Gift from A Stranger
My local supermarket is always busy．The first parking space I found was convenient．but I’d noticed a woman in a blue car circling for a while．1.I was in a good mood，I let her have it．On the edge of the car park I backed into the next available spot——it was a tight fit．Pretty soon I’d made my way through the supermarket and was back in the flesh air．2.(feel)good，I emptied my purse change into the hands of a homeless man and3.(help)a struggling woman reverse park．
Just as I approached my car,I saw the woman I’d let have my car spot earlier．She was giving me4.odd look——half intent(热切的)，half puzzled．I smiled and wished her a pleasant day．As I squeezed back into my car,I saw the same lady5.(look)in at me．“Hello，”she said，hesitantly．“This6.sound crazy but I was on my way to drop some of my mother’s things off at the charity bins．You are just so much7.her．You helped those people，I noticed，and you seemed so happy．”She looked at me8.(meaning)and passed a box in through the window．“I think she would like you to have it．”9.(shock)，I took it from her automatically．She smiled and walked away．
After a pause．I opened the box．Inside was a beautiful gold necklace with a large grey pearl．It was the 10.(nice)gift I’d ever received，and it was from a complete stranger．The necklace was around my neck，a warm reminder of human kindness．
The year I went to college was a very difficult transition(过渡期)for me． _______is probably true with many people，I got quite homesick and_________thought about going home．
Although the_________time for many students is getting_________from home，my mailbox was frequently _________．One day when I went to the mailbox，there was a postcard_________out at me．I sat down to read it，_________a note from someone back home．_________I became increasingly puzzled as_________ postcards were like this：It was a full news report about a woman named Mabel and her newborn baby．I took the card back to my room and__________about it．
Several days later I__________another postcard，this one__________news about Maybelline，Mabel’s cousin．Soon after，another card arrived and then another，__________full of news of different people．I began to __________ look forward to the next one，__________to see what this author would come up with__________．I was never__________．
Finally，the cards__________coming，right about the time I had begun to feel__________about college life．They had been such a happy distraction(调剂)that I have__________all the postcards and still bring them out to read whenever I need a lift．
1.A. As B. So C. If D. What
2.A. hardly B. carefully C. often D. merely
3.A. hard B. last C. busiest D. happiest
4.A. visitors B. letters C. calls D. directions
5.A. closed B. open C. full D. empty
6.A. pouring B. reaching C. staring D. rolling
7.A. describing B. considering C. enjoying D. expecting
8.A. But B. Thus C. Also D. Even
9.A. any B. no C. some D. such
10.A. joked B. talked C. forgot D. cared
11.A. mailed B. accepted C. wrote D. received
12.A. delivering B. demanding C. discovering D. developing
13.A. one B. each C. either D. both
14.A. nearly B. possibly C. usually D. really
15.A. promising B. surprised C. interested D. pretending
16.A. below B. lately C. next D. behind
17.A. frightened B. disappointed C. excited D. pleased
18.A. stopped B. continued C. started D. avoided
19.A. easy B. safe C. tired D. anxious
20.A. lost B. saved C. torn D. collected
London’s newest skyscraper(摩天大楼)is called the Shard and it cost about 430 million pounds to build．At a height of almost 310 meters，it is the tallest building in Europe．The Shard has completely changed the appearance of London．However，not everyone thinks that it is a change for the better．
The Shard was designed by the famous Italian architect Renzo Piano．When he began designing the Shard for London，Piano wanted a very tall building that looked like a spire(尖顶)．The sides of the building aren’t regular．So the building has an unusual shape．And that is how the building got the name：the Shard．Piano says that the spire shape of the Shard is part of a great London tradition．The shape reminds him of the spires of the churches of London or the tall masts(桅杆)of the ships that were once on the river Thames．
The Shard has 87 floors．At the moment the building is empty，but finally there will be a five-star hotel．There will also be top quality restaurants，apartments and offices．
Before building work began，a lot of people didn’t want the Shard though the plans were approved．Now they are still unhappy about the Shard．Some critics say that such a tall skyscraper might be good in a city like New York，but not in London．They say that the best thing about the Shard is its shape．But that is the only thing．There is no decoration，only flat surfaces．The Egyptians(埃及人)did that 4，500 years ago．
Other critics don’t like what the Shard seems to represent．They say that the Shard shows how London is becoming more unequal．Only very rich people can afford to buy the expensive apartments and stay in the hotel．But the people living near the Shard are among the poorest in London．So the Shard seems a symbol of the division(分化)in society between the very rich and the poor．
The Shard now dominates the London skyline．It is not certain，however，that ordinary London citizens will ever accept it as a valuable addition to the city．
1.London’s newest skyscraper is called the Shard because of_________．
A. its cost B. its shape
C. its height D. its size
2.When he designed the Shard，Piano wanted it to_________．
A. inherit London’s tradition B. attract foreign visitors
C. copy the Egyptian style D. change London’s skyline
3.The critics who refer to social division think the Shard_________．
A. is only preferred by the rich
B. is intended for wealthy people
C. is far away from the poor area
D. is popular only with Londoners
4.Which would be the best title for the passage?
