I moved from Chicago to Brooklyn in July of 2010, just in time to watch my mother die. Our parents were both gone now. I took with me as many things they had left behind as I could.
I was out walking one Saturday later that summer when something caught my eye - a pale green dress. Laid out on the pavement was stuff like earrings, glass candle-holders, books. Hanging on the fence behind were a few pairs of jeans and a green cotton dress.
The woman, the host of the stoop (门廊）sale, looked like she was getting rid of a past she didn’t need or want. A dress that was too big for her. A chest of drawers that took up too much space, space she needed, maybe, to heal , recover, or grow.
I wasn’t planning on buying anything really, but now I needed to show her that I appreciated her things and I would give them a safe home. Then I had my first stoop sale —I paid her 20 dollars for her green cotton dress and her blue candle-holder.
From that day on, I became interested in stoop sales. Some of my favorite things are from someone else’s life. I find no joy in shopping at regular stores any more. I love trying to sniff out a memory from a bud vase or a drawer. It is comforting to know that someone has breathed and laughed inside a sweater before me.
A few weeks ago, I carried my mother’s dresses to a friend’s stoop. These were her best items, which were once worn by the most important person in my life. For many hours, I watched from across the path people advancing the stoop, some leaving with Mom1S dress. I used to think that her stuff was as forever sacred (神圣的）as my memory of her, I know now that once I love a scarf or shirt too dearly, it needs to find a new home. Even that green dress is long gone by now.The author took her mother’s dresses after her death because ______
| A．she valued the things used by her mom |
| B．she didn’t want to throw them, away |
| C．she could sell them later |
| D．they were her mom’s best items |
From the passage, we know that ______.
| A．the things the author bought from the woman are too big |
| B．the author is fond of imagining others’ life experiences |
| C．the author will never shop at regular stores any more |
| D．the author still keeps most of her mom’s things |
In the last paragraph, the author tries to tell us that ______.
| A．her mom is the number one person in her life |
| B．she didn’t really want to sell her mom’s dresses |
| C．she still thinks of her mother quite often |
| D．love doesn’t mean holding on to something tightly |
It can be inferred that the author will ______.
| A．not sell her own things at stoop sales |
| B．keep her mom in her mind in another way |
| C．be sad about all the memory of her mom |
| D．move to another city for a new life |
Low-Cost Gifts for Mother’s Day
Gift No. 1
Offer to be your mother’s health friend. Promise to be there for any and all doctor’s visits whether a disease or a regular medical check-up. Most mothers always say “no need,” but another set of eyes and ears is always a good idea at a doctor’s visit. The best part? This one is free.
Gift No. 2
Help your mother organize all of her medical records, which include the test results and medical information. Put them all in one place. Be sure to make a list of all of her medicines and what times she takes them. “Having all this information in one place could end up saving your mother’s life,” Dr. Marie Savard said.
Gift No. 3
Enough sleep is connected to general health conditions. “Buy your mother cotton sheets and comfortable pillows to encourage better sleep,” Savard said. “We know that good sleep is very important to our health.”
Gift No. 4
Some gift companies such as Presents for Purpose allow you to pay it forward this Mother’s Day by picking gifts in which 10 percent of the price you pay goes to a charity(慈善机构). Gift givers can choose from a wide variety of useful but inexpensive things—many of which are “green” —and then choose a meaningful charity from a list. When your mother gets the gift, she will be told that she has helped the chosen charity.What are you advised to do for your mother at doctor’s visits?
| A．Fake notes. | B．Be with her. |
| C．Buy medicine. | D．Give her gifts. |
What can be a gift of organization for your mother?
| A．Keeping her medical information together. |
| B．Buying all gifts for her from one company. |
| C．Making a 1ist of her medical check-ups. |
| D．Storing her medicines in a safe place. |
Where can you find a gift idea to improve your mother’s sleep?
| A．In Gift No. 1. | B．In Gift No. 2. |
| C．In Gift No. 3. | D．In Gift No. 4. |
Buying gifts from Presents for Purpose allows mothers to .
| A．enjoy good sleep | B．be well-organized |
| C．get extra support | D．give others help |
Does Fame Drive You Crazy?
