“Hey, how are you doing? I’m Courtney. What grade are you in? What’s your favorite book? Elephant and Piggy? Yeah, I got it.”

If you thought you’d walked into a library with a greeting like that, you wouldn’t be too far off. In fact, you’ve entered the workplace of Courtney Holmes, the Storybook Barber.

Two years ago, Dubuque, Iowa, held its first yearly Back to School Bash, offering needy families an opportunity to learn about free resources in the community. Holmes agreed to participate. Saturday was his busiest haircutting day, but he chose to donate his time and give free haircuts to underprivileged kids so they’d look sharp on that first day of classes. But then he had a lightbulb moment(突然醒悟的一瞬): “The kids should earn their free haircut by having to read a book to me,” Holmes said.

The idea was so popular that he continued it for the next two years. Five-to ten-year-old boys would grab a favorite book, settle into the barber chair, and read aloud while Holmes cut their hair. If they stuttered(结结巴巴) over a word, Holmes was there to help.

After the haircut, they’d review the book, from the characters and vocabulary to the themes --- just like in school, only more fun.

Holmes admits he, too, benefits from the free snip-and-reads.

“There was this seven-year-old Bob, who struggled through his book, stuttering over words even though he didn’t have a stutter,” said Holmes. He had the boy take the book home and practice. When the child came back a few days later, “He read it with no problems. That inspires me.”

Holmes and his family have recently moved from Dubuque to a Chicago suburb. When they get settled, he plans to continue his role as the Storybook Barber. “The way the world is today is with guns and violence,” he says, “it’s a safe haven for the kids, to come to the barbershop and read books.”

I'd gone snowboarding with my brother,and what we lacked in skill.we made up for in enthusiasm(热情）.That day,fresh snow falling, we were in high·spirits. I let my brother disappear into the trees ahead, figuring I would soon catch up.

I began to pick up speed when suddenly thrown off balance and then ran into a large tree.

It was like hitting a wall. I knew immediately that.my back was broken and quickly realized the situation was serious.Nobody would be coming past. There was no phone signal. It was snowing and cold. If I waited, I would probably be saved in the end. But the chance of freezing（冻）to death before that happened was too high for me to risk staying put.

I tried to stand but fell down with great pain. I managed to get the board off from my.feet and moved it under my stomach so İ was lying on it. I faced down the mountain and used the board to slowly slide my body down the tree-lined slope·(斜坡）.

It took about two hours before a skier found me. The rescue team came,with my brother arriving shortly afterwards.

A helicopter (直升机）took me to hospital. I had broken one of my backbones,so I had an operation.The lasting pain was unbearable, but it wasn’t as bad as seeing the pain and worry I put my family through.

The recovering road was tough , but I was lucky . Gradually, I was able to walk, then swim, then then cycle and run.   I haven't been back to the slopes yet, but it might happen someday. Anyway,enthusiasm remains for ever.

It’s hard to avoid looking like a fool on April Fool’s Day. On April 1 each year, people play tricks on each other. These tricks are usually silly rather than mean. Classmates sometimes tie each other’s shoelaces to their chairs. Teachers might hand out an impossibly difficult surprise test that scares students before they realise it’s only a joke. Newspapers announce fake contests (such as “Win an elephant!”) and report on fake stories (like “UFO” lands in New York City).

Forget gifts, songs and special foods-those are for the other holidays of the year. On April Fool’s Day, the only tradition is to laugh (and maybe to cause a little bit of trouble).

One April Fool’s Day, when I was in high school, a group of students in my class played a very clever and funny trick on the teachers. They bought some chickens and set them free in our school cafeteria. The chickens ran all round the school, in and out of classrooms and under our feet. Feathers were flying everywhere.

Teachers began running after the chickens, trying to catch them. Finally, they caught four of them. But the chickens were wearing numbered tags around their necks, and the teachers discovered that they had only caught chickens NO. 1, 2, 3, and 5. Where was chicken No. 4?

The teachers looked and looked. They couldn’t find another chicken. After a few hours, they realised that the students had played another joke on them: There were only four chickens in the first place! They’d been tricked by the numbers on the chickens.

It’s been a long time since I was in high school, but that April Fool’s Day remains one of my favourite memories from those years.