One man tells of driving on a long and lonely road, the last 65 miles of it unpaved, in order to watch Indian dances in the state of Arizona. After the dances, he returned to his car only to find that it had a flat tire. He put on the spare and drove to the only service station in that town.

“Do you fix flats?” he inquired of the attendant.

“Yes,” came the answer.

“How much do you charge?” he asked.

With a twinkle in his eye, the man replied, “What difference does it make?”

This is what has been called a “Hobson’s choice”. A Hobson’s choice is a situation that forces a person to accept whatever is offered or go without.

According to Barbara Berliner, the phrase was inspired by sixteenth-century entrepreneur (企业家) Thomas Hobson. There was no choice by the customer — it was strictly Hobson’s choice.

But often we really have a choice, and the choice does make a difference. We may not always believe it. We may feel as if we have no choice, but almost always there is a choice in the matter. And when we realize that we do most things by choice, then we are taking control of our own lives.

Someone challenged me to try an experiment that completely changed my perspective. “For the next seven days,” he said, “eliminate the words ‘I have to’ from your vocabulary and say ‘I choose to’. Don’t say, ‘I have to work late tonight’. Instead, say, ‘I choose to work late’. When you choose to do it, you take control of your life. Instead of saying, ‘I have to stay home’, try ‘I choose to stay home’. The way you spend your time is your choice. You are responsible. You have control.”

In just seven days I was no longer saying “I have to” and I felt better about my decisions. I learned that there is very little in my life I actually have to do. You and I decide to do certain things because we believe that it will be for the best. When we eliminate “I have to” from our vocabularies, we take control.

Try it for a week and you see what happens. I think you’ll see it’s a change for the better.

1. What did the attendant mean by saying “What difference does it make”?

2.The author learnt from the experiment that he      .

3.What does the underlined word “eliminate” mean?

4.What is the situation where we have a “Hobson’s choice”?

5. The purpose of writing this text is to            .

In ancient Egypt, the pharaoh（法老）treated the poor message runner like a prince when he arrived at the palace, if he brought good news. However, if the exhausted runner had the misfortune to bring the pharaoh unhappy news, his head was cut off.

　　Shades of that spirit spread over today’s conversations. Once a friend and I packed up some peanut butter and sandwiches for an outing. As we walked light-heartedly out the door, picnic basket in hand, a smiling neighbor looked up at the sky and said, ”Oh boy, bad day for a picnic. The weatherman says it’s going to rain.”I wanted to strike him on the face with the peanut butter and sandwiches. Not for his stupid weather report, for his smile.

　　Several months ago I was racing to catch  a him As I breathlessly put my handful of cash across the Grey hound counter, the sales agent said with a broad smile ,”Oh that bus left five minutes ago.”Dreams of head-cutting!

　　It’s not the news that makes someone angry. It’s the unsympathetic attitude with which it’s the unsympathetic attitude with which it’s delivered. Everyone must give bad news from time to time, and winning professionals do it with the proper attitude. A doctor advising a patient that she needs an operation does it in a caring way. A boss informing an employee he didn’t get the job takes on a sympathetic tone. Big winners know, when delivering any bad news, they should share the feeling of the receiver.

　　Unfortunately, many people are not aware of this. When you’re tired from a long flight, has a hotel clerk cheerfully said that your room isn’t ready yet? When you had your heart set on the toast beef, has your waiter mainly told you that he just served the last piece? It makes you as traveler or diner want to land your fist right on their unsympathetic faces.

　　Had my neighbor told me of the upcoming rainstorm with sympathy, I would have appreciated his warming .Had the Greyhound salesclerk sympathetically informed me that my bus had already left, I probably would have said, ” Oh, that’s all right I’ll catch the next one.” Big winners, when they bear bad news ,deliver bombs with the emotion the bombarded（被轰炸的）person is sure to have.

1.In Paragraph 1,the writer tells the story of the pharaoh to ____.

A. make a comparison                      B. describe a scene

C. introduce a topic                 D. offer an argument

2.From “Dreams of head-cutting!”（Paragraph3），we learn that the writer___.

A. was mad at the sales agent

B. was reminded of the cruel pharaoh

C. wished that the sales agent would have had dreams

D. dreamed of cutting the sales agent’s head that night.

3.What is the main idea of the text?

A. Learning ancient traditions can be useful.

B. Receiving bad news requires great courage.

C. Helping others sincerely is the key to business success.

D. Delivering bad news properly is important in communication.

Alaska Inside Passage Craises

Most cruises（游船） are seven nights long and typically begin an4 end in either Vancouver or Seattle．This "roundtrip" travel plan makes this a very popular cruise vacation because of the convenient flight schedules and affordable roundtrip airline tickets into and out of Vancouver and．Seattle．Longer 10-night and 11-night Inside Passage Cruises are available from California．Depending on your ship and your plan, a typical Alaska Inside Passage Cruise spends the first day cruising the famed Inside ．Passage, a narrow waterway nestled between towering mountains, waterfront communities, and the Pacific Ocean．

Alaska Glacier Cruses．

Alaska Glacier Cruises are also known as Gulf of Alaska Cruises．Every cruise line has a different name for it, but they all mean the same thing —they are cruises that sail one-way through the Gulf of Alaska where you'll find the greatest number of glaciers（冰川）, mountains, wildlife and scenery．

Unlike an Alaska Inside Passage Cruise, an Alaska Glacier Cruise does not do a U—turn back to the; departure port．Alaska Glacier cruises are one way journey that sail from．North to South （Southbound Glacier Cruises） or South to North （Northbound Glacier Cruises）．These routes allow you to spend more days in Alaska ports or National Glacier Parks as there are fewer days at sea compared to other cruises．If you only have a week and want wonderful glacier viewing and time on land, this is your best choice for an Alaska Cruise Vacation．

Regent Home Alaska Cruises

For a close and personal contact with the Great White North, step aboard the All-inclusive, 700-guest Seven Seas Mariner．You can watch seabirds perform beautiful dances or a group of playful whales swim by as you're eating breakfast in your private room． 

1.What is "Inside Passage" according to the text? 

