Neighbors used to be somebody we wave and greet when we meet them. Now, things have changed.
As the young lady _______ the door for me, I thanked her and observed that she must be a neighbor. We both _______ living on the same floor. While we were in the _______, I asked her, “So, how do you like your apartment?” _______which she replied “I like it but I have not talked to any one of my _______ yet.” I somewhat answered doubtfully, “Good luck with that!” _______ as it arrived and I walked to my door, I could not help but think.
Sure, nowadays talking with neighbors is like pulling people’s teeth, _________ and frightening. But why should we _______ what seems difficult for impossible? In a different apartment building a few blocks away the lift _______a clever poster with a black stripe across the eyes of a person, warning, “Looking someone in the eyes might lead to a __________ !”
I suspect in our busy city people are ________ of starting a conversation with strangers because it could potentially demand time—the most __________ thing in this abundant world. But what if that ________ conversation could introduce us to a gem(珍宝) we were ________? What if starting a friendly conversation with a stranger could ________ a friendship?
So, when I opened the door, I ________ designed a one- page poster inviting my neighbors to a house concert. Then I searched for the best ________ of color copies in Ballston, ________ that not surprisingly the good people in The Printed Page offer the lowest for the fastest service, and within 30 minutes I sent 80 copies of the ________ for each of the apartments in the building.
Whether any of my neighbors ________ or not, I trust that an open door and a friendly smile can help build a community. So, wish me good luck and talk to your neighbors!
1.A. broke B. repaired C. locked D. held
2.A. worked out B. gave up C. ended up D. made out
3.A. club B. room C. sun D. lift
4.A. from B. for C. to D. at
5.A. friends B. relatives C. neighbors D. colleagues
6.A. And B. So C. Or D. But
7.A. sorrowful B. painful C. greedy D. delightful
8.A. charge B. mix C. mistake D. pay
9.A. forms B. prints C. sticks D. displays
10.A. conversation B. career C. story D. solution
11.A. capable B. tired C. conscious D. afraid
12.A. precious B. helpful C. interesting D. embarrassing
13.A. recorded B. avoided C. civilized D. replaced
14.A. putting on B. looking into C. cleaning off D. searching for
15.A. betray B. renew C. establish D. destroy
16.A. immediately B. willingly C. sensitively D. nervously
17.A. invention B. price C. technology D. design
18.A. hoping B. seeking C. finding D. covering
19.A. book B. invitation C. card D. Instruction
20.A. hides B. accounts C. comments D. shows
From an early stage in your life, you are taught to respect others, and do kind things for them. However, in some cases, people begin to take advantage of your kind nature, expecting more from you.1. If you feel as if there are people in your life who take you for granted, it’s time to protect yourself.
Know that you have the right to feel respected. Social and cultural pressures may encourage you to believe that it’s rude to say “no” to others when they ask you for things. You may also have been taught to feel that your work is less valuable than others’ and does not deserve recognition 2.. Everyone has the right to be respected and appreciated, and it isn’t wrong to want to be treated that way.
Identify what has changed in the relationship. If you feel taken for granted, it may be because you once felt valued by the person who is now taking you for granted. It might also be because the knowledge that you should feel appreciated but do not 3.. It can also help you find a solution for the relationship.
4.You know that you don’t want to feel taken for granted. But what do you want It will be hard to see any change in your situation if you feel vague dissatisfaction but have no clear ideas on what would improve it. 5.Once you know the change about the relationship clearly, you’ll be able to take better action to get you there.
A. Think about what you want.
B. Practice what you want to say.
C. These things can lead to you feeling taken for granted.
D. Try making a list of things that you would like to see the change about the relationship.
E. If you feel taken for granted by others, you need to communicate that to the other person.
F. Such people may repeatedly ask you for favors without returning any favors or showing you any respect.
G. Whatever the cause is, identifying what has changed your interactions with the other person can help you feel better.
“Fast fashion” means clothes that are inexpensive but look like the latest designs. One reason for the success of fast fashion is social media. A report by the investment research firm Bernstein found that Millennials—people born in the 1980s and 90s—wanted to wear a variety of clothes in the photos they posted on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. As a result, many businesses that offer trendy, low-cost clothes are growing.
But the situation is changing now. Maxine Bédat, a woman who is in her early 30s, looks in her closet full of clothes, but she has nothing to wear. She says she hates always shopping for what is in style. Instead, she says, she wants to buy fewer clothes that she can wear over and over. Other people want the same thing, she says.
