I needed to get some money so, after Christmas, I took a job in the clothes department at Graham’s for the first fortnight of the January sale. I can’t say that I enjoyed it, but it was an experience I’ll never forget.
I could never understand why there were so many things in the sales; where did they all come from? Now I know the secret! Firstly, there is the special winter stock (货物) and the stock that people buy all the year round; some of these things are slightly reduced. Secondly, there are the summer clothes they couldn’t sell last year; these are heavily reduced to clear them. Thirdly, there are cheap clothes bought in specially for the sales; these are put out at high prices ten days before the sale begins and then are reduced by 60% in the sale. Clever! Lastly, they buy in “seconds? (clothes not in perfect condition) for the sale and they are sold very cheaply.
When I arrived half an hour before opening on the first day of the sale, there was already a queue around three sides of the building. This made me very nervous.
When the big moment arrived to open the doors, the security guards, looking less confident than usual, came up to them, keys in hand. The moment they had unlocked the doors, they hid behind the doors for protection as the noisy crowd charged in. I couldn’t believe my eyes; this wasn’t shopping, it was a battlefield! One poor lady couldn’t keep her feet and was knocked over by people pushing from behind.
Clothes were flying in all directions as people searched for the sizes, colours and styles they wanted. Quarrels broke out. Mothers were using their small children to crawl(爬行) through people’s legs and get hold of things they couldn’t get near themselves.
Within minutes I had half a dozen people pushing clothes under my nose, each wanting to be the first served. Where had the famous English Queue gone? The whole day continued like that, but I kept my temper(脾气)! I was taking money hand over fist and began to realize why, twice a year, Graham’s were happy to turn their expensive store into a battlefield like this.
In the sale fever, people were spending money like water without thinking whether they needed what they were buying. As long as it was a bargain it was OK.
You won’t believe this but as soon as I got home I crashed out for four hours. Then I had dinner and went back to bed, fearing the sound of the alarm which would tell me to get ready for the second day of the sale.
61. What kind of clothes is likely to be sold 5% cheaper?
A. Last summer’s clothes. B. Clothes not in perfect condition.
C. Clothes bought in specially for the sales. D. Clothes for winter.
62. Which of the following statements is true?
A. The customers gave up the queuing for which the English are famous.
B. The customers kept their temper while looking for clothes they wanted.
C. Small children enjoyed crawling through people’s legs.
D. The security guards were fearless of the crowd.
63. In the author’s opinion, why were Graham’s happy to make their expensive store into “Battlefield?
A. There were too many clothes and they wanted to clear them in the sales.
B. They were eager to show that they were clever at doing business.
C. They could take the chance to raise the prices of all their clothes.
D. They wanted to make more money by having sales.
64. The expression “crashed out” means ________.
A. chatted with her friends B. slept soundly
C. broke down D. dined out
65. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. The Best Bargain. B. Hunting for a job.
C. Sale Fever. D. A Pleasant Fortnight.
In the hit film The bucket List, Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman meet in hospital in California after they have been diagnosed with cancer. Between them they cook up a “bucket list” ------ a to-do list of all they want to do before they kick the bucket. The movie makes you wonder what would be on your bucket list. So let’s pack up some and see what it would cost to go out and have a little fun.
THE PYRAMIDS, GIZA, EGYPT
On to the pyramids, surely on anyone’s bucket list. Exotik Tours can take you there on a variety of trips, including their popular Egypt Express which includes three nights in Cairo and a three-night Nile Cruise (乘船游览). From $1,384, including four-and five-star accommodation, 12 meals and a ton of sightseeing.
www.exotiktours.com 416-646-3347
TAJ MAHAL, AGRA, INDIA
One of the world’s most fascinating images, India’s Taj Mahal makes even Nicholson and Freeman look calm. Toronto’s Goway Travel has many suggestions for India, including a three-day independent visit to Agra. Stay at the attractive Oberoi AmarVilas overlooking the Taj. Include two breakfasts, touring and airport transfer from $1,420.
