Julio loves to visit his grandmother . He doesn’t get to visit her very often because his family lives in a city that is six hours away .His grandmother lives in a big wooden house on a farm .It is old and looks as if it has secret hiding places .
On the third Sunday of June ,Julio’s parents took him to his grandmother’s .Since it was summer vacation, he was going to stay at grandmother’s for a whole summer . Hid cousins Mario and linda would soon be arriving. They would also be staying at their grandmother’s this summer .
A big porch (走廊) wrapped （缠绕）around two sides of the house .Julio sat in the porch swing （秋千）.He could see the trees that circle the house .They had been planted as a windbreak （防风林）.They protected the house from the wind and blowing dirt .The house was in the middle of a large flat field .
Julio watched the dirt road that led to the house .He couldn’t wait for his cousins to get there .Mario was his age ,and Linda was a year younger .They had fun together .Last summer they spent one whole morning making a fort out of sacks of seed （装种子的麻袋做成的堡垒）.Then Uncle Henry took them on a tractor ride.
Julio remembered another time with his cousins .They had gone out to explore the fields .Julio touched an electric fence and got a shock .Then they found an old snake skin. Nothing like that ever happened at his own home !
Julio could smell the dinner that his grandmother was cooking .It made him hungry .
Finally he saw a cloud of dust coming up the road .“They’re here ! They are here !”He shouted .
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【小题1】Why doesn’t Julio often visit his grandmother ?

When I was seven years old, my family made me an ant farm. First, we put clean sand in a thin glass box. Then we waited for the ants to arrive.
After the ants were in the glass farm, they started to make tunnels（地道）. I was amazed that each one knew exactly what to do. Each had its own job.
On the fifth day a tragedy（悲剧）happened. I put my face so close to the glass farm that I knocked it over. All the tunnels fell down. Although the ants remained alive after their earthquake, one by one they began to die. I was scared as I watched them give up building their tunnels to carry the bodies to a corner of the farm.
My mother said that the ants were dying of sadness. They simply could not stand that their tunnels were gone.
Although much time has passed, I still think of that ant farm. Mom had hoped it would teach me about the natural world, but it taught me much more.
Over the years, I came to realize the importance of teamwork. Working together, the ants were able to make an amazing world for themselves. I also learned that they should be admired（钦佩）for their hard work.
But there was an even larger lesson that I did not realize until recently: Adversity（逆境）is a natural part of life, and must be accepted. Unlike the ants, we cannot give up when we are sad. We have to realize that if a tunnel is gone, we must build another.
Giving up, I say, is not a good choice.
【小题1】 What did the writer’s family do for him when he was seven?

How do you pay for things? Do you usually use cash(现金), or do you like to pay by credit card(信用卡)? If you are like a lot of people, you probably have at least one credit card. Also, you might use it more often than you probably should.

Credit cards first became popular in the 1920s, At that time, businesses, such as hotels and companies, gave credit cards to their best customers(顾客). Unlike today's credit cards, customers could only use these cards at the Store or business that gave out the card. Customers had to pay for things in full. They couldn't pay for something a little at a time.

In 1950, a businessman named McNamara started a credit card company — Diners Club. Unlike earlier credit cards, this card could be used by customers at many restaurants. Customers liked the card because they didn't have to carry a lot of cash with them. Restaurant owners liked the card, too. Why? They found out that customers usually spent more money when they could pay by credit card.

In its first year of business, Diners Club issued 200 cards, The customers who got the cards from the Diners Club could use them at 27 different restaurants. Today, Diners Club has about 8 million customers, and they can use their cards in over 7. 6 million businesses in more than 200 countries.

1.What can we know about the earlier credit cards from the passage?

A. They could be used everywhere.

B. Customers had to pay for things in full.

C. They were very popular before the 1920s.

D. Everyone could get this kind of credit card.

2. The underlined word "issued" here probably means "       ".

A. showed   B. took   C. borrowed     D. provided

3. This passage is mainly about        .    

A. part of the development of credit cards

B. how to use cash

C. the number of people who use credit cards in the world

D. how credit cards help businessmen