我们的自由天空英文主页？

（这是OFS制作送发给赠书人的一套书签，一共四张 ：）

About OFS (Our Free Sky)

Our Missions: As volunteers working for commonweal, we hope to spread to people around us the idea of making giving love a habit, to tacitly yet effectively help to change the life conditions of those in need. We also wish to help every child to obtain equal opportunity for education and to promote the development of education in western impoverished rural regions of China. Thirdly, we hope to help guiding the locals of those impoverished areas to achieve lives of prosperity and advanced civilization through self-support.

Our Belief: When love becomes a habit, life will be more harmonic and beautiful.

Our Projects: To help impoverished children receive education

1) Give A Love Book Donation: We will gather books collected by means of local community donations, and distribute them to selected schools in impoverished western regions or to communities, individuals in special needs, with coordinated arrangements and plans.

2) Give A Love Volunteer Teaching: We will organize long term volunteer teachings in primary and middle schools that need help in impoverished, remote western areas and send our volunteers in relays.

3) Give A Love One On One Help: We will set up one on one help long term relations between children and schools in need and individuals or organizations willing to offer help. We appeal that once paired, in addition to financial aid, the helpers should also provide long term spiritual support (we believe that the latter can be even more important), e.g. via regular mail communications, so that both sides can hold hands and grow together.

4) Mental Health Care for the Underprivileged: We will systematically conduct mental surveys in the schools we work with in Yunnan, Guizhou, Guangxi and Hunan provinces over an extended period of time. We will compare the results across years and explore effective methods through practice for intervention of potential mental problems of students and teachers in primary and middle schools in impoverished regions.

Our Goals: For each year, we aim to recruit 5000 more people to join our team to give loves, to collect, distribute 10,000 books and to build about 10 primary school libraries in rural regions. We aim to organize visits to impoverished western areas for 100 people, and to send about 20 volunteers for the long term relay teaching project. We also aim to provide financial aids to about 300 children to help them receive education, and to offer scholarships to about 50 outstanding students.

Our Target Group: School-age children that should be receiving compulsory education in rural, mountain villages in impoverished western regions, as well as village schools and teachers that could not continue teaching activities due to financial difficulties.

Our Target Areas: We will be focusing mainly on impoverished regions in Yunnan, Sichuan, Hunan, Guizhou, Guangxi, Gansu, Shanxi provinces.

Our Members' Ideal Qualities: Lasting enthusiasm, selfless devotion, team spirit, tolerance and compassion.

Our Values: To spread the seed of love; let love last, let love pass.

Our Slogan: Let love grow one more meter! Give love one more opportunity! Where there is a heart beat, there is a dream! For tomorrow, let us hold hands! Love goes on...

Our Song: Our Free Sky

Our Base: www.ourfreesky.org


Current Projects

Our Free Sky (OFS) education commonweal project team is a non-profit volunteer organization initiated by and made up of Chinese volunteers from all parts, all social circles of China and abroad. The Organization uses the website www.ourfreesky.org as a joint platform to launch education commonweal projects and for member communications. Founded in March, 2006, OFS has currently over 8000 members.

Our Free Sky pays close attention to the current situations of basic education in primary and middle schools in impoverished, remote regions of southwest and western parts of China, including Yunnan, Sichuan, Hunan, Guizhou, Guangxi, Gansu, Shanxi provinces, where children losing opportunity to attend school and teachers unable to continue teaching have been a serious problem. Specifically, we carry out commonweal activities to promote basic education in these areas in the following ways.

First, Centers of Give A Love Book Donation. We founded Centers of Give A Love Book Donation mainly to help primary and middle school students living in impoverished rural regions of outhwest and western parts of China, including Yunnan, Sichuan, Hunan, Guizhou, Guangxi, Gansu, Shanxi provinces, as well as underprivileged yet motivated children, disabled children, those who are serving sentences or in drug rehabilitation centers from all over the nation. We gather books collected by means of local community donations, and distribute them to selected schools in impoverished western regions or to communities, individuals in special needs, with coordinated arrangements and plans. The main responsibilities of the book donation team include: to keep contact with volunteers in charge of branch book donation centers in different regions, to register and sort donated books, to arrange time and location for each donation event. It is their obligation to inform the donors the uses and whereabouts of the books and to publish detailed statement following each donation event.

Second, One on One Help. Our OFS volunteers, as messengers of love, should attend to individuals and groups within reach who are in need of help, and send the information to our joint platform to call on corresponding supports from caring people of all social circles based on the specific needs. Once an individual or a group chooses to be paired with a child or a school in need for long term one on one help, we appeal that in addition to financial aid the helpers should also provide long term spiritual support (we believe that the latter can be even more important), e.g. via regular mail communications, so that both sides can hold hands and grow together. The main responsibilities of the one on one help team include: to collect detailed information (family condition, grade, etc.) of the students in need of help through personal visits, to set up a one on one relation between one student and one volunteer willing to offer help, and to publish detailed statements through the course.

Third, Give A Love Volunteer Teaching. Based on collected information, OFS is responsible for strictly selecting and preparing proper volunteers for long term teaching in primary and middle schools with shortage of teachers in impoverished, remote regions. Each volunteer selected should complete the semester(s) and will be sent by OFS in relays. The main objectives of Give A Love Volunteer Teaching are to alleviate the shortage of qualified teachers in the impoverished western regions, to assist local government with compulsory education, and to promote the development of local education cause （remote rural regions in Yunnan, Sichuan, Hunan, Guizhou, Guangxi, Gansu, Shanxi provinces). The main responsibilities of give a love volunteer teaching team include: to provide detailed information about the schools to be assisted, its surrounding local areas, and what to prepare before starting, to recruit volunteers for relay teaching, to provide certain training to new recruits when condition permits, and to work in liaison with schools receiving assistance in the western regions and the OFS volunteers.