www.gowaytravel.com 416-322-1034
THE GREAT WALL, CHINA
If the Great Wall of China is on your bucket list, check into Tour East Holiday’s four-day Amazing Beijing Tour for $580 per person, four-star accommodation, sightseeing including the Forbidden City and the Great Wall, breakfasts and two lunches, transportation and guide.
www.toureastholidays.com 416-929-0888
THE HIMALAYAS, NEPAL
And on to the Himalayas. Talk about something truly majestic (壮丽的). See the top of the world on GAP Adventures’ Everest Adventure tour, a 15-day exploration including Everest Base Camp, teahouse lodge stays, and walking through Sherpa villages. Incredibly affordable at just $665 plus local payment of $250. GAP Adventures warns that this is a physically demanding trip.
www.gapadventures.com 416-260-0999The underlined phrase “kick the bucket” in Paragraph 1 means ____.
| A．come to life | B．play a game |
| C．pass away | D．list interesting places |
According to the passage, where can you enjoy a view of the whole Taj Mahal?
| A．In Sherpa village. | B．Near the Forbidden City |
| C．Through Egypt Express. | D．At Oberoi AmarVilas |
If you take on the Everest Adventure tour, you should be aware that ____.
| A．the sights may not be so good. |
| B．it is a tiring trip |
| C．you may not be used to the food there |
| D．it is an expensive trip |
Which of the following websites may offer you more information about Agra?
| A．www.gowaytravel.com | B．www.exotiktours.com |
| C．www.gapadventures.com | D．www.toureastholidays.com |
Usually, when your teacher asks a question, there is only one correct answer．But there is one question that has millions of current answers．That question is “What’s your name?”. Everyone gives a different answer, but everyone is correct．
Have you ever wondered about people’s names? Where do they come from? What do they mean?
People’s first names, or given names, are chosen by their parents．Sometimes the name of a grandparent or other member of the family is used．Some parents choose the name of a well-known person．A boy could be named George Washington Smith; a girl could be named Helen Keller Jones．
Some people give their children names that mean good things．Clara means “bright”; Beatrice means “one who gives happiness”; Donald means “world ruler”; Leonard means “as brave as a lion”．
The earliest last names, or surnames, were taken from place names．A family with the name Brook or Brooks probably lived near a brook；someone who was called Longstreet probably lived on a long, paved road．The Greenwood family lived in or near a leafy forest．
Other early surnames came from people’s occupations．The most common occupational name is Smith, which means a person who makes things with iron or other metals．In the past, smiths were very important workers in every town and village．Some other occupational names are: Carter ---- a person who owned or drove a cart; Potter ---- a person who made pots and pans．
The ancestors of the Baker family probably baked bread for their neighbors in their native villa．The Carpenter’s great-great-great-grandfather probably built houses and furniture．
Sometimes people were known for the color of their hair or skin, or their size, or their special abilities．When there were two men who were named John in the same village, the John with the gray hair probably became John Gray．Or the John who was very tall could call himself John Tallman．John Fish was probably an excellent swimmer and John Lightfoot was probably a fast runner or a good dancer．
Some family names were made by adding something to the father’s name．English-speaking people added –s or –son．The Johnsons are descendants of John; the Roberts family’s ancestor was Robert．Irish and Scottish people added Mac or Mc or O．Perhaps all of the MacDonnells and the McDonnells and the O’Donnells are descendants of the same Donnell．Which of the following aspects do the surnames in the passage NOT cover?
