At 4:00 A.M. on Sunday morning, my friend, Tim, awoke me. He was sleeping in the living room right next to the front door and said there was a man pounding on my front door and screaming. At first, I was like, "Shut up and leave me alone," but then I heard one of the scariest voices of my life. The man sounded of Spanish descent (血统), older, and in pain.

I was home alone for the week, so I had two guns loaded with bullets. I had a rifle (步枪) next to my bed and a shotgun next to my front door. I grabbed my rifle. Tim asked me, "What are you doing?"

"Getting my gun, what do you think I'm doing?" I asked.

As I headed down the hall towards the front door, I remembered Chad, my older brother, telling me to protect myself when he left. Immediately, I grabbed the shotgun and gave it to Tim. Thinking that it might scare the person off, I went to my back door and shot my rifle into the dark cold sky. However, this did not work. "Protect yourself, Sarah," kept going through my head. The man kept yelling and pounding on my door. I would have just opened the door, but I watched too many "America's Most Wanted" shows, where that is how they get the little girls to open the door. So, I then called 911 myself.

The operator said, "911. What is your emergency?"

I replied, "My name is Sarah Miller and I am at Juniper Lane in Hotchkiss and there is a man beating on my front door and telling me to let him in." That was the start of all the excitement. I continued to tell her what was going on and what had already gone on. Our conversation was still going when I heard the man walk off my door. During this time, the police were having a discussion of whether they should respond to the call. When I heard the man walk off my door, I thought that he was going to leave.

I was still on the phone when I heard the man in my basement. "Protect yourself, Sarah," went through my head again. The basement stairs lead right up to a door entering our house. We leave our garage door open to cool off our house when the weather is good. The man was yelling, "Help me" from the bottom of the stairs. I walked over and made sure the door was locked and made sure there was a bullet in the rifle. I stood there with the phone in one hand and my trusty old rifle in the other just waiting for him to start coming up the stairs.

My conversation with the operator went from "Hi, how are you now?" to "What are you doing to help me here?" About this time, the operator told me that the policeman should be at the bottom of my driveway, so I turned on all of the lights, inside and outside. I still had my rifle in my hands when the policeman walked up the stairs to my front door. "Did you see an older Spanish man walking down my driveway by any chance?" I asked him.

"Um, no," he answered. I then asked him if he had seen anyone in the basement, and again he said, "No". So at this time, he went back down the stairs and approached my garage. For some reason, I knew that there was still someone in there. I crouched (猫着腰) down to where I could see into the garage / basement area. As the policeman approached the basement, he yelled, "Whoa, put your hands up. Freeze."

"I’ve got you," were the first words out of my mouth; I don't know what I was thinking. After this happened, I realized that those words weren't exactly the smartest choice of words. About this time, another policeman pulled into my driveway with his lights on followed by a police officer. As I approached the basement with my rifle, I was worried about what I would see. What I saw will always stick with me forever. A poor twenty-nine year old Spanish man was crapping (拉屎) there, and I almost shot him because he was coming to my house to find help. His face was all bloody, his nose was broken, his clothes were torn, and worst of all, he didn't speak English, and none of the policemen who were there spoke Spanish. I had taken three years of Spanish before, so I translated what the Spanish guy, Jose, was saying to the policemen. About this time an ambulance came up my driveway with its lights on. So, I had three police cars and an ambulance, all with their lights on, in my driveway. I'm sure my neighbors all came out, since nothing had ever happened in my small community.

I did protect myself that night. My brother was right when he said that you could never be too careful. "Wake up Sarah. It's time for school," my mom said a couple of mornings later. That is how I prefer to be woken up. I will always have a loaded gun next to my bed after this incident.

