Bedfordshire had its fair share of royal visits from the early stages of the 10th Century onwards and the importance that the county placed on this is evident in the monuments, country houses, churches and any number of other structures that are still present there to this day. Bedford Castle is one of those structures and, although it is nowhere near its former glory today, it is an essential attraction to visit if you really want to grasp what its heritage means to the county!
Bedford Castle was built initially as a fortress to help protect Bedfordshire on the south of the River Ouse after the people in the local towns and villages had already been subdued. It was erected in 919 on the orders of King Edward the Elder, although it was destroyed by a Danish invasion years later. This was when it was rebuilt as the castle, of which the ruins exist today!
There is a long history behind the castle that involves several kings as a result of the Duke of Bedford being an ardent royalist. Bedford Castle repeatedly offered the kings of England refuge against various storms in the form of onslaughts from abroad and various domestic threats against them, and this is where much of its fame lies, even though the castle itself is no longer there. There are various tours of the ruins that you can take when you visit though and all of the guides are extremely knowledgeable. They will happily tell you tales of the mound and the castle that preceded it.
The mound is open to the public all year round and is a proud part of the area’s heritage. It is recommended by the majority of people that visit Bedfordshire because it tells you much about why the county is currently how it is. You can view the river from the mound and the surrounding settlements as well as the remains of the castle, and every moment spent there is worth it so enjoy the history and the very nature of the county itself!
【小题1】What do we know from the first paragraph?

Each year on February 2nd, there is special festival called Groundhog Day (土拨鼠日 )' forecasting event in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. When it comes, people from around the world, including 5,000 in the small town today, watch this tongue-twisting(发音饶舌的) small town for a sign from one groundhog that supposedly predicts when that years' spring will arrive.

    If it's a cloudy day outside when the groundhog pops from its cave, then spring will arrive early that year. However, if it is sunny outside, the groundhog will supposedly be scared by its own shadow, hiding underground for six more weeks of cold weather.

Of course, Punxsutawney Phil's prediction is no more able to guarantee the extended forecast than your local weatherman. ABC News reports that an analysis by the National Climate Data Center found that Phil's predictions are more often wrong than right.  

    Philis is also found to have made some unpleasant predictions. Ever since 1887, he has predicted 99 extended winters and just 16 early springs .Nine of the years' predictions were unavailable, according to ABC.

The holiday began as a German tradition in 18th century and became even more of a cultural phenomenon after the 1993 film Groundhog Day starring Bill Murray.

Punxsutawney Phil has become a celebrity in his own right.  Each year, the fatter animal with long teeth is watched by millions as he emerges from a cave in the town he is named after. Phil has become so beloved by the town that he actually lives in the local library with his “wife" Phyllis.

Taking inspiration from the hard state of Bill Murray’s character in the classic film, Yahoo contributor Owen Rust says Groundhog Day is a good time to reflect on one’s routines.

1.The underlined word “pops” means “        ”.

A. escapes                                     B. appears                            C. increases                       D. hides

2.The reason why Phil's predictions aren't pleasing is that_____________.

A. some of the predictions were unavailable  

B. Phil wants to do that for fun

C. Phil likes to make unpleasant predictions 

D. he has predicted more late springs

3.How does Punxsutawney Phil become a celebration?

A. By an accident.                       

B. From people's life improving.

C. By his own attractive force              

D. From much money raised by the town.

4.Which does this passage mainly talk about?

A. The National Climate Data Center      

B. A German tradition

C. A tongue-twisting small town           

D. Groundhog Day weather forecasting

There was a wonder-filled little girl who was hurt so badly that when she entered adult life, she thought she was so bad that others just couldn’t be nice to her.
But she had a lot of curiosity, which kept her going. She sought many wise people to help her understand why she was so bad that her mother hurt her and why she was unable to be better so that men wouldn’t hurt her.
She was on a journey that she thought was to help her be “better”. She carried a big bag with her everywhere she went. Inside it were all the hurts she had experienced. Because she was so eager to please those who offered their wisdom, she willingly agreed with what they said about forgiving. But she held that bag of hurts tightly.
After 50 years of carrying that bag around and showing it to all she met as if it were proof that she was a good person, she decided to open it up and just see what happened.
When she looked inside it was filled with bits of paper. At one time they had words on them, detailing the hurts. But time had faded (使褪色) the words and all that was left was some useless paper. She had been struggling to carry this bag that held nothing but the image of something that once was.
She saw the absurdity of carrying that bag around. It made her laugh. By letting go of the paper and having pity for those that hurt her, this little girl was able to become a woman with beautiful hair. The woman looked in the mirror and said, “I am lovable.”
Although it took many years, she was finally open to bringing love and respect into her life.
【小题1】When she grew up, the little girl wondered         .