| A．Places where people lived. |
| B．People’s characters. |
| C．Talents that people possessed. |
| D．People’s occupations. |
According to the passage, the ancestors of the Potter family most
probably ____．
| A．owned or drove a cart |
| B．made things with metals |
| C．made kitchen tools or containers |
| D．built houses and furniture |
Suppose an English couple whose ancestors lived near a leafy forest wanted their new-born son to become a world leader, the baby might be named ____．
| A．Beatrice Smith | B．Leonard Carter |
| C．George Longstreet | D．Donald Greenwood |
The underlined word “descendants” in the last paragraph means a person’s ____．
| A．later generations | B．friends and relatives |
| C．colleagues and partners | D．later sponsors |
Christopher Thomas, 27, was a writer by night and a teacher by day when he noticed he was always tired and was losing weight fast．Diagnosed with diabetes（糖尿病）, Thomas would need to inject himself with insulin（胰岛素） three times a day for the rest of his life or risk nerve damage, blindness, and even death．And if that weren't bad enough, he had no health insurance．
After a month of feeling upset, Thomas decided he’d better find a way to fight back．He left Canton, Michigan for New York, got a job waiting tables, nicknamed himself the Diabetic Rockstar, and created diabeticrockstar.com, a free online community for diabetics(糖尿病患者) and their loved ones ---- a place where over 1,100 people share personal stories, information, and resources．
Jason Swencki’s son, Kody, was diagnosed with type diabetes at six．Father and son visit the online children’s forums（论坛） together most evenings．“Kody gets so excited, writing to kids from all over,” says Swencki, one of the site’s volunteers. “They know what he’s going through, so he doesn't feel alone.”
Kody is anything but alone. Diabetes is now the seventh leading cause of death in the United States, with 24 million diagnosed cases．And more people are being diagnosed at younger ages．
These days, Thomas’s main focus is his charity, Fight It, which provides medicines and supplies to people ---- 225 to date ---- who can’t afford a diabetic’s huge expenses．Fight-it org has raised about $23,000 ---- in products and in cash．In May, Thomas will hold the first annual Diabetic Rockstar Festival in the Caribbean．
Even with a staff of 22 volunteers, Thomas often devotes up to 50 hours a week to his cause, while still doing his full-time job waiting tables．“Of the diabetes charities out there, most are putting money into finding a cure,” says Bentley Gubar, one of Rockstar’s original members. “But Christopher is the only person I know saying people need help now.”Diabeticrockstar.com was created for ____．
| A．diabetics to communicate |
| B．volunteers to find jobs |
| C．children to amuse themselves |
| D．rock stars to share resources |
According to the text, Kody ____．
| A．feel lonely because of his illness |
| B．benefits from diabeticrockstar.com |
| C．helps create the online kid’s forums |
| D．writes children’s stories online |
What can we learn about Fight It?
| A．It helps the diabetics in financial difficulties． |
| B．It organizes parties for volunteer once a year． |
| C．It offers less expensive medicine to diabetics． |
| D．It owns a well-known medical website． |
The last paragraph suggests that Thomas ____．
| A．works full-time in a diabetes charity |
| B．employs 22 people for his website |
| C．helps diabetics in his own way |
| D．manages to find a cure for diabetes |
The computer keyboard helped kill shorthand---a system of rapid handwriting, and now it's threatening to finish off handwriting as a whole. When handwritten essays were introduced on the SAT exams for the class of 2011, just 15% of the most 1.5 million students wrote their answers in cursive (草写字母）.The rest? Block letters.
And those college hopefuls are just the first edge of a wave of US students who no longer get much handwriting instructions in the primary grades, frequently 10 minutes a day or less. As a result, more and more students struggle to read and write cursive.
At Keene Mill Elementary School in Springfield, all their poems and stories are typed. Children in Fairfax County schools are taught keyboarding beginning in kindergarten. Older students who never mastered handwriting say it doesn't affect their grades.
There are those who say the culture is at a crossing, turning from the written word to the typed one. If handwriting becomes a lost form of communication, does it matter?
It was at University of Virginia that researchers recently discovered a previously unknown poem by Robert, written in his unique script. Handwritten documents are more valuable to researchers, historians say, because their authenticity (真实性）can be confirmed. Students also find them more fascinating.
The loss of handwriting also may be a cognitive (认知的）opportunity missed. Several academic studies have found that good handwriting skills at a young age can help children express their thoughts better-a lifelong benefit.
