Dear Abby,

I am a very conservative woman. I don’t drink, dance, wear makeups or pants. I enjoy the company of friends despite(尽管)our differences and thought they enjoyed mine.

On our most recent outing, however, they laughed at my religious jewelry, commented on my “lack of fashion,” and made me feel guilty for not wanting to stay out late.

Despite this, they are great friends and would help me at the drop of a hat. I don’t bring up their being overweight, or that I think some of the clothes they wear are ugly. I don’t criticize them for sleeping around. I wish they would accept me for who I am.

I am considering not going out with them the next time they ask, but I don’t really want it to come to that. Any suggestions?

—Just an Old-Fashioned Girl

??????????????????????????????_____________________________________________________________________

Dear Old-Fashioned Girl,

Just this: It’s time for you to start cultivating relationships with people whose values are more like your own. The friends you have described may be lovely, but their comments were out of line and folks are known by the company they keep. If you spend a lot of time with the women you have described, people will begin to make assumptions(臆断) about you.

                                                       —Abby

The underlined word “conservative” is closest in meaning to ________.

   A. beautiful    

B. old-fashioned       

C. overweight  

D. ordinary-looking

When did Old-fashioned Girl feel guilty?

   A. When her friends stayed out late.

   B. When she stayed out late with her friends. 

C. When she refused her friends’ request to stay out late.

   D. When her friends refused her to stay out late with them.

Which of the following could Old-fashioned Girl most possibly agree to?

   A. It is easier to forgive an enemy than to forgive a friend.

   B. Only your real friends will tell you when your face is dirty.

   C. The friend is the one who knows all about you, and still likes you. 

   D. True friendship comes when silence between two people is comfortable. 

According to Abby, it’s a good idea for Old-fashioned Girl to ________.

   A. talk with her friends                

B. understand her friends

   C. forgive her friends                  

D. break up with her friends

Everyone has got two personalities(性格)—the one that is shown to the world and the other that is secret and real. You don't show your secret personality when you're awake because you can control your behavior(行为), but when you're asleep, your sleeping position shows the real you. In a normal night, of course, people frequently change their position. The important position is the one that you sleep in.
If you go to sleep on your back , you’re a very open person . You normally trust people and you are easily influenced by fashion or new ideas . You don’t like to upset people , so you never express your real feelings . You are quite shy and you aren’t very confident .
If you sleep on your stomach, you are a rather secretive (不坦率的) person. You worry a lot and you're always easily upset. You're very stubborn(顽固), but you aren't very ambitious(抱负的). You usually live for today not for tomorrow. This means that you enjoy having a good time.
If you sleep curled up (卷曲), you are probably a very nervous person. You have a low opinion of yourself and so you're often defensive (防御性的). You're shy and you don't normally like meeting people. You prefer to be on your own. You're easily hurt.
If you sleep on your side, you have usually got a well-balanced personality. You know your strengths and weaknesses. You're usually careful. You have a confident personality. You sometimes feel anxious, but you don't often get depressed. You always say what you think even if it annoys people.
【小题1】Point out which sentence is used to show the personality of a person who is used to sleeping on his or her stomach?

A.He or she is careful not to make others angry.
B.He or she doesn't want to stick to his or her opinion.
C.He or she can't be successful in any business.
D.He or she likes to bring others happiness.
【小题2】Maybe you don't want to make friends with a person who sleeps curled up. Why?
A.He or she would rather be alone than communicate with you.
B.He or she is rarely ready to help you.
C.He or she prefers going out to staying at home.
D.He or she wouldn't like to get help from you.
【小题3】It appears that the writer is possible to think highly of the person who sleeps on one side because _______.
A.he or she always shows sympathy (同情) for people
B.he or she is confident, but not stubborn
C.he or she has more strengths than weaknesses
D.he or she often considers annoying (使烦恼) people

High childcare costs are putting British mothers off going out to work. It really is that simple. Eurostat figures show that 66 per cent of mothers in the UK work, less than France (72 per cent), Denmark (86 per cent), the Netherlands (78 per cent) or Germany (69 per cent). This not only damages Britain’s economic prosperity—it limits women’s careers and squeezes family incomes. It would be fine if this is the choice parents want to make, but it isn’t. Half of those surveyed want to go to work and the expense of childcare is one of the key reasons they couldn’t.

??? Despite claims made by Labour (工党) about childcare, a forthcoming (即将到来的) report by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) confirms the true legacy of their time in government. They left behind a childcare system with high costs to parents, variable quality and patchy (不均匀的) coverage, despite soaring government spending. British parents now face the highest childcare bills in the world after Switzerland.

??? In the Eighties and Nineties under Mrs Thatcher and John Major, the picture was very different. Mothers in England were more likely to go out to work than their Dutch or German counterparts. But the position has reversed, despite a huge rise in public spending.

??? So why does the British Government spend more on childcare than France or Germany, even though the costs given to parents are sky-high? As always, under the previous government, money was frittered away (浪费) without adequate focus on improving quality. Instead of clear and transparent funding, four separate funding streams were created, skewing (偏离) the market and confusing parents and providers alike. The majority of the money was given away in cash benefits; so much of it did not get through to the front line.

??? The IPPR report points out that continental systems, in countries such as Germany, France, Denmark and the Netherlands, manage to deliver better value for money. What all of these systems have in common is a focus on quality, with greater flexibility and autonomy given to local providers. They also see a much higher proportion of government money getting to the front line.

