve their service.

B．The results of the study will benefit tourism industry.

C．COVID-19 pandemic will be more serious in the future.

D．People will live a happier life after COVID-19 pandemic.

4. Which of the following can be the best title for the text?

A．Travel more and be happier	B．Make good use of travelling
C．Prepare for the tourism development	D．Make travel plans with friends

4 . Dave Williamson Short Story Competition

By Manitoba Writers’ Guild

The Manitoba Writers’ Guild was started in August 1981 at Aubigny, Manitoba, as a grassroots organization for and of Manitoba writers. Our annual Dave Williamson Short Story Competitions open to writers across Manitoba. We actively encourage submissions from those who are 18+ years of age.

Prizes

Top prize: $ 1, 000 CAD

9 runners-up: $ 500 CAD

9 honorable mentions: Publication

All works from 10 prize winners and 9 honorable mention winners will be published in an e-book collection by the Manitoba Writers’ Guild. Proceeds from the sale of the e-book will be used to support future Manitoba Writers’ Guild writing competitions. Winners will be announced via e-mail a few weeks after the contest deadline.

Entry

Entry is free of charge to all writers. However, writers looking to improve their writing may choose to purchase an assessed entry ($ 10 CAD). With this option, you will receive a Google document with comments and suggestions on how to improve your writing on a sentence level, as well as a personal e-mail guiding you in growing as a writer.

Rules

Follow all the rules carefully to avoid being disqualified.

◆Write between 2, 500 and 5, 000 words and submit only your original, unpublished work.

◆Your submission will include a covering letter that contains your name, address, telephone number, and birth date.

◆We are accepting only e-mail submissions for this contest. Please make sure the file is sent as a. pdf,. doc/. docx or. txt document.

◆The deadline to submit your writing is December 19, 2023.

1. Who is the competition organized for?

A．University students.	B．Local writers in Manitoba.
C．Middle school students.	D．Writing enthusiasts in Canada.

2. What do we know about the honorable mention winners?

A．They can receive a cash prize.	B．They are given guidance on writing.
C．They can have their entries published.	D．They are free to download e-books.

3. Which of the following will result in disqualification?

A．Posting your writing by express delivery.	B．Sending your entry on December 18, 2023.
C．Typing out a story of 4, 500 words.	D．E-mailing your entry as a. pdf document.

5 . Most people agree that eating healthy food is important. But sometimes making good food choices can be difficult. Now there are apps that can help people learn about the food they eat to improve their health and their dining out experience.

Open Table app

Open Table app helps people choose restaurants when they want to go out to eat. It is a free service that shows users restaurant available based on where and when they want to dine. It gives users points when they make reservations, which can add up to discounts (折扣) on restaurant visits.

Max McCalman’s Cheese &Wine Pairing app

Wine and cheese can be a great combination. But which wines go best with which cheeses? Max McCalman’s Cheese & Wine Pairing app can help. It provides information about hundreds of different cheeses and suggests wines to pair with each. Max McCalman’s Cheese & Wine Pairing app is free.

Happy Cow app

Vegetarians do not eat animal meat. Vegans do not eat any animal products. The Happy Cow app is made for both groups. Users can search for vegetarian-vegan restaurants and stores around the world.

Local Eats app

Restaurant chains, like McDonalds, can be found almost anywhere a person might travel. But sometimes travelers want to eat like locals. The Local Eats app is designed for that. It can help you find local restaurants in major cities in the US and in other countries. It costs about a dollar.

Where Chefs Eat app

“Where Chefs Eat” is a 975-page book. Most people would not want to carry that around. But there is a much lighter app version of the same name for just $15. Six hundred chefs provide information on 3,000 restaurants around the world on the Where Chefs Eat app.

1. What can users get when making a reservation with Open Table app?

A．Points

B．Books.

C．Wine.

D．Cheeses.

2. Happy Cow app is designed for those who prefer ________.

A．local foods.	B．wine and cheese
C．vegetables	D．animal meat

3. What app costs you most according to the text?

A．OpenTable.	B．Where Chefs Eat
C．Local Eats	D．Max Me Calman’s Cheese & Wine Pairing.

6 . In an ideal world, we would be able to devote as much time to sports as we feel we need. But in reality, with growing demands in both work and family, we can only jump at the chance for our physical exercise when we can. Making the most of that time to practice Yin Yang yoga, which mixes the dynamic and slow-paced elements of yoga, helps keep you active and relaxed.

Yin and Yang are the Taoist concepts representing a balance of opposite forces which are also interconnected. Yin is inactive, cooling, and negative, associated with the female force. Yang is   active, warming, and positive, associated with action and movement. They are complementary to one another, as one cannot exist without the other.

Yin Yang yoga is a combination (结合体) of high-energy movement which builds energy, increases strength and promotes stamina (耐力), followed by the more restful practice of Yin to give us a deeper stretch (拉伸) and calm the nervous system.

If you have a busy and active life you may feel more in Yang, so taking some cooler, slower Yin yoga practice into your routine may help you feel calmer and more balanced.

