When Ben delivered milk to my home one morning before Christmas,he wasn’t his usual sunny self. He told me a customer had left without paying the bill,$79,nor leaving her new address. So it meant that he had to cover the loss.
“She was a pretty woman,”he said, “with six children and another on the way. She was always saying. ‘I’m going to pay you soon when my husband gets a second job.’ I believed her,but she left. Isn’t it annoying?”
“Give her the milk. Make it a Christmas present to the kids who need it.” I said.
The holidays came and went. On a sunny January morning two weeks later,Ben was rushing to deliver milk when he saw a woman running down the street,waving money. He recognized her immediately--the woman who didn’t pay her bill.
“I’m so sorry.” she said. “I really have been meaning to pay you.”
She explained that her husband had come home one night and announced he' d found cheaper apartment. He' d also got a new job. With all that happened, she' d forgotten to leave the new address. “But I've been saving,” she said. “Here's $20 toward the bill.
“That' s all right,” Ben replied. “It's been paid.”
“Paid!” she exclaimed (惊叫). “What do you mean? Who paid it?”
“I did,” Ben said, “It went to the children as a Christmas present!”
【小题1】Ben was upset one morning because _______.
| A.a customer left without paying the bill |
| B.he lost $ 79 on the way of the delivery |
| C.he had to buy a present for the children |
| D.he was going to lose his job |
| A.a Christmas present | B.the debtor' s new address |
| C.some money to cover the loss | D.a suggestion to cheer him up |
| A.cheated to raise her children | B.moved to escape paying back the debts |
| C.was a person with honesty | D.wanted to give her children a Christmas gift |
| A.An Unhappy Christmas | B.An Unusual Present |
| C.A Poor Couple's Life | D.A Helpful Customer |
No matter where he lives, 16-year-old Danny Lopez feels like an outsider: he is half-Mexican and half-white.
At his private high school in wealthy northern San Diego, California, US, Lopez is too brown to fit in, whereas for the Mexican side of his family in National City, just a dozen miles from the border, he is too white to belong.
Different from both sides, Lopez is silent in school. He focuses on his passion for baseball and working hard to improve the pitches (球场) that have kept him off the school team.
Mexican Whiteboy, by Matt de la Pena, is about a teenager’s search for identity. It was named as one of the Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults in 2009 by the US Young Adult Library Services Association.
When Lopez’s mother decides to go to live with her wealthy white boyfriend in San Francisco, he chooses to spend the summer with his father’s family in San Diego. It’s a trip to explore roots and self-identity, filled with unexpected friendship.
There he meets Uno, of mixed heritage (遗传) like himself, also with a divorced mom. Uno understands Danny’s split background and helps him improve his baseball skills. Both boys have big league dreams, but they both have to learn to come to terms with their mixed heritages before they can achieve their goals.
Aside from discussions of racism, Mexican Whiteboy takes on other issues, such as the importance of family and the negative influence of hiding the truth. It also shows how sports can draw cultures together.
【小题1】The reason why Lopez feels like an outsider lies in the fact that ___________.
| A.he is a Mexican | B.he lives in San Diego |
| C.he is half-white and half-Mexican | D.he studies in a private school |
| A.book | B.club | C.newspaper | D.organization |
| A.starts writing a book about himself |
| B.begins to look for identity with the help of Mexican Whiteboy |
| C.loses his interest in baseball |
| D.works in the fields in which he was kept off the school team |
| A.they both have a divorced mom |
| B.they both have mixed heritage |
| C.they were both in the school baseball team |
| D.both of them have big league dreams |
The business executive was deep in debt and could see no way out. Creditors (债主) were closing in on him. Suppliers were demanding payment. He sat on the park bench, head in hands, wondering if anything could save his company from bankruptcy (破产).
Suddenly an old man appeared before him. “I can see that something is troubling you.” he said. After listening to the executive, the old man said: “I believe I can help you.”
