Easy Reading

Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim
English Level 3
Student Name:
ID:
1. Red, White, and Blue
Tracy looked at the flag. The flag is red, white, and blue. It has 50 white stars. The
white stars are on a blue square. The flag has six white stripes. It has seven red
stripes. All the stripes are horizontal. They are not vertical. The stripes do not go
up and down. They go from left to right. Tracy loves her flag. It is the flag of her
country. It is a pretty flag. No other flag has 50 stars. No other flag has 13 stripes.
2. Try to Sleep
Norma went to bed. It was eleven o'clock. She turned out the light. She lay in
bed. It was dark. It was quiet. She couldn't sleep. She closed her eyes. She tried to
sleep, but she couldn't. She turned the light back on. She opened her book. She
started to read her book. It was a good book. She read one page. Then she read
another page. After a while, she felt sleepy. She closed the book. She turned out
the light. She closed her eyes. She went straight to sleep.
3. Washing Her Hands

Fay went into the bathroom. She turned on the cold water. She turned on the hot
water. Warm water came out of the faucet. She put her hands under the warm
water. She rubbed her hands together. She picked up a bar of white soap. She
rubbed the soap with her hands. She put the soap back. She washed her hands
for half a minute. Then she rinsed her hands with the water. She turned off the
hot water. She turned off the cold water. She dried her hands with a towel.
4. A Thin Man
Richard is a light eater. He doesn't eat much. He isn't a heavy eater. He eats a
light breakfast, a light lunch, and a light dinner. Richard is not fat. He is thin. He
will always be thin, because he is a light eater. He eats a bowl of cereal for
breakfast. He eats a bowl of cereal with milk. He eats a sandwich for lunch.
Sometimes it's a fish sandwich. He likes fish. He eats rice and vegetables for
dinner. All he eats for dinner is rice and vegetables. He will never get fat.
5. A Piece of Paper
Jimmy dropped a piece of paper on the floor. He bent over and picked it up. He
folded the piece of paper in two. He put it on the table. He picked up a pencil. He
wrote a phone number on the piece of paper. He put the pencil on the table. He
Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim Level 3 , Part 1

picked up the scissors. He picked up the piece of paper. He cut the paper in half.
He put one-half of the paper on the table. He put the other half with the phone
number in his shirt pocket. He put the scissors on the table.
6. Buy a New Car

Linda wants to buy a new car. She has an old car. Her old car is a white Honda.
Linda wants to buy a new Honda. She wants to buy a new red Honda. She has
saved $1,000. She will use $1,000 to help buy the new car. She will give $1,000 to
the Honda dealer. The Honda dealer will give her a contract to sign. The contract
will require her to pay $400 a month for seven years. Her new red Honda will cost
Linda a lot of money. But that's okay, because Linda makes a lot of money.
7. Water and an Apple

Susan likes to eat apples. She likes to eat big red apples. She likes to wear a blue
hat. She wears a big blue hat on her head. She wears a hat and eats an apple. She
drinks some water from a white cup. Susan drinks water and eats apples. She
doesn't cut the apple with a knife. A knife is sharp. She just eats the apple. She
holds the apple in her hand. She bites into the apple with her teeth. She licks her
lips. She drinks more water. She wipes her mouth with her hand.
8. Cold Weather
Thomas was not hot. He was not warm either. He was cold. The weather was not
hot. The weather was not warm either. The weather was cold. Thomas did not
like to be cold. He looked for his jacket. He found his jacket. He put on his jacket.
But he was still cold. He looked at the windows. Were all the windows closed?
Yes, they were. They were all closed. None of the windows were open. He looked
at the door. The door wasn't open. It was closed. He was still cold. He looked for
a warmer jacket.
9. A Shot in the Arm

Lucy went to the doctor. She didn't feel good. The doctor asked, "What's the
problem? What's the matter?" She said she didn't feel right. "Do you hurt?
Where do you hurt?" the doctor asked. She said that she hurt all over. She hurt
everywhere. She hurt all over her body. The doctor said, "You have a big
problem. I will fix your problem." The doctor gave Lucy a shot. He gave her a shot

in her left arm. "Do you feel better now?" he asked her. "No," she said, "now my
left arm hurts a lot."
10. Wants to Die

Frank is not an old man. He is only 61 years old. But he is dying. He is in the home
for old people. Nobody visits him. His wife doesn't visit him. She is already dead.
She died six months ago. She died in the street. She was crossing the street. A car
ran over her. Frank loves his wife. He got sick after she died. He never got better.
The doctor says that nothing is wrong with Frank's body. The doctor says that
Frank wants to die. The doctor is right. Frank does not want to live without his
wife.
11. In Love
Donna loved her husband. Her husband loved Donna. They were in love with
each other. She wanted to give him a birthday present. He was going to be 40
years old next week. She wondered what to give him. Should she give him a
watch? Should she give him a sweater? Should she give him a new guitar? What
should she give him? She asked him what he wanted for his birthday. He said he
didn't want anything for his birthday. "Oh, you must want something!" she said.
"You're right," he said. "I want your love forever."
12. A Storm
Laura looked out the window. A storm was coming. The sky was getting darker.
The wind was starting to blow. Some trees were bending. Leaves were flying
through the air. It was getting cold. She closed all the windows. She went outside.
Her car was in the street. She closed the windows in her car. She locked her car.
She went back into her house. She turned on the TV. She wanted to see the news
about the storm. The TV person said it was a big storm. He said it would rain a
lot. He told people to stay home.
13. New Shoes

Lisa loves to go shopping. Tomorrow she is going shopping. She needs a new pair
of shoes. She wants to buy a pair of red shoes. She thinks red shoes are pretty.
She will buy a pair of shoes at the mall. Lisa usually shops at the mall. The mall is
only a mile from her house. She just walks to the mall. It only takes her 20
minutes. Tomorrow she will go to four different shoe stores. Tomorrow is

Saturday. The mall always has sales on Saturday. If the sale price is good, Lisa
might buy two pairs of shoes.
14. Eggs and Apples

Emma went to the market. She needed to buy food. She needed brown eggs. She
opened a carton of brown eggs. She looked at the eggs. None of them were
cracked. None of them were broken. All the eggs were okay. She closed the
carton. She put the carton of eggs in her shopping cart. She needed red apples.
She looked at a bag of red apples. She looked for dark spots on the apples. She
looked for worm holes in the apples. She didn't see any dark spots or worm
holes. She put the bag of apples in her shopping cart.
15. Piano Player

Donald plays the piano. He loves the piano. He has a big piano in his living room.
His piano is shiny and black. It has three legs. He sits on a bench to play the piano.
The bench has four legs. His piano has 88 keys. The keys are black and white.
Donald has ten fingers. His ten fingers play music on the 88 piano keys. The piano
also has three pedals. Donald uses his two feet on the three pedals. He uses both
of his hands and both of his feet to play the piano. He also uses both of his eyes
to play the piano.
16. Work, Work

It was time for bed. Edward was very tired. He turned off the TV. He turned off
his computer. He turned off the dining room light. He went into the bathroom.
He brushed his teeth. He went into the bedroom. He put on his pajamas. He got
into bed. He put his head on the pillow. He pulled the blanket up to his shoulders.
He thought about all the work he had done that day. He thought about all the
work he had to do the next day. He closed his eyes. He thought about his
vacation in three months. That would be so nice.
17. Scrub the Floor

Andrew got down on his hands and knees. He put a dry sponge into the bucket.
The bucket was full of soapy water. He squeezed the sponge. He scrubbed the
kitchen floor. There were marks on the floor. There were spots on the floor.
There was old food on the floor. He scrubbed the floor clean. Then he took the
bucket into the bathroom. He poured the soapy water into the tub. The water

went down the drain. He turned on the shower. He rinsed the tub. He turned the
bucket over so it would dry. He washed his hands.
18. Write a Letter

Christopher wrote a letter to his sister. His sister lived in another city. His sister
did not have a computer. Neither did he. His sister didn't like to use the phone.
Neither did he. He wrote his sister a long letter. He told her the news in his life.
He told her that he had a new job. He told her that he had a new girlfriend. He
told her that he had a new car. He had lots of news for his sister. She would be
happy to read his letter. Then she would send him a letter. Her letter would have
lots of news, too.
19. No Job
Kimberly was not happy. She was sad. She needed a job. She asked everyone for
a job. Everyone told her no. No one had a job for her. She came home every day
and cried. How could she live without a job? She had only $1,000. After she spent
the $1,000, she would have no money. Then what would she do? She had
nowhere to go. She had no friends. She had no family. She was all alone. She was
very worried. She looked in the newspaper every day. She was ready to take any
job. If someone gave her a job, she would be so happy.
20. Start the Car

Bob pushed the button on the door handle. He pulled on the door handle. He
opened the car door. He got into the car. He sat down. He sat down in the
driver's seat. He sat down behind the steering wheel. Bob put the seat belt on.
He buckled the seat belt. The seat belt went across his chest. The seat belt went
across his lap. The seat belt kept him safe. He put his car key into the ignition.
The ignition was next to the steering wheel. The ignition starts a car. Bob turned
the car key in the ignition. The car started.
21. Fly Away

Greg took the pen out of his pants pocket. He took his keys out of his pants
pocket. He took his cell phone out of his pants pocket. He took his wallet out of
his pants pocket. He put everything into a plastic tray. He took his shoes off. Greg
was at the airport. He had to get on the airplane. But he had to pass through
security first. He passed through security. He put his pen and keys back into his

pocket. He put his cell phone and wallet back into his pocket. He put his shoes
back on his feet. He got on the airplane.
22. A Fast Driver

Brian has a fast car. He drives his car fast. He never gets a ticket. His car is too fast
for the police. They chase him, but they can't catch him. Brian always escapes
from the police. The police want to catch him. But their cars are too slow. Brian's
car is very fast. He likes to drive over 100 mph. When he sees the police, he
waves to the police. The police turn on their sirens. They turn on their red lights.
They chase after Brian. Brian speeds up. He passes all the other cars on the road.
He escapes from the police.
23. Go to Work
Patricia did not have much time. It was time to go to work. She did not want to
be late for work. She would lose her job if she was late. She finished her coffee.
She drank the last drop. She put the coffee cup in the kitchen sink. She turned on
the kitchen faucet. She poured water into the cup. She turned off the faucet. She
picked up her keys. The keys were on the kitchen table. She grabbed her gray
coat. Her gray coat was on the chair. The chair was next to the door. She walked
outside. She locked her door with her house key.
24. Melted Cheese

Steven was hungry. What could he eat? He looked in the refrigerator. He saw
some orange cheese. He saw some yellow butter. He knew what he would eat.
He would eat a melted cheese sandwich. He took the cheese and butter out of
the refrigerator. He buttered two slices of bread. He sliced the cheese and put it
between the two buttered slices. He heated the frying pan. He put the cheese
sandwich into the frying pan. After three minutes, he flipped the sandwich over.
After three more minutes, he put the melted cheese sandwich on a plate.
25. Drain Opener

Mike washed his hands. He washed his hands with soap and water. He brushed
his teeth. He brushed his teeth with toothpaste and water. He turned off the
water. The sink was full of water. The water did not go down the drain. The water
stayed in the sink. What was the matter? Why didn't the water go down the
drain? Mike waited and waited. The water didn't go anywhere. It sat in the sink.

Mike opened a bottle of liquid Drain Opener. He poured the Drain Opener into
the sink. Mike waited one minute. Then all the water went down the drain.
26. A Clean Floor

Ed looked at the kitchen floor. The kitchen floor was dirty. There were little
pieces of food on the floor. Ed saw bread crumbs. He saw cracker crumbs. He saw
cheese crumbs. He saw little pieces of bread. He saw little pieces of cracker. He
saw little pieces of cheese. He needed to sweep the floor. Ed didn't want bugs in
his kitchen. Bugs like to eat little pieces of food. He took the broom out of the
kitchen closet. He took the dust pan out of the kitchen closet. Ed swept the floor.
He swept all the pieces of food into the dust pan.
27. Trash Day

Jennifer pulled the trash can out to the street. She pulled the trash can out to the
street on Monday morning. Monday was trash day. The trash truck came to her
house. The truck had a metal arm. The metal arm picked up the trash can. It
raised the trash can into the sky. It emptied the trash can into the truck. Then the
arm put the can back on the street. On Monday afternoon Jennifer walked out to
the street. The trash can was empty. She pulled the trash can back into her yard.
Next Monday she would pull it out to the street again.
28. Questions
When does Ronald eat breakfast? He eats breakfast in the morning. What does
he eat for breakfast? He eats ham and eggs. What does he drink for breakfast?
He drinks coffee. Where does he eat breakfast? He eats breakfast at home. Who
makes breakfast for Ronald? His wife makes breakfast for him. Why does Ronald
eat breakfast? Because food gives him energy. What does he do after he eats
breakfast? He brushes his teeth. What does he do after he brushes his teeth? He
goes to work. Which bus does he take to work? He takes the city bus to work.
29. No More Apartment

Jerry has no job any more. He has a little money. But he does not have enough
money for rent. He cannot pay his rent. He has to move out of his apartment. He
will move out next week. He will move into his car. He will put all his clothes into
his car. He will put his pillows and blankets into his car. He will sleep in his car. He
will look for another job. After next week he will not be able to take a shower. He

will have to use a public bathroom. He won't be able to drive his car. He won't
have money for gas. Jerry needs help.
30. Fresh Fish

Mike was ready for bed. It was 11 o'clock. He had to get up early the next day.
The next day he was going fishing. Fish wake up early. They look for food early in
the day. They look for food late in the day. The best time to fish is early or late in
the day. That is when the fish are hungry. Mike set his alarm. He set his alarm for
5 o'clock. The next day he would start fishing at 6 o'clock. He wanted to catch
four or five fish. If he caught four or five fish, he could eat fresh fish all week.
Fresh fish is the best fish. Mike went to bed.
31. The Shoe Shine

Danny looked at his brown shoes. They looked old and dirty. They needed a
shine. It was time to shine his brown shoes. He got a rag. He got a shoe brush. He
got a can of polish. He opened the can of polish. He put the rag around his finger.
He scooped out a bit of polish with his finger. He rubbed the polish all over the
left shoe. He brushed the left shoe. He brushed it and brushed it. The shoe began
to shine. It looked like a new shoe. Then Danny put polish on the right shoe. He
brushed the right shoe until it looked like a new shoe.
32. A Farmer
A farmer owns a lot of land. He grows food on that land. He grows the food from
seeds. He plants seeds into the land. The seeds grow into corn. The seeds grow
into wheat. The seeds need water. The seeds need sunlight. A farmer owns a
tractor. He drives the tractor on his land. A farmer has many animals. He has pigs.
He has cows. He has sheep. He has chickens. He has dogs and cats. He has
rabbits. When it rains, the farmer goes into his house. The animals go into the
barn. A farmer works hard. His animals don't work hard. They just eat and sleep.
33. A Place to Eat