Fourth, Mental Health Care. Due to under-developed economy and resource deficit, children in the primary and middle schools in impoverished rural areas are much under-privileged on the grounds of financial support, nutrition condition, and education level compared to their peers in the cities, and may experience more mental pressure. We therefore believe the construction of an effective mental health care system in these regions is even more pressing. In recent years, attentions on the mental health of underprivileged children in impoverished rural regions have grown substantially as various financial aids were offered from all social circles. This project aims to build mental health record archives for primary and middle school students in impoverished rural regions, in order to identify and intervene the vulnerable group early on. We aim to help them establish a more optimistic and positive attitude in school and in life despite of the difficult situations, so that they can avoid any potential future physical and mental health problems that may trouble their learning and behaviors, and can grow up healthily in moral, intellectual, and physical aspects in a harmonic way. We will systematically conduct mental surveys in the schools we work with in Yunnan, Guizhou, Guangxi and Hunan provinces over an extended period of time, and will compare the results across years and explore effective methods through practice for intervention of potential mental problems of students and teachers in primary and middle schools in impoverished regions.

Since its foundation, OFS has been dedicated to play a positive role in basic education in impoverished rural areas as a volunteer organization. In the recent six months, through the effort of our volunteers as well as support from the society, OFS has successfully built Give A Love Book Donation Centers in 12 provinces and major cities all over the country, including Beijing, Shanghai, Anhui, Guangdong, Yunnan, Sichuan, Hunan, Shanxi, Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning, Shandong, Tianjin. Through these book donation centers, our volunteers have collected over 20,000 books including text books and outside readings that are much needed by children in rural regions, and distributed them timely. The schools that received these books include: Jinjie&Danzhen Nursery of Danmai foundation in Xianggelila, Diqing tibetan autonomous prefecture, Yunnan province; The center primary school in Gezan, Xianggelila; The center primary school of Baiyi, Xiangcheng, Ganzi tibetan autonomous prefecture, Sichuan province; The center primary school of Dingbo village; Wujiaying primary school, White Stone Groove, Lueyang, Hanzhong, Shanxi province; Ludian middle school, Ludian, Yulong, Lijiang, Yunnan province; Xinzhu primary school; Chufeng primary school; Anle primary school; Ludian primary school; Taiping primary school.

Up till June, 2008, Our Free Sky has set up financial aids for over 700 school-aged minority children in Yunnan (Xianggelila, Luquan, Yulong), Hunan (Fenghuang), Guizhou (Zhenyuan), Guangxi (Leye, Dahua), Sichuan (Xiangcheng, Mao) provinces that either had dropped out of school or might be forced to do so due to family poverty, most of which through the one on one help program. We have paid over 100 personal visits to local areas for information collection from the schools to receive OFS volunteer teachers, and there have been 33 volunteers who taught schools for six months or a year in Shangjiang Xianggelila, Ludian Yulong, Malutang Luquan, Yunnan province, Machong, Fenghuang, Hunan province, and Luoxi, Leye, Guangxi.

Every volunteer in OFS firmly believes that "plant a seed, reap a harvest", that we will be able to pass the solicitude from the society on to more children in impoverished rural regions. Little chips light great fires. We all OFS volunteers keenly welcome more people with a lofty mind to join our team. For the sake of tomorrow's happiness of the children, for the sake of the impoverished rural fellow countrymen, let us hold hands together, and each contribute our own humble effort!

June, 2008


我 们 的 使 命：对于公益志愿者来说，我们期待身边的每个人都能将奉献爱心作为一种习惯，无声却大力地推动和帮助着每个待助人的生活状况。同时我们希望让每一个孩子都能接受到公平教育的机会，促进西部教育的发展；引导当地居民走上自力更生，富裕文明的生活。
我 们 的 信 念：当爱心成为一种习惯，生活将更加美好和谐。
我们的工作内容：公益助学
（1）、爱心书库：通过社区募捐的形式，集中分散的捐赠书籍，统一、有规划地组织捐赠给西部重点帮困的学校或确实有需求的单位和个人；
（2）、爱心支教：组织支教志愿者前往需要接受帮助的贫困边远地区中小学内进行长期接力式爱心支教活动；
（3）、帮困助学：任何个人或组织在选择了一个固定长期的受助者（学校或个人）的同时，希望能够给予受助者长期的精神支持（我们认为这个更为重要），比如通信往来等，一起携手、一起成长。
（4）、心理健康指导：通过在滇黔桂湘OFS助学点的心理调查结果的纵向比较，在实践中探索对贫困山区中小学生及教师心理健康进行有效干预的方法和途径。
我 们 的 目 标：每年影响5000人左右加入爱的行列，捐赠10000册左右图书，建立起10个左右乡村小学图书馆；组织100人次左右参与西部走访，20人次左右参与西部长期接力式爱心支教；资助300名左右孩子读书，奖励50名左右品学兼优的孩子。
我们的服务对象：西部义务教育阶段适龄儿童，无法继续学业的农村、山区孩子，农村教师、学校。
我们的服务地区：主要在云南、四川、湖南、贵州、广西、甘肃、陕西等。
我们理想的人才：持久热情、无私奉献、团队合作、宽容理解。
我 们 的 价 值：播撒爱的种子，让爱心延续，让爱心传递。
我 们 的 口 号：让爱，延伸一米！
让爱，多一个机会！
心若在，梦犹在！
为了明天，你我一起携手！爱心在继续……
我 们 的 歌 曲：我们的自由天空
我 们 的 基 地：www.ourfreesky.org