    A．It's the name of a typical cruise ship．                 B．It's a popular hiking route in Alaska．

    C．It's the name of a famous tourist company．              D．It's a body of water with beautiful scenery．

2.If you are interested in sightseeing on foot, which cruise might be a better choice than others?

    A．Alaska Inside Passage Cruises．                          B．Gulf of Alaska Cruises．

    C．Regent Home Alaska Cruises．        D．None of the above．

3.Which of the following cruises repeat its routes?

    A．Alaska Inside Passage Cruises．                          B．Southbound Glacier Cruises．

    C．Northbound Glacier Cruises．                             D．Seven Seas Mariner．

4.What's the purpose of this passage?

    A．To explore the natural beauty of Alaska．

    B．To introduce the ways of traveling in Alaska．

    C．To attract tourists to cruise vacations in Alaska．

    D．To offer advice to people traveling in Alaska．

In ancient Egypt, the pharaoh(法老)treated the poor message runner like a prince when he arrived at the palace, if he brought good news. However, if the exhausted runner had the misfortune to bring the pharaoh unhappy news, his head was cut off.
Shades of that spirit spread over today’s conversations. Once a friend and I packed up some peanut butter and sandwiches for an outing. As we walked light-heartedly out the door, picnic basket in hand, a smiling neighbor looked up at the sky and said, ”Oh boy, bad day for a picnic. The weatherman says it’s going to rain.”I wanted to strike him on the face with the peanut butter and sandwiches. Not for his stupid weather report, for his while
Several months ago I was racing to catch  a him As I breathlessly put my handful of cash across the Grey hound counter, the sales agent said with a broad smile ,”Oh that bus left five minutes ago.”Dreams of head-cutting!
It’s not the news that makes someone angry. It’s the unsympathetic attitude with which it’s the unsympathetic attitude with which it’s delivered. Everyone must give bad news from time to time, and winning professionals do it with the proper attitude. A doctor advising a patient that she needs an operation does it in a caring way. A boss informing an employee he didn’t get the job takes on a sympathetic tone. Big winners know, when delivering any bad news, they should share the feeling of the receiver.
Unfortunately, many people are not aware of this. When you’re tired from a long flight, has a hotel clerk cheerfully said that your room isn’t ready yet? When you had your heart set on the toast beef, has your waiter mainly told you that he just served the last piece? It makes you as traveler or diner want to land your fist right on their unsympathetic faces.
Had my neighbor told me of the upcoming rainstorm with sympathy, I would have appreciated his warming .Had the Greyhound salesclerk sympathetically informed me that my bus had already left, I probably would have said, ” Oh, that’s all right I’ll catch the next one.” Big winners, when they bear bad news ,deliver bombs with the emotion the bombarded(被轰炸的)person is sure to have.
【小题1】In Paragraph 1,the writer tells the story of the pharaoh to ____.

     When you're lying on the white sands of the Mexican Riviera, the stresses (压力) of the world seem a million miles away. Hey. stop! This is no vacation - yon have to finish something!

      Here lies the problem for travel writer and food critic (评论家) Edie Jarolim. "I always loved traveling and always liked to eat, but it never occurred to me that I could make money doing both of those things." Jarolim said. Now you can read her travel advice everywhere-in Arts and Antiques, in Brides. or in one of her three books. The Complete Idiot Travel Guide to Mexico's Beach Resorts.

      Her job in travel writing began some eight years ago. After getting a PhD in English in Canada. she took a test for Frommer's travel guides, passed it, and got the job. After working at Frommer's, Jarolim worked for a while at Rough Guides in London, then Fodor's, where she fell so in love with a description of the Southwest of the U.S. that she moved there.

      Now as a travel writer, she spends one-third of her year on the road. The rest of the time is spent completing her tasks and writing reviews of restaurants at home in Tucson, Arizona.

      As adventurous as the job sounds, the hard part is fact-checking all the information. Sure, it's great to write about a tourist attraction, but you'd better get the local (当地的) museum hours correct or you could really ruin someone's vacation.

Which country does Jarolim have in now?

     A. Mexico.      B. The U.S.      C. The U.K       D. Canada

What is most difficult for Jarolim?

     A. Working in different places to collect information

     B. Checking all the facts to be written in the guides.

     C. Finishing her work as soon as possible.

     D. Passing a test to write travel guides.

What do we know about Jarolim from the text?

     A. She is successful in her job.

     B. She finds her life full of stresses.

     C. She spends half of her time traveling.

     D. She is especially interested in museums.

What would he the best title for the text7

   A. Adventures in Travel Writing   B. Working as a Food Critic                                                                 C. Travel Guides on the Market    D. Vacationing for a Living

What kind of work does Jarolim do?

   A. teacher    B. worker     C. reporter    D. writer and food critic