"I didn’t hear them call my name," explained Shelley Hennig to Active Teens (AT) as she talked about that exciting moment on national television when she won the honor of Miss Teen USA 2004. "Are you ready?" is what she heard. Then she said, "I shook my head no, and then they said ‘yes’ and it was announced again."
It was four days after that life changing moment for the seventeen-year-old high school student from Destrehan, Louisiana—she was still on cloud nine.
"I was so shocked! I never believed that it could actually really happen." Present in the audience that day were: her mother and father, older brother, her friends, and her dance teacher.
Understanding why members of her family and her friends would be there, AT asked why her dance teacher had traveled so far to see her compete（比赛）."She’s always been my role model. I’ve danced with her since I was six. She’s been through so many difficulties and came through them all. I’ve learned to get over bad life’s experiences and learned how to move on because of her."
One of those bad life’s experiences for Shelley happened three years ago when her brother Brad was killed in a drunk driving accident. He was 18. She found writing helped her get through the hard days. She said, "I write a lot about my brother. I write a lot, a lot, a lot...”
As Miss Louisiana Teen, she traveled around the state speaking to teens about the dangers of drinking and driving. In her role as Miss Teen USA, Shelley will continue to speak to youth about safe driving, in addition to(除…之外) many other things to help the youth.
When AT asked Miss Teen USA if she had any advice for our readers, she said, "Don’t let anyone change you. Hang out with people that make you feel good about yourself. That way, it is easy to be yourself."
【小题1】What do the words “on cloud nine” in Paragraph 2 probably mean?

Last Sunday I got   36  early in the morning. After a quick 37  , I rode my bike to English Corner (英语角)to practice 38  English. I really like to go there. When I   39  there, it   40  half past eight. There were many people   41   with each other in English. A foreigner（外国人） came up and said “Hello”   42   me. I was excited,    43   that was my ___44  time to talk   45  a foreigner. I never met a foreigner before. At first, I didn’t know what he said. His English was   46  what I learned at school. Later, he slowed   47  . I began to understand （理解）his   48  . He told me the best   49   to learn English was to use it. We talked and talked. I was so hungry,   50  I felt very happy.

How do you get across a river? A bridge is the best way. In some places, there are no bridges. People use the ferry（渡船）. A ferry is a boat that takes people and cars across the river.

Both ends of a ferry look the same. The ferry never has to turn around. It docks（靠岸）at one side of the river. People and cars get on. At the other side, the ferry docks again. The people and cars get off. Other cars and people get on. And then the ferry goes back across the river.

In many places, bridges are now taking the place of ferries. In 1964, the longest bridge in the world was built in New York over Now York Bay（湾）. It is called the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. This bridge has two roads, one over the other. Each road is wide enough for six lanes（行道）of traffic.

1. ______ is the best way for people to go across the river.

   A. The bridge           B. The car        C. The ferry       D. The bus

2. We can infer that ______ according to the passage.

   A. the shortest bridge in the world was built in New York

   B. it may be faster to cross rivers on bridges than on ferries

   C. there is a bridge over every river in the United States

   D. we don’t need ferries any more

3. The main idea of the passage is that _____.

   A. the bridge is taking the place of the ferry

   B. the ferry is better than the long bridge

   C. the bridge in New York has a very long name

   D. there is no ferry in the world

4._______ can cross rivers by ferry.

   A. Only people     B. Both cars and people    C. Only cars    D. Neither people nor cars