“我们的自由天空”(OurFreeSky，OFS Volunteer Organization)公益助学项目组是由来自全国各地以及海外华人，由“我们的自由天空”广大爱心志愿者联合发起的，广泛吸收社会各界爱心人士自愿结成的、非营利性的志愿者组织，组织以网站 www.ourfreesky.org 作为公益、助学帮困活动开展及志愿者间交流的共同平台。网站创立于2006年3月，至今已有8000余名注册会员。
“我们的自由天空”(OurFreeSky，OFS)始终关注包括云南、四川、湖南、贵州、广西、甘肃、陕西等在内的西南部、西部贫困边远地区中小学的失学失教现状，并通过以下几种具体方式积极开展公益、助学帮困活动：
第一：爱心书库。爱心书库的建立主要是为了帮助云南、四川、湖南、贵州、广西、甘肃、陕西等在内的西南部、西部贫困山区的中小学生，以及全国各省市家庭贫苦、学习上进的孩子、残疾儿童、服刑人员、戒毒所等。通过社区募捐的形式，集中分散的捐赠书籍，统一、有规划地组织捐赠给西部OFS重点帮困的学校或确实有需求的单位和个人。爱心书库小组的主要工作方式是：联系各地区爱心书库负责人，登记整理所捐赠书籍，提供每次捐赠书籍的时间和捐赠地点， 并有义务告知捐赠者所捐赠图书的去向和用途，每次活动及时公布捐赠明细表。
第二：帮困助学。通过寻找受助对象，以OFS爱心志愿者、爱心推广大使的身份，留意身边需要帮助的个人或团体，将那些处于困难中、需要帮助的个人或团体的任何线索，反馈到我们的平台上, 针对具体需要号召各界热心人士给予相应的帮助。任何个人或组织在选择了一个固定长期的受助者（学校或个人）的同时，希望能够给予受助者长期的精神支持（我们认为这个更为重要），比如通信往来等，一起携手、一起成长。帮困助学组的主要工作方式是：通过OFS志愿者亲自走访提供受助学生的详细情况（家庭情况、学习成绩等等），联络爱心志愿者与之结成帮困助学对子，定期整理并公布助学明细表。
第三：爱心支教。通过OFS提供的信息，严格筛选支教志愿者，在做好充分准备的基础上，以志愿者的身份前往需要接受帮助的贫困边远地区中小学内进行以学期为单位，长期接力式的志愿义务支教活动。义务支教的活动主要是为了缓解西部师资力量的匮乏，协助当地进行义务教育的教学和研究活动，促进当地（云南、四川、湖南、贵州、广西、甘肃、陕西等偏远山区）教育事业的发展。爱心支教组的主要工作方式是：提供支教所在地的详细资料，包括前往支教学校的资料、支教行前准备等。招募支教志愿者，并在条件许可的情况下对志愿者进行一定形式的培训。联系西部受助学校和OFS志愿者等。
第四：心理健康指导。贫困山区的中小学生，因为经济的相对落后和资源匮乏，他们的经济状况、营养条件以及受教育情况都处于比较低的水平，承受着比城市地区的中小学生更多的心理压力，因此更加需要有效的心理健康发展项目。近些年来，社会各界在对贫困山区学生进行经济资助的同时，对他们心理健康状况的关注也与日俱增。项目旨在建设贫困山区中小学生的心理健康档案，及早发现和干预危机群体，帮助他们在困境中更为乐观、向上的学习和生活，避免导致日后学习、行为以及身体和精神健康方面的问题，促进德智、身心的和谐发展。我们希望通过在滇黔桂湘OFS助学点的心理调查结果的纵向比较，在实践中探索对贫困山区中小学生及教师心理健康进行有效干预的方法和途径。而这种方法和途径，将转变为OFS区别与其他公益助学组织的特色和强项。
Our Free Sky自成立以来，一直致力于推动志愿者组织在贫困地区的教育事业中发挥积极的作用。近半年以来，依靠志愿者自身的努力和社会力量的支持，Our Free Sky先后在全国12个省市建立了爱心书库，包括北京市、上海市、安徽省、广东省、云南省、四川省、湖南省、陕西省、黑龙江省、吉林省、辽宁省、山东省、天津市等。通过这些爱心书库，志愿者们收集汇总了20000余册山区孩子亟需的课本和课外读物，并将这些书籍以最快的速度送到了孩子们的手中。获赠爱心图书捐助的有：云南省迪庆藏族自治州香格里拉县丹麦基金杰素á丹珍保育院、香格里拉县格咱乡中心完小、四川省甘孜藏族自治州乡城县白依乡中心完小、定波乡中心完小、陕西省汉中市略阳县白石沟乡吴家营小学、云南省丽江市玉龙县鲁甸乡鲁甸中学、新主完小、杵峰完小、安乐完小、鲁甸完小、太平完小等学校。
截至2008年6月，通过OurFreesky，700余名云南（香格里拉县、禄劝县、玉龙县）、湖南（凤凰县）、贵州（镇远县）、广西（乐业县、大化县）、四川（乡城县、茂县）等地的少数民族辍学以及贫困学龄孩子受到资助，其中大部分孩子为结对子形式受助。共有百余人次前往OFS助学点进行过调查、走访，已有33人次在云南省香格里拉县上江乡、玉龙县鲁甸乡、禄劝县马鹿塘乡、湖南省凤凰县麻冲乡、广西壮族自治区乐业县逻西乡等助学点进行为期半年到一年不等的支教活动。
我们的自由天空的每一位志愿者坚信，只要付出就有收获，也一定能让更多贫困山区的孩子感受到社会的关怀。星星之火，可以燎原，我们的自由天空的志愿者们热忱欢迎更多有志之士加入到我们的行列中来，为了山区孩子们明天的幸福，为了山区贫困的民族同胞们，让我们携起手来，一起为贫困山区的孩子们尽一份绵薄的力量！
二零零八年六月

