When I was a boy, every holiday that I had seemed wonderful. My   16  took me by train or by car to a hotel by the   17 . All day, I seem to remember, I   18  on the sands with strange   19  children. We made houses and gardens, and   20  the tide（潮汐） destroy them. When the tide went out, we   21  over the rocks and looked down at the fish in the rock-pools.
In those days the   22  seemed to shine always brightly   23  the water was always warm. Sometimes we left beach and walked in the country, 24  ruined houses and dark woods and climbing trees. There were   25  in one’s pockets or good places where one could   26  ice creams. Each day seemed a lifetime.
Although I am now thirty-five years old, my idea of a good   27  is much the same as it was. I   28  like the sun and warm sand and the sound of   29  beating the rocks. I no longer wish to   30  any sand house or sand garden, and I dislike sweets.   31 , I love the sea and often feel sand running through my fingers.
Sometimes I   32  what my ideal (理想的) holiday will be like when I am   33 . All I want to do then, perhaps, will be to lie in bed, reading books about   34  who make houses and gardens with sands, who watch the incoming tide, who make themselves   35  on too many ices…

Years ago, a cigarette commercial asked if you were smoking more, but enjoying it less. That describes the way many of us live today. We are doing more, but enjoying it less. And when that doesn’t work, we compound the problem. In our frantic search for satisfaction, we try stuffing still more into our days, never realizing that we are taking the wrong approach.

The truth is simple; so simple it is hard to believe. Satisfaction lies with less, not with more. Yet, we pursue the myth that this thing, or that activity, will somehow provide the satisfaction we so desperately seek.

Arthur Lindman, in his devastating book, “The Harried Leisure Class,” described the futility of pursuing more. His research focused on what people did with their leisure time. He found that as income rose, people bought more things to occupy their leisure time. But, ironically, the more things they bought, the less they valued any one of them. Carried to an extreme, he predicted massive boredom in the midst of tremendous variety. That was more than twenty years ago, and his prediction seems more accurate every year.

Lindman, of course, is not the first to discover this. The writer of Ecclesiastes expressed the same thought thousands of years ago. It is better, he wrote, to have less, but enjoy it more.

If you would like to enjoy life more, I challenge you to experiment with me. How could you simplify your life? What could you drop? What could you do without? What could you stop pursuing? What few things could you concentrate on?

The more I learn, the more I realize that fullness of life does not depend on things. The more I give up, the more I seem to gain. But words will never convince you. You must try it for yourself.

1．Arthur Lindman predicted twenty years ago that ______.

A. more things brought more value   B. the more people had, the less they valued them

C. people didn’t like to pursue more  D. massive boredom came from less variety

2．What does the article suggest to make our life happier?

A. To enjoy more things.            B. To buy more things.

C. To sell things we do not need.     D. To get rid of useless things.

3．The passage is probably written to ___________.

A. introduce Arthur Lindman and his book       B. tell the readers what is satisfaction

C. introduce how to simplify people’s life       D. persuade people to simplify their life

I don' t know if I am missing the greatest pleasure of my life. I am no fan of computer games. Some guys forget themselves and forget day and night when they play games. For example, a colleague has been playing since 1 o’clock this morning and now it is 7 o'clock. He is still commanding his army of little people to attack strange-looking animals. Some games could be fun, 1 admit, and it is therefore understandable that such a game catches players. For example, games like Red Storm or some role-play games, you do something and try to outwit(智胜) your computer. You get some fun out of these games. It is understandable that such a game pushes you into a pitfall(陷阱) of pleasures. But some games look quite stupid and simple. Again for example, my colleague has been interested in Stone Age, a cartoon-like game rooted in prehistoric time. The game is well made, full of strange people and animals and you can play on line with partners. You can have reference books to study so as to shortcut your rivals(对手) and increase your own conquering power.
I believe some kinds of games are really created for adults. But seeing these adults play the simple games with such interest, I just wonder if there is something wrong with me and if I am losing the greatest possible fun of my life. I ask why I don’t bother playing such games and why I seem to have some aversion(讨厌) to such games. I have no answers. Certainly computer games is no my idea of a good time. I would rather listen to some music or read a book. Take music for example. Good music tops my list of pleasures. Nothing could beat music, all in a harmony of sounds and emotions. But how about games? Why am I so strongly biased(偏见) against such games?
61.   From the passage we know that ______.
A. the author is a fan of computer games
B. the author spends much time playing computer games
C. the author once played a whole night
D. the author doesn't like playing computer games
62.   In this passage, the author tells us a fact that ______.
A. some computer games are interesting enough to attract people
B. many people fall into a dangerous pitfall
C. many people are suffering a lot from the computer games
D. computer games are pitfalls for most players
63.   The underlined word "bother" here means ______.
A. make trouble     B. take an interest in      C. disturb       D. confuse
64.   The author has a pleasure to ______.
A. make a computer game     B. read books
C. listen to good music  D. ask himself questions