Steps Shoes Salon
Steps Shoes Salon, 4518 S．Cottage Grove, knows our “economy is weathering a little storm” They’ve discounted winter botts and shoes for their fellow shoes lovers．So step in and save! Hours: 11a．m．to 7 p．m．Monday through Friday; 11 a．m．to 6 p．m．Saturaday; Noon to 5 p．m．the first Sunday of this month （closeed other Sundays）．Call 773-548
Jonathan Saunders for Target
If you’ve ever watched a runway shoes and thought “yeah, that dress would be awesome if it wasn’t $ 1,800”, you’ll be very pleased to know that British designer Jonathan Saunders has decided to use his powers for good and offer fashion – forward clothing．His collection was inspired by the works of Gustav Klimt, Jackson Pollack and Rothko．The clothing ranges from $ 14．99 to $ 29．99 and is only available until Novermber 1 （close evenings）．So hurry! Here are some highlights: Color – Block Tunic is $ 17．99; Ponte Skirt is $ 29．99; Marble – Print color – Block Dress is $ 19．99 and Reversible Belt in Yellow is $ 14．99．
Don’t miss these two boutique （时装用品小商店）sale events
Shop at boutiques along Roscoe, including Cinnamon Boutique, between 5 and 9 p．m．to-night, October3, and 15 percent of all sales will be donated to Children’s Memorial Hospital．Other stores include A Pied, Little Threads, Glas-to-Go, Sacred Art and Original Expressions Happy shopping!
The adorable Lincoln Square boutique Dressing Room just opened a sister store called Dressing Room Shoes．Grab your fellow shoe worshippers and has over for snack, sales, specials and giveaways（免费样品）during one of these three parties: from 6 to 8 p．m．tomorrow, October 4; from 1 to 4 p．m．．, October 5 Sunday and from 1 to 4 p．m．Octorber6, Monday．Also, the store is launching a new art exhibition from Morpho Galley, which will run through the end of the month．Enjoy!
【小题1】Miss Blythe, who will be free at 7 p．m．tonight, might go to         for some purchase．

请认真阅读下列短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入最恰当的单词。注意：每空格1个单词。
I used to be the messiest person alive. Over the years, through watching others and by trial and error, I have finally found ways to come up with plans, organize them and follow through with them.
Make an outline of everything you need to have and do to make your plan happen. Make a list of all of the steps that need to be accomplished and think about what needs to be done.
Detail everything thoroughly and read over it so you can start coming up with some mental solutions of how to carry out your plans.
You should ensure that if for some reason way one doesn’t work, you have way two and way three to lean back on. Therefore, different ways are needed at hand. It’s just a matter of being organized. Chances are that there is always more than one way of doing things, and chances are that if one of those ways doesn’t work, one of the other ones will.
Committing yourself to finishing at least part if not all of your plan at once is also necessary. It will show that you not only have initiative to get things rolling, but that you are interested in the results obtained with making the move to get everything done.
If you make a commitment to finish before a specific time, make sure that you carry that out, and be sure to do everything in the way you said you would, within the time-frame you set for yourself.
Don’t try to tackle more things all at a time. All that does is delay your progress, distract you and make you lose your interest, motivation and energy.
Carrying out an effective plan requires being as organized as possible. You will only achieve this by sticking to the order of the plan and not deviating or trying to do more at a time.
Last but not the least, you should never abandon things mid-project. It will only annoy everyone around you including yourself. Unfinished plans are a waste of time, energy and, in some cases, even money. 
So, don’t be afraid of organization. The older we get, the more necessary it becomes to have the skills necessary to follow through with confidence and to be able to carry through plans in an organized and manageable way. It pays to be organized, after all.