He asked the man his name, wrote out a check, and pushed it into his hand saying: “Take this money. Meet me here exactly one year from today, and you can pay me back at that time.” Then he turned and disappeared as quickly as he had come.
The business executive saw in his hand a check for $500,000, signed by John D. Rockefeller, then one of the richest men in the world!
“I can settle all my debts in a moment!” he realized. But instead, the executive decided to put the uncashed check in his safe, just knowing it would give him the strength to work out a way to save his business.
With renewed optimism, he made better deals and extended terms of payment. He closed several big deals. Within a few months, he was out of debt and making money once again.
Exactly one year later, he returned to the park with the uncashed check. At the agreed-upon time, the old man appeared. But just as the executive was about to hand back the check and share his success story, a nurse came running up and grabbed the old man.
“I’m so glad I caught him!” she cried. “I hope he hasn’t been bothering you. He’s always escaping from the rest home and telling people he’s John D. Rockefeller.” And she led the old man away by the arm.
【小题1】What was the executive worried about?
| A.He couldn’t produce enough for the suppliers. |
| B.The creditors wouldn’t lend him any money. |
| C.His products didn’t sell well. |
| D.He might run into bankcruptcy. |
| A.The old man had known the executive was in trouble before he came. |
| B.The old man’s way of helping the executive worked out well. |
| C.The check he wrote was far from enough for the executive. |
| D.In fact the old man didn’t want to have his money back. |
A. He was afraid that the bank didn’t have so much money.
B. The check gave him a lot of strength and encouragement.
C. He was uncertain if he could ever pay back the money.
D. He knew the old man wasn’t John D. Rockefeller at all.
There are numerous similarities between Muhammad Ali and his 23-year-old daughter Laila.
She is the only one of his nine sons and daughters to have those genes that led to the ring(拳击场). Her father’s great status had nothing to do with Laila’s decision to pursue a boxing career. She has always been proud of his achievements, but he was never a great man to her—just dad. [来源:学科网ZXXK]
What attracted her to take up boxing was the unusual sight of two women in the ring on the television screen when she was about to watch a Mike Tyson fight five years ago. She was very excited and said to herself, “I can do that. ”
Laila’s father would prefer her not to take up the danger
ous sport. Johnny McClain, her husband and manager (former boxer himself) feels the same way. Even though both the men in her life worry about her, they’re 100 percent su
pportive. “They don’t want me to get hurt, ” she says.
Long before entering the ring, Laila was a fighter. Being the daughter of an outstanding boxer made her an
easy target for high school kids to see how tough she was. They, not she, failed in the test. For the public, her biggest test took place last summer in the New York State when she took on Jacqui Frazier Lyde, the daughter of Joe Frazier, her father’s most famous opponent (对手) during the 1970s.
That fight provided the biggest shot in the arm that women’s boxing has received. News reporters poured in. Some called it “Ali/Frazier-GenerationⅡ”. No match involving women had ever attracted so much attention. Laila had a narrow victory in the fight.
Like it or not, she accepts the fact that she is the face of female boxing. And she hopes that her name and fame will help get the public to take it more seriously.
The name Ali has and always will bring her attention. But she is determined to make her own mark on opponents’ faces as well as in boxing history books. She says, “I want women’s boxing to get its due respect. ” Zxxk
【小题1】Laila to
ok up boxing because of ________.
| A.her father’s great status | B.a Mike Tyson fight |
| C.her admiration for her father | D.her interest in boxing |
| A.Laila’s husband is still a boxer now |
| B.Laila wants to make contributions to the sport of boxing |
| C.Laila’s husband doesn’t think boxing is a dangerous sport |
| D.when Laila was in high school, she often failed in the fight with other kids |
| A.That fight proved that Laila was a person of physical power. |
| B.That fight made female boxing more popular. |
| C.That fight provided people with a good change to enjoy themselves. |
| D.Laila made her first public appearance in that fight. |
| A.A female boxer—Laila Ali | B.The best-known fight |
| C.Ali/Frazie-GenerationⅡZxxk | D.Muhammad Ali and his daughter |
(BEIJING, August 10)—The Beijing Daily has put together a number of tips for cost-efficient travel in Beijing.