Although being famous might sound like a dream come true, today’s stars, feeling like zoo animals, face pressures that few of us can imagine. They are at the center of much of the world’s attention. Paparazzi(狗仔队) camp outside their homes, cameras ready. Tabloids(小报) publish thrilling stories about their personal lives. Just imagine not being able to do anything without being photographed or interrupted for a signature!
According to psychologist Christina Villarreal, celebrities—famous people—worry constantly about their public appearance. Eventually, they start to lose track of who they really are, seeing themselves the way their fans imagine them, not as the people they were before everyone knew their names. “Over time,” Villarreal says, “they feel separated and alone.”
The phenomenon of tracking celebrities has been around for ages. In the 4th century B. C., painters followed Alexander the Great Into battle, hoping to picture his victories for his admirers. When Charles Dickens visited America in the 19th century, his sold-out readings attracted thousands of fans, leading him to complain(抱怨) about his lack of privacy. Tabloids of the 1920s and 1930s ran articles about film-stars in much the same way that modern tabloids and websites do.
Being a public figure today, however, is a lot more difficult than it used to be. Superstars cannot move about without worrying about photographers with modern cameras. When they say something silly or do something ridiculous, there is always the Internet to spread the news in minutes and keep their “story’’ alive forever.
If fame is so troublesome, why aren’t all celebrities running away from it? The answer is there are still ways to deal with it. Some stars stay calm by surrounding themselves with trusted friends and family or by escaping to remote places away from big cities. They focus not on how famous they are but on what they love to do or whatever made them famous in the first place.
Sometimes a few celebrities can get a little justice. Still, even stars who enjoy full justice often complain about how hard their lives are. They are tired of being famous already.It can be learned from the passage that stars today .
| A．are often misunderstood by the public |
| B．can no longer have their privacy protected |
| C．spend too much on their public appearance |
| D．care little about how they have come into fame |
What is the main idea of Paragraph 3?
| A．Great heroes of the past were generally admired. |
| B．The problem faced by celebrities has a long history. |
| C．Well-known actors are usually targets of tabloids. |
| D．Works of popular writers often have a lot of readers. |
What makes it much harder to be a celebrity today?
| A．Availability of modern media. |
| B．Inadequate(无法适应的) social recognition. |
| C．Lack of favorable chances. |
| D．Huge population of fans. |
What is the author’s attitude toward modern celebrity?
| A．Sincere. | B．Sceptical. |
| C．Disapproving . | D．Sympathetic. |
The National Gallery
Description:
The National Gallery is the British national art museum built on the north side of Trafalgar Square in London. It houses a diverse collection of more than 2,300 examples of European art ranging from 13th-century religious paintings to more modern ones by Renoir and Van Gogh. The older collections of the gallery are reached through the main entrance while the more modern works in the East Wing are most easily reached from Trafalgar Square by a ground floor entrance.
Layout(布局):
The modern Sainsbury Wing on the western side of the building houses 13th- to 15th-century paintings, and artists include Duccio, Uccello, Van Eyck, Lippi, Mantegna, Botticelli and Metaling.
The main West Wing houses 16th-century paintings, and artists include Leonardo da Vinci, Cranach, Michelangelo, Raphael, Bruegel, Bronzino, Titian and Veronese.
The North Wing houses 17th-century paintings, and artists include Caravaggio, Rubens, Poussin, Van Dyck, Velazquez, Claude and Vermeer.
The East Wing houses 18th-to early 20th-century paintings, and artists include Canaletto, Goya, Turner, Constable, Renoir and Van Gogh.
Opening Hours:
The Gallery is open every day from 10 am to 6 pm (Fridays 10 am to 9 pm) and is free, but charges apply to some special exhibitions.
Getting There:
Nearest underground stations: Charing Cross (2-minute walk), Leicester Square (3-minute walk), Embankment(7-minute walk), and Piccadilly Circus(8-minute walk).In which century’s collection can you see religious paintings?
| A．The 13th. | B．The 17th. |
| C．The 18th. | D．The 20th. |
Where are Leonardo da Vinci’s works shown?
| A．In the East Wing. | B．In the main West Wing. |
| C．In the Sainsbury Wing. | D．In the North Wing. |
Which underground station is closest to the National Gallery?
| A．Piccadilly Circus. | B．Leicester Square. |
| C．Embankment. | D．Charing Cross. |
Going green seems to be a fad(时尚) for a lot of people these days. Whether that is good or bad, we can’t really say, but for the two of us, going green is not a fad but a lifestyle.
