81 and still on the run

河北 胡金莹

主题语境：旅行 篇幅：346词 建议用时：7分钟

1When you picture yourself in your 80s, what do you see? Many people imagine a life of comfort and ease, but best friends Sandy Hazelip and Ellie Hamby see things a little bit differently. “Don't sit in that chair and waste time,” Sandy said emphatically. “If you don't use it, you lose it.”

2Those are words to live by for this delightful duo! Ellie and Sandy are from Abilene,Texas, but they met while traveling in Africa many years ago. Ellie, an international documentary photographer, has traveled to 107 countries and visited all 7 continents for her work. Sandy, or Dr Sandy as she's known, is a physician who specializes in hospice and geriatric care (临终关怀和老年护理) .

3In 2023, the 81-year-olds started planning an epic adventure they called “81 and still on the run”, inspired by the Jules Verne novel,Around the World in 80 Days. Their goal was to travel to all seven continents, see 9 Wonders of the World, and visit 18 countries in about two-and-a-half months.

4They've marveled at the Northern Lights, stood in the shadow of the Easter Island statues, played with penguins in Antarctica, gone dog-sledding, flown over Mount Qomolangma in an airplane, and enjoyed many other wonderful trips.Everywhere they go, they chat with the people they meet and make new friends, which is all part of their mission.“The number one thing is meeting people,” said Ellie. “We love people. We just love to talk to people, and the world is full of the greatest, most exciting, and most interesting people.”

5Nothing slows these two down, not even total knee replacements for both of them.Ellie documents their journey with photos. Sandy said that when someone says they want to travel with them, the first thing she looks at is their hands. If their hands are wellmanicured, they do not want to travel with them.

6Sandy and Ellie hope to inspire others to keep moving into their golden years, and it's working for them. They suddenly have a new vision for their retirement years, and it doesn't involve sitting around!

Reading

Check

1. What professions do Sandy and Ellie have before retirement?

A. Sandy is a teacher, and Ellie is an artist.

B. Sandy is a nurse, and Ellie is a filmmaker.

C. Sandy is a photographer, and Ellie is a physician.

D. Sandy is a physician, and Ellie is a photographer.

2. What's the part mission of Sandy and Ellie's travels?

A. Meeting people.

B. Taking photographs.

C. Enjoying retirement.

D. Breaking world records.

3. How did Sandy and Ellie choose travel companions?

A. By age.

B. By fitness level.

C. By hand condition.

D. By professional background.

4. Which can best describe this delightful duo?

A. Brave and honest.

B. Generous and selfless.

C. Ambitious and helpful.

D. Persistent and active.

Language

Study

Ⅰ. Difficult sentence in the text

Everywhere they go, they chat with the people they meet and make new friends, which is all part of their mission. 无论她们走到哪里，她们都会和遇到的人聊天，结交新朋友，这都是她们使命的一部分。

【点石成金】本句中，Everywhere 引导让步状语从句；they meet 是一个省略了that/who的定语从句，从句的先行词为the people；which引导定语从句，在从句中作主语。

Ⅱ. Fill in the blanks with the words and phrases in the box in proper froms.

chat with slow down imagine special inspire adventure

1. A child may not differentiate between his/her ________ and the real world.

2. British ________ Alastair Humphreys had ridden his bike around the world, walked across India, and rowed from Africa to South America.

3. I madezongziwith my grandma, watched the boat races on TV and ________ my family.

4. Advertising has already become a very ________ activity in modern times.

5. Despite his unconventional methods, he has ________ students more than anyone else.

6. The threat of global warming will eventually force the US to ________ its energy consumption.