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 part of our value system and it has a great impact 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 — works 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 — 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. When they get old, they might have problems. They should learn to save and buy insurance.

◆The snail — lives under pressure

The snail refers to people who make life difficult for themselves. They take big long-term loans 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 they can afford it. This can cause problems in the future. They should plan more carefully.

Our beliefs and values are affected by the following except _____.

       A.society     B.the family       C.the education   D.money

People with the character of the snail would like to _____.

       A.enjoy life at the moment without thinking much about the future

       B.put work before everything else

       C.live a luxury life at all costs

       D.take the risk of investing a large sum of money

Which of the following has the character that the author prefers?

       A.the ants    B.the cricket       C.the snail   D.none of the above

This passage mainly talks about _____.

       A.spending nature of people      B.the relation between man and insects

       C.the insects in nature D.the problems with dealing with money

I believe being honest is one of the greatest gifts. I know they call it a lot of fancy names these days,like 36 and straightforward. And it’s still what  37 a man a good citizen. This is my code(准则),and I try to live by.
I’ve been in the taxi business for thirty-five years,  38  there is a lot about it that is not so good. Taxi drivers have to be rough and tumble(乱作一团) fellows to be able to take it in New York. You've got to be  39 to fight the New York traffic eight hours a day.
Because taxi drivers are tough,people get the  40 impression that they are bad. Taxi drivers are just like other people. Most of them will act as  41 fellows.  Almost every week you read in the papers where a taxi driver  42  money or jewels or like that people leave in their  43 . If they weren't honest,you wouldn't be reading those stories in the papers. One time,I found an emerald(翡翠的)ring in my car. I remembered helping a lady with a lot of suitcases that day,so I went back to where I had  44  her off. It took me almost two days to wait for her in order to return her  45 to her. I didn't get as much as “thank you.”  46 ,I felt good because I had done what was right. I think I felt better than she   47 .
I was born and brought up in Ireland until I was nineteen years old. I came to this country in 1913 where I  48 several jobs to earn a few dollars before joining the army in World War I. After being discharged(退伍),I bought my own car and have owned one ever since. It hasn’t been too easy  49 ,but my wife takes care of our money and we have a good bit  50  for a rainy day(一时之需). In all my years of driving a taxi,I have never had___51__ with the public,not even with drunks. Even if they get a little headstrong(顽固的) once in a while,I just agree with them and then they behave themselves.
People ask me about tips. As far as I know,  52 everyone will give you something,because most Americans are  53 generous. I always try to be nice to everyone,whether they  54 or not. I believe in God and try to be a good member of my parish(教区). I try to act toward others like I think God wants me to act. I have been trying this for a long time,and the  55 I try,the easier it gets.

【小题1】
A.honoredB.selfishnessC.uprightD.faithful
【小题2】
A.takesB.becomesC.makesD.haves
【小题3】
A.distinguishingB.recognizingC.thinkingD.knowing
【小题4】
A.generousB.toughC.devotedD.educated
【小题5】
A.cruelB.properC.badD.wrong
【小题6】
A.rudeB.honestC.goodD.tough
【小题7】
A.turns upB.turns down C.turns outD.turns in
【小题8】
A.housesB.carsC.pocketsD.rooms
【小题9】
A.sawB.droppedC.setD.pushed
【小题10】
A.ringB.suitcaseC.carD.emerald
【小题11】
A.SoB.StillC.HoweverD.Though
【小题12】
A.wasB.didC.hasD.is
【小题13】
A.madeB.sharedC.heldD.took
【小题14】
A.at one timeB.sometimeC.in no timeD.at times
【小题15】
A.set upB.set offC.set downD.set aside
【小题16】
A.troubleB.sufferingC.wordD.violence
【小题17】
A.especially B.speciallyC.particularlyD.practically
【小题18】
A.frequentlyB.rarelyC.absolutelyD.fairly
【小题19】
A.tipB.requestC.commandD.swap
【小题20】
A.longerB.harderC.betterD.shorter