A. The Shard：Cheers and Claps
B. The Shard：Work of a Great Architect
C. The Shard：New Symbol of London?
D. The Shard：A Change for the Better?
Mrs Smith trembled(颤抖)with excitement when she was told her fortunes(命运)．“Somebody is coming home to you，”Mrs Gray said slowly．“He’s carrying a rifle(步枪)on his back and he’s almost there．”
Mrs Smith felt as if she could hardly breathe．“And there he is!”Mrs Gray cried，pointing to the road．They all rushed to the door to look．
A man in a blue coat，with a gun on his back，was walking down the road toward the Smith farm．His face was hidden by a large pack on his back．
Laughing and crying，Mrs Smith grabbed(抓住)her hat and her children and ran out of Mrs Gray’s house．She hurried down the road after him，calling his name and pulling her children along with her．But the soldier was too far away for her voice to reach him．
When she got back to their farm，she saw the man standing by the fence．He was looking at the little house and the field of yellow wheat．The sun was almost touching the hills in the west．The cowbells rang softly as the animals moved toward the barn(畜棚)．
“How peaceful it all is，”Private Smith thought．“How far away from the battles，the hospitals，the wounded and the dead．My little farm in Wisconsin．How could I have left it for those years of killing and suffering?”
Mrs Smith hurried up to her husband．Her feet made no sound on the grass，but he turned suddenly to face her．For the rest of his life，he would never forget her face at that moment.
“Emma!”he cried.
The children stood back watching their mother kissing this strange man．He saw them，and kneeling down，he pulled from his pack three huge red apples．In a moment，all three children were in their father’s arms．Together，the family entered the little unpainted farmhouse．
Later that evening，after supper，Smith and his wife went outside．The moon was bright，above the eastern hills．Sweet，peaceful stars filled the sky as the night birds sang softly．
His farm needed work．His children needed clothing．He was no longer young and strong．But he began to plan for next year．With the same courage he had faced the war，Private Smith faced his difficult future．
1.Why could Mrs Smith hardly breathe when told her fortunes?
A. She ran out of the house too fast to catch her breath．
B. She was shocked by the scene of a man with a rifle on his back．
C. She had a sudden heart attack and almost lost consciousness．
D. She was overjoyed on hearing the return of her husband．
2.What does the underlined sentence in paragraph 7 suggest?
A. The moment expected for years would be a life-long memory．
B. He had almost forgotten her face after those years ’suffering．
C. He was shocked by the excitement written on her face．
D. He was afraid to be apart from her again．
3.What’s Private Smith’s attitude towards the future life?
A. Hopeful． B. Puzzled．
C. Doubtful． D. Indifferent．
A Basketball Statistician Help Wanted
The Athletic Department is looking for students to help assist staff during the Fall 2018，Winter 2018-19，and Spring 2019 terms．Students in this position will be keeping live statistics during basketball games．Students must meet all of the following requirements：
●Good computer skills
●Available(空闲的)evenings and weekends
●Knowing basketball rules and statistics
Students interested in working for the Athletic Department should contact the Athletic Coordinator at their respective(各自的)campuses．
●TP／SS Athletic Coordinator，Michael Simone，240-567-1308
●Rockville Athletic Coordinator，Jorge Zuniga，240-567-7589
●Springfield Athletic Coordinator，Gary Miller，240-567-2273
●Germantown Athletic Coordinator，Gauri Chavan，240-567-6915
A Basketball Statistician Help Wanted
The Athletic Department is looking for students to help assist staff during the Fall 2018，Winter 2018-19，and Spring 2019 terms．Students in this position will be keeping live statistics during basketball games．Students must meet all of the following requirements：
●Good computer skills
●Available(空闲的)evenings and weekends
●Knowing basketball rules and statistics
Students interested in working for the Athletic Department should contact the Athletic Coordinator at their respective(各自的)campuses．
●TP／SS Athletic Coordinator，Michael Simone，240-567-1308
●Rockville Athletic Coordinator，Jorge Zuniga，240-567-7589
●Springfield Athletic Coordinator，Gary Miller，240-567-2273
●Germantown Athletic Coordinator，Gauri Chavan，240-567-6915
1.When will the job probably end?
A. At the end of May 2018 B. In December 2018
C. At the end of May 2019 D. In December 2019
2.Who is more likely to get the job?
A. Sam，English major，member of the college basketball team．
B. Judy，IT staff with night classes，children’s basketball team coach．
C. Anne，part-time programmer，high school basketball player,new mother．
D. Ted，computer major,basketball fan，free on evenings and weekends．
3.Whom should you contact if you want to apply for the job in Springfield?
A. Michael． B. Jorge．
C. Gary． D. Gauri．
假定你是李华，自制了一些中国结（Chinese knot），给开网店的美国朋友Tom写封信，请他代卖，要点包括：1.外观（尺寸、颜色、材料）； 2. 象征意义；3. 价格
注意：1. 词数100个左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Tom，
How are you?
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Looking forward to your reply.
Yours,
Li Hua
