The other day, my friend Jane was invited to a 40th birthday party. The time printed on the invitation was7:30p.m.Jane went off with her husband, expecting a merry evening of wine, food, and song. By 9:45, everybody was having great fun, but no food had appeared. Jane and David were restless. Other guests began whispering that they, too, were starving. But no one wanted to leave, just in case some food was about to appear. By 1100, there was still no food, and everyone was completely off their heads. Jane and David left hungry and angry. Their experience suggests that the words on printed invitations need to be made clearer. Everyone reads and understands the invitations differently. Most of us would agree that 6:30 8:30p.m.means drinks only, go out to dinner afterwards; 8:00p.m.or 8:30p.m. means possible dinner, but 9:30p.m.and any time thereafter means no food, eat beforehand, roll up late. But this is not always the case. If asked to a students' party at 6:30p.m. , it is normal for guests not to appear before midnight, if at all, and no one cares. Being the first to arrive-looking eager-is social death. When my mother is asked to a party for 6:30, she likes to be there, if not on time, then no later than seven. My age group (late thirties) falls somewhere between the two, but because we still think we're young, we're probably closer to student-time than grown-up time. The accepted custom at present is confusing (混乱的), sometimes annoying, and it often means you may go home hungry, but it does lend every party that precious element(成分) of surprise.

1. The underlined words "off their heads" probably mean ________.

A. tired

B. crazy

C. curious

D. hopeless

2. Jane and David's story is used to show that ________.

A. party-goers usually get hungry at parties

B. party invitations can be confusing

C. people should ask for food at parties

D. birthday parties for middle-aged people are dull

3. For some young people, arriving on time for a students' party will probably be considered ________.

A. very difficult

B. particularly thoughtful

C. friendly and polite

D. socially unacceptable

4. According to the writer, people in their late thirties ________

A. are likely to arrive late for a party

B. care little about the party time

C. haven't really grown up yet

D. like surprises at parties

5. What is the general idea of the text?

A. It's safe to arrive late just when food is served. ________

B. It's wise to eat something before going to a party.

C. It's important to follow social rules of party-going.

D. It's necessary to read invitations carefully.

 

Many television programmes are very realistic. One who watches TV often feels that whatever happened in the film could well happen to him. With only a little imagination, every man in the street becomes a thief, a spy or a murderer. Jane had been watching a spy film at her friend’s house. In it, a young girl had been followed and murdered. She felt a little frightened, walking to the station. She took a train back to the centre of the city. There were a lot of people traveling with her, so she felt much safer.

A man sitting opposite her, reading a newspaper, glanced at her. She thought nothing of it until she saw him staring at her. Remember the film and feeling very uncomfortable, she got off the train and went to the bus stop. When he got on the same bus as she did, she found that he was following her. As long as she had been with other people she wasn’t frightened. But when she got off the bus, the streets were almost empty. She walked as quickly as she could. She could hear footsteps following her but she didn’t dare to look around. After what seemed to have been hours, she was unable to find them, because she was so frightened. The footsteps stopped behind her. She felt a hand on her shoulder. Instead of feeling hands round her neck, however, she heard a pleasant voice. “I apologize if I frightened you. I’m your new neighbour. I thought I recognized you in the train, but I wasn’t sure.”

1.Jane felt frightened, walking to the station, because ________.

A. she had seen a murder on television

B. she was being followed

C. she had been at her friend’s house

D. she was a girl of rich imagination

2.Jane’s friend lived ______ her.

A. very near                         B. a short distance away from

C. a long way from              D. next to

3.Jane was really frightened because _______.

A. the man who followed her was her new neighbour

B. the man apologized

C. the street was empty

D. she thought she met a murderer

4.The man put his hand on her shoulder. He meant to _______ Jane.

A. kill                            B. be friendly to                           C. frighten                            D. play a joke on

5.A girl will be frightened if ______.

A. she often watches TV

B. she is followed by a stranger for a long time.

C. she meets her neighbour suddenly

D. she feels a hand on her shoulder

 

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