2 . “Whenever I am in a group of people, I feel like everyone knows what to say except me. When I try to join in, I get anxious and have a struggle _______ words. This happens at parties or meetings and I feel _______ — as if I were being interviewed for a job. People think I am a loner. Maybe I am?”

Individuals experiencing this type of social _______ often avoid eye contact, because it makes them feel _______ and judged. The feelings of awkwardness and not fitting in with others are often frustrating. It prevents these individuals from defending and _______ for themselves in social environments, though they may be _______ at holding on to their opinions in environments that are focused on a task rather than _______.

Fitting into groups of people requires _______. You need to be interested in the topics that others in the group are interested in and talk about them the way they do. Becoming a part of these groups requires that you _______ some of your individuality in order to accept others’ __________ and values.

Some individuals are like chameleon (变色龙) in that they __________ pick up the patterns of different groups and __________ themselves accordingly. For them, this is automatic and they don’t even come to the __________ that they are changing themselves to fit into groups. If you are one of those people who feels __________ in most social group settings, it may be because you __________ changing the way you think in order to feel part of a group and this shouldn’t be a weakness or a failure.

3 . Many cities around the world today are heavily polluted. Careless methods of production and ________ of consumer demands for environment friendly products have ________ the pollution problem. One ________ is that millions of tons of glass, paper, plastic, and metal containers are produced, and these are difficult to get rid of.

________, today, more and more consumers are choosing “green” and demanding that the products they buy should be safe for the environment. ________ they buy a product, they ask questions like these: “Will this shampoo damage the environment?” “Can this metal container be ________ or can it only be used once?”

A recent study showed that two ________ five adults now consider the environmental safety of a product before they buy it. This means that companies must now change the ________ they make and sell their products to make sure that they are “green,” that is, friendly to the environment.

Only a few years ago, it was impossible to find green products in supermarkets, but now there are hundreds. Some supermarket products ________ labels to show that the product is green. Some companies emphasize that their products are clean and safe in their advertising and have made it their main selling ________.

The ________ for a safer and cleaner environment is making companies rethink ________ they do business. No longer will the public accept the old ________ of “Buy it, use it, throw it away and forget it.” The public ________ is still here, and companies are ________ their act gradually.

6 . During the recent school holidays I was walking past a playground on my way to a meeting. The thing that_______me was not the number of children enjoying the fresh air on a pleasant Queensland winter day, but the number of older people_______those children.

Sure, there were a few younger mums and dads, but there were_______more “old folk” who I doubt were all grandparents. It is great that they are able to_______quality time with their grandchildren. After all, we often hear people saying that their reason for retiring is that they can devote more time to their families. However, I_______how many grandparents are spending their retirement (退休) years taking on the role of full- or part-time_______of their grandchildren.   

Retirement is a valuable time. We are generally living much longer than our own grandparents did, but as we_______, we become more limited in our ability to pursue (追求) our own favourite. However, what if your plans for pursuing some of these lifetime dreams are _______，out of a sense of responsibility for your family?

So how can you keep a_______ balance between helping out your family and pursuing your dreams altogether? I'm not sure where the answer lies, but having an open and honest________   with your family should be at the top of the list. You need to nip sense of________ in the bud (对……一开始即加以阻止) — and sooner________later.

By all means, help your family whenever you can. Everyone will________from it, and your grandchildren will get the rewards from staying with their________. Do it because you want to, not because you feel you have to. In addition, spare time for ________ to pursue your dreams and ensure that nobody puts your retirement on hold.