Whatever we may need to buy,we can use our credit cards.This is a change from the older days when we had to first check whether cards were accepted.Today,everybody, from retailers(零售商) to lenders,accepts credit cards.Attitudes towards credit cards have also changed a lot.People used to be
very careful of using their cards;but this is no longer the case. People today prefer to take out their cards as soon as they get to the cash counter.A swipe (刷卡) and a sign are all it takes,and you can walk home with the bill and all the things you buy.
The credit card is much easier to carry than cash and it is not at all surprising that the former becomes the most preferred way of payment.A credit card takes up very little space in our wallets,and yet,it holds the power of a large sum of cash.Paying by credit cards is also a good way of keeping bills on where all of our money goes.  
Moreover,it has become much easier to get credit cards these days.I constantly have cold callers calling up to offer me “great new credit card deals”.Salesmen occasionally walk into our office offering discounts if a group of people decide to sign up a certain kind of credit card plan at the same time.However,this can also cause a problem.Nowadays,we always run the
risk of getting some kinds of wastes.When the terms seem too good to be true,we should make sure that we always read the printed items carefully.Before signing for a creditcard,it is necessary to know its advantages and disadvantages.The only way to deal with this is to do our homework, before we go credit card hunting.   
【小题1】We learn from Paragraph 1 that      .   

A.people can use credit cards anytime,anywhere
B.people used to have to check up on credit cards
C.people are more careful using credit cards nowadays
D.people can take their goods home just by swiping their cards
【小题2】One of the main advantages of credit cards is that   
A.they occupy less space compared with other modes of payment
B.they are more powerful than cash
C.they are easy to get,and save money
D.they help users keep track of what they spend on
【小题3】When signing for a credit card,people should     .
A.ask for a discount
B.understand the dangers
C.read every word of the contract carefully
D.understand that the salesman is most likely to offer false information
【小题4】In the last sentence the writer tells us that      .  
A.we should know the advantages and disadvantages of credit cards before using them
B.we should finish work before going shopping with a credit card
C.we should check which credit cards are accepted before using them
D.we should make sure that our credit cards are real before using them

I believe honesty is one of the greatest gifts. I know they call it a lot of fancy names these days, like (36) and straightforward. And it's still what 37a man a good citizen. This is my secret, and I try to live by.

 I've been in the taxi business for thirty-five years, (38) there is a lot about it that is not so good. Taxi drivers have to be rough and tumble(乱作一团) fellows to be able to take it in New York. You've got to be (39) to fight the New York traffic eight hours a day.

Because taxi drivers are tough, people get the (40) impression that they are bad. Taxi drivers are just like other people. Most of them will act as (41) fellows. You read in the papers almost every week (42) a taxi driver turns in money or jewels or like that people leave in their (43). If they weren't honest, you wouldn't be reading those stories in the papers. One time, I found an emerald(翡翠的) ring in my car. I remembered helping a lady with a lot of suitcases that day, so I went back to where I had (44). It took me almost two days to wait for her in order to return her (45) to her. I didn't get as much as “thank you.” (46), I felt good because I had done what was right. I think I felt better than she (47).

I was born and raised in Ireland until I was nineteen years old. I came to this country in 1913 where I (48) several jobs to earn a few dollars before joining the army in World War I. After being discharged(退伍), I bought my own car and have owned one ever since. It hasn't been too easy (49), but my wife takes care of our money and we have a good bit (50) for a rainy day(一时之需). In all my years of driving a taxi, I have never had (51) with the public, not even with drunks. Even if they get a little headstrong(顽固的) once in a while, I just agree with them and then they behave themselves.

People ask me about tips. As far as I know, (52) everyone will give you something, because most Americans are (53) generous. I always try to be nice to everyone, whether they (54) or not. I believe in God and try to be a good member of my parish(教区). I try to act toward others like I think God wants me to act. I have been trying this for a long time, and the (55) I try, the easier it gets.

1.A.dishonor          B. dishonesty        C. upright       D. faithful

2.A. takes            B. becomes          C. makes         D. has

3.A. know            B. known           C. knew         D. knowing

4.A. generous         B. tough            C. mild          D. warm-hearted

5.A. right             B. proper           C. bad           D. wrong

6.A. rude             B. honest           C. good          D. tough

7.A. when            B. what             C. which         D. where

8.A. houses           B. cars              C. pockets       D. rooms

9.A. picked her up     B. dropped her off     C. dropped her down D. pull her down

10.A. ring             B. suitcase           C.car            D. emerald

11.A. So               B. Still              C. But          D. Though

12.A. was              B. did               C .has          D. is

13.A. made             B. put               C. held          D. took

14.A. at one time        B. some time          C. in no time     D. at times

15.A. put off            B. put up             C. put on        D. put away

16.A. trouble            B. difficult           C. word          D. anything

17.A. especially         B. specially          C. particularly     D. practically

18.A. never             B. seldom           C. rather          D. fairly

19.A.tip                B. advised          C. suggested      D. ask

20.A. longer             B. harder           C .better         D. shorter

 

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