Jenna was at the airport. She was waiting for her plane. Her plane would leave at
7 p.m. It was only 2 p.m. She had time to eat. She had time to study. She went to
the airport restaurant. The restaurant was on the third floor. The restaurant was
full. There were no empty seats. There were no empty tables. She didn't want to
stand in line. She didn't want to wait. There was another restaurant in the

airport. It was on the first floor. She went down to the first floor. That restaurant
was almost empty. There were many seats and many tables.
34. Wash the Clothes

Pat looked at the washer. The washer had dials on it. It had two dials on it. There
were words next to each dial. Each dial had three words next to it. The words
next to one dial were Small, Medium, and Large. This dial was for the size of the
load. Did Pat have a small load, a medium load, or a large load? The words next
to the other dial were Cold, Warm, and Hot. Did Pat want to wash her clothes in
cold water, warm water, or hot water? Pat turned one dial to Large, and the
other dial to Hot. Then she pushed the Start button on the washer.
35. Bad Boy

Deborah was angry at her son. Her son didn't listen to her. Her son was 16 years
old. Her son thought he knew everything. Her son yelled at Deborah. He told her
he didn't have to do anything. He didn't have to listen to her. He didn't have to go
to school. He didn't have to do his homework. He didn't have to study. He was
16. He could do anything he wanted to do. What could Deborah do? She wasn't
married. She was divorced. She could not control her son. He would listen to his
father. But his father was not there. His father lived in another city.
36. Fresh Salad

Margaret made a fresh salad. She peeled a yellow banana. She peeled a red
apple. She peeled a green cucumber. She peeled an orange carrot. She peeled a
brown potato. She peeled a white onion. She peeled a white egg. She chopped
everything up with a sharp knife. She chopped everything into little pieces. She
used her sharp knife to chop up the banana, apple, cucumber, carrot, potato,
onion, and egg. She chopped up a tomato. She put all the little pieces into a bowl.
She opened a bottle of salad dressing. She poured salad dressing on her fresh
salad.
37. Losing Weight

Kevin wanted to lose weight. He was getting fat. His stomach was getting bigger.
He was gaining weight. He was gaining one pound every week. He had to buy
new pants. He didn't fit into his old pants. He couldn't see his feet anymore.
When he looked down, all he could see was his big fat belly. He wanted his belly

to disappear. How could he do that? How could he lose weight? What could he
do? He talked to his wife. She told him to stop eating candy. She told him to stop
eating cake. She told him to walk up and down the big hill every day.
38. Cancer
Paula has cancer. She has six months to live. Her doctors cannot help her. No one
can help her. She smoked cigarettes for 30 years. She did not want to stop
smoking cigarettes. She liked to smoke cigarettes. The doctors told her to stop
smoking many years ago. She didn't listen to them. She didn't listen to her
parents. She didn't listen to her children. She didn't listen to her friends.
Everyone told her to stop smoking. She told everyone to stop worrying about her.
She would be fine, she told them. She still smokes every day. Why not, she asks.
39. His Leg Hurts

There was something wrong with his leg. It burned. But it burned in one spot
only. He didn't know what was wrong. The spot was smaller than a dime. It was
on the back of his leg. He picked up a hand mirror. He used the hand mirror to
look at the back of his leg. He saw a small lump. He put his finger on the lump.
The lump was hard. It wasn't a soft lump. The lump felt like a small stone. It was
like a small stone under his skin. But it was like a small stone that was on fire. It
burned. Something was wrong. He needed to see a doctor.
40. Patty's Doll

Patty got a doll for Christmas. It is her favorite doll. It is a rag doll. It has a yellow
dress. It has a blue blouse. The name of the doll is Molly. Molly has bright red
hair. She has red lips. She has blue eyes. She has a pink ribbon in her hair. Molly is
wearing red shoes. She's wearing white socks. Molly has a purse. Her purse is
pink. The purse is empty. There is nothing in the purse. There was a little mirror
in the purse. But Patty lost the mirror. When she lost the mirror, she said, "I'm
sorry, Molly. I will get you another mirror."
41. Eight Babies

The woman had eight babies at one time. She was famous. Nobody could believe
it. It was a world record. How could anyone have eight babies at one time? Her
doctor had given her special drugs. The special drugs made her have eight babies.
She was happy to have eight babies. "I grew up all alone," she told the reporters.

"I did not like being alone. I decided that I would have many babies when I grew
up. So now I have many babies. I am so happy. I am a lucky woman to have eight
babies. I will love them all, and they will all love me."
42. A Loud Radio

Brent was at the stop light. His car radio was on. The music was very loud. Brent
liked to listen to loud music in his car. A police car pulled up next to Brent. The
policeman looked at Brent. He shouted, "Pull over to the side of the road." Brent
said, "What?" The policeman said, "Pull over to the side of the road." Brent
pulled over to the side of the road. The policeman said, "Do you know why I am
giving you a ticket?" Brent said, "You are giving me a ticket? Why are you giving
me a ticket?" The policeman said, "Because your radio is too loud."
43. Two Aspirin

Lois has a headache. The headache started one hour ago. She doesn't know why
she has a headache. She never gets headaches. She never gets sick. Lois is a
healthy woman. Where did her headache come from? Was it something she ate?
Was it something she drank? She doesn't know. She wants her headache to go
away. She does not like to take medicine. But her head hurts so much. She went
into her bathroom. She opened the medicine cabinet. She found some aspirin.
She took two aspirin with a glass of water. Maybe the aspirin will help her
headache go away.
44. News Every Day

Jackie loves the news. She listens to the news on the radio. She watches the news
on TV. She reads the news in the newspaper. She reads the news in magazines.
She loves the news because it is always new. It is always fresh. It is always
interesting. There is news every day. There is news in every country. There is
news in every state. There is news in every city. Everyone all over the world talks
about the news every day. But Jackie has a question about the news. Why is the
news usually bad? Why isn't the news usually good? No one knows the answer.
45. Poor Dog

Jason looked at his watch. It was time for his favorite TV show. He turned on the
TV. He sat down in his chair. But then he heard his dog. His dog was scratching at
the door. Oh, no, Jason thought. The dog wanted to go out. The dog had to go to

the bathroom. If he lived in a house, he could let the dog go out the door and
into the yard. But he lived in an apartment. He didn't have a yard. He had to take
the dog for a walk. But if he took the dog for a walk, he would miss his favorite TV
show. The dog scratched at the door again. Jason turned off the TV.
46. Drunk Driver

Rodney's uncle is in jail. He went to jail because he was drunk. He was driving his
car. He was going the wrong way on a one-way street. He almost hit three other
cars. Someone called 911. A police car chased Rodney. The police car turned on
its red light. The red light was bright. The police car turned on its siren. The siren
was loud. Rodney did not pull over. He did not stop his car. Finally, he went off
the road. He ran into a tree. He got out of his car. He was okay. His car was not
okay. The policeman said, "You are drunk. I'm taking you to jail."
47. The Runner

Betty's doctor told her to exercise more. So she began running. She enjoys
running. She runs almost every day. She runs two miles a day. On the weekend
she runs five miles. She runs up hills. She runs down hills. She runs in the street
and on the sidewalk. She runs on trails. She runs in the heat and the cold. She
runs on sunny days and rainy days. Betty will run in the marathon next week.
Next week will be her first marathon. A marathon is 26 miles. She will run for
three hours without stopping. She won't try to win the marathon. She will try to
finish it.
48. A Paper Clip

Jim had two separate sheets of paper. He wanted to put the two sheets of paper
together. He did not want to glue them together. He did not want to use glue. He
did not want to staple them together. He did not want to use a staple. What did
Jim want to use? He wanted to use a paper clip. He wanted to put the two sheets
of paper together with a paper clip. He picked up a paper clip. It was a metal
paper clip. It was a silver paper clip. Jim put the silver metal paper clip on both
sheets of paper. Now the sheets of paper were together. They were not separate.
49. Dead Batteries

Helen turned on her flashlight. Nothing happened. The light did not come on.
There was no light. What was wrong with her flashlight? She unscrewed the top

of the plastic flashlight. Helen took the two batteries out of the plastic tube. She
looked at the two batteries. They were "D batteries. They looked okay. They did
not look bad. But maybe they were dead batteries. She opened a package of new
batteries. She put two new "D batteries into the plastic tube. Helen screwed the
top back onto the plastic flashlight. She turned on her flashlight. The light
worked!
50. Write a Check

Sandra wrote a check to her gas company. On one line she wrote "May 17, 2009."
On the next line she wrote "The Gas Company." On another line she wrote
$35.66." On another line she wrote "Thirty-five and 66/100." On another line she
wrote "Monthly Gas Bill." On another line she signed her name. Then she put the
check into an envelope. She also put the gas bill into the envelope. She licked the
envelope and sealed it. She put her return address on the front of the envelope.
She put a 44-cent stamp on the front of the envelope. She put the envelope in
the mailbox.
51. Sally's Cold

Sally had a cold. Her nose was red. She pulled a tissue out of the tissue box. She
blew her nose. She threw the tissue into the trash. She looked at her fingernails.
Her fingernails were too long. She needed to cut her nails. She opened her purse.
She took her nail clippers out of the purse. She clipped all the nails on her left
hand. Then she clipped all the nails on her right hand. She looked at both of her
hands. Now her nails were nice and short. She put her nail clipper back in her
purse. She pulled another tissue out of the box. She blew her nose again.
52. Too Much Stuff

He had to clean out his apartment. There was so much to clean out. He had
hundreds of books. What was he going to do with them? He couldn't keep all of
them. He was moving to a smaller apartment. There was no room for all his
books in his new apartment. There was no room for his bicycle. What was he
going to do with his bicycle? He had a big TV. The TV was too big for his new
apartment. What was he going to do with his big TV? He called up his brother.
"Do you want my books, my bike, and my TV?" he asked. His brother said, "You
should have a yard sale."

53. Clean the Apartment
Kenneth cleaned his apartment. He emptied the trash. He washed the dirty
dishes. He looked in his bathroom. The sink and bathtub were dirty. He scrubbed
the sink and bathtub. He looked in his bedroom. Clothes were on the floor. He
picked up the clothes. He put the shirts on hangers. He folded the pants. He put
the pants in the dresser. He washed the dirty clothes. He looked in his living
room. Papers were on the floor. Books and newspapers and magazines were on
the floor. He picked them all up. He put them on the book shelves. Then he
vacuumed his whole apartment.
54. A New Baby

Ruth is pregnant. She is expecting a baby. The baby is due in two months. The
baby is a boy. It is her first boy. She already has a little girl. Her little girl is two
years old. Ruth loves her little girl. Her little girl is happy to get a baby brother.
Ruth is eating for two people right now. She is very careful about what she eats
and drinks. She eats a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables. She eats fresh fish twice a
week. She doesn't drink alcohol or coffee. She doesn't eat candy or potato chips.
She stays away from cigarette smokers. She will have a healthy baby.
55. No Flu Shot for Her

She was a nurse. It was flu season. But she didn't get a flu shot. All the other
nurses got a flu shot. All the doctors got a flu shot. But she didn't get a flu shot.
Flu shots made her sick. She got a flu shot when she was a little girl. The flu shot
made her very sick. She spent a week in the hospital. Then she came home. She
spent three weeks in bed. She was sick for about a month. After that, no more flu
shots for her. She never got a flu shot again. She never got the flu, either. "I never
get a flu shot, but I never get the flu," she told her friend.
56. No Energy
Carol felt tired. She felt tired all the time. She didn't use to feel tired. She used to
have a lot of energy. Why was she so tired all the time? "You should eat more
sugar," her friend told her. "Sugar will give you energy." But Carol didn't want to
eat more sugar. More sugar would give her more weight. She didn't want to put
on weight. She wanted to have energy again. She finally decided to see a doctor.
Her doctor told her that she had a thyroid problem. "What is a thyroid?" she

asked her doctor. "It can make you feel very tired. But don't worry, I can fix it," he
told her.
57. Flying Saucer

His dad liked to fly balloons. His dad bought big balloons and filled them with
helium. Helium is a gas. It is a gas that makes balloons float into the sky. One day
his dad brought home a new balloon. He took it out of the box. He took it
outside. He tied the balloon to spikes with ropes. The spikes were in the ground.
The ropes and spikes kept the balloon on the ground. He filled the balloon with
helium. He asked Junior what the new balloon looked like. "It looks like a flying
saucer!" said Junior. "It looks like a real flying saucer! Is there an alien inside?"
58. More Milk

Liz looked at the round plastic container. The plastic container was empty. There
was no milk in the container. Liz wanted to drink some milk. But she was out of
milk. She needed to make more milk. She opened the cabinet. She grabbed a box
of powdered milk. She opened the box. She took the lid off the round plastic
container. Liz poured some powder into the container. She filled up the container
with cold water. She put the lid back on the container. Liz shook the container
hard. She shook it and shook it. She poured some cold milk into a glass. She drank
the cold milk in the glass.
59. A Simple Salad

George is going to make a salad. He is going to make a simple salad. It will be a
simple salad, but it will also be delicious. His salad will have only two ingredients.
One ingredient is fresh cucumber. A cucumber is dark green and long. George will
peel the skin off the cucumber. He will throw the skin in the trash. He won't eat
the skin. He will slice the cucumber into little pieces. Each piece will be about the
size of a nickel. He will put all the pieces into a big bowl. Then he will pour salad
dressing on the pieces in the big bowl. That's it—a cucumber, and salad dressing.
60. More Milk

Liz looked at the round plastic container. The plastic container was empty. There
was no milk in the container. Liz wanted to drink some milk. But she was out of
milk. She needed to make more milk. She opened the cabinet. She grabbed a box

of powdered milk. She opened the box. She took the lid off the round plastic
container. Liz poured some powder into the container. She filled up the container
with cold water. She put the lid back on the container. Liz shook the container
hard. She shook it and shook it. She poured some cold milk into a glass. She drank
the cold milk in the glass.
61. A Simple Salad

George is going to make a salad. He is going to make a simple salad. It will be a
simple salad, but it will also be delicious. His salad will have only two ingredients.
One ingredient is fresh cucumber. A cucumber is dark green and long. George will
peel the skin off the cucumber. He will throw the skin in the trash. He won't eat
the skin. He will slice the cucumber into little pieces. Each piece will be about the
size of a nickel. He will put all the pieces into a big bowl. Then he will pour salad
dressing on the pieces in the big bowl. That's it—a cucumber, and salad dressing.
62. I'll Call You at 7:00

Carol and Mary are friends. Carol said she would call Mary at 7 o'clock. Carol
didn't call at 7:00. She didn't call at 7:15. She finally called at 7:30. She apologized
for calling so late. Mary said it was ok. But it wasn't ok. Mary didn't like people to
lie. This wasn't the first time Carol had lied. This was the fourth time Carol had
lied. Mary did not trust Carol. Carol would never be her best friend. A best friend
tells the truth. A best friend doesn't lie. A best friend does not call late. A best
friend does not arrive late. A best friend is always on time.
63. Money in the Bank

Randy went to the bank. He needed money from the bank. The bank has all of
Randy's money. The bank keeps Randy's money safe. Randy cannot keep his
money at home. Someone might steal his money. He can't hide his money in his
back yard. A dog might find his money and eat it. He can't hide his money in a
tree. A bird might fly away with his money. Some people hide their money under
their bed. Some people hide their money in their refrigerator. But that is not safe.
Someone will look under the bed or in the refrigerator. The best place for people
to keep money is in the bank.
64. Sleep in the Car

He had very little money. It was cold outside. It was winter. But he was inside. He
was inside his apartment. Right now he was okay, because he was inside his
apartment. But next month he would not be okay. Next month he would be
outside his apartment. He had lost his job. He couldn't pay his rent. He had called
his landlord. He asked his landlord if he could stay an extra month for free. His
landlord said no. His landlord said, "If you can't pay the rent, you must go."
Where could he go? He would sleep in his car. But a car is a cold place in the
winter. He was very sad.
65. How Rude

Helen is unhappy with her mother. Her mother is unhappy with Helen. They are
both unhappy with each other. Helen has a boyfriend. His name is Peter. Her
mother doesn't like Peter. Her mother said that Peter is rude. Why did she say
that? Because Peter didn't take his hat off in the house. Helen's mother says that
is rude. A man should take his hat off in the house. "Your father always took his
hat off in the house," Helen's mother said. "But, Mom, times are different now,"
Helen said. "I promise you, Peter will take his hat off next time." Helen's mother
said it was too late—rude is rude.
66. Get Your Flu Shot

It is flu season. You must be careful. It is very easy to catch the flu. You should
wash your hands often. You should get a flu shot. A flu shot will help protect you.
But there is a problem with a flu shot. The problem is the needle. The nurse will
stick a needle in your arm. Your arm will be sore for a day. Maybe two days.
Nobody likes to have a sore arm. But which is worse—a sore arm, or a sore body?
A sore body is worse than a sore arm. Do you want your arm to hurt, or do you
want your whole body to hurt? Your body will hurt for a week. Maybe it will hurt
for two weeks.
67. Eat Like a Wolf

She was a fast eater. She liked to eat fast. She ate like a wolf. "I am like a wolf,"
she said. He was a slow eater. He liked to eat slow. He ate like a turtle. "You are
like a turtle," she said. She didn't talk at the dinner table. All she did was eat. He
liked to talk at the dinner table. He talked about the news. He talked about the
weather. He talked about sports. She listened to him talk. She nodded her head.