On April 22,2012, we decided to go green every single day for an entire year. This meant doing 365 different green things, and It also meant challenging ourselves to go green beyond the easy things. Rather than recycle and reduce our energy, we had to think of 365 different green things to do and this was no easy task.
With the idea of going green every single day for a year, Our Green Year started. My wife and I decided to educate people about how they could go green in their lives and hoped we could show people all the green things that could be done to help the environment. We wanted to push the message that every little bit helps.
Over the course of Our Green Year, we completely changed our lifestyles. We now shop at organic(有机的) stores. We consume less meat, choosing green food. We have greatly reduced our buying we don’t need. We have given away half of what we owned through websites. Our home is kept clean by vinegar and lemon juice, with no chemical cleaners. We make our own butter, enjoying the smell of home-made fresh bread. In our home office anyone caught doing something ungreen might be punished.
Our minds have been changed by Our Green Year. We are grateful for the chance to have been able to go green and educate others. We believe that we do have the power to change things and help our planet.What might be the best title for the passage?
| A．Going Green | B．Protecting the Planet |
| C．Keeping Open-Minded | D．Celebrating Our Green Year |
It was difficult for the couple to live a green life for the whole year because .
| A．they were expected to follow the green fad |
| B．they didn’t know how to educate other people |
| C．they were unwilling to reduce their energy |
| D．they needed to perform unusual green tasks |
What did the couple do over the course of Our Green Year?
| A．They tried to get out of their ungreen habits. |
| B．They ignored others’ ungreen behavior. |
| C．They chose better chemical cleaners. |
| D．They sold their home-made food. |
What can we infer from the last paragraph?
| A．The government will give support to the green project. |
| B．The couple may continue their project in the future. |
| C．Some people disagree with the couple’s green ideas. |
| D．Our Green Year is becoming a national campaign. |
Growing up the daughter of an outstanding educator，Andrea Peterson knew at a young age that she wanted to serve others.It was with this mindset that she started to pursue a degree in medicine.However，while visiting her brothers who were away at college studying music education，she realized that she was drawn to teach music，too.
In her ten years at Granite Falls，she has revitalized the music programs at both the elementary and high school levels，to the extent that an additional music faculty member was hired by the district to assist with the workload.The growth of the music program in Granite Falls School District has encouraged students to participate in country，state and national music competitions，and won numerous prizes for the district.
Teaching music is only a part of Peterson's instruction－it serves as a vehicle to other areas.“Music is an amazing tool to unlock students' potential.The most visible benefit from their success in music is their increased confidence and selfesteem，” Peterson said.“However，I don't believe it is the only benefit，nor the most powerful.It is truly exciting to see how my music teaching can transfer to other classrooms.” With this philosophy，Peterson introduced a crosscurriculum program，wherein she takes lessons taught in other classes，such as English and math，and expands upon them in an eightweek unit.
One of the most popular projects in Peterson's classes is the creation and performance of a musical，and whereby students create a play from one of the books they have read in another class.Students work together to choose the music that best fits with the overall feel of the play and then perform it for the greater community.“Through Andrea's efforts these kids have helped to put Granite Falls，Washington，on the map for musical talents.Parents，staff and community members continue to be in awe of what she is able to bring forth from the children，”said Debra Rose Howell，a colleague of Peterson's at Monte Crisco Elementary School.Initially Andrea Peterson planned to work as a(n) ________.
| A．teacher | B．doctor | C．educator | D．musician |
The 2nd paragraph mainly tells about ________.
| A．Andrea Peterson's life at Granite Falls |
| B．country，state and national music competitions |
| C．the growth of the music program in Granite Falls School District |
| D．Andrea Peterson's contributions to Granite Falls' music programs |
Which of the following is NOT a benefit the students get from Andrea Peterson's class?
| A．Music talent development. |
| B．Increased selfconfidence. |
| C．Ability in learning other subjects. |
| D．Prizes for English and maths. |
What is most special about the way Andrea Peterson teaches?
| A．She has a special way of teaching music. |
| B．She makes her classes lively and interesting. |
| C．She combines her music class with other subjects. |
| D．She comes from a family of professional educators. |
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