It doesn't take much to teach better handwriting skills. At some schools in Prince George's County, elementary school students use a program called Handwriting Without Tears for 15 minutes a day. They learn the correct formation of manuscript letters through second grade, and cursive letters in third grade.
There are always going to be some kids who struggle with handwriting because of their particular neurological (神经系统的)wiring, learning issues or poor motor skills. Educators often point to this factor in support of keyboarding.What is the author concerned about after 2011 SAT exams?
| A．Keyboarding. | B．Shorthand |
| C．Handwriting. | D．Block letters. |
A poem by Robert mentioned in the passage is used to _________.
| A．prove how valuable handwriting is |
| B．explain what a famous poet he is |
| C．show how unique his poem is |
| D．stress how fascinating the documents are |
The example of Handwriting Without Tears helps to argue that_________.
| A．the schools are responsible for the loss of handwriting |
| B．the loss of handwriting is a cognitive opportunity missed xKb 1.Com |
| C．it doesn't take much to teach better handwriting skills |
| D．the culture is turning from the written word to the typed one |
According to the author, when is a perfect time to learn handwriting?
| A．Kindergarten. | B．Primary school. | C．High school. | D．College. |
What is the author’s attitude towards this debate?
| A．Devotion. | B．Encouragement. | C．critical. | D．Objective. |
Have you ever picked a job based on the fact that you were good at it but later found it made you feel very uncomfortable over time? When you select your career, there's a whole lot more to it than assessing your skills and matching them with a particular position. If you ignore your personality, it will hurt you long-term regardless of your skills or the job's pay. There are several areas of your personality that you need to consider to help you find a good job. Here are a few of those main areas;
1) Do you prefer working alone or with other people?
There are isolating jobs that will drive an outgoing person crazy and also interactive jobs that will make a shy person uneasy. Most people are not extremes in either direction but do have a tendency that they prefer. There are also positions that are sometimes a combination of the two, which may be best for someone in the middle who adapts easily to either situation.
2) How do you handle change?
Most jobs these days have some elements of change to them, but some are more than others. If you need stability in your life, you may need a job where the changes don't happen so often. Other people would be bored of the same daily routine.
3) Do you enjoy working with computers？
I do see this as a kind of personality characteristic. There are people who are happy to spend more than 40 hours a week on a computer, while there are others who need a lot of human interaction throughout the day. Again, these are extremes and you'll likely find a lot of positions somewhere in the middle as well.
4) What type of work environment do you enjoy？
This can range from being in a large building with a lot of people you won't know immediately to a smaller setting where you'll get to know almost all the people there fairly quickly.
5) How do you like to get paid?
Some people are motivated by the pay they get, while others feel too stressed to be like that. The variety of payment designs in the sales industry is a typical example for this.
Anyway, these are a great starting point for you. I've seen it over and over again with people that they make more money over time when they do something they love. It may take you a little longer, but making a move to do what you have a passion for can change the course of your life for the better.What does the underlined sentence in paragraph one mean?
| A．Before you select your job, you should assess your skills and match them with your position. |
| B．There are more important things than assessing skills and match them with the position when you select jobs. |
| C．Nothing is important than assessing skills and match them with the position when you select job. |
| D．You should ignore your skills when you select job. |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Isolating usually drive people mad. |
| B．Interactive jobs make people shy easily. |
| C．Extreme people tend to work with others. |
| D．Almost everyone has a tendency in jobs. |
The underlined word “stability” in the passage most probably means?
| A．no movement. | B．no anger. | C．gentleness. | D．enthusiasm. |
In a job search, what quality is not mentioned in the passage?
| A．Outgoing. | B．Motivated. | C．Cooperative. | D．Passionate. |
What could be the best title for this passage?
| A．Lifestyles and Job Pay | B．Jobs and Environment |
| C．Job Skills and Abilities | D．Personalities and Jobs |
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