It was a rainy November morning. Overcome with anger I knew if I didn’t leave the house soon I would lose my temper with my husband, Joe. As rain came down in sheets, Joe offered to take me to work. I struggled into my jacket, seized my bag and teaching plans and ignored him. He insisted and reached for his boots. I looked at the piles of newspapers and the dirty dishes still on the table. “Don’t you have enough to do? I can take care of myself.” I stormed out, not even kissing him good-bye. Joe shouted after me not to take the shortcut (捷径). Joe and I had been eagerly looking forward to our retirement when a heart attack that past spring forced him to leave his job earlier than we had planned. As the medical bills mounted we realized I would have to continue working full-time while Joe stayed home and took over the housework. The new arrangement was a disaster. Exhausted after a day of full work, all I wanted was a hot homecooked meal and a good night’s sleep. However, what greeted me at the table was a microwave package. Sometimes he would serve oatmeal ( 燕 麦 ) for several nights in a row. One night when I dragged myself to bed, I was terrified to discover Joe had turned our white sheets blue. He told me he had found out how to save on water, soap and electricity. He patted his blue trousers and announced proudly washing everything together was just the secret. Ten minutes later, ignoring Joe’s warning I turned off the main route (道路). I thought it hadn’t rained enough to flood the road, but as I rounded the corner water rushed across my path. After a few feet, the car got stuck. I opened the door and water poured in. I hurriedly closed the door. I couldn’t risk walking in this. Almost 20 minutes passed. The car began to shake. I got frightened to death when I heard three long honks (喇叭