Jason had been sitting alone at his table, staring at the tall, platinum blonde for an hour. His imagination ran wild with thoughts of kissing her full lips while his hands explored her lean, muscled body. Tonight he didn't need the whiskey to warm him up. But he kept drinking it anyway. She stepped away from the mike, sat her acoustic guitar on its stand, and walked down from the small stage. Jason beat all the other losers to the bar and sat down beside her. "You must be pretty thirsty after all that beautiful singing." How many times had she heard that line? But at age 33, she'd probably heard every pickup line known to man. "Yeah," she said, giving him a quick glance. He wasn't a bad looking guy. Probably a couple of inches shorter than her. At six-foot-two, she was accustomed to that. But a lot of men couldn't deal with her height. They liked to be the tall one in the relationship. Not that she'd had many relationships. Mostly one-nighters. Without her saying a word, the bartender sat a glass of ice down in front of her, and poured her a can of Diet Coke. "Thanks, Joe." She took a sip as he walked away. "I'm Jason." "Sondra," she said, looking straight ahead as she took another sip. "I really enjoyed your music--especially that last song. Did you write it yourself?" "Yeah." "Wow. It was sad, but moving. You've got talent." Here we go, she thought. And I suppose you're a talent agent or a record producer, or you've got a friend in the business. And you'd be more than happy to get me a record deal--assuming I'd be willing to go with you right now to some sleazy motel. "I'm sick of this business. In fact, you just heard my last performance. First thing Monday morning I'm going out to find me a real job. One that will pay the bills." Question: What was Jason drinking: Options: A. whiskey B. beer C. not enough information D. diet coke === The correct answer is
A

Last week we talked about healthy eating on a budget. Today I want to take it a step further and focus on how to start clean eating on a budget. It is very similar with just a couple of extra steps. Clean eating focuses on fresh ingredients, no processed foods, and eating good foods as close to nature as possible such as: fruits, vegetables, whole grains, cage-free eggs, grass-fed beef and grain-fed poultry, and raw milk (if possible) to your diet. Some of these may seem like a burden when you are on a small food budget, but with the tips below, you can eat clean and stay within your budget. I am sure you will recognize some from the previous post; but read through there is extra information that applies specifically to clean eating. A major component of clean eating is buying fresh produce rather than canned fruits and vegetables. Frozen produce is OK; but, if in-season fruit is available, it is always better to choose that. Buy in bulk, and freeze it yourself. Use Google to help you search for seasonal produce in your area. When you can buy it from a Farmer's Market, or even directly from the farmers, it will be less expensive. My next choice is SPOUTS Farmer's Marker, if there is one near you. Those sources will probably be the least expensive. For example: you may be able to buy strawberries, peaches, and nectarines very inexpensively in the summer and find that squash is a better buy in the fall. Always buy extra when the price is right and freeze the leftovers. When you first start reading about clean eating, you may find "experts" expounding the importance of certain superfoods that you should start eating. The reality is they are nutritious and excellent additions to your diet; but, you don't have to eat them just start a clean eating. If you cannot afford to add chia seeds of flax seeds to every smoothie or eat a pomegranate each morning, don't worry about it. Buy the clean foods you can afford and eat those you will be doing just fine. Question: Why does the author recommend buying seasonal produce? Options: A. it is usually less expensive that produce that is not in season B. not enough information C. it is the only produce found at farmers' markets D. seasonal produce can be frozen and kept for a longer time === The correct answer is
A

(Q).
China's Defense Ministry said Thursday that a U.S. decision to disinvite China from a major international maritime exercise is "unconstructive." A ministry statement said despite the decision, China will continue playing a role in "maintaining peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region." The United States announced its move Wednesday, saying Beijing's "destabilizing behavior" in the South China Sea is inconsistent with the principles of the U.S.-led drill. "China's continued militarization of disputed features in the South China Sea only serve to raise tensions and destabilize the region," read a statement from Lt. Col. Christopher Logan, a Pentagon spokesman. The statement said that disinviting China from the 2018 RIMPAC is an "initial" response to Beijing's South China Sea activities. It did not specify what other steps may be taken. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said China's activity in the South China Sea was for self-defense and that it was a "much smaller scale" than what the United States had done in Hawaii and Guam. "We hope that the U.S. will change such a negative mindset," he said at a joint news conference with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Since 2014, China has taken part in RIMPAC, the world's largest international maritime drill, which is held every two years in Hawaii. It's a reflection of expanding U.S.-China military ties, despite tensions over Beijing's construction of man-made islands in the South China Sea, some of which have been militarized. "We have strong evidence that China has deployed anti-ship missiles, surface-to-air missile (SAM) systems, and electronic jammers to contested features in the Spratly Islands region of the South China Sea. China's landing bomber aircraft at Woody Island has also raised tensions," the Pentagon statement said. "We have called on China to remove the military systems immediately and to reverse course on the militarization of disputed South China Sea features," the statement added. "We believe these recent deployments and the continued... Question: How long has the conflict lasted? Options: A. not enough information B. Probably a week C. about a year D. about a day === The correct answer is
(A).
B