I asked him to come at seven o’clock, but he __________. It’s already eight o’clock．

The 92-year-old, thin, calm and proud lady, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o’clock, even though she is nearly blind, moved to a nursing home today.

Her husband of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many hours of waiting patiently in the hall of the nursing home, she smiled sweetly when told her room was ready.

As she walked slowly to the elevator, I provided a true description of her tiny room, including the old sheets that had been hung on her window. “I love it,” she said with the happiness of an eight-year-old having just been presented with a new puppy.

“Mrs. Jones, you haven’t seen the room…just wait.”

“That doesn’t matter,” she replied. “Happiness is something you decide ahead of time. Whether I like my room or not doesn’t depend on how the furniture is arranged. It’s how I arranged my mind. I have already decided to love it. It’s a decision I make every morning when I wake up. Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I’ll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I’ve stored away.” She went on to explain, “Old age is like a bank account. You take what you’ve put in. So, my advice to you would be to put in a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories. Thank you for your part in filling my memory bank.” And with a smile, she said, “All my memories are happy ones.”

Mrs. Jones was always happy in the nursing home and she died at the age of 108.

1.We can infer from the passage that the author________.

2.The room in which the old lady will live________.

3.Mrs. Jones was very happy when told about her room because she________.

4. Which of the following words can best describe Mrs. Jones?

My train arrives in Beijing at eight o’clock tonight. The plane I would like to take from there _______ by then.

　　If you are ever lucky to be invited to a formal dinner party in Paris, remember that the French have their own way of doing things, and that even your finest manners may not be “correct” by French custom. For example, if you think showing up promptly at the time given on the invitation, armed with gifts of wine and roses, complimenting your hostess on her cooking, laughing heartily at the host's jokes and then leaping up to help the hostess will make you the perfect guest, think again.

　　Here Madame Nora Chabal, the marketing director of the Ritz Hotel in paris, explained how it works.

　　The first duty of the guest is to respond to the invitation within 48 hours. And, the guest may not ask to bring a guest because the hostess has chosen her own.

　　Flowers sent in advance are the preferred gift. They may also be sent afterwards with a thank-you note. It is considered a very bad form to arrive with s gift of flowers in hand there by forcing the hostess to deal with finding a vase when she is too busy to do that. See, that's the logic! The type of flowers sent has a code of its own, too. One must never send chrysanthemums because they are considered too humble a flower for occasion. Carnations are considered bad luck, and calla lilies are too reminiscent（令人联想）of funerals（葬礼）. A bouquet of red roses is a declaration of romantic intent. Don't send those unless you mean it, and never to a married hostess. And though the French love wine, you must never bring a bottle to a dinner party. Why, it's as if you feared your hosts would not have enough wine on land, and that's an insult. You may, however, offer a box of chocolates which the hostess will pass after dinner with coffee.

　　If an invitation is for eight o'clock, the considerate guest arrives at 8:15. Guests who arrive exactly on time or early are mere thoughtless ones who are not giving the hostess those last few minutes she needs to deal with details and

crises, The “correct” guest arrives between 15 to 20 minutes after the hour because dinner will be served exactly 30 minutes past the time on the invitation.

(1) Which of the following statements is right according to the French custom?

[　　]

A．When you receive an invitation, reply to it within two days. You'd better send flowers in advance.

B．Arrive exactly on time at the dinner party.

C．Bring a bottle of good wine to the dinner party.

D．Telephone to ask if you could bring a good friend to the party.

(2) Which of the following is right about sending flowers?

[　　]

A．If someone is dead, send chrysanthemums or calla lilies.

B．If someone is ill in hospital, send carnations.

C．If you are invited to a dinner party, send red roses to the hostess.

D．If you are in love with someone, send red roses.

(3) If you are in love with someone, send red roses, what should you do?

[　　]

A．Bring a bouquet of flowers when you go to the party.

B．Send a bouquet of flowers afterwards with a thank-you note.

C．Bring a bottle of wine instead of a bouquet of flowers.

D．The hostess will never mind of you send flower or not.

(4) What is the passage mainly about?

[　　]

A．How to hold a dinner party.

B．How to send flowers.

C．Good manners at a French dinner party.

D．Different countries have different manners.

If you are ever lucky to be invited to a formal dinner party in Paris，remember that the French have their own way of doing things, and that even your finest manners may not be “correct” by French custom．For example，if you think showing up promptly（迅速地）at the time given on the invitation，armed with gifts of wine and roses，complimenting（称赞）your hostess on her cooking，laughing heartily at the host’s jokes and then leaping up to help the hostess will make you the perfect guest，think again．

Here Madame Nora Chabal，the marketing director of the Ritz Hotel in Paris，explained how it works．

The first duty of the guest is to respond to the invitation within 48 hours．And，the guest may not ask to bring a guest because the hostess has chosen her own．

Flowers sent ahead of schedule are the preferred gift．They may also be sent afterwards with a thank–you note．It is considered a very bad form to arrive with a gift of flowers vase when she is too busy to do with that．

See，that’s the logic！The type of flowers sent has a code of its own，too．One must never send chrysanthemums(菊花)because they are considered too humble(谦卑)for occasion．Carnations（康乃馨）are considered bad luck，and calla（马蹄莲）are too reminiscent（令人联想）of funerals（葬礼）．A bouquet of red roses is a declaration of romantic intent．Don’t send those unless you mean it，and never to a married hostess．And though the French love wine，you must never bring a bottle to a dinner party．Why？It’s as if you feared your hosts would not have enough wine on hand，and that’s an insult（侮辱）．You may，however，offer a box of chocolates which the hostess will pass after dinner with coffee．

If an invitation is for eight o’clock，the considerate guest arrives at a quarter past eight．Guests who arrive exactly on time or early are mere thoughtless ones who are not giving the hostess those last few minutes she needs to deal with details and crises．

1.Which of the following is right about sending gifts？

2.What does the word “considerate” in the last paragraph mean？

3.If you are invited to a French dinner, the correct custom is to ______.

4.What is the passage mainly about？