That meant yes. She shook her head. That meant no. He talked. She listened. She
never said yes. She never said no. She never said anything. All she did was eat.
68. Red Spots

He looked in the mirror. What were all those red spots on his face? Every
morning he had fresh red spots on his face. Were they insect bites? Were insects
biting him at night? What were those red spots? They would usually disappear in
a few hours. Then his face would look normal. It would look like a normal face. It
would have no red spots. But every morning, he had an ugly face. All those red
spots! What was happening at night? Was it his pillow? Was something in his
pillow? Was something in his pillow making the red spots? He would buy a new
pillow. Maybe his pillow was the problem.
69. The Homeless Man

He was homeless. He was cold. He was shivering. He was in the park. He was
sitting on a bench. A sign was next to him. The sign said, "Please hire me. I am
homeless." People walked by. They looked at him. He looked dirty. He looked old.
How could this man work? He was too old to work. He was too dirty to work. He
needed a bath. He needed some food. One lady stopped. She sat down next to
him. She said she belonged to a church. She said to come with her. They both got
up. He walked with her to the church. The church was warm. He smelled hot
food. She said, "Our church will help you."
70. Soccer
Soccer is a fun game. It is very popular. It is popular all over the world. It is fun to
watch. It is fun to play. It is a simple game. There are two teams. They play on a
big grassy field. There is one ball. There are two goals with nets. Each team tries
to kick the ball into the other team's net. The players cannot use their hands.
They cannot touch the ball with their hands. They use their feet to move the ball.
They use their chests to move the ball. They use their heads to move the ball. The
players run back and forth. They slide on the grass. They crash into one another.
They play to win.
71. They Want a Baby

She wanted to have a baby. She wanted to have a baby girl. He wanted to have a
baby. He wanted to have a baby boy. He loved her. He said, "Okay, we will have a

baby girl." She loved him. She said, "Okay, we will have a baby boy." They both
loved each other. They both wanted to make each other happy. He talked to his
parents. He asked them what to do. She talked to her parents. She asked them
what to do. His parents said, "No problem. Have two babies. Have a baby girl and
a baby boy." Her parents said the same thing! So they had two babies. They had a
baby girl. Then they had a baby boy.
72. Happy New Year, or Not?
It was New Year's Day. He lived in Las Vegas. He drove over to a casino. He
walked over to a roulette table. He bought one chip for $100. He flipped a coin.
He caught the coin. It was heads. He put the $100 chip on red. The dealer spun
the roulette wheel. The wheel went round and round. The dealer pushed the
silver ball. The ball went round and round. The wheel slowed down. The ball
slowed down. The ball dropped into a red slot. He won! The dealer gave him a
$100 chip. He gave the dealer a $10 tip. He cashed in both his chips. He went
home. He felt good. It was going to be a good year.
73. Do You Want It or Not?

She offered her car to her brother. He said he would think about it. "Let me think
about it," he said. She called him up a week later. "Do you want my car for free?"
she asked. He said, "I'm thinking about it." She asked, "How long do you have to
think about it?" He said he didn't know. "Let me think about it some more," he
said. She called up a charity. She said, "Do you want my car for free?" The man at
the charity said yes. She asked, "You don't have to think about it?" He said, "No, I
don't have to think about it. Who has to think about a free car?" He picked up her
car the next day.
74. A Wheelchair
Bill stole a wheelchair. The wheelchair did not belong to him. It belonged to
someone else. The wheelchair belonged to Jenny. Jenny could not walk very far.
She got tired very fast. It was her wheelchair. Jenny was inside her house. Her
wheelchair was on the front porch. Bill saw the wheelchair on the front porch. He
looked around. Nobody was around. He walked up to the front porch. Bill
grabbed the wheelchair. He pushed it in front of him. He pushed the wheelchair
to his home. He opened the door to his home. Bill pushed the wheelchair into his
home. "Look, Grandma," he said, "I brought you a new wheelchair."

75. Let Me Drive
Davy was 10. His dad was driving the car. The radio was on. His dad was listening
to the radio. The man on the radio was talking about an accident. The accident
was on the freeway. Two people were dead. The accident had just happened 30
minutes ago. His dad told him that life can be short. Accidents happen
everywhere. They happen to everyone. "You must always be careful, Davy," his
dad said. "Never be in a hurry. Always pay attention to other drivers." Davy said
he would be a careful driver. He would never be in a hurry. He would always pay
attention. "Can I drive the car now?" he asked his dad.
76. Where's My Money?

Jack was angry. Joe owed him money. Joe owed him $100. Joe had borrowed
$100 a month ago. He had borrowed the money 30 days ago. He said he would
pay Jack back the next week. He said that he would pay Jack back in seven days.
But he didn't pay Jack back in seven days. He didn't pay Jack back in 14 days, or
21 days, or 28 days. After 30 days, Jack was very angry. He called up Joe. "You
owe me $100. You borrowed $100 from me 30 days ago. Where is my money? I
want my money now," Jack said. Joe said, "Oh, I'm so sorry. You're right. I
borrowed $100 from you. I owe you $100. Can I pay you back next week?"
77. It's Not the Money

The brothers don't speak to each other. They had a fight. They had a fight a long
time ago. The fight was about money. Money can make people happy. Money
can make people unhappy. Money can bring people together. Money can tear
people apart. It doesn't take a lot of money to tear people apart. Sometimes it
takes only a little money. The two brothers were angry about $100. Only $100.
But they both said, "It's not the money. It's the principle." A principle is a way of
life. To tell the truth is a principle. To work hard is a principle. But both brothers
lied. It wasn't the principle. It was the money.
78. Meet Halfway

He stopped at the motel. It was late at night. It was almost midnight. He asked
the motel clerk, "Do you have a vacant room?" She said she had a vacant room.
He asked how much it was. She said it was $100 for the night. "But the night is
half over," he said. "Can I pay half price for the room?" She said yes. "But there is
one condition," she said. "If we only get half, you only get half. You must sleep on

only one-half of the bed. You can use only one of the two pillows. The bathroom
has hot and cold water faucets. You can use only one faucet. The cable TV has
100 channels. You can watch only 50 channels."
79. God Wants Good People

God takes good people to heaven. He wants good people to be with Him. He
leaves bad people on Earth. He doesn't want bad people near Him. He lets them
do bad things on Earth. When they die, He sends them to the devil. The devil
makes them work every day. They work next to a big fire. They are always right
next to the fire. They are always hot from the fire. They carry coal. The devil
makes them carry heavy buckets of black coal. They carry the coal to the fire.
They pour the coal on the big fire. Then they refill the big buckets with more coal.
They never get a drink of water. They never get to rest.
80. Earthquake
Michelle felt the earthquake. It lasted for only five seconds. The whole house
shook. She heard noise. The TV went off. The lights went off. She was scared. She
had never felt an earthquake. It was very strong. It was as if a giant hand had
shaken her house. The lights came back on. Michelle turned the TV on. The TV
had no news about the earthquake. She turned on the radio. The radio said it was
a 4.7 earthquake. But there was no damage. No one was hurt. Everyone was
okay. No houses had damage. Everything was okay. But Michelle was still scared.
She wanted to move far away. She did not like earthquakes. They were so scary.
81. A Patient Mom

May called her mom. Her mom lived in China. China was far away. Her mom was
50 years old. Her mom had many friends. But she missed her daughter. May lived
in America. She was a waitress. She was a waitress in a restaurant. It was a
Chinese restaurant. "Guess what, Mama?" May asked. "I met a nice man." Her
mom said she was happy. "Will you marry him?" she asked. She wanted May to
marry. She wanted a grandson. She wanted a granddaughter. She wanted May to
bring her children back to China. "Be patient," May said. "I only met him last
month. But he's very nice." Her mom said, "Okay, I will be patient. But hurry up!"

82. He Will Work for Gas
Doug went to the gas station. "Can I have a job?" he asked. The owner said,
"Maybe you can have a job. Can you count money? Can you put gas in a car?"
"Yes," said Doug. "I can count money. I can put gas in a car. So, can I have a job?"
"There is just one problem," said the owner. "I cannot pay you with money." "You
cannot pay me with money?" asked Doug. "What good is that? What will you pay
me with—bananas?" "No," said the owner. "I won't pay you with bananas. You
aren't a monkey, are you? No, I will pay you with gasoline. I have lots of
gasoline." "It's a deal. My car uses lots of gasoline," said Doug.
83. Eat a Peanut

Sandra picked up the bag of peanuts. It was a bag of roasted peanuts. She
opened the bag. She poured out some roasted peanuts onto the table. There
were about eight peanuts on the table. The peanuts were still in their shells. Each
peanut was in its shell. Sandra picked up a peanut. She held it in her hands. She
put her thumbs on the peanut. She broke the shell open with her thumbs. Sandra
opened the shell. Inside the shell were two little red peanuts. Each peanut had
red skin on it. Thin red skin covered both little peanuts. She took a little red
peanut out of the shell. Sandra ate the little peanut with the red skin on it.
84. A Beautiful Jacket

He loved his new jacket. It was his favorite jacket. He loved the color. It was tan.
He loved the weight. It was medium weight. It was not too light. It was not too
heavy. He loved the fit. It fit him well. He put the jacket on. He looked at the
jacket in the mirror. It looked good. What a good-looking jacket, he thought. He
went to the doctor's office. The office was warm. He took his jacket off. He put it
on the chair next to him. A nurse called his name. He stood up. He went to the
examination room. He forgot that his jacket was on the chair. But it wasn't on the
chair for long. Another patient took it home.
85. Who's There?

He was talking on the phone. The phone was on the table in the dining room. He
was talking to his friend. They were talking about the weather. It was raining.
There was a knock on his door. Someone was knocking on his door. He went to
the door. He opened the door. No one was there. He went back to the phone.
The doorbell rang. Someone was ringing his doorbell. He went to the door. He

opened the door. No one was there. He went back to the phone. There was
another knock on his door. He kept talking. The doorbell rang again. He kept
talking. Fool me once, shame on you, he thought. Fool me twice, shame on me,
he thought.
86. Will He Marry Me?

She walked along the sidewalk. She wasn't paying attention. She was thinking
about her boyfriend. He made her angry. He said he didn't want to marry her
now. He wanted to marry her later. She wanted to get married now. She didn't
want to get married later. Why didn't he want to marry her now? Maybe he
didn't want to marry her later, either. Maybe he didn't want to marry her ever.
Maybe he wanted to meet someone else. Maybe he wanted to marry someone
else. She walked straight into a bench. She hurt her leg. Her leg started bleeding.
She sat down on the bench. Her leg hurt so much. She tried to stop the bleeding.
87. Hole in the Wall

The bathroom wall had a nail in it. He pulled the nail out of the wall. It was a big
nail. When he pulled the nail out, a hole was in the wall. It was a big hole. He
wanted to repair the hole. He went to Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart has everything for
sale. Wal-Mart is a very popular store. He asked a clerk, "How can I fix a nail hole
in my bathroom wall?" The clerk said it was very simple. A nail hole was easy to
fix. "Just buy this tube of Nail Hole Filler. Then squeeze it into the hole," the clerk
said. He took the filler home. He squeezed it into the hole. He let the filler dry
overnight. The next day, there was no hole!
88. A Clean Car

He had a beautiful car. It was a Cadillac. It was a 1993 Cadillac. It was a four-door
Cadillac. It was light brown. It had a big engine. The big engine didn't leak oil. The
big engine didn't leak water. He drove his car only five miles a day. He took good
care of his car. He washed it every week. He washed it by himself. He washed it
with dishwashing soap and water. He dried it with paper towels. He vacuumed
inside the car every week. He vacuumed it with a small vacuum cleaner. The
outside of his car was clean. The inside of his car was clean. He never ate
anything inside his car. He never drank anything inside his car.