★ Subway transfer
“Transfer” is a word frequently used by volunteers helping visitors choose the best way of transport during the ongoing Beijing Olympics to save time.
On the seven subway lines now in operation, the transport authorities have set up a total of 16 transfer stations:
Transfer between Line 2 and Line 1 at Jianguomen and Fuxingmen stations;
Transfer between Line 2 and Line 5 at Chongwenmen and Yonghegong stations;
Transfer between Line 2 and Line 13 at Dongzhimen and Xizhimen stations; Dongzhimen station can also bring you to Beijing Capital International Airport via the Airport Line;
Transfer between Line 1 and Line Batong at Sihui and Sihuidong stations;
Transfer from Line 1 to Line 10 at Guomao station to reach Zhongguancun, the north Third Ring Road (going north and west) or Jinsong (going south).
Via Line 10, transfer to Line 8 at Beitucheng station to reach the Olympic central zone, where the “Bird’s Nest” and other venues are located; transfer to Line 5 at Huixinxijie Nankou; transfer to Line 13 at Zhichunlu and Shaoyaoju stations; Sanyuanqiao station takes you to the airport via the Airport Line.
★ From subway to bus
Beijing’s subway system is thoroughly linked with bus routes.
The Beijing Railway Station, which can be reached via the Line 2 subway, has bus lines going north, southeast and to the West Railway Station, covering Chaoyang, Tongzhou, Daxing and other districts.
Xizhimen station is linked to many bus routes that go south and northeast. The long-distance bus routes near Dongzhimen station pass through Shunyi, Pinggu and other outskirts.
★ Park and ride
Park and ride facilities allow commuters to leave their personal vehicles in a parking lot and transfer to a bus or rail system.
In Beijing, because of city planning and other factors, park and ride is limited to bus and subway stations beyond the Fourth Ring Road. Since the Line 5 subway began operating, a low-fare parking lot, the largest in Beijing, was created at Tiantongyuan Beizhan station. Drivers are encouraged to spend just two yuan per day parking their vehicles and take the subway into the city.
【小题1】At which of the station, passengers can go to the Beijing Capital International Airport by subway?
| A.Dongzhimen and Xizhimen. | B.Jianguomen and Fuxingmen. |
| C.Dongzhimen and Sanyuanqiao. | D.Zhichunlu and Shaoyaoju. |
| A.Transfer to Line 1 at Jianguomen station, and then transfer to Line 10 at Guomao station. |
| B.Transfer to Line 5 at Chongwenmen station, and then transfer to Line 10 at Guomao station. |
| C.Transfer to Line 13 at Dongzhimen station, and then transfer to Line 8 at Beituchengstation. |
| D.Transfer to Line 1 at Dongzhimen station, and then transfer to Line 10 at Guomao station. |
| A.You can get to the Beijing Railway Station via the Line 5 subway. |
| B.Park and ride is limited to bus and subway stations beyond the Third Ring Road. |
| C.Drivers can spend a little money in parking their vehicles in the largest parking lot. |
| D.Drivers must park their cars in the largest parking lot and transfer to a bus or rail system. |
| A.From the Beijing Railway Station, you can take buses to the West Railway Station. |
| B.From the Beijing Railway Station, you can take the subway to the West Railway Station. |
| C.The Beijing Railway Station has bus lines going north and southeast. |
| D.The Beijing Railway Station has bus lines going southeast and to the West Railway Station. |
| A.To help volunteers save time during the ongoing Olympic Games. |
| B.To help tourists enjoy the places of interest in Beijing. |
| C.To make people learn about the daily transport in Beijing. |
| D.To make it convenient and efficient to travel in Beijing during the ongoing Olympic Games. |