E                          
A letter to Edward, a columnist (报刊专栏作家)
Dear Mr. Expert:
I grew up in an unhappy home. I always promised myself that I’d get out as soon as possible. Now, at the age of 20, I have a good job and a nice house, and I’m really proud of the independence I’ve achieved.
Here’s the problem: several of my friends who still live with their parents wish they had places like mine so much that they make mine theirs.
It started out with a couple of them spending the weekends with me. But now they seem to take it for granted that they can show up any time they like. They bring boyfriends over, talk on the phone and stay out forever.
I enjoy having my friends here sometimes — it makes the place feel comfortable and warm — but this is my home, not a party house. I was old enough to move out on my own, so why can’t I seem to ask my friends to respect my privacy(隐私)?
Joan Edward’s reply to Joan
Dear Joan:
If your family didn’t pay attention to your needs when you were a child, you probably have trouble letting others know your needs now.
And if you’ve gathered your friends around you to rebuild a happy family atmosphere, you may fear that saying no will bring back the kind of conflict you grew up with— or destroy the nice atmosphere you now enjoy. You need to understand that in true friendship it’s okay to put your own needs first from time to time.
Be clear about the message you want to send. For example, “I really love your company but I also need some privacy. So please call before you come over.”
Edward
73. We can learn from the first letter that Joan      .
A. lives away from her parents          B. takes pride in her friends
C. knows Mr. Expert quite well         D. hates her parents very much
74.We can infer from the first letter that       .
A. Joan considers her friends more important than her privacy
B. Joan’s friends visit her more often than she can accept
C. Joan doesn’t like the parties at all
D. Joan dislikes the boyfriends her friends bring over
75. According to Mr. Expert, why can’t Joan tell her friends her feelings?
A. She likes her friends very much              B. She does not understand true friendship.
C. Her family experience stops her from doing so.   D. She does not put her needs first.

A letter to Edward，a columnist

Dear Mr. Expert,

    I grew up in an unhappy and abusive(虐待) home. I always promised myself that I’d get out as soon as possible. Now, at age 20, I have a good job and a nice house, and I’m really proud of the independence I've achieved.

    Here’s the problem: several of my friends who still live with their parents wish they had places like mine—so much so that they make mine theirs.

      It started out with a couple of them spending the weekends with me. But now they seem to take it for granted that they can show up any time they like. They bring boyfriends over, talk on the phone and stay out forever.

    I enjoy having my friends here sometimes—it makes the place feel comfortable and warm—but this is my home, not a party house. I was old enough to move out on my own, so why can’t I seem to ask my friends to respect my privacy(隐私)?

                                                                                                                    Joan

Edward’s reply to Joan

Dear Joan,

　　If your family didn’t pay attention to your needs when you were a child, you probably have trouble letting others know your needs now.

　　And if you’ve gathered your friends around you to rebuild a happy family atmosphere(气氛), you may fear that saying no will bring back the kind of conflict（冲突）you grew up with—or destroy the nice atmosphere you now enjoy. You need to understand that in true friendship it’s okay to put your own needs first from time to time.

      Be clear about the message you want to send. For example, “I really love your company（陪伴） but I also need some privacy. So please call before you come over. ”

                                                                                                                    Edward

59. We can learn from the first letter that Joan ___________.

  A. takes pride in her friends                       

B. lives away from her parents

  C. knows Mr. Expert quite well              

D. hates her parents very much

60. We can infer from the first letter that __________.

　 A. Joan thinks her friends more important than her privacy

   B. Joan doesn’t like the parties at all

   C. Joan’s friends visit her more often than expected

   D. Joan dislikes the boyfriends her friends bring over

61. In Mr. Expert’s opinion, the reason why Joan can’t tell her friends her feelings is that _________.

　 A. she is afraid of hurting her friends 

B. she does not understand true friendship

   C. her family experience stops her from doing so

D. she does not put her needs first

62. The second letter suggests that Mr. Expert __________.

　 A. is concerned about Joan’s problem

B. warns Joan not to quarrel with her friends

   C. encourages Joan to be brave enough

   D. advises Joan on how to refuse people