I’m a gift-giver. I always have been, especially at Christmas. There s nothing more exciting than shopping for the people I love, then watching them open the present that’s perfect for them.

But this year I was afraid there’d be no shopping. It was a few weeks before Christmas and I sat at my kitchen table staring at my checkbook. Bills had left me with next to nothing in my gift budget. There were a dozen people on my list—my husband, Frank, our son, my sister, nieces, nephews (basketball lovers).

The newspaper was on the table next to me. I read it, and an article about a weekend estate (财产) sale practically stood out on the page. I decided to check it out, so I wrote down the address. I turned the page. There, in the middle, was an ad for the Goodwill Store. On the next? A garage sale listing. After that, one for a thrift (节俭) shop.

That weekend I drove over to the estate sale. First I looked through the living room. There was antique furniture, tables crowded with vases and lamps. Nothing caught my eye. I walked over to an office area and looked at some electronics. Nothing there either. Another room had beautiful artworks, but everything was out of my price range. “Maybe this is a waste of time,” I thought, wandering into the kitchen. A table loaded with lace handkerchiefs for a dollar apiece. My sister collected handkerchiefs!

The race was on! The next day I hit the Goodwill. I found a men’s designer dress shirt, in just the right size for my hard-to-fit son, still with original packs, for just a few dollars. A couple of days later I discovered a beautiful necklace with an unusual stone in the center. Just the thing for my fashionable niece! Next up were the garage sales. There were two terrific finds for my husband, Frank: a CD of Oklahoma’s centennial anniversary celebrations and a movie featuring Andy Griffith, his favorite actor.

“Have you bought anything for yourself?” Frank asked one afternoon when I came home with more packages.

But I went to the thrift shop the next day.

Not only did I have special gifts for everyone on my list,

As Ginni Bazlinton reached Antarctica, she found herself greeted by a group of little Gentoo penguins (企鹅) longing to say hello. These gentle, lovely gatekeepers welcomed her and kick-started what was to be a trip Ginni would never forget.

Ever since her childhood, Ginni, now 71, has had a deep love for travel. Throughout her career (职业) as a professional dancer, she toured in the UK, but always longed to explore further. When she retired from dancing and her sons eventually flew the nest, she decided it was time to take the plunge.

Vijay Gupta is known to classical music lovers across the United States. He serves as the first violinist for the Los Angeles Philharmonic. In that job, he often plays to large crowds, including many very rich people. When he is not performing, he organizes concerts for homeless people. “They have reminded me why I became a musician.” He said.

Last week, Gupta was recognized for being a founder and the artistic director of Street Symphony. The group has performed at homeless shelters, jails and halfway houses for about eight years. Gupta is among the 25 winners of the 2018 MacArthur Fellowship, commonly known as the “Genius Grant”. Each winner will receive $ 625,000 over five years to use as they wish. The money is coming from a private group, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. It awards grants (补助金) to people whose work it considers exceptional and whose work “inspires hope in us all”. Gupta said he got the idea for Street Symphony while teaching Nathaniel Ayers, a trained musician whose mental illness led to his homelessness.

The 31-year-old winner said he did not know yet how he would spend the money. He has been a performer since the age of seven and the award will give him “space to breathe, plan and look ahead”.

Another winner is Rebecca Sandefur, an associate professor (副教授) of sociology and law in the University of Illinois. The Associated Press says her research actively supports new ways to involve poor communities in the U. S. justice system.

47-year-old Sandefur created the first national mapping of civil legal aid providers. It shows which states have the financial(金融的)resources to provide such aid and which don’t. She also found that the cost of legal services was only one of the things preventing poor people from getting lawyers. Among the others were fears of unfairness(不公平)in the legal system. Sandefur noted that a lot of attention had been paid to problems with the criminal justice system, but more attention must be paid to the civil side of the law, which also affected millions of people.