Lines from Sherlock Holmes

最近很郁闷，很郁闷，没什么特别的原因。想起很多年前进聊天室的事情，起码看着有人聊天感觉活着点，可是可怜我的苹果机很多聊天室都进不了。那天一搜，进了个能进的佛教聊天室。挖，世界变得真快啊，这还是佛教聊天室呢，虽然有很多不错的人，可是，也有好多乱七八糟的人和话呢。又可怜我敬佛却不信，就是碰上好人也没什么可聊的，所以只是挂着泡分，偶然感受一下人气。

也是有缘吧，有天碰上个好像很伤心的女孩子，聊了几句很投缘呢，感觉和自己有很多地方挺象的，比我小了快一轮。只是很不开心，有封闭自己的趋势，我急。不过她很年轻，还很乖，对人特别实心，我就很老派地跟她讲了很多。我觉得她会好起来的！

还有最近在看福尔摩斯，英国拍的，据说是对原著最忠实的再现了。小时候很喜欢看福尔摩斯探案呢，每个故事都有印象的。而这个演员Jeremy Brett演得也真是好，一看见他就觉得福尔摩斯就应该是这样子的。而且小时候看书，只觉得案情有趣，对福尔摩斯没有什么特别的感想，或者说觉得他更象个精密的仪器。或许是现在年长了的缘故，却看到大侦探隐藏在心中，偶尔于冷静机智中闪现的人类的情感。觉得很亲切呢，几乎都要被迷住了。

摘录几段立时注意到的精彩句子吧，和案子没有什么太大的关系，多是评论的话语。

“The Navy Treaty" 听不幸而脆弱的外交官结结巴巴讲了丢失文件的事件后，福尔摩斯突然拿起一朵玫瑰，说了这么一段话：
"There is nothing in which deduction is so necessary as in religion. It can be built up as an exact science by the reasoner. Our highest assurance of the goodness of Providence seems to me to rest in the flowers. It is only goodness which gives extras, and so I say again that we have much to hope from the flowers.”
立马觉得这话很美很新奇啊，冷静下来一想，55555 我爱玫瑰，我爱美丽的事物，就象卞福汝主教说的"the beautiful is more useful than the useful"。可是，即使是玫瑰也不能让我相信那是上帝存在的证据。因为，亲爱的福尔摩斯，玫瑰的美丽不是额外的赐予。花儿这样红，是为了吸引媒人繁衍后代；玫瑰如此精细，是人类吃饱了以后为了取悦社会上层的那部分人，一代代辛勤培育更美丽的新品种。所以你看，让我怎么安心相信呢。

“The Speckled Band" 福尔摩斯感觉到二小姐有被继父谋害的危险赶过去，在火车上对华生说：
"It's a wicked world, and when a clever man turns his brain to crime it is the worst of all."
这句话本身没什么，但是演员说出来的时候眼睛里的神情。。。酷！睿智中一瞬的忧郁。。。

我在月亮的正下方

糗事百科里的：

2008年年初的时候老是下雪，天气很冷。有次在教室上课，感觉手实在冷的受不了了，于是我凑过去问同位：“喂，你有没有带套子？”我同位楞了下，抓紧自己衣领问我：“你想干什么。”
我狂汗

有一女同学。
到一汽车反光镜前整理仪容，
问边上同学，怎么样，今个发型还不错吧？
----------
车窗摇下来，
司机说，挺不错的！

帮忙判卷子，福利为听老师们大讲小朋友囧事。
昔年某小朋友，语文期末考试，在卷子“姓名_______”写：
布莱特
（听到这里我已经感觉十分囧了，谁知这后面的才令人如入化境……）
监考老师：干吗写布莱特？
小朋友：这这是我英英英文名。
（讲故事老师解释：该小朋友略口吃。）
监考老师：那干吗不写英文？
该小朋友（语重心长地）：老老师，你要注注意了，这是语语文考考试。

10几岁的时候，正好放新白娘子，对白淑贞很迷，喜欢学她说话。一次从外面赶回来看新白娘子，我妈开门，进门心里就想叫：“娘子，我回来了！”刚刚叫到“娘”字，突然感觉不对劲，那是我老妈，不能往下叫，而且屋里坐着一大堆亲戚，但好像已经不能刹住车了，于是赶紧改嘴成：“娘。。。。。子回来了！”，哄堂大笑，都说这孩子，挺搞怪的。我那个窘呀，赶紧进房间去了。

话说虫子要去山东，和一姐姐正巧去一单位实习，由于是深夜，刚下火车二人走散了，那姐们让虫子等他，问：虫子你在哪呢？
虫子答：我在月亮的正下方

大学在重庆读，那边的方言“n\l”不分。
军训时重庆籍教官训话：“蓝的站左边，绿的站右边……”
我茫然中，因为当时学生的军训服装是校服，蓝白相间，于是思考：
“蓝的，应该是指我们，那绿的呢？难道是指教官？……”
正在思考时，发现同志们已经站好，男的站在左边，女的站在右边……
！·＃……％

