The tough economy is bringing new shoppers to the secondhand market. Plato’s Closet in Chaelotte, NC is a private company, which mainly buys and sells used clothes. While Charlotte has outstanding secondhand stores offering high-end and graceful brands for women, most of their stock applies to adults. Plato’s closet targets teens and those in their 20s. Plato’s Closet , with stores in Matthews and the university area, sells clothes and accessories(装饰品) that are currently popular at about one third the retail prices(零售价).
The two hottest brands, for buying and selling, are Hollister and Abercrombie &Fitch. Even though the offerings tend to be suitable for young people, there are a variety of shoppers at Plato’s Closet of varying ages. Women in their 30s, 40s, and older could easily find a purse, jacket or piece of jewelry they like.
If you are selling
Unlike higher-end resale stores which usually work on consignment(寄售),Plato’s Closet buys on the spot.
Items can be gently used, but must be in very good condition.
Clothes should be less than two years old and styles should be the same as those still being sold at the shopping center.
There is no negotiation; prices are set company-wide. If what you sell amounts to $30 or less, they’ll give you cash. More than that, you’ll get a Visa cash card.
Secondhand success
Don’t get discouraged if you can’t find something on your first trip. Resale shops are always getting new lists of goods and change their styles with each season.
Be sure to check each piece carefully before buying.
Price comparison
Jackets: New York & Company black blazer, $12; retail: $37
Pants: Express Editor-style pants, $12; retail: $69.90.
Shoes: Nine West black peep-toe pumps, $12; retail: $89.
Jewelry: Necklaces, $3-$5; retail: $18-$30.What is the difference between Plato’s Closet and other resale shops?
| A．They offer service for people of different ages. |
| B．The offerings in Plato’s Closet are more expensive. |
| C．Plato’s Closet only offers high-end brands for women. |
| D．Plato’s Closet also sells books to customers. |
Which of the following about Plato’s Closet is NOT true?
| A．Hollister and Abercrombie &Fitch are the two hottest brands in Plato’s Closet. |
| B．Women in their fifties can’t find proper clothes and accessories in Plato’s Closet. |
| C．Goods in Plato’s Closet are sold at 67 percent off retail prices or so. |
| D．Plato’s Closet targets teens and those in their 20s. |
In Plato’s Closet, which of the following is not accepted?
| A．Items you sell must be in very good condition. |
| B．You can negotiate with buyers about prices of goods. |
| C．The clothes you sell should be less than two years old. |
| D．You can sell your goods on the spot instead of on consignment. |
If you buy a pair of Express Editor-style pants in Plato’s Closet, you can save _______.
| A．57.9 dollars | B．15 dollars |
| C．77 dollars | D．25 dollars. |
On Halloween Night, children go trick-treating in their neighborhoods. Dressed up as ghosts, skeleton devils, and various other characters, children knock on doors to collect their treats. Seldom do they actually perform a “trick”.
It is thought that trick-or-treating comes from an old English custom. On All Souls Day, poor people went begging and promised to say prayers in exchange for food. Apple bobbing, still a favorite Halloween game, was originally an ancient ceremony honoring the harvest time.
A jack-o’-lantern is placed on porches and windows to tell children that treats are available. The legend was that a man named Jack could enter heaven because he played tricks on the devil. As punishment, he had to wander the earth carrying a lantern waiting to be judged fit to get into heaven.
People believed that Halloween marked the connection between the world of the living and the world of the dead. This meant that ghosts would roam the earth on this night. Some believed that these ghosts would go back to the homes they lived in before they died.
Thankfully, Halloween is an amusing night when children can dress up and get a bag full of candy. We don’t have to worry about ghosts. Or do we?Apple bobbing was an ancient ceremony held originally to ____.
| A．honor the harvest time | B．honor the dead |
| C．honor the living | D．play a trick on each other |
The underlined word “roam” is close in meaning to ____.
| A．come back | B．place | C．collect | D．walk around |
Which of the following is not true?