So Ms. Bédat and a business partner, Soraya Darabi, started a “slow fashion” clothing company called Zady. “Slow fashion” means clothes that last a long time. They are often classic colors and shapes, and are made from natural materials that are biodegradable over time.
The terms “fast fashion” and “slow fashion” are related to “fast food” and “slow food”: fast food is still popular in the U. S. , but many restaurants increasingly offer higher-quality, more expensive and relaxed meals.
Like slow food, slow fashion also aims to use sources that are good for the environment and workers. Maxine Bédat says people in her generation want to know where their clothes come from and who is making them. To answer Millennials’ demand for information about the products they buy, Ms. Bédat’s company, Zady, includes details about the history of the brands. It also describes the process in which the clothes are made. Ms. Bédat says Zady aims to tell shoppers where their clothes come from, where they go, and how they impact the world.
The international business “H&M” is answering Millennials’ demands in another way. It has created a recycling program for clothes. Shoppers who bring clothes they no longer want to H&M stores can receive a discount on new things they buy. An H&M spokesperson says, “We have a clear vision to avoid and minimize waste that goes into landfills.”
1.What’s the attitude of some Millennials towards fast fashion now?
A. Crazy. B. Tired. C. Supportive. D. Doubtful.
2.“Slow food” is mentioned in the text to tell us ________.
A. it is better than fast food B. it is the healthiest food
C. why slow fashion comes now D. why people like fast fashion
3.What can be learned from the program of H&M in the last paragraph?
A. It can help the environment. B. It does good to people’s health.
C. It can help change people’s lives most. D. It will take the lead in the latest fashion.
4.What is the best title of the text?
A. What Is out of Fashion B. Fast Fashion Is Not Fast
C. Slow Fashion Is in Fashion. D. Fast Fashion, Good or Bad
Honesty comes in many forms. First there’s self-honesty. Is what people see the real article or do you appear through smoke and mirrors? I find that if I try to be something I’m not, I feel unsure of myself and take out a part from my PBA(personal bank account). I love how singer Judy Garland put it , “Always be a first-class version of yourself,instead of a second-class version of somebody else.”
Then there’s honesty in our actions. Are you honest at school, with your parents, and with your boss? If you’ve ever been dishonest, I think we all have, try being honest, and notice how whole it makes you feel. Remember, you can’t to wrong and feel right. This story by Jeff is a good example of that:
In my second year of study, there were three kids in my math class who didn’t do well.
I was really good at it. I would charge them three dollars for each test that I helped them pass. I’d write on a little piece of paper all the right answers, and hand them off.
At first I felt like I was making money, kind of a nice job. I wasn’t thinking about how it could hurt all of us. After a while I realized I shouldn’t do that anymore, because I wasn’t really helping them They weren’t learning anything, and it would only get harder down the road. Cheating certainly wasn’t helping me.
It takes courage to be honest when people all around you are getting away with cheating on tests, lying to their parents, and stealing at work. But, remember, every act of honesty is a deposit(储蓄)into your PBA and will build strength.
1.The underlined part “appear through smoke and mirrors” in the first paragraph means “ ”.
A. to be honest
B. to be unreal
C. to become clear
D. to come from an imagined world
2.Which of the following can best explain Judy Garland’s words?
A. Be your true self rather than follow others.
B. Don’t copy others or you can’t be the first class.
C. Make efforts t
o be the first instead of the second.
D. Don’t learn from others unless they’re excellent.
3.What does the author expect to show by Jeff’s story?
A. Honesty can be of great help.
B. A bad thing can be turned into a good one.
C. Helping others cheat can do good to nobody.
D. One should realize the wrong in his bad deeds.
4.In the last paragraph the author mainly wants to express .
A. one must be brave to be honest
B. it’s difficult to be honest when others are not
C. one should be honest when making a deposit
D. honestly in one’s actions can help him in the future
It was not until I was 9 years old that I found out my father was ill. It was 1994, but I can remember my mother's words as if it were yesterday: "Kernel, I don't want you to take food from your father, because he has AIDS. Be very careful when you are around him." AIDS wasn't something we talked about in my country when I was growing up. From then on, I knew that this would be a family secret. My parents were not together anymore, and my dad lived alone. For a while, he could take care of himself. But when I was 12, his condition worsened. My father's other children lived far away, so it fell to me to took after him.