我又一次去"快乐鸭脖"买鸭脖吃，突然看见墙上有个推荐，是三块五一个的鹌鹑。我于是很兴奋的说：“那个墙上的鸳鸯怎么卖？？”搞得全店的人都看着我······

口误集锦～

客服：请问您要哪首歌？
用户：我要黄家狗唱的《真的爱你》。
客服：…………

有一次跑到学校的东门吃东西。
走进一家粉店，有好多种汤。我瞧了瞧，这菜有意思啊，于是指着菜单对老板说：老板，我要这个乌鸦汤！
同去的人和老板暴笑
~~~原来是乌鸡汤~~~~~

某日上课，黑板上写上"XX试卷今晚交"
我抬头一念：XX试卷今日免交"。。。。。。

有一天和闺蜜去吃巴西烤肉，一个服务生端着盘子过来问：
小鸡，要不要火姐腿？？？？？？

某人喜欢跟朋友看帅哥，一次在米粉店看到老板的儿子很帅，一下子紧张就对老板说：老板，来一碗帅哥……
老板呆滞的问要不要放葱花……

高中一次取自行车，不小心被一个人压倒脚，那人丝毫不在意，我暴怒：“喂，你轧到别人，怎么连谢谢也不知道说啊。”

我和朋友去山海关，看到路牌上写着字，我念道：孟美女。
全车人狂笑，人家明明写着：孟姜女~~

***巨有创意的老公！
『时尚资讯』 [美食天地]ＬＧ总是拿食物来骂我，有这样的ＬＧ吗？
作者：小英雄大蚊子 提交日期：2008-6-24 13:58:00
　　我做错了事，ＬＧ骂我：你说你蠢得跟红烧肉有什么区别？
　　我耍小聪明偷懒，ＬＧ骂我：你就像盘溜丝瓜！
　　我早上起床上个厕所又上床睡，ＬＧ骂我：你是回锅肉啊？
　　我看见他和女同事的合影撇了撇嘴，ＬＧ骂我：简直是根酸豆角！
　　我弄点蕾丝花边珠珠亮片啥的在身上装装嫩，ＬＧ骂我：你把自己弄得跟生日蛋糕似的！
　　出了身汗，他捂着鼻子说：你是臭豆腐！
　　平时没事，喜欢叫我：肉包子！年糕！糖油粑粑！
　　这什么人啊！

好玩的动物视频(funny animal clips and more)

会说话的猫猫和狗狗 (talking cats and dogs)



小大熊猫的惊天大喷嚏 (sneezing baby panda)



天才鹦鹉爱因斯坦 ( Einstein the genius parrot)



习惯性装可爱 (cute kitty)



舞吧！小喵～喵～喵～。。。瞄 (funny kittens playing with feather)


下面是几个恶作剧的视频，Just for Laughs，貌似是加拿大人弄的，太搞笑了也
救命！(drowning prank)


死神来了 (death)


举起革命的旗帜来～ (go revolution)


魔法香水唐璜（Don Juan)


世界上最性感的警察～（sexiest policemen in the world)


有点黄，不过太搞笑了。。。(boobs)

美国科学家:汶川大地震是万年一遇的"地震学怪事" 联合早报

美国科学家:汶川大地震是万年一遇的"地震学怪事" 联合早报

　　（华盛顿法新电）美国地球科学家前日指出，中国汶川大地震是约每2000至1万年才会在该地域发生一次的“地震学怪事”。

　　这20多年来，麻省理工学院研究队伍一直都在考察四川省周围地区，不过却从未发现任何大地震可能发生的迹象。因此，该研究队伍认为，今年5月12日在四川省发生的里氏7.9级地震（中国方面测定为8级地震）是意料之外的。汶川大地震共有8万多人死亡或失踪。

　　在美国地质学学会（Geological Society of America）出版的7月份刊物中，一项研究报告把汶川大地震的根源指向地质活动甚少的断层，断层是地球地壳中出现的裂痕。

　　在地震发生的一年多前，该研究队伍已在四川省西部设立了25个宽频地震仪中心，探测当地的地质活动，以协助其长期研究。

　　四川可能再受大规模余震影响

　　同时也是研究队伍成员之一的麻省理工学院地质学和地球物理学教授罗埃登说：“根本没有人想到，这样严重的地震会发生。”

　　罗埃登表示，“这次的地震确实有点不寻常”，它很可能是因两个分隔但邻接的断层同时崩裂所造成。

　　不过，科学家警告，由于地震有时是一连串发生的，因此四川地区可能再度受大规模余震影响。

　　罗埃登指出，四川盆地和西藏高原之间的边界处处是陡坡，属“地质非常不寻常”地段，单是面积50公里的地段，海拔就大约高涨3500公尺。

　　地震震源就在印度和亚洲两个地壳板块之间的部分边界，两个地壳板块的不间断碰撞，导致喜马拉雅山群和西藏高原形成。
不过，西藏中、西部的大部分地球地壳活动，都发生在肉眼看不见的地方，从而使原本薄弱的地壳底层变粗超过15公里。罗埃登说，该地壳正逐渐从西藏中部向西飘浮，碰到四川盆地时，却得绕过盆地而行，是造成那里的景观如此极端的原因。

　　罗埃登补充，四川盆地和西藏高原之间的海拔悬殊，是造成根本地质压力，导致大地震的原因。

一花一石如有意，不语不笑能留人（夜读红楼之一）

小时不爱读红楼。记得曾经很一本正经地请出书来，端坐奉读，不到一页，耐心就先没了，用现在的话说，“不是我的那杯茶” (not my cup of tea)。电视上播演红楼梦，也并不是很热衷，对花花草草谈不上特别的感觉。倒是因为经常挨打，对宝玉被揍的一节深感触目惊心，两相比较，庆幸自己毕竟生在了好人家。彼时最喜《西游记》，颠来倒去看了十几遍都还乐不可支，电视重播更是一次不拉。及至大学选修文学鉴赏，对老师扬红楼贬西游的言论很是不满，颇有“劳动人民的文学也是伟大的！”之万丈豪情。

红楼的插曲却一直是喜欢的，高中时代的好友有全套插曲磁带，巴巴借了来跟着勤学苦练，每日刷碗时引项高歌。父谓“还不错！”，母则怒关房门，偶尔大吼一声“烦死啦！”或曰“别嚎啦！”课下与友闲步校园，小了声表演，友曰“我觉得还是磁带里面的更好～”不论如何，远渡重洋的时候特地复制了一盘，塞进行囊。

世事无常，谁能料到成天哼着歌乐颠颠的我有天会突然开了情关，世间种种离恨悲伤，一齐都到心头。现在想来，也许那门一直都是开的，不过我以前背朝着门口而已。这一回头可了不得了，一连数月，每夜把自己关在漆黑的屋子里，听着红楼的磁带，多少悲苦感伤，化作倾盆之泪。此是第一次为红楼而哭。世上哭红楼之人，大约很多都是借着红楼哭心中可哭之事吧。两年后稍好转，仍时常萎靡不振，偏又假期间借了朋友收藏的红楼影碟全套，一口气看下来，从宝黛试探之初开始，一路稀里哗啦哭下来。那种种的小性子，貌似我都或轻或重地使过不是，始知心之所系，只是当时已惘然。儿女情长，伤逝流年，第二次为红楼就又哭了几日。后自己买了一套，却赠与朋友，最美的留在心底。其间夜读红楼，心酸感叹，却记不太清了。

数年后又遇波折，积郁之病再度发作，更是不可收拾。读书也读不进了，更别提红楼。捧着本悲惨世界，都能看得痛哭流涕，不能不停止，到后来是什么书都读不下去，什么兴趣都提不起。慵懒之中，慢慢自舐伤口而已。

再想起红楼，是看到满世界网络贴着叶大师的惊世创意，鬼气森森戏子样的钗黛，养媳童状的宝玉，二姐凛凛红与黑，蓉哥铮铮一身黄，心如止水的我惊了！别说是我，九泉之下，碧落之上的曹公，应该也惊了七八十回了！不过时下的风尚，沿袭古法，有权的或者有钱的说了算，草木之人，只好背后嘀咕而已，不过嘀咕的声音可以约略大些个。一边嘀咕，一边就起了怀旧之情，找出电子版的87红楼，演员服饰，怎么看怎么美呀。再感叹时，索性找出书来（《脂砚斋重评石头记》新校本，©2000-2003 www.honglm.net版权所有），得空得心情时读上一段。

第一回的批里，这次独独对“一花一石如有意，不语不笑能留人”动心不已。刘长卿《戏赠于越尼子歌》一诗，原是这样写的：“鄱阳女子年十五，家本秦人今在楚。厌向春江空浣沙，龙宫落发披袈裟。五年持戒长一食，至今犹自颜如花。亭亭独立青莲下，忍草禅枝绕精舍。自用黄金买地居，能嫌碧玉随人嫁。北客相逢疑姓秦，铅花抛却仍青春。一花一竹如有意，不语不笑能留人。黄鹂欲栖白日暮，天香未散经行处。却对香炉间诵经，春泉漱玉寒冷冷。云房寂寂夜钟后，吴音清切令人听。人听吴音歌一曲，杳然如在诸天宿。谁堪世事更相牵，惆怅回船江水渌。” 脂砚斋是这么批的”以顽石草木为偶，实历尽风月波澜，尝遍情缘滋味，至无可如何，始结此木石因果，以泄胸中悒郁。古人之“一花一石如有意，不语不笑能留人”，此之谓也。“（批绛珠仙草因尚未酬报灌溉之德，故其五内便郁结着一段缠绵不尽之意）此句一瞥之下如惊鸿之影，细看出处和脂砚斋的引用，又是两样情怀。戏赠里的女尼对听歌之人而言，可谓”任是无情也动人”，而青春歌者的无情，是混沌未开先封了情关的结果，内心里天性或者“有意”也未可知。批里提到的，却是历尽沧桑，灰心失意，寄情木石的无奈。此中木石未必有意，有意的其实是寄情的人了。再多想想，就要痴了。

脂批时有幽默处，有一处本就有诙谐意，与时俱进一下，更添一份喜庆。就是书中写贾雨村“暂寄庙中安身，每日卖字作文为生，【蒙侧批：“庙中安身”、“卖字为生”，想是过午不食的了。】”看到“过午不食”，乐喷。脂砚斋想是用来讽刺贾雨村穷酸，只好学佛家持戒。岂知今日，“过午不食“已经成了老幼妇女清减小腰围的热方之一！不过按甄家丫鬟来看，贾生”生得腰圆背厚“。妇女同志们，战友们！圆！还厚！可要看仔细了呀！

顺便贴一下刘长卿的两手绝句，离题是离题了，不过我喜欢～
弹琴 ： 泠泠七弦上，静听松风寒。古调虽自爱，今人多不弹。
逢雪宿芙蓉山主人 ： 日暮苍山远，天寒白屋贫。柴门闻犬吠，风雪夜归人。

一个相当囧的梦

不黄不暴力，但是比较囧，相当得囧。
事情是这样的，咱不是老失眠吗，特地把自己累个半死加吃饱了饭，还是只睡了三个多小时：半夜以后才睡着，三点多就醒了。虽然睡不着，可身体是真疲倦啊。挣扎着上班，晕乎乎坐下，电脑的时间显示不到九点，在下脑袋一歪，只觉得全身飘飘的，就。。。忽忽悠悠不知怎么回事了。