55. The moment Tim awoke her, the author ______.

A. screamed            B. felt annoyed     C. heard the voice           D. grabbed the rifle

56. Why did the author go to the back door and shot into the sky?

A. Because she wanted to scare the man off.   B. Because she wanted to kill the man.

C. Because she wanted to call for help.       D. Because she wanted to remind the police.

57. The Spanish man pounded the author’s door so early ______.

A. to practise speaking English                            B. to meet his old friend

C. to seek help                                            D. to hide himself

58. By saying “That was the start of all the excitement”, maybe the author ______.

A. thought they talked too much exciting things

B. was excited that she could talk with the operator

C. was sure that the police would come

D. wanted to say their conversation lasted a long time

59. What did the author learn from the incident?

A. She regretted what she had done to the Spanish

B. She felt it fortunate to know a little Spanish

C. She thought it couldn’t be too careful about her safety.

D. She would never live alone in a big house.

60. Which of the following can be used as the title of this passage?

A. Make ends meet      B. As busy as a bee    C. A piece of cake    D. A false alarm

British Summer Time runs from the last Sunday in March to the last Sunday in October. In the depths of winter the nights in the UK are anything from 15-19 hours long. Longer nights mean frost and fog are more likely to form.
Twice a year the clocks change, forward in the spring and then back again in the autumn. But why? It happens twice a year. We all change our clocks and watches by one hour. In the spring, we add an hour, and go onto what is called British Summer Time, while in the autumn, we do the reverse, and return to Greenwich Mean Time.
Why bother?
It’s all to do with saving the hours of daylight, and was started by a guy called William Willett, a London builder, who lived in Petts Wood in Kent. Basically, he figured that you could improve the population’s health and happiness by putting forward the clocks by twenty minutes every Sunday in April and do the opposite in September.
Economics
His idea was not taken up, even though a “Daylight Saving Bill” was introduced some five years before the outbreak of World War One. But once the war started, it was considered wise to economics, to promote greater efficiency in using daylight hours, and in the use of artificial lighting. And so in 1916, “Daylight Saving Time” was introduced. Even though most countries abandoned this after that war, some eventually decided that it was a good idea, and most of these nations began to keep it throughout the year.
Experiment
Since 1972, Britain has decided to go with Greenwich Mean Time in winter, and British Summer Time in Summer.
But back in 1968, Britain tried a four-year experiment by advancing time one hour ahead of GMT throughout the year.
But those living further north, particularly in Scotland, found it most unsatisfactory, with dark mornings for much of the year, and the experiment was dropped.
But the arguments go on …and on.
【小题1】Why some countries decide to change the clocks after World War One?

British Summer Time runs from the last Sunday in March to the last Sunday in October. In the depths of winter the nights in the UK are anything from 15-19 hours long. Longer nights mean frost and fog are more likely to form.

Twice a year the clocks change, forward in the spring and then back again in the autumn. But why? It happens twice a year. We all change our clocks and watches by one hour. In the spring, we add an hour, and go onto what is called British Summer Time, while in the autumn, we do the reverse, and return to Greenwich Mean Time.

Why bother?

It’s all to do with saving the hours of daylight, and was started by a guy called William Willett, a London builder, who lived in Petts Wood in Kent. Basically, he figured that you could improve the population’s health and happiness by putting forward the clocks by twenty minutes every Sunday in April and do the opposite in September.

Economics

His idea was not taken up, even though a “Daylight Saving Bill” was introduced some five years before the outbreak of World War One. But once the war started, it was considered wise to economics, to promote greater efficiency in using daylight hours, and in the use of artificial lighting. And so in 1916, “Daylight Saving Time” was introduced. Even though most countries abandoned this after that war, some eventually decided that it was a good idea, and most of these nations began to keep it throughout the year.

Experiment

Since 1972, Britain has decided to go with Greenwich Mean Time in winter, and British Summer Time in Summer.

But back in 1968, Britain tried a four-year experiment by advancing time one hour ahead of GMT throughout the year.

But those living further north, particularly in Scotland, found it most unsatisfactory, with dark mornings for much of the year, and the experiment was dropped.

But the arguments go on …and on.

1.Why some countries decide to change the clocks after World War One?

A．To improve the people’s health and happiness.

B．To do a certain experiment

C．To save energy to develop economies.

D．All of the above.

2.What can you infer from the passage?

A．The idea of changing the clocks suffered disagreement.

B．The people in Scotland don’t change the clocks.

C．The idea was first thought of by an educator.

D．It’s unnecessary to change the clocks.

3.What is the real meaning of the last sentence of the passage?

A．Nobody in the UK likes the idea.

B．All things need arguments.

C．The British are fond of arguments.

D．Different views of the idea still exist.

British Summer Time runs from the last Sunday in March to the last Sunday in October. In the depths of winter the nights in the UK are anything from 15-19 hours long. Longer nights mean frost and fog are more likely to form.
Twice a year the clocks change, forward in the spring and then back again in the autumn. But why? It happens twice a year. We all change our clocks and watches by one hour. In the spring, we add an hour, and go onto what is called British Summer Time, while in the autumn, we do the reverse, and return to Greenwich Mean Time.
Why bother?
It’s all to do with saving the hours of daylight, and was started by a guy called William Willett, a London builder, who lived in Petts Wood in Kent. Basically, he figured that you could improve the population’s health and happiness by putting forward the clocks by twenty minutes every Sunday in April and do the opposite in September.
Economics
His idea was not taken up, even though a “Daylight Saving Bill” was introduced some five years before the outbreak of World War One. But once the war started, it was considered wise to economics, to promote greater efficiency in using daylight hours, and in the use of artificial lighting. And so in 1916, “Daylight Saving Time” was introduced. Even though most countries abandoned this after that war, some eventually decided that it was a good idea, and most of these nations began to keep it throughout the year.
Experiment
Since 1972, Britain has decided to go with Greenwich Mean Time in winter, and British Summer Time in Summer.
But back in 1968, Britain tried a four-year experiment by advancing time one hour ahead of GMT throughout the year.
But those living further north, particularly in Scotland, found it most unsatisfactory, with dark mornings for much of the year, and the experiment was dropped.
But the arguments go on …and on.

1. 1.

   Why some countries decide to change the clocks after World War One?

   1. A.
      To improve the people’s health and happiness
   2. B.
      To do a certain experiment
   3. C.
      To save energy to develop economies
   4. D.
      All of the above
2. 2.

   What can you infer from the passage?

   1. A.
      The idea of changing the clocks suffered disagreement
   2. B.
      The people in Scotland don’t change the clocks
   3. C.
      The idea was first thought of by an educator
   4. D.
      It’s unnecessary to change the clocks
3. 3.

   What is the real meaning of the last sentence of the passage?

   1. A.
      Nobody in the UK likes the idea
   2. B.
      All things need arguments
   3. C.
      The British are fond of arguments
   4. D.
      Different views of the idea still exist