89. A Lot of Cash
She was sitting in a bar. She was drinking beer. She was getting drunk. She started
to talk. She started to talk too much. She talked about her cash. She talked about
a lot of cash. She had thousands of dollars in her purse. She said she had $20,000
in her purse. She said it out loud. Everyone in the bar heard her. Everyone looked
at her. She took some cash out of her purse. She held the money in the air.
"Look," she said, "here's $1,000 cash." She waved it around. She laughed. She put
the money back in her purse. She had another beer. A man was watching her.
She finished her beer. She left the bar. He followed her.
90. The Mayor Is Late

The mayor was in a hurry. He was late. He drove his car faster. He didn't want to
miss his plane. The traffic light was red. He went through the red traffic light. I'm
glad no police are around, he thought. He heard a siren. He saw a red light
behind him. The red light was on top of a police car. The mayor didn't stop. He
was in a hurry. He was late. He was the mayor. He drove his car faster. The police
car followed the mayor. It followed the mayor to the airport. The mayor got out
of his car. The policeman got out of his car. "You're under arrest," he said. "You
can't arrest me. I'm the mayor," said the mayor.
91. They Deliver

He called up the post office. "Where is my package?" he asked. "What is the
tracking number?" the postal worker asked. He told her the tracking number. She
said, "Your package is at the main post office. You can pick it up anytime." He
said, "I don't want to pick it up. Can you deliver it?" She said yes. "We will deliver
it on Monday," she said. "Will you be home?" He said, "What time on Monday?"
She said, "Anytime between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m." He said, "I have to work. I can't
stay home all day." She said, "That's okay. We can deliver it on Tuesday." He said,
"I have to work on Tuesday, too. Please deliver it on Saturday."
92. From Hot to Hot

The days were hot. The nights were hot. He turned on the living room fan. He
turned on the dining room fan. Both fans were on high speed. They made a lot of
noise. But they didn't blow cool air. They blew hot air. They blew hot air
everywhere. He turned off the fans. He turned on the air conditioner. He closed

all the windows. He closed the front door. The apartment began to cool down. It
got cooler and cooler. Then he heard a bang. It was a loud bang. He thought a
plane had crashed onto the roof. But it wasn't a plane. It was the air conditioner
compressor. It had broken down. He opened the door. He opened the windows.
93. Always Eating

Jane called Lisa. Lisa said she was eating. She was eating dinner. Lisa asked Jane
to call her back. Jane said she would call Lisa back. She called Lisa back the next
day. Lisa said she was eating. She was eating lunch. Lisa asked Jane to call her
back. Jane said she would call Lisa back. She called Lisa back the next day. Lisa
said she was eating. She was eating breakfast. Lisa asked Jane to call her back.
Jane said she would call Lisa back. The next day Jane called Lisa back. Lisa was
eating. She was eating a snack. Lisa asked Jane to call her back. Jane said, "No.
You call me back. You call me back when you aren't eating."
94. Fun at the Beach

He was bored. He wanted to do something fun. He wanted to do something fun
with his friend. He called up his friend. "I'm bored. Let's do something fun!" he
said. His friend said, "That sounds great. I'm glad you called. I'm bored, too. What
do you want to do?" He said he wanted to go to the beach. His friend said that
sounded great. He picked up his friend in his car. They went to the beach. They
threw a Frisbee to each other. They swam in the ocean. They built a big sand
castle. They watched the sailboats. They watched the sea gulls. He drove his
friend home. "That was fun! Let's do it again sometime," his friend said.
95. A Mean Boyfriend

She was thinking about her boyfriend. Why did she stay with him? Why didn't she
leave him? She didn't trust him. He said that he loved her. But he was mean to
her. He said bad things. He said she was too fat. He said she should eat less. He
did bad things. He gave her a cheap card from the 99 Cents store for her birthday.
He gave her a bag of apples for Christmas. Then he ate all the apples. He said
things that made her cry. He did things that made her cry. Then he said he was
sorry. He always said he was sorry. She wanted to leave him. She wanted to find
another boyfriend. But she didn't leave him. She loved him too much.

96. Wash and Dry
She went into the laundry room. She was in a hurry. She needed to wash and dry
her clothes. Then she needed to go to work. The washer was running. Someone
was using the washer. The washer stopped. She opened the lid. She took the
damp clothes out of the washer. The damp clothes belonged to someone else.
She put their clothes on top of the dryer. She put her own clothes into the
washer. She started the washer. Half an hour later, she took her clothes out of
the washer. She put her clothes into the dryer. An hour later, she took her
clothes out of the dryer. Then she went to work. She left the damp clothes on top
of the dryer.
97. A Brush with God?

He dropped his toothbrush. It fell on the floor. He picked up his toothbrush. He
rinsed it off. He brushed his teeth. He rinsed his mouth. He walked out of the
bathroom. He sat on his bed. He felt something. It was under the sheet. He took
the sheet off the bed. Something was in his mattress. It was a brand new
mattress. He had bought it yesterday. What is in the mattress, he wondered. He
went to the kitchen. He took a knife from the kitchen drawer. He cut open the
mattress. What could it be, he wondered. It was small. It was black. It was a book.
It was the New Testament. Is God trying to tell me something, he wondered.
98. Where's My Flu Shot?

Flu shots cost $20 at the drugstore. Only a few people are buying the flu shots.
There are no long lines. No one is waiting in line. If you want the flu shot, pay
$20. You don't have to wait in line. You can get the flu shot immediately. The
mayor announced free flu shots. He said, "We will give free flu shots to everyone.
Come to the library on Saturday." On Saturday 2,000 people went to the library.
They stood in line for four hours. After four hours, there were no more free flu
shots. They ran out of free flu shots. The drugstore still has many flu shots. But
the flu shots at the drugstore aren't free. They cost $20.
99. They Took a Nap

It was late at night. The plane flew through the air. It flew through the air very
fast. It flew through the air at 500 miles per hour. Five hundred miles per hour is
very fast. A train does not go 500 miles per hour. A bus does not go 500 miles per
hour. A ship does not go 500 miles per hour. Both the pilot and copilot were very

sleepy. They both fell asleep. The plane flew past the city. Then the pilot and
copilot woke up. They turned the plane around. They went back to the city. They
landed at the airport. Their boss was angry. He asked, "Why is the plane late? Did
you two fall asleep?" They both said, "Of course not, boss!"
100. Let's Go Fishing

They walked onto the dock. They got into the boat. They had all their fishing gear.
They were going fishing. They loved to go fishing. Sometimes they caught a lot of
fish. Sometimes they caught a couple of fish. Sometimes they caught no fish. But
fishing was fun even if they caught no fish. The boat left the dock. The boat
stopped in the middle of the lake. Everyone put worms on their hooks. Some
people put live worms on their hooks. Some people put dead worms on their
hooks. Some people put rubber worms on their hooks. Everyone dropped their
hooks into the water. Then they waited. They waited for the fish to bite the
worms.
101. He Loves Hot Dogs

He was driving home. He couldn't wait to get home. He was hungry. He hadn't
eaten in eight hours. Eight hours ago he had eaten two hot dogs. The hot dogs
were delicious. He had put lots of mustard, onions, and relish on the hot dogs.
They were so delicious. He got home. He walked upstairs. He walked into his
apartment. He opened his refrigerator. He took a package out of the refrigerator.
It was a package of hot dogs. He took two hot dogs out of the package. He put
them into the microwave. He took mustard, onions, and relish out of his
refrigerator. He grabbed two hot dog buns. He was ready to eat two more
delicious hot dogs!
102. A Mountain Drive

She wanted to go for a drive. She told her husband. He said that was a good idea.
"Where do you want to go?" he asked. She wanted to drive to the mountains.
She wanted to go to Big Bear Lake. Big Bear Lake is high in the mountains. It is
7,000 feet high. It is a two-hour drive from their home. It takes two hours to get
there. The lake is big and beautiful. They could park their car next to the lake.
They could sit next to the lake. They could watch the boats. They could watch the

fishermen. They could watch the squirrels and deer. It is a beautiful drive to Big
Bear Lake. The road goes through a big forest full of tall trees.
103. A Hood in a Hoody

The man walked into a bank. He wore a hoody. He wore gloves. It was
summertime. It was hot outside. No one else was wearing a hoody. No one else
was wearing gloves. The bank guard looked at the man. "Why are you wearing a
hoody?" the bank guard asked. "Why are you wearing gloves?" The man said he
had a disease. He had a contagious disease. He coughed. He coughed again. The
bank guard backed away. He did not want to get a disease. He stopped watching
the man. He watched other people enter the bank. He forgot about the man with
the contagious disease. A few minutes later, the man ran out of the bank. He was
carrying a money bag.
104. The Swine Flu

It was September. People were getting sick all over the world. They were getting
sick from the flu. The flu was called H1N1. Some people called it swine flu. The
swine farmers did not like that. They said, "Stop calling it swine flu. Swine don't
have the flu. You can't get the flu from eating swine." Swine are also called pigs.
We get bacon and ham from pigs. We get pork from pigs. But we don't get the flu
from pigs. We get the flu from a virus. The H1N1 virus was making everyone sick.
In October they distributed a new vaccine. The new vaccine protected most
people from the virus. The people were happy. The swine farmers were happy.
105. Can I Borrow $1,000?

She was angry. She was angry with her brother. Her brother didn't help her. She
needed to borrow $1,000. She had asked her brother to lend her $1,000. He said
no. Her brother said he didn't have $1,000. Her brother was lying. Her brother
had $10,000. He had ten times $1,000. Why did he lie to her? Why didn't he tell
her the truth? Why didn't he lend her $1,000? She said, "I know you have
$10,000. All I want is $1,000. I will pay you back next year. You will get your
money back next year." He said no. He said people shouldn't borrow money. He
said people shouldn't lend money. "But I'm not 'people'," she said. "I'm your
sister!"
106. Trees in the Jungle

It rains a lot in the jungle. The rain helps trees grow. The jungle has many trees.
Trees are home for many jungle animals. Many animals live in the trees. Monkeys
are jungle animals. Monkeys love trees. They love to swing from tree to tree.
They climb down from the trees. They climb back up into the trees. They sit in the
trees. They eat their food in the trees. They eat the plants in the trees. They eat
the fruit in the trees. They live in the trees with the birds. They live in the trees
with the lizards. They live in the trees with the snakes. They live in the trees with
the ants. The trees in the jungle are full of animals.
107. Burned Up
Brad was angry. He was angry at the apartment building manager. The apartment
building manager had kicked him out. "If you can't pay the rent," the manager
said, "I have to kick you out." "But I always pay the rent on time," Brad said.
"That's nice, but you're supposed to always pay the rent on time," said the
manager. One evening Brad drove to the gas station. He bought a gallon of gas.
He put the gas into a gas can. He waited until 11 p.m. The manager lived in a
corner apartment. His apartment was on the ground floor. Brad waited until the
manager's lights went out. He poured all the gas in the hall near the manager's
door. He lit a match.
108. New Hair Color

Susan didn't like the color of her hair. Her hair was changing color. It used to be
all black. But now it was turning gray. She didn't like the gray hair. Gray hair made
her look older. She didn't want to look older. She made an appointment with the
beauty salon. A week later, she went to the beauty salon. The hairdresser colored
Susan's hair. She added a little bit of purple color to Susan's hair. When the
hairdresser finished, Susan looked at her hair. She liked it. She couldn't see any
gray hair. All she could see was black hair with a little bit of purple tint. The
purple tint looked nice. Susan hoped her boyfriend would like it.
109. Help Him Die

Nick was old. Nick was old and sick. His wife was Sherry. Sherry was younger than
Nick. Nick was older than Sherry. Nick was 81. Sherry was 61. They had been
married for 41 years. They loved each other. "Kill me," Nick said. "You say you
love me. If you really love me, you will kill me." "I will not kill you," Sherry said.

"You will get better. The pain will go away." Nick had cancer. He had lung cancer.
He used to smoke. He used to smoke cigarettes. He used to smoke two packs of
cigarettes a day. Nick was in pain every day. "This cancer is killing me," he said.
Sherry said, "If the cancer is killing you, it doesn't need my help."
110. A Cool Laptop

His laptop sat on his desk. His laptop always overheated. It always overheated
quickly. How could he keep it cool? He turned on his living room fan. It cooled his
laptop. But the fan blew dust around. It blew paper around. He turned off his
living room fan. He thought. He thought some more. How could he keep his
laptop cool? He had an idea. He bought little plastic blocks. Each block was one
inch square. He put the laptop on top of the blocks. One block was under each
corner of the laptop. Now the laptop sat a little above the desk. There was space
under the laptop. There was space for cool air to flow. The cool air prevented
overheating.
111. Ten Pushups

Up, down. Up, down. Billy was doing pushups. His arms were bent. His palms
were on the ground. His toes were on the ground. His back was straight. His belly
was close to the ground. His nose was close to the ground. Then he straightened
his arms. Now his nose was almost two feet above the ground. His back was
straight. His arms were straight. His head was higher than his feet. His feet were
lower than his head. That was one pushup. Then Billy bent his arms. His nose and
belly almost touched the ground. Then he straightened his arms again. That was
another pushup. Billy did eight more pushups. He did ten pushups. He did ten
pushups every day.
112. Dead Bodies

The big room is air-conditioned. But it smells. Dead bodies are in metal drawers.
The bodies have no clothes. The bodies are naked. A white sheet covers each
dead body. The drawers slide in. The drawers slide out. A doctor works in the big
room with the dead bodies. He works there almost every day. He cuts the bodies
open. He cuts them open with a knife. He cuts them open with a saw. He looks at
the bodies. He looks inside the bodies. Why did these people die? Why did this
young man die, he wonders. He tries to answer the question. Every dead body is

a puzzle. The doctor tries to solve the puzzle. Then he tells the police why the
people died.
113. Learn to Swim

It was summer. Swim classes were beginning. She didn't know how to swim. She
wanted to learn. She called up the pool. "Do you teach adults how to swim?" she
asked. The instructor said, "Yes, we teach adults how to swim. We teach kids how
to swim. We teach everyone how to swim." She asked how much. "How much do
you charge?" she asked. "We charge only $25 for adults," the instructor said. She
gave him her name. He put her name on the swim class list. "You are on the swim
class list," he said. "Your first lesson is Saturday at noon. Bring $25 and a towel."
She asked, "That's all I need to bring?" He said, "I'm sorry. Bring your swimsuit,
too."
114. An Ear Problem

His ear had a tiny air bubble in it. It bothered him a lot. He could hear an echo
when he talked. The echo bothered him a lot. He tried to get rid of the tiny air
bubble. He squeezed his nose, closed his mouth, and blew really hard. Nothing
happened. He shook his head like a wet dog. Nothing happened. He stood on his
head for 10 minutes. Nothing happened. He stuck his finger deep in his ear and
pulled it out quickly. Nothing happened. The doctor gave him nose drops.
Nothing happened. The doctor gave him ear drops. Nothing happened. He took a
walk on a winter day. He slipped on the ice. He hit his head on the sidewalk. The
bubble was gone!
115. House Price Goes Up

Jack paid $100,000 for his house. He had bought his house 30 years ago. It was a
big house. It had four bedrooms. It had four bathrooms. Jack was alone. His wife
had died. His children had moved out. His house was too big for one man. He
decided to sell his house. He called up a real estate agent. She visited Jack. She
looked at his house. She looked at all the rooms. She looked at the front yard.
She looked at the back yard. She looked at the garage. "This is a beautiful house,"
she said. "I think this house will sell for $500,000." Jack said, "That's great. I will
give $300,000 to my children. I will buy a small house for $200,000."
116. The Pier Couldn't Run

Some people stood on the small pier. They saw a boat approach. The boat was
approaching fast. The boat was approaching the small pier. Was the boat going to
stop? People started running. They started running off the pier. They were
worried. They were worried about the boat. The boat kept coming. It didn't slow
down. One man stood on the pier. He didn't run. He yelled at the boat. He waved
his arms. He yelled, "Stop! Stop! You're going to crash!" But the boat didn't stop.
It kept coming. The man kept yelling. The boat kept coming. Is the driver drunk,
the man wondered. He ran as fast as he could. He ran off the pier. The boat
crashed into the pier.
117. What Rain?

