题目内容

Envelope Budget

From McDonald’s to Sonic, fast food had a bad effect on my waistline and my budget. It was nothing to run to a drive-through to pick up a cold drink or a quick bite to eat. It was so easy to use my card for a small purchase. For me, I got a lot of satisfaction from fast food.

One day I sat down and calculated that I was spending a surprising $40 a week on fast food. This was a lot of iced coffee and hamburgers! Instead of reducing my guilty pleasures, I decided to give myself a strong budget to reduce my consumption. Every Monday I placed an envelope with $20 in my purse. That was my fast food budget for the entire week. If there was anything left over at the end of the week, it was mine to save or spend. If I spent all of the money during the week, there were no more fast food stops that week.

The budget made me more mindful of my purchases. Instead of purchasing a large drink from Sonic, I would purchase a small. It was still satisfying but not nearly as pricey. Instead of eating a whole meal, I would pick the part that I actually wanted. Many days, the thought of hanging onto the money for a special purpose meant more to me than the instant satisfaction of fast food. I never really felt unhappy because it was a conscious choice to spend or save with each purchase.

Envelope budget kept me honest. I had a clear idea how much money was spent each week on fast food purchases. I started to bring my lunches more often to save more money for the week. It was a fun challenge to see how much I could save every week.

Changing the way I spent on fast food not only helped my budget, but improved my weight. In the first month I was able to get rid of 5 pounds by simply changing the way I approached spending on fast food. Now I am more likely to bring my lunch than to buy it. I am not upset, but empowered to make positive choices to improve my life.

1.According to Paragraph 1, the author ______ .

A. was fond of fast food very much

B. got some benefits from using her card

C. had no time to cook for herself

D. lived with a small amount of money

2.The author set her envelope budget to ______ .

A. make fast food spending under control

B. get rid of the habit of eating fast food

C. buy fast food at a good bargain

D. save money to buy more fast food

3.We can infer from the last paragraph that ______.

A. it is unusual to make some changes

B. the budget means a pressure on life

C. it is hard to enjoy a healthy lifestyle

D. envelope budget is good for health

4.What is the passage mainly about?

A. Why the author took envelope budget seriously.

B. How envelope budget changed the author’s life.

C. How fast food controlled the author’s behavior.

D. Why the author became addicted to fast food.

练习册系列答案
相关题目

Social networks are a big part of nearly every teenager's life in this day and age.Many teens have QQ,WeChat, or Weibo but little do a lot of teens know that they can be held responsible for everything they post for the rest of their lives.Everything you post online is part of a digital footprint that can always be traced(追踪)back to you.That includes every post,even like,comment,favorite and forward that you have ever committed.All pictures you've posted or will post have been stored in a digital database,and it is the companies' right to keep all of these documents that you believe to have been deleted or hidden.

With every post comes a consequence;whether it is good or bad,what you post could be seen by anyone.That is why you have to be very careful of what you decide to post or comment.

If you think you are safe from Servite finding out about one funny comment you made six months ago on a meaningless picture,you are probably wrong.Recently,a senior,Aaron,at Servite learned this lesson the hard way this year.He wrote a series of ugly comments towards Connelly girls on a web page,ignoring potential consequences.

This student,however,did have to face consequences from Servite as he was removed from all of his leadership roles in the school.Surprisingly enough,he fully agreed with his punishment handed down by the administration and fully understood why he was given such severe discipline(惩处)."When you agree to come to Servite,you are agreeing to defend what Servite stands for,"the young man said."That continues past the hours of 8 am and 2 pm.It's at all times."

So,next time you're about to post something you think could be received as offensive or inappropriate,think twice,think again,and don't press send.

1.What does the author think the teens should do in the first paragraph?

A. Avoid using social media.

B. Remove their own digital documents.

C. Be responsible for what they put online.

D. Learn to balance their online and offline time.

2.What mistake did Aaron make online?