A. On Halloween Night, children often dress up as ghosts.
B. On Halloween Night, children often perform tricks.
C,. Trick-or-treating comes from an old English custom.
D. Children can get a lot of candy on Halloween Night.According to the passage, Halloween is a(n) ____ festival.
| A．sad | B．bad | C．interesting | D．boring |
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People can buy used books in ______.
| A．None | B．Harry Potter Store |
C．B argain Books Store |
D．The Textbook Store |
If you order one 8.75-dollar book, two 4. 55-dollar books and one 3.99-dollar book in the Bargain Books Store, then you can get ______free.
| A．none | B．the 3.99-dollar book |
| C．the two 4.55-dollar books | D．the 8.75-dollar book |
What can we infer from the advertisement?
| A．People can only get books about Harry Potter in Harry Potter Store. |
| B．People can get any book free if he buys four books in Bargain Books Store. |
| C．The editors in Bargain Books Store often recommend(推荐) books to readers. |
| D．In the Textbook Store people can save 40% off the list prices of all the books. |
Some places in the world have strange laws. It’s important for you to know about them before going there.
People who like to chew gum(口香糖) may have to leave Singapore. The government really wants to keep the city clean and will fine you for chewing gum.
Before you leave for the United Arab Emirates you’d better make sure you aren’t visiting during Ramadan(斋月). During that time you aren’t allowed to eat or drink in public. Tourists have been fined up to $275 for drinking in public.
Lovers spend so much time kissing each other goodbye at train stations that trains often start late. This law — no kissing your lover goodbye at train stations – is rather old, and is
n’t in use today in France.
In Thailand it’s against the law to drive a car or motorcycle without a shirt on, no matter how hot it is. Punishments are different in different areas and can include warnings and tickets costing about $10. No joke -- the local police will stop you.
Studies in Denmark have shown that cars with their headlights on are more noticeable by other drivers than those with their headlights off. Drivers there are required to leave their headlights on even during the day, or they may face a fine up to $100.
Do you often buy things using coins? Don’t do it in Canada. The Currency Law of 1985 doesn’t allow using only coins to buy things. Even the use of the dollar-coin is limited (受限制的). The shop owner has the right to choose whether to take your coins or not.
Make sure you know about these laws before your next trip. Better safe than sorry.What is mainly talked about in the text?
| A．How to make your trip around the world safe. |
| B．Why there are strange laws in the world. |
| C．Some strange laws you should know about for your trip. |
| D．interesting places you can go to around the world. |
If you are driving a car in Thailand, _____.
| A．the police will play a joke on you |
| B．you should wear your shirt even though it’s hot |
| C．the police will give you tickets costing about $10 |
| D．you should always keep your headlights on |
What can we learn from the text?
| A．The Singaporean government cares a lot about its environment. |
| B．Kissing goodbye at train stations isn’t allowed in France today. |
| C．Tourists in the United Arab Emirates shouldn’t eat in public. |
| D．You can turn your headlights off in daytime in Denmark. |
What do we know about the strange law in Canada?
| A．It is a newly invented law. | B．You aren’t allowed to use dollar-coins. |
| C．You will be fined if you use coins. | D．Shop owners can decide if you can use coins. |
Chaplin, one of the greatest and funniest actors, was born in London in 1889. When a poor boy, he was often seen waiting outside the London theatres, hoping to get work in show business. He could sing and dance, and above all, he knew how to make people laugh. But he couldn’t get work and therefore wandered about the city streets.
Charlie Chaplin first acted when he was five. He broke into show business because his mother, a music-hall performer, lost her voice during the performance and had to leave the stage, and Charlie went on and sang a well-known song. Halfway through the song, a shower of money poured onto 
the stage. Charlie stopped singing and told audiences he would pick the money first and then finish the song. The audiences laughed. This was the first of millions of laughs in Charlie Chaplin’s fabulous(神话) career.