If you are practicing for an hour, divide the time in half. Warm up with sun salutations (拜日式瑜伽), continue into a dynamic flow and then move on to some standing postures. After half an hour your heart will be pumping, muscles tighten up and you are hopefully feeling energetic, but ready for a rest. Then pick five Yin postures to hold for 3-5 minutes, or even longer if you are enjoying them!

As ever with yoga, if you are a beginner or have health issues, always attend a class with a trained instructor first to guide you safely through the yoga practice and avoid injury.

1. What can be inferred from paragraph 1?

A．Most of our sports time should be spent on Yin Yang yoga.

B．We’d better devote as much time to physical exercise as we can.

C．Busy schedule makes it impossible for us to do any form of sports.

D．Yin Yang yoga can be a choice of physical exercise when we are busy.

2. What does the underlined word “complementary” probably mean in the second paragraph?

A．Independent from one another.

B．Competitive against one another.

C．Similar to each other but unable to work together as a whole.

D．Different from each other but together making a good combination.

3. Which of the following might be the advantage of Yin postures?

A．Relaxing muscles.	B．Building stamina.
C．Strengthening the body.	D．Quickening the heartbeat.

4. What suggestion does the writer give in the last two paragraphs?

A．Hold each Yin posture for longer than 5 minutes.

B．Do not practice yoga when you are not in good health.

C．Start your yoga practice with an expert trainer.

D．Spare half an hour for five Yin postures in every yoga practice.

7 . Artwork Competition — Create a Character!

Are you an artist? This may be the perfect competition held by Teen Ink to check your creative abilities. We want you to create your own character. You must create a backstory for the character and give it a name. Your character must be completely original.

Rules:

● You must be a teen (aged 13—19) with a Teen Ink account to enter.

● No improper content.

● Submissions (提交的材料) must be connected with the topic (Create a Character).

● The competition is open to all the individuals. Character must be your own — The character you create must be entirely your own idea and design. The backstory and name must be original as well. Ideas that do not belong to you will not be considered for the competition.

Guidelines and Details:

● All art types are accepted.

● There is no limit to the number of pieces you can submit.

● Give your character a name and backstory. Leave these in the “Author’s Comments” section of your submission.

How to Submit:

● Submit entries through our website. All entries submitted to Teen Ink are automatically (自动) considered for the competition. See our submission guidelines for more information.

● Include the words “Character Competition” in your submission’s title.

● Submit your reviews to the “Artwork” category on our site. Select the art type connected with what you are submitting. Hand in your entries before March 1, 2023.

Prizes:

Winners and honorable mentions will have their characters published in Teen Ink magazine. The overall winner will receive a $25 Amazon gift card.

1. What is the purpose of holding the artwork competition?

A．To increase the sales of Teen Ink.

B．To attract people of all ages to the activity.

C．To test the teenagers’ artistic creativity.

D．To praise the young artists for their talents

2. What rules should the participants follow?

A．The works should be a team effort.

B．The participants should be under 13.

C．The content should be in connection with the subject.

D．A common account should be shared.

3. How will the participants submit their works?

A．By submitting works on the webpage.

B．By handing in entries before April 10.

C．By posting entries to the magazine directly.

D．By sending in works titled “Character Competition”.

9 . My husband is more a kid at heart. He insists we find gifts for the grandkids while on a trip to Savannah.

I can be a kid at heart, too, but I also can be a mathematician — and even cheap, ugly gifts add up quickly when you have 11 grandkids.

Children like gifts and they want them. So we are digging through piles of cheap key fobs (钥匙链), plastic sun hats, chocolate treats that will melt in the heat, and funny T-shirts, finding nothing.

We go with two hats for the boys but are still empty-handed for the nine girls. Then I spot small bracelets (手链) in a rainbow of colors. He turns one over a couple of times and says, “Nice.”

The bracelets are made of small balls shaped like starfish and turtles. They all look like rock candy, which can be eaten and was popular when we were kids. We buy nine and make a mental note: tell the girls not to eat them.

As the clerk wraps the bracelets, I remember a gift I had as a girl. Once we could choose one thing in a shop to remember our trip. What I selected was a blue plastic soapbox with the lid (盖子) and topped with a pink flamingo (火烈鸟). It was cheap and tacky (俗气的) and I believed it was the loveliest thing a girl could own. It was too beautiful to put soap inside, so it sat in a dresser drawer year after year, slowly aging, yellowing, as a reminder of a family trip long ago.

The girls are married and have families of their own, and those gifts are still in the dresser drawers in their old bedrooms, but I have came to realize that every gift may have its worth and value, saying we are together even though we were apart. That’s always a good deal.

1. Why did the author say she was a mathematician?

A．Because their family was not rich enough to buy gifts.

B．Because she was good at choosing gifts for kids.

C．Because she ever studied mathematics in university.

D．Because she found it expensive to buy 11 gifts.

2. How are the gifts for the grandkids?

A．Shiny and costly.	B．Foreign and attractive.
C．Beautiful and ordinary.	D．Useful and cheap.

3. What did the gifts for the girls remind the author of?

A．The great family memories.	B．The experience in giving gifts.
C．The best gift she ever had.	D．The trip when she fell in love.

4. What is the main idea of the text?

A．Good reminders of our life.	B．How to choose gifts for kids.
C．The meaning of a gift.	D．What to expect on a family trip.