A. Drawing some meaningless pictures.

B. Making some bad comments.

C. Failing to take his lesson.

D. Breaking down a special web page.

3.What did Servite do with Aaron's case?

A. It reached an agreement with Connelly girls.

B. It helped Aaron get rid of ill effects.

C. It gave Aaron a severe punishment.

D. It stood on Aaron's side.

4.For whom is the text probably intended?

A. Teenagers. B. Teachers.

C. Parents. D. Network engineers.

Want to find a job? Now read the following advertisements.
FAIRMONT HOTEL
Five waiters and Ten Waitresses
---Aged under 22
---At least high school graduate
---Good looking; men at least 1.72 meters tall and women 1.65
---Those knowing foreign languages preferred
---Paid 1600---2200 dollars per month
 One Secretary
---Aged under 30
---Female preferred
---Good at writing and skilled at computer
If interested, call 465-4768 or write to: Mr. Jack Hundris Room 0825, Fairmont Hotel
567 Wood Street, San Markers, 78003
Fax: 6954828
WILSON BOOKSTORE
Accountant(会计)
---Aged between 25 and 40
---With an experience of at least two years
---With a degree and an accountant certificate(证书)
---Paid 3000-4000 dollars monthly
---With a knowledge of computer
Salesclerk
---Basic education of 12 years or more
---Good at computer
---Paid 1800-2200 dollars monthly
Tel: 447-4398          Fax: 3485269

1.If you don’t know how to use a computer, you can just apply for the position as _________ .

A. a secretary

B. a waiter or a waitress

C. an accountant

D. a salesclerk

2.If you want to get the position of accountant in Wilson Bookstore, you have to satisfy the following conditions EXCEPT  _________ .

A. being a woman

B. knowing well how to use a computer

C. having been an accountant

D. having an accountant certificate

3.If you want to try for a job in Fairmont Hotel, you  _________ .

A. have to be a woman and know foreign languages

B. should be a university graduate

C. have to be taller than 1.72 meters

D. should be younger than 30 years old

Alia Baker is a librarian in Iraq. Her library used to be a ____ place for all who loved books and liked to share knowledge. They ____ various matters all over the world. When the war was near, Alia was______that the fires of war would destroy the books, which are more ____ to her than mountain of gold. The books are in every language — new books, ancient books, ____ a book on the history of Iraq that is seven hundred years old.

She had asked the government for______to move the books to a _____place, but they refused. So Alia took matters into her own hands. _____, she brought books home every night,______her car late after work. Her friends came to _____her when the war broke out. Anis who owned a restaurant ___ to hide some books. All through the_____ , Alia, Anis, his brothers and neighbours took the books from the library, _____them over the seven-foot wall and _____them in the restaurant. The books stayed hidden as the war______. Then nine days laters, a fire burned the______to the ground.

One day, the bombing stopped and the_____ left. But the war was not over yet. Alia knew that if the books were to be safe, they must be ____ again while the city was _____. So she hired a truck to bring all the books to the houses of friends in the suburbs(郊区). Now Alia waited for the war to end and ____ peace and a new library.

1.A. meeting B. working C. personal D. religious

2.A. raised B. handled C. reported D. discussed

3.A. worried B. angry C. doubtful D. curious

4.A. practical B. precious C. reliable D. expensive

5.A. then B. still C. even D. rather

6.A. permission B. confirmation C. explanation D. information

7.A. large B. public C. distant D. safe

8.A. Fortunately B. Surprisingly C. Seriously D. Secretly

9.A. starting B. parking C. filling D. testing

10.A. stop B. help C. warn D. rescue

11.A. intended B. pretended C. happened D. agreed

12.A. war B. night C. building D. way

13.A. put B. opened C. passed D. threw

14.A. hid B. exchanged C. burnt D. distributed

15.A. approached B. erupted C. continued D. ended

16.A. restaurant B. library C. city D. wall

17.A. neighbours B. soldiers C. friends D. customers

18.A. sold B. read C. saved D. moved

19.A. occupied B. bombed C. quiet D. busy

20.A. dreamed of B. believed in C. cared about D. looked for

In fact, before the invention of chopsticks, Chinese ancestors actually used hands to eat, but how did they eat soup and porridge? 1. Chinese started to use chopsticks about 3,000 years ago in Shang Dynasty.