Twenty years later the same Chaplin became the greatest and best loved comedian in the world. His dream came true in the world. His dream came true in the end. Chaplin became world-famous and almost a king in the world of the film.
Even people who don’t understand English can enjoy Chaplin’s films because they are mostly silent. The equipment for adding sound to films had not yet been developed. The development of films with sound became a problem for Chaplin, as he was uncertain about making films with dialogues. Instead, he coninued to make films without dialogue, but he added music, which he wrote himself. It isn’t what he says that makes us laugh. His comedy doesn’t depend on words. It depends on little actions which mean the same thing to people the world over.
Chaplin lived most of his life in America and the last years in Switzerland, where he was buried at Christmas 1977, at the age of eighty-eight. There was sadness all over the world at the news of his death.
In his book, Chaplin tells us how to succeed in life. He says, “You have to believe in yourself. That’s the secret.”Chaplin is regarded as king of comedy mainly because______.
| A．lots of people have seen his films |
| B．he could sing and dance well |
| C．he knew how to make people laugh |
| D．he acted out the common human situations best in his comedy |
What makes people laugh in Chaplin’s films?
| A．It isn’t his words but his actions. | B．Neither his words nor actions. |
| C．Either his words or his actions. | D．Not only his words but also his actions. |
The only secret of Charles Chaplin’s huge success is that______.
| A．he can make all people, men and women, old and young laugh |
| B．he has full trust in himself |
| C．he is always active and hard-working all his life |
| D．though he is always in trouble, he never loses heart |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．He was too shy to meet the managers of the theatres. |
| B．People won’t stop laughing until tears run down Chaplin’s face. |
| C．People all over the world can enjoy Chaplin’s films without translation because most of them are silent. |
| D．He wouldn’t like to work at the theatre. |
For the past many centuries, people had been enjoying the benefits of green tea for the body. Many people would prefer drinking green tea than white tea and black tea, simply because of its distinct aroma(香味) not found in other types of tea. Nowadays, keeping the natural greenish color of tea leaves remained just like before.
This is done by preparing the green tea just like the way it was prepared before—by washing the leaves right after pulling off them from the bush, then boiling them.
There have been many healthful claims saying that drinking green tea-based products help a lot in improving the general health of their body. For a long time, there has been many beliefs saying that green tea can help, cure beriberi disease(脚气病), treat wounds, and even prevent tiredness. Now modern technology 
determines that there are even added healthful benefits that include reducing the possibility of having a heart disease and helping people to lose more weight easily.
Besides, studies have found out that green tea has Polyphenols(多酚类), a type of flaonoid(类黄酮) that greatly reduces the amount of time of cell maturation. The flavonoid found in green tea is called EGCg- a stronger matter than Vitamin C and E. It is believed to be 20 times stronger than these mentioned vitamins.
Having two cups of green tea daily is a good routine for your body. However, most doctors would suggest drinking at least 4 cu
ps a day is the best. You can slowly increase the amount of drinking it to allow your body to get used to it. There is nothing to lose but everything to gain in drinking green tea.Which of the following shows the right order according to the passage? _______.
a. making the leaves clean
b. pulling off them from the bush.
c. boiling the leaves.
| A．a, b, c | B．b, a, c | C．a, c, b | D．b, c, a |
Which word in the passage has a similar meaning as the underlined word “distinct”________?
| A．green | B．general | C．common | D．unique |
Green tea can help us in many aspects EXCEPT __________.
| A．Curing beriberi disease | B．Preventing tiredness |
| C．Curing heart disease | D．Losing weight |
It can be inferred from the passage that __________.
| A．drinking green tea has a history of thousands of years. |
B．flavooid, a  special vitamin, is made up of EGCg. |
| C．Vitamin C and E is 20 times stronger than EGCg. |
| D．drinking green tea has no bad effect but benefits. |
Which of the following might be the best title for the text? __________.
| A．Process of making green tea. | B．Characteristic of green tea. |
| C．Benefits of drinking green tea. | D．History and types of green tea. |
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