I consider myself something of an expert on apologies. A quick temper has   36  me with plenty of opportunities to make them. In one of my earlier   37 , my mother was telling me “Don’t watch the   38  when you say, ‘I’m sorry’. Hold your head up and look at the person in the   39 , so he’ll know you   40  it.”
My mother thus made the key point of a(n)   41  apology: It must be direct. You must never   42  to be doing something else. You do not   43  a pile of letters while apologizing to a person   44   in position after blaming him or her for a mistake that turned out to be your   45 . You do not apologize to a hostess, whose guest of honor you treat   46 , by sending flowers the next day without mentioning your bad   47 .
One of the important things we should do for an   48  apology is a readiness to   49  the responsibility for our careless mistakes. We are used to making excuses, which leaves no   50  for the other person to   51  us. Since most people are open-hearted, the no-excuse apology leaves both parties feeling   52  about themselves. That , after all, is the   53  of every apology. It   54  little whether the apologizer is wholly or only partly at fault. Answering for one’s   55  encourages others to take their share of the blame.

A few days ago, I was having a meeting in my company. After walking out, I 36  for my car keys in my pocket, only to discover they were not there. 37 , I gave myself a quick personal pat   38  my clothes, but they were not in 39  of my pockets. So, I went back to the meeting room and looked for them in every place _ 40_I had been. Suddenly it occurred to me that I must have left them in the car. Worried and frightened, I quickly 41  for the parking lot.（停车场）
My wife, Diane, has 42  me many times for leaving the keys in the ignition（点火处）. My theory is the ignition is the 43  place so that I won’t lose them. Her theory is that the car will be   44 . As I rushed out of my company, I came to a terrifying 45 . Her theory was right. The parking lot was 46 .
Without hesitation, I called the 47 . I gave them my location（位置）and  48  that I had left my keys in the car, and that it had been stolen. Then I made the most 49  call of all.
“Honey,” I said in a low voice. I always call her “honey” in times like these. “I 50  my keys in the car, and it has been stolen.”
There was a period of 51 . I thought the call had been dropped, but then I heard Diane’s  52 .
“Ken,” she shouted, “I dropped you off!”
Now it was my time to be silent. 53 , I said, “In that case, would you please come and  54  
your dear husband?”
Diane answered, “I will... just as soon as I can have this policeman  55 I didn’t steal your car.”

— Why not join the football club?

— I’d love to, but I’m afraid it will _______ too much of my time.

One day I decided to quit．I quitted my job, my relationship, my spirituality. I wanted to quit my life.

I went to the   36   to have one last talk with God． "Can you give me one good   37   not to quit?" His answer surprised me．

Because of the financial crisis in the US and UK, college students are beginning to struggle to find ways to pay their tuition fees and accommodations.

Recently, two major US student loan lenders — Citibank and JPMorgan Chase — announced they were leaving the student loan industry altogether. Because banks currently have a lack of credit, they are reluctant to offer students low-interest loans that need a several-year wait for any return of interest.

In the US, many undergraduates top up their financial needs with a private loan, although the majority can get government-funded loans. In the 2005­-2006 academic year, $17 billion in private student loans was used to finance higher education. The shortfall in private funding has yet to be covered and will hit many US students hard.

Across the Atlantic, UK students have been less troubled by the crisis. Most undergraduates in the UK cover their university expenses with government-funded loans and grants (助学金). Their biggest concern is a sudden steep increase in student rent.

Most young professionals now rent houses, since 80 percent of UK mortgage schemes (住房抵押贷款计划) have disappeared — a direct result of the credit crisis. This has boosted the house rent market.

In large cities, UK students are paying almost 6.5 percent more in rent than the previous year. Figures from the UK organization Accommodation for Student show students in big cities such as London paying an average weekly rent of ￡103. Yet, despite students’ suffering, the number of this year’s university applications is expected to grow. During economic slumps (经济萧条时期), people regard further education as a way to survive tough job markets.

1.According to the passage, banks are unwilling to offer students loans because ________.

A．the students are poor and sometimes they can’t pay off the debt

B．banks prefer lending the money to the young professionals

C．banks don’t have enough money left at the present time

D．they think college students are not studying hard

2.The underlined phrase “top up” in Paragraph 3 probably means ________.

A．put up     B．make up     C．fill up    D．pick up

3.Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A．UK college students have to pay more if they want to rent houses.

B．More UK students want to further their study in college.

C．It is not so easy for US students to loan money now.

D．College students’ tuition fees have risen greatly.

4.It can be inferred that ________.

A．there are no private student loan lenders in the UK

B．loans for US college students will be increased next year

C．private funding falls a little because of higher-interest loans in the US

D．private loans play a very important role in financing US students’ education