等知道怎么回事的时候，模模糊糊地发现自己坐着，好像是靠着走道的一个位置，旁边朝里还有一人，依稀是mother？总之我是非常非常得困，眼睛都睁不开。使劲睁啊睁，还是睁不开。然后里面的那个人要我站起来好出去，我就又开始发功，拼命想站起来，可是太困了，站不起来！那个人貌似轻蔑还是不满地就从我身上跨过去料。。。
然后镜头一转，我坐在地上，还是特别特别地困，旁边有什么人叫我起来，我发功，依然困得起不来，缓缓地倒向地面。地面貌似有地砖的那种，挺凉的，我一边倒还在一边想，总算可以睡一觉了。然后吧，又过来一人，貌似是俺爹，把我从地上抱起来，抱到床上去了（这段肯定是有小时候的记忆的，因为我很小的时候有次坐着睡着了，睡梦里感觉到爸爸把我抱回小床），一时于很困很困中默，不知道是感叹床好还是爹好。。。
等我挣扎着终于睁开眼，电脑和蔼地冲我乐呢，大概九点半的样子。

好吧，我承认，日有所思，日有所梦，事后想这梦的细节，并不奇怪。

但是囧的是我居然做梦梦到很困很困在睡觉！以前看过有梦到在考试，惊醒一看果然在考试的，窃以为其囧度不及俺的这个！

关于Matlab读取Excel的问题

日前从Matlab读取xls文件（技术员填好给我的），总是出现如下错误信息：

Skipping 16 bytes of extended strings.
XLS File contains unrecognized string header - skipping remaining text - (942:0xfb 2589).

我看出是格式的问题，可是技术员同志也说不清他用了什么高级格式。我对Excel基本一窍不通，于是上网搜索，发现关于同样错误信息提示的问题有人问过，有英语的，中文的，日文的，不过好像没人给出直接解决办法。从零碎的信息里，我摸索出一个quick and dirty的办法如下（万一今后有人再碰到）：

It looks like "xlsread" in matlab has some issues reading excel spreadsheet, not all formats work. Here I'm talking about Excel Workbook and Matlab 7. If you ever get the above error message, here's a quick and dirty solution:

Go to Excel workbook file, "save as" Text (Tab delimited), and you get a plain .txt sheet. Now open the .txt from excel, "save as" workbook. Bingo! You just got yourself a .xls file that can be read by matlab.
Note, however, if the original .xls file contains more that one sheets, you'll lose that info when saving it as .txt. What I did was to convert each sheet separately, and then combine all sheets together. It worked!

从Excel打开原.xls文件，选择另存为Text (Tab delimited)的.txt文件，然后打开该.txt文件，另存回为Excel workbook。如果原文件含多个worksheet，可以一个sheet一个sheet地转换，然后组合在一起。
总之，管用。

Amendments: 1) It's possible that Excel workbook created by Office 2008 can't be handled by matlab 7 (mac).
2) For excel workbook with multiple sheets, simply combining all "de-formatted" sheets actually won't work: the first sheet reads fine, but the rest are a mess. So I ended up dealing with each sheet separately.

红楼梦中人物评新红楼梦（转）

笑死我了：

　　宝玉——“好好的一个清净洁白女儿,，也学的涂粉贴额，入了戏子娼妓之流。这总是商人无故生事，化妆拍戏，原为骗现世的广大观众。 不想我生不幸，亦且琼闺绣阁中亦化此妆，真真有负天地钟灵毓秀之德！”

　　黛玉——林黛玉冷笑道：“问的我倒好，我也不知为什么这样穿，我原是给你们取笑的，拿我演戏子取笑。”

　　凤姐——凤姐在车上说与李导道：“以后还不早打发了这个没文化的东西！留在这里岂不是祸害？倘或外国人知道了，岂不笑话咱们这样的国家，连个文化积淀都没有。” (wintersunray: 读着这段，当年邓婕的吐字记得清清楚楚，字音配合，痛快，也太有喜感了）

　　贾政——“老爷听了是叶锦添弄的，才不好说什么，半日还说：‘何苦来！虚耗人力，作践绫罗，作这样的东西。’”

　　王夫人——王夫人向凤姐等自怨道：“这几年我越发被雷多了，照顾不到。这样妖精似的钗黛竟没看见。只怕这样形象的还有，明日倒得再看。” （wintersunray: 狂点头中。。。）

　　宝玉——“他是你那一门子的导演，你们这么推崇她？不过是仗着小时候看过她几出《宫词》罢了。如今逞的她比女王还狂了。如今我又看不着戏了，白白的供着女王作什么！撵了出去，大家干净！”

　　刘姥姥—刘姥姥笑道:"我这头也不知修了什么福,今儿这样体面起来."众人笑道:"你还不拔下来摔到叶锦添的脸上呢,把你打扮的成了个鬼妖精了."刘姥姥笑道:"我虽老了,年轻时也风流, 爱个花儿粉儿的,今儿做鬼风流才好."

The Pearl of Love

THE PEARL OF LOVE

by

H.G. Wells

The pearl is lovelier than the most brilliant of crystalline stones, the moralist declares, because it is made through the suffering of a living creature. About that I can say nothing because I feel none of the fascination of pearls. Their cloudy lustre moves me not at all. Nor can I decide for myself upon that agelong dispute whether The Pearl of Love is the cruellest of stories or only a gracious fable of the immortality of beauty.

Both the story and the controversy will be familiar to students of mediaeval Persian prose. The story is a short one, though the commentary upon it is a respectable part of the literature of that period. They have treated it as a poetic invention and they have treated it as an allegory meaning this, that, or the other thing. Theologians have had their copious way with it, dealing with it particularly as concerning the restoration of the body after death, and it has been greatly used as a parable by those who write about aesthetics. And many have held it to be the statement of a fact, simply and baldly true.