She had watched the news last night. The weatherman had said it was going to
rain today. It was going to rain all day today. She got dressed. She put on her rain
boots. She put on her raincoat. She grabbed her umbrella. She was ready for the
rain. She was wearing her rain boots. She was wearing her raincoat. She had an
umbrella in her hand. She walked outside. Something was wrong. What was
wrong? It wasn't raining. Where was the rain? She looked up. She looked at the
blue sky. She went back inside. She took off her raincoat. She took off her rain
boots. She went back outside. She still had her umbrella. You never know about
the weather, she thought.
118. Job Training, but No Job

Many homeless people were sitting on the sidewalk. A young man walked up to
each homeless person. He gave each person a flier. The flier was from a trade
school. The flier described a class. The trade school was offering a barber class.
The class was free for homeless people. Matt read the flier. He talked to the man.
Matt said he wanted to take the class. The man wrote down Matt's name. He told
Matt to go to the school on Monday. "How long does the class last?" Matt asked.
"The class lasts eight weeks," the man said. "Will the school find me a job?" Matt
asked. "No, you have to find your own job," the man said. "We can only do so
much."
119. Shoot It Down

The country is full of criminals. Criminals are in every city. Criminals are on every
block. They break all the laws. They don't care about the laws. There are
thousands of laws. The criminals break all the laws. They laugh when they break

the laws. The police watch the criminals. They try to arrest the criminals. The
criminals shoot at the police. They kill the police. Last week they shot down a
police helicopter. The helicopter crashed to the ground. The criminals ran over to
the helicopter. All the policemen on the helicopter were dead. The criminals stole
the guns from the dead policemen. They walked away from the helicopter. They
were laughing.
120. The Teacher

He loved his job. He had a good job. He was a teacher. He loved to teach. He
loved his students. He loved to teach his students. His students listened to him.
His students listened to almost every word he said. His students learned from
him. They learned how to spell words. They learned how to pronounce words.
They learned how to ask questions. They learned how to answer questions. They
learned how to think. He taught them how to think. "Don't believe everything
you hear," he said. "Don't believe everything you read," he said. "Don't believe
everything you see," he said. "Use your head. If something sounds too good to be
true, it usually is," he said.
121. A Stranger in the Neighborhood
She looked at the man. He was walking on the sidewalk. She did not know this
man. He was a stranger. She did not trust this man. He did not live in this
neighborhood. She was driving her car slowly. She was almost home. She drove
past the man. She watched him in her rear-view mirror. He stopped walking on
the sidewalk. He walked up her neighbor's driveway. A car was in the driveway.
He walked up to the driver's door. He stopped. Then he walked back to the
sidewalk. What was he doing, she wondered. Then she realized what he was
doing. He was testing the driver's door. He was testing it to see if it was locked.
She called the police.
122. Dirty Needles

It was time for the annual blood drive. He told his girlfriend, "I'm going to give
blood tomorrow." She said, "Don't do that. You could get a disease." He asked, "I
could get a disease? How could I get a disease?" She said, "You never know. What
if a nurse trips and stabs you with a dirty needle?" He said that was ridiculous.
Nurses don't trip. Nurses don't stab blood donors with dirty needles. He went to
the blood drive the next day. He watched the nurses carefully. None of them
tripped. None of them stabbed a blood donor with a dirty needle. He gave blood.

He told his girlfriend that no one had tripped and stabbed him. She said he was
lucky this time.
123. He Likes That Idea

He lived in a nursing home. "I don't have anything to do," he told the nurse. "Why
don't you watch TV?" she asked. "I hate watching TV. TV is nothing but reruns,"
he said. "Why don't you play chess?" she asked. "I hate playing chess," he said. "I
always lose." "Why don't you play cards?" she asked. "I hate playing cards. The
others always cheat," he said. "Why don't you read a book?" she asked. "I hate
reading books," he said. "They give me a headache." "Why don't you take a nice
walk?" she asked. "I hate taking walks," he said. "It's always too hot outside."
"Why don't you take a nap?" she asked. "That's a good idea," he said. "I like
taking naps."
124. The Cold Winter

It is winter. The sky is usually gray. The sun is not big. The sun is not warm. The
sun is never high in the sky. It's always low in the sky. The shadows are long. In
the morning they are long. In the afternoon they are long. The shadows are cold.
The wind blows. The wind blows almost every day. Sometimes it is a strong wind.
Paper blows everywhere. It is always a cold wind. People wear heavy jackets.
People stand with their hands in their pockets. People blow on their hands to
keep their hands warm. You can see people's warm breath. When they breathe,
you can see their warm breath. Their breath is like steam from a teapot.
Everyone is cold in the winter.
125. Chop Down the Trees

"You have to chop down those two trees," said the fire control agent. "Why do I
have to chop down those two trees?" asked Diane. "Because those two trees are
a fire hazard," said the fire control agent. "All trees are a fire hazard," said Diane.
"Yes, but those two trees are a super fire hazard," said the agent. "Why are those
two trees a super fire hazard?" Diane asked. "Because those two trees are right
next to your house. Chop them down," he said. Diane was poor. She couldn't
afford to pay someone to chop the trees down. The agent said, "Chop them
down, or I will fine you." The next day, she poured gasoline on both trees. Then
she set them on fire.

126. Lost and Found
He couldn't find his pen. Where is my pen, he wondered. He looked for his pen. It
was on top of the microwave. He couldn't find his cell phone. Where is my cell
phone, he wondered. He looked for his cell phone. It was on top of the TV. He
couldn't find his glasses. Where are my glasses, he wondered. He looked for his
glasses. They were on top of his head. I'm tired of looking for everything, he
thought. He invented a tiny video recorder. It recorded everything he did. It
recorded everywhere he went. He couldn't find his toothbrush. Where is my
toothbrush, he wondered. He played his tiny video recorder. He found his
toothbrush. He didn't have to look for it.
127. No Help from Coworker

Patty needed help with her computer. She asked a coworker to help her. Patty
said she would treat her coworker to a nice dinner. Her coworker asked, "What
kind of dinner?" Patty said a nice Chinese dinner. Her coworker said that sounded
good. She would come over to Patty's apartment at 7 o'clock. Patty went home
after work. She made a delicious Chinese dinner. But her coworker didn't show
up at 7 o'clock. Her coworker didn't show up at 7:30. Her coworker didn't call.
Patty called her coworker. No one answered. At 9:30 Patty went to bed. The
phone rang. It was her coworker. Patty didn't answer the phone. Tomorrow she
would ask someone else to help her.
128. No More Meat for Her

She used to eat meat. She used to eat a lot of meat. She used to eat beef. She
used to eat pork. She used to eat ham. She used to eat chicken. She ate meat
every day. She ate bacon for breakfast. She ate a hamburger or hot dog for lunch.
She ate meat loaf for dinner. She ate vegetables sometimes. She ate fruit
sometimes. She ate salad sometimes. But she ate meat all the time. One day she
walked by a dumpster. She smelled something. It smelled bad. It smelled really
bad. She opened the dumpster lid. She looked in. She saw an opened package of
raw hamburger meat. It was covered with flies and ants. It stunk. She closed the
lid. She stopped eating meat.
129. Too Many Problems

Emily sat down on the sofa. She had a big, soft sofa. It was comfortable. It was a
comfortable sofa. She took off her shoes. She put her feet on the coffee table.

The TV remote was on the coffee table. She picked up the remote. She pointed it
at the TV. She turned on the TV. The news was on. The reporter said that a plane
had crashed. More than 100 people died. The reporter said that a bridge had
collapsed. More than 20 people died. She turned off the TV. She had enough
problems at home. She didn't need to hear about more problems in the world.
She had money problems. She had health problems. She had family problems.
Who needed to hear about more problems?
130. Rose Queen

She won the contest. She won the Rose Queen contest. She was the new queen
for the Rose Parade. She was so happy. She would be in the parade on New
Year's Day. She was so excited. She would be on TV. Millions of people would see
her. She would wave to people on the sidewalks in Pasadena. Pasadena was the
home of the Rose Parade. Every year, thousands of people spent New Year's Eve
on the sidewalks of Pasadena. They wanted to see the Rose Parade. Almost 50
floats are in the Rose Parade every year. All the floats are beautiful. They have
lots of beautiful flowers. She would ride on a beautiful float. She would wave to
everyone. Her parents and friends were so happy for her.
131. Out of Food

He drove to the supermarket. He was out of food. He had no food in his
refrigerator. He had no food in his cupboards. He needed to buy some food. He
hoped he would find a sale. A sale would save him money. He walked into the
supermarket. He walked over to the produce section. The apples were on sale.
The bananas were on sale. It was his lucky day. He loved apples. He loved
bananas. The apples were only one dollar a pound. The regular price was $2.50 a
pound. The bananas were only 49 cents a pound. The regular price was 89 cents a
pound. He bought four pounds of apples. He bought four pounds of bananas.
Then he walked over to the dairy section. Maybe the milk was on sale, too.
132. Don't Pick Up the Trash

Each September volunteers clean up the beach. Hundreds of volunteers clean up
the beach. They carry empty trash bags. They pick up trash. They fill up the trash
bags. They fill up hundreds of trash bags. They put all the trash bags into trucks.
The trucks take the trash bags to a landfill. The trash goes from the beach to the
landfill. Every year there is more beach trash. Every year there is more landfill

trash. Jill picked up trash for three years. Finally she said, "People leave trash
here every year. They know we will pick it up. We shouldn't pick it up. In a few
years, trash will cover this beach. People will stop coming here. They will stop
leaving trash here."
131. Too Many Prisoners
Prisons today have too many prisoners. The prisoners sleep in bunk beds. They
sleep in triple bunk beds. Triple bunk beds are for three prisoners. One prisoner
sleeps in the bottom bunk bed. Another prisoner sleeps in the middle bunk bed.
Another prisoner sleeps in the top bunk bed. They sleep on top of one another.
They sleep beneath one another. Prisoners complain about the triple bunk beds.
They don't like the triple bunk beds. Prisons didn't use to have bunk beds. Prisons
didn't use to have any beds. Prisoners used to sleep on a cold floor. Prisoners
today get three meals a day. They get three hot meals. Prisoners used to get one
meal a day. They used to get one cold meal.
133. The New Neighbor
A new neighbor moved in. Will the new neighbor be quiet, Liz wondered. The
new neighbor wasn't quiet. The new neighbor was loud. He played his TV loud.
He played his music loud. He talked on the phone loud. Loud, loud, loud! He
slammed the door when he left his apartment. He slammed the door when he
entered his apartment. Slam, slam, slam! He had a basketball. He bounced the
basketball everywhere. He bounced it on his apartment floor. He bounced it
against his apartment wall. He bounced it off his apartment ceiling. Bounce,
bounce, bounce! Liz asked him to be quiet. "Please be quiet," she asked. "I will
not be quiet," he said. Liz wanted to kill the new neighbor. Kill, kill, kill!
134. A Clean Church
The janitor cleaned the church every day. He swept the floor with a broom. He
mopped the floor with a mop. He vacuumed the carpet with a vacuum cleaner.
He cleaned all the windows with a wet cloth. He cleaned the men's bathroom. He

cleaned the women's bathroom. He cleaned the sinks in the bathrooms. He
cleaned the toilets in the bathrooms. He cleaned the mirrors in the bathrooms.
He scrubbed the steps outside the church. He scrubbed the steps with soapy
water and a brush. He kept the steps clean. He kept the windows clean. He kept
the bathrooms clean. He kept the floors clean. The steps were clean. The
windows were clean. The bathrooms were clean. The floors were clean. It was a
clean church.
135. A Book Sale
He was a famous cartoonist. He drew political cartoons. His cartoons made fun of
presidents. His cartoons made fun of vice presidents. His cartoons made fun of
Congress. Politicians hated him. Ordinary people loved him. His name was Paul.
He put 400 of his cartoons in a book. He sold the book at a book fair. Many
people bought the book. He signed the book for everyone. He autographed the
book for everyone. "Why are you selling this book? Do you need extra money?"
Becky asked. "Yes, I need extra money," Paul said. "The newspaper laid me off.
They said my cartoons are mean. My cartoons make the politicians cry." "But
your cartoons tell the truth," Becky said. "Yes, and the truth hurts," said Paul.
136. Believe the Chief
The police chief said crime was down. "Crime is down," said police chief Braddon.
He talked to TV reporters. He talked to newspaper reporters. He talked to radio
reporters. He was proud. "I'm proud," he said. "Our police are doing a good job.
I'm proud of our police." He said crime was down 50 percent. "What kinds of
crime?" asked a reporter. "All kinds of crime," said Braddon. "Bicycle theft is
down 60 percent. Cell phone theft is down 55 percent. Computer theft is down
50 percent." He didn't say anything about other crimes. "What about other
crimes?" asked a reporter. "What other crimes?" asked Braddon. "You should be
happy with this news. Report it to the public. The public will be happy, too."
137. A Loud Party
"I'm calling the police," Barry said. "I'm glad you're calling the police," Ruth said.
Barry and Ruth had a nice house. They had a nice, quiet house. They had nice
neighbors. They had nice, quiet neighbors. But tonight, their neighbors were not

quiet. They were having a pool party. Everyone was drinking. Everyone was
talking loud. Everyone was jumping into the pool. Loud music was playing. Car
horns were honking. Barry and Ruth closed all their windows. But they still heard
the party. Barry called the police. The policeman said, "We'll be there in an hour
or two." Barry asked, "Why not sooner?" "The mayor's having a big party," the
policeman said. "Most of our officers are protecting the mayor and his guests."
138. Se Habla English
Alex wanted to become a citizen. He signed up for a citizenship class. He went to

the first class. The teacher spoke only Spanish. All the other students spoke only
Spanish. Alex spoke Spanish, too. He asked the teacher, "Why are you speaking
Spanish? We need to speak English. We need to understand English. We need to
read English. We need to write English." The teacher said, "Don't worry. English
isn't important anymore. My students never fail the interview. Can you say Yes in
English? Can you say No in English? Then your English is good enough. You want
to become a citizen. That is more important than your English." Alex dropped
out. He signed up for another citizenship class. The teacher spoke only English.
139. Starving Artists
"I'm not coming to this art fair again," said Molly. "Why aren't you coming to this
art fair again?" asked Teri. "There aren't enough visitors," Molly said. "That's for
sure," said Teri. "There aren't enough visitors spending money." "That's for sure,"
said Molly. Visitors stopped and looked at Molly's paintings. Visitors stopped and
looked at Teri's paintings. Visitors said Molly's paintings were very nice. Visitors
said Teri's paintings were very nice. But no one bought anything. "No one buys
anything," said Molly. "They stop. They look. They say, 'Oh, how pretty.' Then
they walk on." Molly and Teri had not sold one painting. They lowered their
prices. They put "Sale! 50% Off!" tags on all their paintings. But no one bought a
single painting.
140. Ring in the New Year
It was the Chinese New Year. The metal pan was light, shiny, and round. It was
about 12 inches across. It was perfect for burning paper. She put the pan on the

hardwood floor. She opened a package of paper money. It wasn't real money.
"We burn the money for our ancestors," she said. "Then maybe money will come
to us this year." She took out some paper bills. She lit them. She dropped them
into the pan. She lit more bills and dropped them into the pan. The living room
got smoky. Finally she stopped lighting the money. It finished burning in the pan.
The pan of ashes cooled. She picked it up. "Oh," she said. He looked at the floor.
A dark ring was burned into the wood. "Well, I hope your ancestors send us
money this year," he said. "We'll need it to pay for the floor."
141. No Food, No Water
Bev was a real estate agent in New York City. She usually left home about 10 a.m.
She never drank or ate anything until she returned home. "You need energy. Eat
some lunch," her husband said. "I can't eat anything after I leave the house. I
don't carry a toothbrush or toothpaste," she said. "No problem. Put them into
your purse," he said. "That's extra weight," she said. "Every day I walk 30 blocks. I
climb 20 flights of stairs. My purse is so heavy. Besides, it's full. I don't have room
in my purse. Look." He looked into her purse. It was full. He lifted it. It was heavy.
"Well, you should at least drink lots of water. I'm sure all that walking makes you
thirsty," he said. "I get thirsty, but I don't dare drink," she said. "It's too hard to
find a clean place to pee!"
142. Ring! Ring!
Neal's front yard was full of leaves. He went outside and raked the leaves. His cell
phone rang. He answered it. Then he continued raking. He raked the leaves into
three plastic bags. The recycling truck came by an hour later. The driver threw
the bags into the truck. Neal wanted to call his wife. He couldn't find his cell
phone. He searched his house. He searched his front yard. Was his phone in one
of the plastic bags? He called the recycling center. It was still open. He drove
there with his teenage daughter. A 20-foot high pile of leaves was at the center.
His daughter used her cell phone to call his phone. At first he heard nothing. She
kept calling. He kept digging through the pile. About 15 minutes later, he heard
his phone ringing! He dug it out. "Don't tell your mom about this," Neal said.
143. Get Rich or Get Out

