You sleep on it every night, but have you ever thought about what your mattress is made out of?
Can you look for yourself and find out? If you bought your mattress at a store, probably not. Most mattresses today are sewn up when they are made so that you can't take a look at what's inside. But long ago, people didn't buy their mattresses at a store. They stuffed them themselves.
Back in that time, most families kept animals like horses and cows, so people had a lot of hay around to feed the animals. They used the hay to stuff their mattresses because the hay was softer to sleep on than a hard, wooden floor. When they went to sleep on their mattresses, they were really sleeping on hay.
PHOTO: AP
If you're very tired at bedtime, you might fall right down and hit your mattress hard. That's why when you are going to sleep, you can say that you are going to “hit the hay.”
Next time it's late and you are ready for bed, tell your parents, brother or sister that you are going to “hit the hay.”
(Kayleen Hartman, Staff Writer)
你每晚都睡在床墊上,但你可曾想過你的床墊是用什麼做的?
你能自己找出答案嗎?你若是在商店買床墊,可能無從得知,今日的床墊在販賣時多已被縫合,所以你沒辦法看見裡面的東西,不過很久以前,人們不是在店裡買床墊,而是自己用東西塞成床墊。
當時多數家庭都飼養馬和牛等動物,所以他們隨時有很多稻草餵食動物,他們以稻草來塞成床墊,因為這樣要比睡在硬梆梆的木地板上還柔軟。當他們睡在床墊上,其實就是睡在稻草上。
如果到了就寢時間你感覺非常疲憊,可能會直接倒下,重重地壓在床墊上,這就是為何當你要去睡覺時,可以說你要去「hit the hay」。
下次當天色已晚,你準備就寢,告訴你的父母和兄弟姊妹,你要去「hit the hay」了。(翻譯:鄭湘儀)
A: I want to go to Neihu to see the cherry blossoms. B: Do you want to go by YouBike? A: Well, how much does it cost? B: The Taipei City Government just announced that riders can use the bicycles for free for the first 30 minutes! A: Great! Riding bikes is also more eco-friendly than driving. A: 我想去內湖賞櫻花耶。 B: 那要不要騎YouBike微笑單車去? A: 車費怎麼算? B: 台北市政府最近宣布︰前30分鐘免費! A: 太棒了,而且也比開車更環保。 (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
One of us is a murderer. The terrifying thought fills your head. There’s a corpse in the next room, and one of your fellow diners put it there. As the evening progresses, you learn disturbing secrets about everyone, and you’re forced to confess to a few yourself. You all have motives for the crime, but who committed it? Fortunately, it’s just a game. Murder mystery games are multiplayer role-playing games designed to be played over the course of an evening. The concept likely originated with “wink murder,” an amusing pastime that became popular in the early 1900s. In this game, a “murderer” kills
A: How does Taipei’s YouBike service charge after the free ride for the first 30 minutes? B: It’s NT$10 every 30 minutes within four hours. A: What a bargain. No wonder Taipei is listed by Britain’s “Time Out” magazine as one of the best 50 cities in the world. B: But I spotted a few English mistakes on YouBike’s Web site. A: I guess that aspect of it still has room for improvement. A: 台北市YouBike前30分鐘免費,之後怎麼算? B: 4小時內每30分鐘10元。 A: 真劃算,難怪台北市會入選英國《Time Out》雜誌全球最佳的50座城市。 B: 不過我在YouBike的網站上看到了好幾個英文錯誤。 A: 看來這個部分還有改善的空間。(By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/ 台北時報張聖恩)
Mullet roe is a highly-priced delicacy typically served during special occasions like wedding banquets or Chinese New Year’s dinners, where families come together in celebration. The mullet roe can be prepared in various ways. It is usually pan-fried but can also be roasted or torched. To cook a pan-fried mullet roe, soak it in liquor or wine and peel off its membrane. Then, it is browned over a low fire and turned several times. Finally, the fried mullet roe is cut diagonally and is ready to be served. This dish is usually served with garlic scapes and daikon slices, but