The story is laid in North India, which is the most fruitful soil for sublime love stories of all the lands in the world. It was in a country of sunshine and lakes and rich forests and hills and fertile valleys; and far away the great mountains hung in the sky, peaks, crests, and ridges of inaccessible and eternal snow. There was a young prince, lord of all the land; and he found a maiden of indescribable beauty and delightfulness and he made her his queen and laid his heart at her feet. Love was theirs, full of joys and sweetness, full of hope, exquisite, brave and marvellous love, beyond anything you have ever dreamt of love. It was theirs for a year and a part of a year; and then suddenly, because of some venomous sting that came to her in a thicket, she died.

She died and for a while the prince was utterly prostrated. He was silent and motionless with grief. They feared he might kill himself, and he had neither sons nor brothers to succeed him. For two days and nights he lay upon his face, fasting, across the foot of the couch which bore her calm and lovely body. Then he arose and ate, and went about very quietly like one who has taken a great resolution. He caused her body to be put in a coffin of lead mixed with silver, and for that he had an outer coffin made of the most precious and scented woods wrought with gold, and about that there was to be a sarcophagus of alabaster, inlaid with precious stones. And while these things were being done he spent his time for the most part by the pools and in the garden-houses and pavilions and groves and in those chambers in the palace where they two had been most together, brooding upon her loveliness. He did not rend his garments nor defile himself with ashes and sackcloth as the custom was, for his love was too great for such extravagances. At last he came forth again among his councillors and before the people, and told them what he had a mind to do.

He said he could never more touch woman, he could never more think of them, and so he would find a seemly youth to adopt for his heir and train him to his task, and that he would do his princely duties as became him; but that for the rest of it, he would give himself with all his power and all his strength and all his wealth, all that he could command, to make a monument worthy of his incomparable, dear, lost mistress. A building it should be of perfect grace and beauty, more marvellous than any other building had ever been or could ever be, so that to the end of time it should be a wonder, and men would treasure it and speak of it and desire to see it and come from all the lands of the earth to visit and recall the name and the memory of his queen. And this building he said was to be called the Pearl of Love.

And this his councillors and people permitted him to do, and so he did.

Year followed year and all the years he devoted himself to building and adorning the Pearl of Love. A great foundation was hewn out of the living rock in a place whence one seemed to be looking at the snowy wilderness of the great mountain across the valley of the world. Villages and hills there were, a winding river, and very far away three great cities. Here they put the sarcophagus of alabaster beneath a pavilion of cunning workmanship; and about it there were set pillars of strange and lovely stone and wrought and fretted walls, and a great casket of masonry bearing a dome and pinnacles and cupolas, as exquisite as a jewel. At first the design of the Pearl of Love was less bold and subtle than it became later. At first it was smaller and more wrought and encrusted; there were many pierced screens and delicate clusters of rosy-hued pillars, and the sarcophagus lay like a child that sleeps among flowers. The first dome was covered with green tiles, framed and held together by silver, but this was taken away again because it seemed close, because it did not soar grandly enough for the broadening imagination of the prince.