He had finally made it to New York City. They call it "the city that never sleeps."
He had always wanted to live there. He had quit his job in Florida. He loved his
new neighborhood. He loved his new apartment. He had used half of his savings
to pay for one year in advance. But the apartment was so expensive. How could
he afford it next year? He had to get rich this year. "How are you going to get rich
in just one year?" asked his sister. That was a good question. He didn't even have
a job. But an ordinary job wouldn't pay his rent next year. An ordinary job
wouldn't allow him to stay in his nice apartment. He didn't want to move into a
cheap apartment. How can I get rich fast, he wondered. He went across the
street and bought a lottery ticket.
144. Why He Loves Her
"Why do I love you?" he asked. "Why do I love you so much? You're smart. But
you're not that smart. You're pretty. But you're not that pretty. You're fun to be
with. But you're not that much fun." "Oh, really?" she asked. "I'm not that much
fun? How much fun are you? Do we ever go out? Do you ever take me dancing?
Do you ever take me to night clubs? Do you ever take me to movies? Do you ever
take me to dinner? No, no, no. You never take me anywhere! Sometimes you
rent a DVD. Then we watch the DVD. You don't even make popcorn! Don't tell me
I'm no fun! You're the king of no fun." That's why he loved her. She always had
something to say. She had an opinion about everything. She was never
predictable. She was always interesting.
145. Stop Bothering Me
He gave her a hug. She pulled away. "Stop bothering me," she said. "I'm not
'bothering' you," he said. "I'm giving you a hug. I'm showing affection." "You're
bothering me," she said. "I'm trying to make dinner. You're in the way. Do you
want me to drop something? Do you want me to burn something? Do you see
how busy I am? I'm chopping green onions; you hug me. Do you want me to cut
myself? I'm stirring the noodles; you hug me. Do you want me to knock the pot
off the stove? I'm making dinner for us. This is how I show affection. You give me
a little hug. That's not affection. That's bothering me. Do you really want to show
affection?" He said yes, he really wanted to show affection. "Wait until after
dinner," she said. "Then you can really show affection. You can wash the dishes!"

146. Insects in the Rice
"Look at this," she said. He looked. He looked inside a plastic bag. There was rice
inside the bag. But something else was inside the bag. "What are these things?"
he asked. They were insects. The insects were crawling around. A lot of insects
were crawling around. "That's disgusting," he said. "Where did they come from?"
She said, "They came from you!" He denied it. He didn't have insects. Not even
one. "You bought the wrong bag of rice," she said. "I told you which bag of rice to
buy. But you wanted to save money. And I agreed to it. Never again. From now
on, we buy the same brand I've always bought." He agreed. She tied up the bag.
She put the bag inside a fresh plastic bag. She tied up the second plastic bag.
"This is for you," she said. "Gee, thanks," he said.
147. Hacker Steals Millions
The man was a hacker. He was a thief. He knew computers. He knew them inside
out. He was like a pickpocket. He picked everyone's pocket. He picked everyone's
bank account in America. Everyone with a bank account lost money. Millions of
Americans have bank accounts. All of these Americans lost money. But they
didn't know it. Not a single victim noticed the theft. Not a single victim called the
police. "We got lucky," said a police detective. "He cheated on his fiancée. She
called us. But we're unlucky, too. We have no evidence. We only have her story.
He might get away with his crime. He might get away with millions. He
transferred all the money to another country. There's no way we can trace the
money. He is very smart. Why? He stole only one penny from every bank account
in America. Who cares about a penny?"
148. Don't Be a Racist
Ray called up the newspaper reporter. "You wrote about a bank robbery. You
described the bank robber," he said. "Why did you describe him?" The reporter

said, "We want the public to help find him. If someone sees him, they can call the
police." Ray said, "But why didn't you tell us his race? You said he was about 35
and about 5 feet 7 inches. But you didn't tell us his race. That would help a lot."
"Our lawyers say we can't. It's racist," said the reporter. "The robber can sue us
for being racist." "Well, don't report his age, either," said Ray. "That's ageist.
Don't report his height. That's 'heightist.' Don't report his sex. That's sexist."
"That doesn't leave much to report," said the reporter. "Just report this," said
Ray. "A human being robbed a bank. Please look for a human being who looks
like he or she robbed a bank."
149. Grandpa Died
Edith called her husband Archie. "Daddy's dead. I was holding his hand when he
died. Our son's wedding is tomorrow. What are we going to do?" she asked. "I
just left the nursing home. Should we tell Earl or not? He loved Daddy so much."
Archie said, "Well, your dad has been very sick. Earl knows that. So his death
won't be a surprise. But the news will make everyone sad. Tomorrow should be a
happy day for everyone. Maybe we should just say nothing. We can tell everyone
later. No one needs to know right now. I'll talk to the funeral director. We can
have the funeral next week." "But Earl will be on his honeymoon," Edith said.
"He'll be gone for two weeks. He'll be hurt and angry if he misses Daddy's
funeral." Archie said, "You're right. This is a difficult decision. What are we going
to do?"
150. The Recall
It was in the national news every day. It was on the radio. It was on TV. It was in
the newspapers. It was the recall. Toyota was recalling thousands of cars. The
cars had a brake problem. Sometimes the brakes didn't work properly. Some
Toyota drivers crashed. Perhaps 10 people had died in Toyota crashes in the last
year. Ten people. About 10,000 people die every year in America. They are killed
by drunk drivers. Drunk drivers kill about 30 people every day. Thirty people.
Every day. Is this in the news? Is this on the radio? Is this on national TV? Year
after year, this doesn't make the national news. But the national news people
ARE concerned about bad brakes. They don't want bad brakes to kill another

person. That would be eleven deaths! What about all the drunk driving deaths?
"That's not news," said a reporter.
151. "Please Wait"
He called the cable TV company. "My screen goes black," he said. "Every five
minutes my screen goes black." "Sir, does it go completely black?" the
representative asked. "No," he said. "Big white letters say Please Wait." "Oh,
that's good," she said. "If you don't see Please Wait, that's super bad." He was
glad to hear that. "I'm glad to hear it's not super bad," he said. "So, does that
mean someone can fix it soon?" "No," she said, "the soonest a technician can
come to your home is next Tuesday. If your screen was completely black, a
technician could come to your home tomorrow." He thought about that. "You
know, I'm watching my TV right now. It just went completely black. It does not
say Please Wait. It's completely black." She was silent for a moment. "A
technician can come out tomorrow, sir. Will you be home?" she asked.
152. His Back Goes Out
They were sitting on the sofa. He started to get up. "Oh," he groaned. "What's
the matter?" his wife asked. He was standing still. He wasn't moving. He was bent
over. He wasn't standing straight up. "Is it your back again?" his wife asked. "Yes,
it's my back again," he said. He couldn't move. "Can I help?" she asked. He shook
his head. All he could do was wait. A minute later, he put one foot forward. Then
another foot. He slowly walked to the bathroom. He still wasn't standing up
straight. He was still bent over. He went into the bathroom. Then he slowly
returned to the living room. He slowly sat back down on the sofa. "I told you not
to carry that suitcase up those subway stairs!" his wife yelled. "But you didn't
listen to me. You never listen to me. Next time, I carry the suitcase."
153. The Package Pick-Up (1)

The phone rang at 8:15 a.m. It was a recording. "A UPS driver will pick up your
package today. He will arrive between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m." That's nice, Craig
thought. All I have to do is wait for 11 hours. I can't even take a shower. I can't
hear the doorbell while I'm in the shower. Craig heard the doorbell at 4:40 p.m.
"I'm so glad you're here," he told the driver. "This box has been sitting in my
bedroom for two weeks." He handed the box to the driver. The driver said,
"Where's the call tag? I can't take this without the call tag." Craig said, "What?
What's a call tag?" The driver said, "A call tag is a return label. It tells us where to
ship the box. Maybe it's inside the box." Craig rolled his eyes. Why was returning
a package so difficult?
154. The Package Pick-Up (2)
He asked the driver to wait. Craig used a knife to open the package. He dug
through the packaging materials. He looked for the call tag. There was no call tag.
The driver left. Craig stuffed everything back into the box. He sealed the box with
tape. He took the box back into the bedroom. He went online. He reread an email
from Target. The email said, "We will send the call tag to UPS." He called up UPS.
The UPS agent said, "We don't have the call tag yet. It should arrive tomorrow."
Craig asked, "Why did the driver come by without the call tag?" The UPS agent
said, "I'm sorry. We made a mistake. He probably thought you had the call tag.
Sometimes customers have the call tag. A driver can come by again on Thursday.
Will someone be there between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m."
155. A Cigarette for Grandpa
His wife asked him to buy a cigarette. "Excuse me?" he asked. "Since when do
you smoke?" She said it was for the Chinese New Year. Her dead grandfather
used to smoke. The cigarette was for grandpa. He went to the newsstand. He
asked how much a pack of cigarettes was. It was $11. He asked how much the
cheapest pack was. It was $10. He asked if they sold single cigarettes. They didn't.
He didn't want to spend $10 on a whole pack of cigarettes. His wife had asked for
only one cigarette. A woman nearby was smoking a cigarette. "Excuse me," he
said. "Can I buy a cigarette from you for a dollar?" He offered her a dollar bill. She
gave him a cigarette. She refused his money. He felt lucky. He had gotten a free
cigarette. And it was a Marlboro—the best! Grandpa would like that.

156. The New "No Parking" Sign
It was noon on Wednesday. "That's not fair. That's not right," Mel told Irene. He
parked his car every night. He parked his car on the street. "Look. The pole is in
fresh cement," he said. "The cement is still wet." It was a new parking sign. It
said, "No Parking 9:30AM-11AM Wednesday." The old parking sign was different.
The old sign had said, "No Parking 1PM-2:30PM Wednesday." "My neighbors and
I park on this street," said Mel. "We know that we can't park here from 1:00 to
2:30 p.m. But early this morning they changed the sign. Did they warn us? Did
they say anything to us? No, but they told parking enforcement! Parking
enforcement wrote 25 tickets this morning! Twenty-five tickets! I counted them!
Each ticket is $48. We were all going to move our cars before 1:00. Now it's too
late. Why didn't they warn us?"
157. The M&M Container
She loved M&M candy. She went to the M&M store in New York City. The store
has three floors. Each floor has many M&M items. There are M&M coffee cups.
There are M&M pillows. There are M&M T-shirts. She bought an M&M snack
container. She bought a pound of red M&Ms. "I'll put my M&Ms into this
container. I'll eat the M&Ms when I need energy," she thought. She went home.
She put the snack container on the coffee table. What's this, she wondered. She
saw tiny scratches. She saw many tiny scratches on the lid. It was a brand new lid.
It was a brand new container. She didn't want a lid with scratches. She went back
to the store. She would exchange her lid for a lid with no scratches. She looked at
all the lids on all the containers. Every one of them had many tiny scratches.
158. Put an Ad on Craigslist
The phone rang. "How's New York?" Wally asked. "I love it," Eugene said. "Have
you found a job?" Wally asked. "Of course I haven't found a job," Eugene said. "I
only got here a month ago." "You'd better hurry up," said Wally. "Your savings
will run out before you know it." "I'm looking," said Eugene. "But it's tough.
Thousands of people are looking for work. But there aren't thousands of jobs."
"You should try Craigslist," said Wally. "Many people in New York want to

improve their English. They will pay you good money. Look on Craigslist. See what
other English teachers are charging. Charge a few dollars less." "That's a good
idea," said Eugene. "But should I charge less or more? If I charge less, they might
think I'm not so good. If I charge more, they might think I'm very good." "Put
TWO ads on Craigslist," said Wally.
159. The Naked Cowboy
It was January in Manhattan. It was a mild, sunny day. A man stood at 42nd
Street and Broadway. His blond hair hung down to his broad shoulders. He was
wearing a cowboy hat. He was wearing cowboy boots. He was wearing tight,
white underwear. He wasn't wearing a shirt. He wasn't wearing pants. Written on
the back of his white underwear was "The Naked Cowboy." He was playing his
guitar. People stopped to look at him. A young couple looked at him. The woman
was laughing. She said something to her boyfriend. She said something to the
cowboy. He waved her over. She walked over to him. He put his muscular arm
around her. Her boyfriend took a picture. She gave the cowboy a $5 bill. He put it
into his guitar. Another woman walked over to him. He put his arm around her.
Her friend took their picture.
160. A New Voter
Oscar had just moved to New York City. He registered to vote. A week later, he
received his voter card. Now he was a registered voter. He read the voter notice
from the Board of Elections. It said to call VOTE-NYC if he had a question. He had
a question. He wanted to use an absentee ballot. But the notice said the
absentee ballot was for ill people. The ballot was for physically disabled people.
He wasn't ill. He wasn't physically disabled. He called VOTE-NYC. "I'm not ill. I'm
not physically disabled. But I want to use an absentee ballot," he said. "Give me
your address. I'll mail you an application today. You'll receive an absentee ballot
before every election," Louis said. "But isn't there a problem?" Oscar asked. "The
notice says I have to be ill. I have to be physically disabled." "Don't worry. We'll
rewrite that," said Louis.
161. Where Is His Wife? (1)