We couldn't afford all the necessary medicine for him, and because Dad was unable to work, I had no money for school supplies and often couldn't even buy food for dinner. I would sit in class feeling completely lost, the teacher's words muffled as I tried to figure out how I was going to manage. I did not share my burden with anyone. I had seen people reacted to AIDS. Kids laughed at classmates who had parents with the disease. And even adults could be cruel. When my father was moved to the hospital, the nurses would leave his food on the bedside even though he was too weak to feed himself.
I had known that he was going to die, but after so many years of keeping his condition a secret, I was completely unprepared when he reached his final days. Sad and hopeless, I called a woman at the nonprofit National AIDS Support. That day, she kept me on the phone for hours. I was so lucky to find someone who cared. She saved my life.
I was 15 when my father died. He took his secret away with him, having never spoken about AIDS to anyone, even me. He didn't want to call attention to AIDS. I do.
1.What does Kernel tell us about her father?
A. He had stayed in the hospital since he fell ill.
B. He worked hard to pay for his medication.
C. He told no one about his disease.
D. He was carefully attended by the nurses on his deathbed
2.What can we learn from the underlined sentence?
A. Kernel found what the teacher said hard to understand.
B. Kernel had special difficulty in hearing.
C. Kernel was too tired to hear her teacher's words.
D. Kernel was too troubled to focus on the lesson.
3.Why did Kernel keep her father's disease a secret?
A. She wanted to obey her mother.
B. She was afraid of being looked down upon.
C. She found no one willing to listen to her.
D. She thought it was shameful to have AIDS.
4.What’s the author’s purpose in writing the text?
A. To tell people about the sufferings of her father
B. To prove how little people knew about AIDS.
C. To draw people’s attention to AIDS.
D. To recall a hard time of her childhood.
Here are some of the movies that inspire you to travel.
The Lord of the Rings
The story is about Frodo, his friends and their adventurous journey through Middle Earth. Filmed in about 150 locations all over New Zealand, this traveling movie shows its beauty. From the rolling hills of Matamata to the volcanic region of Mt Ruapehu, this is the best movie to see New Zealand. Also, this travel movie might have the only distinction of being inspired by travel too. The director of the movie Peter Jackson first read the novel on a train going from Wellington to Auckland when he was just seventeen.
Indiana Jones: The Complete Adventure Collection
Indiana Jones and travel are inseparable. Everyone remembers the red line on the world map that shows up on screen when he flies. The Egypt scenes in Raiders of the Lost Ark were filmed in Tunisia. Temple of doom was filmed mostly in Sri Lanka and Macau. The Last Crusade was filmed in Italy, Spain and Jordan including an excellent view of Petra. Unlike the other, Kingdom of the Crystal Skull was filmed almost entirely in the United States. However, their shots of Iguazu Falls are amazing.
Romancing the Stone and jewel of the Nile
This movie series focuses on a romance writer Joan and her adventures with a soldier of fortune named Jack. In Romancing the stone Joan goes to Colombia to save her sister who was kidnapped(绑架). In the sequel Joan goes to the fictional kingdom of Kadir set somewhere in the Middle East. Romancing the stone's scenes were shot mostly in Mexico. For Jewel of the Nile, the scenes were mostly shot in France and Morocco.
The Talented Mr Ripley
Tom Ripley is a working class young man. Through a case of mistaken identity, he is asked to go to Italy to convince a wealthy businessman's son to come home. This travel movie starts in New York and heads to the fictional resort of Mongibello. The last section of the movie is filmed mostly in Rome and Naples. The locations are beautiful. They also did a good job of showing Italy as it looked in the 1960s.
1.If someone is interested in seeing views in Sri Lanka, he/she would most probably watch the film ________.
A. Indiana Jones: The Complete Adventure Collection
B. Romancing the Stone and jewel of the Nile
C. The Lord of the Rings
D. The Talented Mr Ripley
2.From Paragraph 2 we can know that the story of The Lord of the Rings ________.
A. is the best movie made in New Zealand
B. was shot from Wellington to Auckland
C. encouraged a 17-year-old boy to travel in New Zealand
D. caught the director's attention while he was travelling
3.The movie The Talented Mr. Ripley tells us a story of a man who ________.
A. owns a large amount of fortune
B. contributes to helping a man out of trouble
C. goes sightseeing in Rome and Naples
D. becomes wealthy by always working hard