For by this time he was no longer the graceful youth who had loved the girl queen. He was now a man, grave and intent, wholly set upon the building of the Pearl of Love. With every year of effort he had learnt new possibilities in arch and wall and buttress; he had acquired greater power over the material he had to use and he had learnt of a hundred stones and hues and effects that he could never have thought of in the beginning. His sense of colour had grown finer and colder; he cared no more for the enamelled gold-lined brightness that had pleased him first, the brightness of an illuminated missal; he sought now for blue colourings like the sky and for the subtle hues of great distances, for recondite shadows and sudden broad floods of purple opalescence and for grandeur and space. He wearied altogether of carvings and pictures and inlaid ornamentation and all the little careful work of men. "Those were pretty things," he said of his earlier decorations; and had them put aside into subordinate buildings where they would not hamper his main design. Greater and greater grew his artistry. With awe and amazement people saw the Pearl of Love sweeping up from its first beginnings to a superhuman breadth and height and magnificence. They did not know clearly what they had expected, but never had they expected so sublime a thing as this. "Wonderful are the miracles," they whispered, "that love can do," and all the women in the world, whatever other loves they had, loved the prince for the splendour of his devotion.

Through the middle of the building ran a great aisle, a vista, that the prince came to care for more and more. From the inner entrance of the building he looked along the length of an immense pillared gallery and across the central area from which the rose-hued columns had long since vanished, over the top of the pavilion under which lay the sarcophagus, through a marvellously designed opening, to the snowy wildernesses of the great mountain, the lord of all mountains, two hundred miles away. The pillars and arches and buttresses and galleries soared and floated on either side, perfect yet unobtrusive, like great archangels waiting in the shadows about the presence of God. When men saw that austere beauty for the first time they were exalted, and then they shivered and their hearts bowed down. Very often would the prince come to stand there and look at that vista, deeply moved and not yet fully satisfied. The Pearl of Love had still something for him to do, he felt, before his task was done. Always he would order some little alteration to be made or some recent alterations to be put back again. And one day he said that the sarcophagus would be clearer and simpler without the pavilion; and after regarding it very steadfastly for a long time, he had the pavilion dismantled and removed.

The next day he came and said nothing, and the next day and the next. Then for two days he stayed away altogether. Then he returned, bringing with him an architect and two master craftsmen and a small retinue.

All looked, standing together silently in a little group, amidst the serene vastness of their achievement. No trace of toil remained in its perfection. It was as if the God of nature's beauty had taken over their offspring to himself.

Only one thing there was to mar the absolute harmony. There was a certain disproportion about the sarcophagus. It had never been enlarged, and indeed how could it have been enlarged since the early days. It challenged the eye; it nicked the streaming lines. In that sarcophagus was the casket of lead and silver, and in the casket of lead and silver was the queen, the dear immortal cause of all this beauty. But now that sarcophagus seemed no more than a little dark oblong that lay incongruously in the great vista of the Pearl of Love. It was as if someone had dropped a small valise upon the crystal sea of heaven.

Long the prince mused, but no one knew the thoughts that passed through his mind.

At last he spoke. He pointed.

"Take that thing away," he said.


THE END

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Comment: I read this story more than ten years ago in its Chinese translation from a magazine "Reader". I remember I was quite shocked by the ending and felt that it was cruel but in an interesting way. Today when I re-read it, well, I suppose it's more cruel than interesting. Because sadly, I agree.

Full article obtained from Project Gutenberg Australia
http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks06/0601951h.html