It was late. His wife wasn't home yet. He was worried. She was a real estate
agent. She showed apartments to clients. She showed apartments day after day.
She showed apartments all over the city. She showed apartments in uptown
Manhattan. She showed apartments in midtown Manhattan. She showed
apartments in downtown Manhattan. Meet a client at a building. Look at one or
two apartments in that building. Walk to another building. Look at one or two
apartments in that building. Walk to one building after another. Look at one
apartment after another. Take the elevator. Take the stairs. Take the subway
sometimes. Take the bus sometimes. She always called him if she was going to
come home late. He called her cell phone. She said hello. He said hello. But she
didn't reply. He heard nothing. He said hello again. There was no answer. The
connection was dead.
162. Where Is His Wife? (2)
Who answered the phone? Was that really his wife? Or was it another woman?
Had someone stolen his wife's phone? Was his wife okay? He called back. All he
got was her recorded message. He left a message. "It's 9:30. Where are you? Call
me immediately," he said. He waited. She didn't call. He called back. He left
another message. "Call me immediately, please. I'm worried. Call me right now,
or I'm calling the police." He waited. She didn't call. Should he call the police?
What would he tell them? Can you find my wife? She's somewhere in Manhattan.
He heard the apartment door open. "I'm home," his wife said. He was so relieved.
"Why did you hang up on me?" he asked. "I said hello," she said. "I had just
entered the subway station. I was walking down the steps. You didn't answer me.
So I hung up."
163. The Locked Door
It was Sunday in New York City. He needed some cash. He walked to the bank on
the corner. Next to the bank were six indoor ATMs. A woman was using one of
the ATMs. He pulled on the glass door. The door was locked. He pulled again.
How did she get in there? She finished using the ATM. She walked toward him.
She opened the door. She stepped outside. He held onto the door. He walked
inside. She must have waited for someone, too, he thought. He put his card into
the ATM. He got his cash. He started to walk out. Just then a young woman

walked in. He couldn't believe it. "Excuse me," he said. "How did you get in here?
That door is locked." "Outside there's a slot next to the door," she said. "Just slide
your ATM card into the slot. The door will unlock."
164. Word Search Puzzles
Word Search is a fun word puzzle. People learning English can play. People
teaching English can play. Each puzzle is for one player. The player searches for
hidden words. The hidden words are on a grid. The grid contains 100 squares or
more. Each square contains a letter. Groups of letters form words. A list of words
is beside the grid. The player looks at the list. He looks at the grid. He tries to
match the words in the list to words on the grid. The hidden words are hard to
find. The words are vertical and horizontal. They are diagonal and backwards.
Finding them is tricky. Finding them is fun. The words in each puzzle usually
belong to a category. Categories include cars, animals, and food. There are many
categories. Word search puzzles are popular. Players can buy word search books.
Players can find word search puzzles online.
165. A Seaside Painting
It's a painting of a seaside. The main colors are blue, white, and brown. The sky is
light blue. A white cloud covers half the light blue sky. Two white birds fly
through the air. The bottom half of the painting is white sand and brown shrubs.
At the bottom right you can see part of the ocean. The ocean is dark blue with
small white waves. A boat is sailing by. The boat has four big, white sails. It has a
wooden hull. An old wooden house sits on the white sand. No smoke comes from
the brick chimney. The roof sags in the middle. The house has a front porch. Five
wooden posts support the porch. A clothesline is behind the house. Clothes are
hanging on the line. But there are no people anywhere. Maybe they are inside
the house. Maybe they are walking along the beach.
166. Cheap Hospital Insurance

He opened the envelope. It contained junk mail. The junk mail was an ad. It was
an ad for hospital insurance. Did he want extra hospital insurance? He didn't have
any hospital insurance. Did he want extra money to help pay hospital bills? Yes,
he thought, extra money would be nice. He read on. The ad said the average
hospital stay in New York is seven days. It said the average cost per day in New
York is $3,000. I should move to a cheaper state, he thought. But he couldn't
afford to move. He read on. It said the insurance was only $15 a month. That's
cheap, he thought. It said the insurance pays $50 a day. He laughed. My hospital
bill will be $3,000 a day. My extra insurance will pay $50 a day. What good is that,
he thought. What good is $50 a day?
167. Ripped Pants
He entered the drugstore. He took the down escalator. He couldn't find what he
wanted. He got on the up escalator. Seconds later, something grabbed his pants
cuff. He pulled his cuff free. What was that, he wondered. He turned around to
look. He saw a little screw. A loose screw was sticking out of the escalator wall.
He got to the top of the escalator. He looked at his pants. The cuff was ripped. It
was just a little rip. But that screw might hurt someone. I'd better tell someone
about it, he thought. He found an employee. He told her what had happened. He
pointed out the loose screw. She apologized. She said, "Don't worry. We'll pay for
repairing your pants. Just bring us the bill. And we'll take care of that screw
immediately." He thanked her. A week later, he returned. The loose screw was
still there.
168. Outside His Window (1)
He has a big window in his bedroom. His desk is in his bedroom. His desk is next
to the big window. He sits at his desk. He looks east. He looks east toward the
East River. The East River is about six blocks away. But he cannot see the East
River. Buildings block his view. Buildings in New York City are like trees in a forest.
They are everywhere. They are beautiful. They are all different. He can see about
13 different buildings. The farthest building is almost three blocks away. Most of
the buildings are about 12 stories tall. Most of them are light brown or dirty
white. But the tallest one is completely red. White smoke comes out of its top. It

has no windows on its west side. The west wall is red bricks. Maybe red bricks are
cheaper than glass windows. Maybe it's a prison.
169. Outside His Window (2)
His apartment is on the seventh floor. He can see the busy street from his
bedroom window. The sidewalk is often crowded with people. The sidewalk is
wide. It's about 20 feet wide. New York City has many wide sidewalks. He can see
several stores. One store is a clothing store. Two stores are shoe stores. A nearby
building has a shiny silver smokestack. It's a tall, skinny smokestack. It's 15 stories
tall. Pigeons fly above the street. They land on building ledges. The ledges are
beneath the windows. Two or three pigeons land on the same ledge. They sit
there for a while. Then they fly away. Yesterday he saw a red balloon. It was as
big as a soccer ball. It rose to his eye level. It quickly rose higher. In seconds it was
gone. Where is it today? It might be floating over the cold, blue Atlantic.
170. No More Searching
He walked into the drugstore. Where are the eyedrops, he wondered. He looked
at the drugstore signs. Signs were hanging above each aisle. He read sign after
sign. He finally saw the eyedrops sign. He walked to the eyedrops section. He
looked on the top shelf. He looked on the middle shelf. He looked on the bottom
shelf. Where were the eyedrops? Was he in the right section? He looked at the
sign again. Yes, he was. He finally found the eyedrops. He went to the front of the
drugstore. He stood in line to pay. Someday, he thought, shopping will be faster.
Someday, he thought, I will walk into this store. I will ask out loud, "Where's the
Crest toothpaste?" A bright light will appear above my head. I will follow the light
directly to the Crest toothpaste section. The light will disappear. My searching
days will be over.
171. A Cup of Coffee
He filled the pot with water. He put the pot on the burner. He put a lid on the
pot. He turned on the burner. He took a bag of coffee beans out of the cabinet.
He opened the bag. He poured some beans into the grinder. He ground the beans
in the grinder for about 10 seconds. He took a #6 paper filter out of the kitchen

cabinet. He put the paper filter into a plastic cone. A big glass pitcher was on the
kitchen counter. He put the plastic cone on top of the big glass pitcher. He
poured the ground coffee from the grinder into the paper filter. He waited for the
water to boil. He poured the boiling water onto the ground coffee. The aroma of
coffee filled the kitchen. Mmm! It smelled so good. He couldn't wait to drink a
cup of fresh, hot coffee.
172. Earthquake in Haiti
There was an earthquake in Haiti. It was a 7.0 earthquake. Thousands of people

died. Thousands of people were homeless. Thousands of people had no food or
water. Many nations sent food and water. Some nations sent search and rescue
teams. Some of these teams had dogs. The dogs could smell victims buried under
buildings. Some nations sent doctors. Rescuers distributed the food and water.
They ran out quickly. Nations sent more food and water. The teams found
survivors under collapsed buildings. Some survivors were still alive after six days.
The doctors took care of the sick. They took care of the injured. They saved many
lives. Haiti is a very poor country. Many citizens want to leave. But they have no
place to go. The United States is helping. It's allowing orphans to come to the U.S.
The orphans will get an education. They will have a better life.
173. Plane in the Hudson
The passenger plane landed a year ago. It was a famous landing. It was on TV and
the radio. It was in the papers. The plane landed in the Hudson River in January.
The pilot had no choice. Both engines were damaged. He couldn't go back to the
airport. He couldn't land in New York City. He had to land in the river. The plane
landed gently. It was a soft landing. The plane didn't flip over. It landed on its
belly. No one died. Everyone survived. Everyone got out of the plane. They stood
on the wings of the plane. Everyone was cold and wet. Boats rescued them all. It
was the "Miracle on the Hudson." Today the same passengers got on two boats.
The two boats went to where the plane had landed. They stopped on that spot in
the Hudson. Everyone hugged one another. Life was good.

174. Carrot Cake
Edie's birthday was today. "I want nothing for my birthday," she had said. Nick
knew better. He knew that "nothing" meant "something." He went to the bakery
in the morning. He looked at the cakes. She liked cake without icing. He looked
for a cake without icing. He didn't see one. But he did see a carrot cake. The cake
had vanilla icing. He liked vanilla icing. She liked carrot cake. He bought the cake.
The baker wrote "Happy Birthday Edie" on the cake. She'll like this cake, Nick
thought. He took it home. He showed Edie the cake. "It looks delicious," she said.
"But you have to eat all the icing. Did you buy this cake for me or for you? I know
you love icing. You know I don't like icing. Next year buy me a cake without icing.
You have a whole year to find one."
175. Is It a Hernia?
Something was wrong. Did he have a hernia again, in the same place? Thirty
years ago he had a hernia. A doctor had repaired the hernia. Now he felt some
pain. It was below his navel. It was to the left of his navel. It wasn't a sharp pain.
It was a dull ache. It had started about two months ago. Now it was getting
worse. Now it was a constant ache. He called a few doctors. "How much is a
consult?" he asked. One doctor said $300. Another doctor said $350. That's a lot
of money, he thought. Maybe this ache will go away, he thought. Maybe it'll go
away by itself. He decided to wait another week. Then I'll make an appointment,
he thought. I'll spend the money. It's a lot of money. But it's cheaper to fix a small
problem now than a big problem later.
176. Good Apples, Bad Manners
Ellie spoke to the tour agent. The price for the 3-night bus tour was good. Her
cousin Vicky called her. Ellie told Vicky about the tour. Vicky liked the price. She
said she and her husband would come, too. On Saturday, Ellie and her young son
met Vicky and her husband at the tour agency. Ellie brought snacks for the four
of them. Vicky didn't bring any snacks. Ellie told Vicky to take some snacks. Vicky
didn't like the cookies. She didn't like the energy bars. She liked the apples. She
put all 12 apples in her bag. She didn't leave even one apple for Ellie's young son.
"These are not my favorite apples," Vicky told Ellie. "But they are better than

those other snacks. Everyone needs to eat fresh fruit daily." Ellie was polite to
Vicky during the trip. After the trip ended, she never spoke to Vicky again.
177. Bags of Cans
He lived in a one-bedroom apartment. He had lived there for a long time. He

usually went out on Sunday only. He took the bus to church. He took the bus to
the supermarket. He bought only canned food. He bought canned tuna. He
bought canned chicken. He bought canned vegetables. After shopping, he took
the bus home. He watched TV every day, all day long. He threw his trash into
plastic bags. His apartment was full of plastic bags. The plastic bags were full of
empty cans. His son visited him occasionally. "Dad," he said, "you have to throw
out all these bags. They're a health hazard. You might get a disease. You might
attract roaches. They're a safety hazard. You might trip and fall down." His dad
told him not to worry. "I throw all these bags out as soon as they start to smell,"
he said.
178. Where's My Package?
Paul called the 800 number. He told them about his package. His package was
missing. "Where is my package?" he asked. They told him it was in the
warehouse. They would deliver it tomorrow. The next day the package didn't
arrive. He called the 800 number again. They told him it was still in the
warehouse. They would deliver it tomorrow. The next day he got a package. It
was the wrong package. He called the 800 number. "Where is my package?" he
asked. They told him it was lost. They couldn't find it. They said they would look
for it. They told him to call back in a week. He asked for a supervisor. He talked to
a supervisor. The supervisor said he would make a report. "Will the report find
my package?" Paul asked. "No," said the supervisor. "But maybe your next
package won't get lost."
179. TSA Will Find Him
Kevin James is a lawyer. He has a popular name. Many men have that name.
Kevin James is also the name of a major criminal. The Transportation Security
Agency is looking for this major criminal. TSA wants to put him in prison. When

Kevin James the lawyer flies to meetings, TSA pulls him aside. TSA questions him.
TSA asks him if he is the criminal. He usually misses his flight. "I always fly a day
ahead of time," said Kevin. "That way, after I miss my original flight, I'll still be on
time the next day." Kevin told TSA, "Compare my picture to the picture of the
criminal Kevin James. You'll see that I am not him." TSA said, "We don't have a
picture of him." Kevin asked, "How can you capture him if you don't know what
he looks like?" TSA said, "Don't worry. We have our ways."
180. Who Is a Hero?
Soldiers go to war. They fight the enemy. That is their job. Firemen go to fires.
They rescue people in burning buildings. That is their job. Policemen go after
dangerous criminals. They arrest dangerous criminals. That is their job. Phil was
driving home. The car in front of him ran off the road. Phil pulled over behind the
car. He ran to the car. He smelled gasoline. He saw an old woman inside the car.
He pulled and pulled on the driver's door. It finally opened. He pulled her out of
the car. He carried her toward his car. Suddenly, her car exploded. Metal flew
through the air. Metal went into Phil's back. Phil fell to the ground. Ambulances
took Phil and the old woman to the hospital. Doctors operated on both of them.
They both survived. Phil said, "I'm not a hero. I did what anyone would do."
181. Sick in the City
He was 58. He lost his job. A friend offered him a job in Miami. He found a nice
apartment in Miami. He loved his new job. He loved Miami. Life was good. Then
his friend's company went bankrupt. Life wasn't so good. He looked for work. But
everyone was looking for work. There were plenty of workers. But there wasn't
plenty of work. He was almost broke. He started coughing up blood. He went to a
doctor. "You have lung cancer," the doctor said. "You need treatment." He told
the doctor he was almost broke. He had no money for treatment, rent, or even
food. The doctor said the government would pay for his treatment. The
government would find him an apartment. The government would give him food
stamps. Why have I worked so hard all my life, he wondered. I should have gone
broke 30 years ago.
182. Front Desk Manners

It was a big apartment building. The building was in a big city. Delivery people left
packages at the front desk. The front desk held the packages for apartment
tenants. Mr. Smith was expecting a package. He stopped at the front desk. Had
his package arrived yet? Nora said, "Yes, sir." But only Simon could hand out the
packages. "Where's Simon?" Mr. Smith asked. Simon was on break. "He'll be back
in 5 minutes, Mr. Smith," said Nora. Twenty minutes later, Simon arrived. Mr.
Smith told Simon that he had a package. "Apartment number," said Simon. "A,"
said Mr. Smith. Simon went into the package room. He came back about five
minutes later. "Sign here," he said. Mr. Smith asked, "Where?" Simon pointed at
a blank space in the notebook. Mr. Smith signed in the blank space. Simon gave
him the package. Mr. Smith said, "Thank you." Simon said nothing.
183. It Isn't the Economy
Carl worked for a company for one year. Then they laid him off. "We have to lay
you off," said his boss. "It's not you. It's the economy. We'll hire you back when
the economy gets better." Carl was angry. It wasn't the economy. It's
discrimination, he thought. They didn't lay off anyone else. They laid off only him.
He looked for another job. He couldn't find another job. A year later, he still had
no job. It isn't my fault, he thought. It was the company's fault. They
discriminated against him. He bought a gun. He went back to his company. He
shot his boss dead. The police arrested him. The murder was on the TV news. The
TV reporter talked about Carl. She felt so sorry for him. She talked about how
much he had suffered. She didn't say anything about his dead boss.
184. Airport "Security" (1)
The airport guard stopped the tall man. The man was trying to walk past the
guard. The guard told him to use the entrance. "You cannot enter here," he told
the man. "You can only exit here." The man nodded his head. He understood. He
stood outside the security rope. He was only a few feet from the guard. The
man's girlfriend was going on a business trip. She was flying to Texas. He wanted
to kiss her goodbye one more time. He stood outside the exit. The guard started
talking on his cell phone. Then the guard stood up. He left his chair. He walked
away. He continued talking on his phone. The man watched the guard walk away.
Then the man ducked under the rope. He walked past where the guard had sat.
He walked over to his girlfriend. She was standing in line. He hugged her.