1.Which of the following doesn’t belong to the disadvantages caused by the mothers prevented from going to work?

A. Damaging Britain’s economic development.

B. Causing damage to women’s careers.

C. Decreasing the family incomes.

D. Causing childcare costs to go up.

2.According to the second paragraph, we can infer that the former government of the Labour Party _______.

A. was highly praised by British people

B. made British people face the highest childcare bills

C. left behind a childcare system full of problems

D. managed to decrease the government spending

3.We can learn from the passage that _______.

A. in the Eighties and Nineties, mothers in the UK were likely to work

B. there is a prejudice against mothers in the UK employment market

C. most of the mothers surveyed in the UK don’t want to work

D. the percentage of mothers who work in the UK is the lowest in the world

 

下面是生活中的几条小建议,有5处需要添加小标题。请从以下选项(A、B、C、D、E和F)中选出符合各条建议的小标题。选项中有一项是多余选项。

1. You can try your hardest, you can do everything and say everything, but sometimes people just aren’t worth trying over anymore, and they aren’t worth worrying about. It’s important to know when to let go of someone who only brings you down. The moment someone tells you that you’re not good enough is the moment you know you’re better off than they are, and better off without them.

2.Remember that the way you’ve always done it isn’t the only way. It’s unlikely that one of the things you’ll regret when you’re 70 is not having consumed enough beer in your 20s, or not having bought enough $6 lattes from Starbucks, or not having frequented the same night club for years. But the regret of missing out on opportunities is a real feeling. You’ve figured out drinking and going out. You’ve had enough lattes. It’s time to figure something else out. Every corner you turn or street you walk down has a new experience waiting for you. You just have to see the opportunity and be adventurous enough to run with it.

3.Some of the great moments in your life won’t necessarily be the things you do; they’ll be things that happen to you. That doesn’t mean you can’t take action to affect the outcome of your life. You have to take action, and you will. But don’t forget that on any day, you can step out the front door and your whole life can change in an instant – for better or worse. To an extent, the universe has a plan that’s always in motion. A butterfly flaps its wings and it starts to rain – it’s a scary thought, but it’s part of life’s cycle. All these little parts of the machine, constantly working – sometimes forcing you to struggle, and sometimes making sure you end up exactly in the right place at the right time.

4.Life is too short to wait. Every new day is another chance to change your life. Every great accomplishment starts with the decision to try. Trust that little voice inside your head that says, “What if…” and then GO DO IT. You would be surprised how often “what if” works. And no, you’re not obligated to win every time. You’re obligated to keep trying – to do the best you can do every day – to be better than you were yesterday.

5. Your ideas and choices don’t have to be on everyone’s list. Regardless of the opinions of others, at the end of the day the only reflection staring back at you in the mirror is your own. Make sure you’re proud of who that person is. Approach others with the belief that you’re a good person, whether they respond positively or not. It’s normal to want the people around you to like you, but it becomes a self-imposed burden when too much of your behavior is designed to constantly comfort others.

A.Always keep in mind that life is somewhat unpredictable.

B.Trust your instincts on new opportunities.

C.Introduce a little variety into your routine.

D.Accept some responsibility for the way others treat you.

E. Seek less approval from others. 

F. Let the wrong people go. 

 

On Thursday afternoon Mrs. Clarke, dressed for going out, took her handbag with her money and her key in it, pulled the door behind her to lock it and went to the over 60s Club. She always went there on Thursdays. It was a nice outing for an old woman who lived alone.

At six o’clock she came home, let herself in and at once smelt cigarette smoke. Cigarette smoke in her house? How? How? Had someone got in? She checked the back door and the windows. All were locked or fastened, as usual. There was no sign of forced entry.

Over a cup of tea she wondered whether someone might have a key that fitted her front door — “a master key” perhaps. So she stayed at home the following Thursday. Nothing happened. Was anyone watching her movements? On the Thursday after that she went out at her usual time, dressed as usual, but she didn’t go to the club. Instead she took a short cut home again, letting herself in through her garden and the back door. She settled down to wait.

It was just after four o’clock when the front door bell rang. Mrs. Clarke was making a cup of tea at the time. The bell rang again, and then she heard her letter-box being pushed open. With the kettle of boiling water in her hand, she moved quietly towards the front door. A long piece of wire appeared through the letter-box, and then a hand. The wire turned and caught around the handle on the door-lock. Mrs. Clarke raised the kettle and poured the water over the hand. There was a shout outside, and the skin seemed to drop off the fingers like a glove. The wire fell to the floor, the hand was pulled back, and Mrs. Clarke heard the sound of running feet. 

1.Mrs. Clarke looked forward to Thursday because       .

A.she worked at a club on the day

B.she had visitors on Thursday

C.she visited a club on Thursday

D.a special visitor came on Thursday

2.What does the expression “a master key” in Paragraph 3 most probably mean?

A.A key to all the doors.

B.A key only to the woman’s door.

C.A key only its master can use.

D.A key not everyone can use.

3.On the third Thursday Mrs. Clarke went out       .

A.because she didn’t want to miss the club again

B.to see if the thief was wandering outside

C.to the club but then changed her mind

D.in an attempt to trick the thief

4.The lock on the front door was one which       .

A.needed a piece of wire to open it

B.could be opened from inside without a key

C.couldn’t be opened without a key

D.used a handle instead of a key

 

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