The records of using chopsticks have been found in many written books but lack physical evidence. 2. One says that Jiang Ziya, an ancient wise man, created chopsticks. There also go around some other stories. But there is no exact history record about the invention. We can only say that smart ancient Chinese invented chopsticks.

Using two slim sticks to pick up food is actually not difficult. You can do it if you practice it for some time, even if you are a foreigner. The key to managing chopsticks is keeping one chopstick in position while moving the other to pick up food. 3. Chopsticks are usually held in the right hand, and left-handed chopstick use is considered as improper in China. Playing with chopsticks is thought to be impolite. 4. Chinese philosopher Confucius advised people to use chopsticks instead of knives because the metal knives remind people of cold weapons, which mean killing and violence.

If you are truly interested in chopsticks, you can pay a visit to the Shanghai Chopsticks Museum. The museum gathered more than 1,200 pairs of chopsticks from China, Korea, Japan and Thailand. 5.

A. Chopsticks were introduced to many other neighbor countries due to its lightness and convenience.

B. It is considered to be polite and thoughtful to pick up food for the elderly and children.

C. Bamboo chopsticks are most frequently used in Chinese daily life.

D. However many stories are about the invention of chopsticks.

E. The oldest one was from the Tang Dynasty.

F. They had to use sticks to eat them.

G Remember to practice with patience.

Everybody in this world is different from one another. But do you know that understanding differences can help you better manage your money?

As we grow up, we gradually develop a set of our own values or beliefs. These are influenced by society, our family, the education we receive and so on. Once this value system is set up, it’s not easy to change later in life.

Financial experts say that everyone also has their own belief of how to manage their finances. This is the part of our value system and it has a great effect on the way we look after our money. According to our different values, experts put us in three categories. They are: the ant, the cricket and the snail.

The ant --work first

Just like ants who work heart and soul in summer in order to store food for winter, these people don’t care about enjoying the moment. They work very hard and save money they earn so that they can enjoy life when they get old and retire. The ant loves to save but they could make more out of their money if they were willing to invest in some funds and stocks with low risk.

The cricket(蟋蟀)--fun first

The cricket wants to enjoy everything now and doesn’t think too much about the future. They even borrow money when they really want something. Many young people now belong to this group. These people have little savings(存款). When they get old, they might have problems. They should learn to save and buy insurance.

The snail (蜗牛)--living under pressure

The snail refers to people who make life difficult for themselves. They take big long-term loans(贷款) from the bank in order to buy things such as luxury houses. They are happy to take big loans even though they are not sure if they can afford it. This can cause problems in the future. They should plan more carefully.

1.The ant refers to people who ________.

A. Work very hard in winter in order to store food for summer.

B. Could make more money if they worked harder

C. Save money they earn for their later life when they get old and retire

D. Only care about enjoying the moment by working very hard

2.The crickets borrow money because _________.

A. They would like to enjoy everything now

B. They are young

C. They think they have no future

D. They get old and have problems.

3.Which of the following is TRUE according to the last paragraph?

A. The snails enjoy life because they have luxury houses.

B. The snails live under pressure and they may have problems in the future.

C. The snails will take more loans if they realize that they can afford it.

D. The snails take big long-term loans because the interest for the long-term loans is low.

4.What is the author’s purpose in writing the passage?

A. To make fun of the three kinds of foolish people.

B. To make us understand the differences and manage our money better.

C. To make us understand we should spend our own money.

D. To state that we are the same as animals.

违法和不良信息举报电话:027-86699610 举报邮箱:58377363@163.com

精英家教网