185. Airport "Security" (2)
They kissed and said goodbye one more time. Then the man left. The airport
guard still hadn't returned to his chair. The exit was completely unguarded. A
terrorist could have entered the airport through this exit. About five minutes
later, the guard finally returned. He sat down in his chair. He yawned. A woman
had seen the tall man duck under the rope. "I saw a man duck under a security
rope," she told an airport supervisor. He started a search for the man. But the
man had left the airport. The supervisor asked to see a security videotape. But no
one had turned on the videotape machine. Thousands of passengers had to go
through a security check again. They were angry. News reporters blamed the tall
man. They said it was all his fault. They said he should go to jail. The reporters did
not blame the guard.
186. Living Together
He was already thinking about leaving. He had just moved in. He and his girlfriend
were living together. They were living together for the first time. But it wasn't all
lovey-dovey. They argued a lot. She said he was a slob. "You're a slob," she said.
She said he was lazy. "You're lazy," she said. I moved here for this, he wondered.
He loved her. But he wasn't a dog. She yelled at him like he was a dog. "Don't yell
at me," he said. "I'm not a dog." When he tried to hug her, she pushed him away.
Who needs this, he wondered. I'd rather be by myself, he thought. He decided to
wait a while. Maybe things would get better. But if they didn't, he was leaving. "If
you don't change, I'm leaving you," she told him. Ha, he thought, we'll see who
leaves who first.
187. USPS Redelivery (1)
Rob was in Texas. He went to the post office. He mailed a package to Jean. He
insured the package. Jean lived in New York City. She lived in an apartment
building. The apartment building has 20 floors. It has a front desk. The front desk
is on the ground floor. Security people work at the front desk. A week later, Rob's
package was in New York City. The mailman took it to the front desk. "I have a
package for Apt. 3A. It's insured. Someone has to sign for it," he told Victor.

Victor said, "I'll ring Apt. 3A to see if anyone is home." He rang the apartment.
There was no answer. "No one's home," he told the mailman. "Would you ring
again?" asked the mailman. "I don't like to redeliver packages." Victor rang the
apartment again. Nobody answered. The mailman left a postal form in Jean's
mailbox.
Jean opened her mailbox. She saw the postal form. It said, "Insured package.
Sorry we missed you. Call for redelivery: 1-800-275-8777." She went upstairs to
her apartment. She called the 800 number. A phone menu voice said, "Thank you
for calling USPS. Let's begin. You can say Delivery Services." Jean said, "Delivery
Services." The voice said, "You can say Redelivery." Jean said, "Redelivery." The
voice said, "You can say Schedule a Redelivery." Jean said, "Schedule a
redelivery." The voice didn't understand her. Jean said, "Representative." A
female USPS representative said, "Hello. How can I help you?" Jean asked for a
redelivery the next day. The representative said, "No problem. You'll get your
package tomorrow. Here's your tracking number. Remember, you can depend on
USPS." The next day, the mailman came and went. He did not redeliver the
package. Jean called the 800 number again.
The USPS phone menu voice answered. Jean said, "Representative." A male
representative said hello. "The mailman didn't redeliver my package today," Jean
said. "What is the tracking number for your package?" he asked. Jean told him
the number. "I can't find that number," he said. "Are you sure that's the right
number?" "Yes. USPS gave it to me yesterday," she said. "Did the USPS
representative give you a confirmation number?" he asked. Jean said no. "You
must get a confirmation number," he said. "No confirmation number, no
redelivery. When do you want redelivery?" Jean asked for redelivery on
Wednesday. "Okay, you'll get your package tomorrow," he said. "Here's your new
tracking number and confirmation number. Remember, you can depend on
USPS." Jean felt much better. She had two numbers. The next day the mailman
came and went. He didn't redeliver her package. Jean called the 800 number
again.

Jean talked to a USPS representative. "The mailman didn't redeliver my package

today," she said. "This is the second day in a row." The representative said, "He
didn't redeliver your package on Tuesday or Wednesday. That's two days in a
row. I'm very sorry." Jean said, "Thank you. But I just want my package. When can
I get my package?" He said, "I'll schedule another redelivery for tomorrow. I'll
give you a new tracking number and a new confirmation number. Also, I will open
a case for you. I'll give you the case number. A case number is very serious. A
case number makes things happen." The next day the mailman came and went.
He didn't redeliver Jean's package. She was not surprised. She picked up the
phone. Then she put it down. Why bother, she thought. She didn't call the 800
number. Her package arrived five days later.
191. He Hates to Fly
He had a 9 p.m. flight. He hated to fly. A passenger plane is always crowded. It is

always full. Passengers are jammed together. They are packed together. Side by
side. Elbow to elbow. Front to back. Knees to butts. Five hours from California to
New York. Five hours of people eating. Five hours of people drinking. Five hours
of people burping. Five hours of people going to the bathroom. But first, he had
to go through airport security. He hated airport security. Why do they call it
airport security? They don't make him feel secure. They make him feel angry.
They always take him aside. They always double-check him. Does he look like a
terrorist? Does he look like a mad bomber? Maybe security has a machine that
reads minds. That's it. They have a machine that can read his mind. The machine
says, "Angry passenger. Make him angrier."
192. HassleMan
Everything's a hassle, he thought. The smallest thing is a hassle. Taking the cap off
the toothpaste tube is a hassle. Squeezing the toothpaste tube is a hassle. Putting
the toothpaste on the toothbrush is a hassle. Brushing his teeth is a hassle. Life is
just one hassle after another. "You always exaggerate," his wife said. "Not
everything is a hassle." He thought about that. Could his wife be right? Are some

things not a hassle? How about eating food? That's not a hassle. How about
taking a hot shower? That's not a hassle. How about reading? How about
watching a good TV program? How about sleeping? He couldn't think of anything
else. Eating, showering, reading, watching TV, and sleeping aren't a hassle. "Okay,
I won't exaggerate," he said to his wife. "I won't say that everything is a hassle. I'll
say that everything except five things is a hassle!"
193. The Info Desk
This was his first visit to the corner library. He walked over to the library
information desk. The woman behind the information desk was reading a
magazine. He stood in front of her. She continued reading the magazine. He
cleared his throat. She looked up from her magazine. "I'm looking for a book," he
said. "Title?" she asked. "'Good Manners, Bad Manners,'" he said. She typed the
title into her computer. "Downstairs," she said. "How do I get downstairs?" he
asked. She tilted her head to her right. "The stairs are over there?" he asked. She
tilted her head to her right again. "Is there a restroom downstairs, too?" he
asked. She tilted her head to her left. "The restroom is over there?" he asked. She
tilted her head to her left again. "Do you have a sore throat?" he asked. She
didn't answer. She was reading her magazine.
194. The Phone Call
The phone rang as he was leaving the apartment. He didn't answer it. It's
probably Dave, he thought. His brother Dave had said he would call. He returned
home an hour later. He checked his phone for missed calls. There was only the
one call. But it wasn't his brother's number. Who could it be, he wondered. He
dialed the number. A woman answered. She said, "Hello, Kim, how are you
doing?" Kim was his wife's name. Who is this, he wondered. "Who's this?" he
asked. "Who's this?" she asked. "You called me." He didn't answer. Now he
realized who it was. It was some woman who called his wife occasionally. They
had been classmates at school. His wife was polite to her. But his wife didn't like
her. She never returned this woman's phone calls. He himself had never met or
talked to her. "Sorry, wrong number," he said.
195. American Breakfast

She was running late. She wanted a fast breakfast. She didn't have time to make
her own breakfast. Her usual breakfast was rice, vegetables, and meat. "Will you
make me a fast breakfast?" she asked her boyfriend. He was American. She was
Asian. He preferred cereal for breakfast. He grabbed a box of cereal. He grabbed
a bowl and a spoon. He took a carton of milk out of the refrigerator. He grabbed
a banana. "Here's something fast for you," he said. He put everything on the
dining table. She looked at the box of cereal. "Let me try this first," she said. She
put a few flakes of cereal into her mouth. She ate them. "Yuck," she said. "How
can you eat this? It's so dry." "Well, that's what the milk and banana are for," he
said. She said forget it. She grabbed the banana and went to work.
196. Bad Toilet Paper
He needed to blow his nose. He pulled four sheets off the roll of toilet paper.
What's this, he wondered. The first two sheets were 2-ply. The next two sheets
were mostly 1-ply. He pulled six more sheets off the roll. The first four sheets
were mostly 1-ply. The last two sheets were 2-ply. How do they make toilet paper
wrong, he wondered. Maybe the whole roll was no good. Maybe all the rolls
were no good. He blew his nose. His wife came home. She went into the
bathroom. She came out of the bathroom. She was holding about ten sheets.
Some were 2-ply. Some were mostly 1-ply. "What's this?" she said. "I don't
know," he said. "Sometimes they make mistakes." "I've used toilet paper my
whole life," she said. "I've never seen this problem before. Was this on sale? Did
you get a good deal on it?"
197. Let's Dance
She was blonde and pretty. She was in a bar with her friend. Her friend was a
brunette. A man put some money in the jukebox. Slow music started playing. He
went over to the women's table. "Hi," he said. Both women looked at him.
"Would you like to dance?" he asked the blonde. She laughed. "No way," she
said. He asked the brunette. She said, "No, thanks." The two women resumed
talking. He went back to his seat at the bar. He finished his drink. Then he had
another one. He didn't put any more money in the jukebox. The blonde got up
from her seat. She walked toward the restrooms. He waited a minute. Then he

walked toward the restrooms. He walked into the women's restroom. He beat
the blonde in her face with his fists. He beat her unconscious. He walked out of
the bar.
198. Where Did Daddy Go?
He was in Miami. He was an oil executive. He was at a bar with some friends. It
was about 1 a.m. He walked out of the bar. He didn't say good night to his
friends. He didn't say anything to anyone. He just walked out of the bar. The
videotape from a surveillance camera showed him walking west from the bar. His
hotel was not west from the bar. Where did he walk to? Why didn't he walk
straight back to his hotel? The police wanted to know. His family and friends
wanted to know. He wasn't drunk. He wasn't sick. Five days later someone found
his body. It was in the water. The coroner did an autopsy. The coroner said he
had drowned. The police said it was an accidental drowning. "That can't be!
Daddy taught all of us how to swim," said one of his adult daughters.
199. Dinner Smells Good
He was in his bedroom. He smelled food. The food smelled like chicken. It
smelled good. A neighbor must be cooking dinner, he thought. But how could he
smell his neighbor's dinner? The smell couldn't come through his apartment's
heating vent. That vent was for his apartment only. So where was the smell
coming from? He walked to the front door. He opened it. There was no smell in
the hallway outside the door. He walked into the living room. There was no smell
in the living room. He walked back into the bedroom. He could smell the food
again. The bedroom was the only place he could smell the food. It was winter. All
the windows were closed. How could the smell get into the bedroom? "Call up
the landlord," his wife said. "Maybe he knows how. I'm just glad we're smelling
chicken. I'm glad it's not fish!"
200. Fifty Missing Pages
He needed to study for a test. He went online to order a book. He went to the
publisher's website. He found the book he needed to study. It was 240 pages. It
was $59. Shipping was $6. He could order the book from the publisher's website.

Or, he could order it from the Borders store. It was only a block away. Borders
wouldn't charge him for shipping. He walked over to Borders. He gave the book
title to the clerk. She typed the title into her computer. The price was $59.
Shipping was free. The number of pages was 190. "Wait a minute," he said. "I just
looked at this book online. It has 240 pages, not 190. Where did 50 pages go?"
"That's strange," she said. "Maybe you should order it from the publisher." "No,"
he said. "It's okay. That's 50 pages that I won't have to study."

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Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim

3. Washing Her Hands

Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim Level 3 , Part 1

6. Buy a New Car

7. Water and an Apple

9. A Shot in the Arm

Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim Level 3 , Part 1

10. Wants to Die

13. New Shoes

Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim Level 3 , Part 1

14. Eggs and Apples

15. Piano Player

16. Work, Work

17. Scrub the Floor

Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim Level 3 , Part 1

18. Write a Letter

20. Start the Car

21. Fly Away

Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim Level 3 , Part 1

22. A Fast Driver

24. Melted Cheese

25. Drain Opener

Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim Level 3 , Part 1

26. A Clean Floor

27. Trash Day

29. No More Apartment

Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim Level 3 , Part 1

30. Fresh Fish

31. The Shoe Shine

33. A Place to Eat

Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim Level 3 , Part 1

34. Wash the Clothes

35. Bad Boy

36. Fresh Salad

37. Losing Weight

Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim Level 3 , Part 1

39. His Leg Hurts

40. Patty's Doll

41. Eight Babies

Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim Level 3 , Part 1

42. A Loud Radio

43. Two Aspirin

44. News Every Day

45. Poor Dog

Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim Level 3 , Part 1

46. Drunk Driver

47. The Runner

48. A Paper Clip

49. Dead Batteries

Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim Level 3 , Part 1

50. Write a Check

51. Sally's Cold

52. Too Much Stuff

Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim Level 3 , Part 1

54. A New Baby

55. No Flu Shot for Her

Prepared by: Hassan Ibrahim Level 3 , Part 1

57. Flying Saucer

58. More Milk