Most heroes are not super. They don’t appear in comic books, on television, or in movies. They just do what they believe needs to be done to make their world a better place. Bike Batman is one of them.
Bike Batman is a 30-year-old married engineer who lives in Seattle, Washington. He’s a cyclist who also buys and sells bikes as a hobby.
About three years ago, he was looking for a bike for his wife. He found one on Craigslist, a website where people list things they want to sell. As he often does, he also looked at Bike Index, a popular website that allows users to register their bikes and post reports when they’re taken. The bike, which he was considering purchasing, clearly matched one reported stolen on Bike Index.
Then he called the person who claimed to be the bike’s owner and arranged to meet him— supposedly to complete the sale. When the two men met, Bike Batman told the thief, “You’ve got two options. You can wait until a police officer gets here, or you can just get out of here.” You can imagine what the thief did.
After that first success, Bike Batman developed a safer routine. When he sees questionable bike ads on Craigslist, he cross-references the image with bikes reported on Bike Index. Once he has confirmed it with the owner, he arranges a meet-up with the thief and will call the Seattle police department so that officers can participate in the action. In more than half of the 22 cases in which he has got back and returned bikes, the thieves have been arrested. In one case, Bike Batman even helped a family recover a wide range of prized possessions that suspects had stolen during a home burglary.
His nickname came from a discussion with a police officer who suggested he be called “Robin Hood”. Since he wasn’t exactly stealing from the rich and giving to the poor, “Batman” seemed a better fit. The idea of a superhero punishing criminals feels pretty silly to him, but the main reason he continues his work is to keep up Seattle’s reputation as a friendly city.
1.Bike Batman is .
A. a superhero B. a website manager
C. a Seattle citizen D. a police officer
2.When Bike Batman discovers a questionable bike, he will first .
A. contact the owner of the stolen bike B. look up the bike’s information
C. call the police department D. arrange to meet the thief
3.Bike Batman helps find the lost bikes to .
A. become famous B. help poor people
C. punish bike thieves D. build a friendly city
4.From the passage, we can learn that .
A. Bike Batman felt relieved to see the thieves arrested
B. Bike Batman began his good deeds by accident
C. the police failed to perform their duties
D. the thieves refused to return the bikes
It was at least two months before Christmas when nine-year-old Almie Rose told her father and me that she wanted a new bicycle. As Christmas drew nearer, her desire for a bicycle seemed to fade, or so we thought. We bought the latest rage, Baby Sitter's Club dolls, and a doll house. Then, much to our surprise, on December 23rd, she said that she "really wanted a bike more than anything else." It was just too late, with all the details of preparing Christmas dinner and buying last minute gifts, to take the time to select the "right bike" for our little girl. It was Christmas Eve around 9:00 p.m.. Almie and her six-year-old brother, Dylan, lay comfortably in their beds. Now we could only think of the bicycle and the disappointment of our child. "What if I make a little bicycle out of clay (黏土) and write a note that she could trade the clay model in for a real bike?" her dad asked. "This is an expensive item and she is 'such a big girl,' it would be much better for her to pick it out." So he spent the next four hours painstakingly (尽心地) working with clay to make a tiny bike. On Christmas morning, we were excited for Almie to open the little heart-shaped package with the beautiful red and white clay bike and the note. Finally, she opened it and read the note aloud. "Does this mean that I trade in this bike that Daddy made me for a real one?" Beaming, I said, "Yes." Almie had tears in her eyes when she replied, "I could never trade in this beautiful bicycle that Daddy made me. I'd rather keep this than get a real bike." At that moment, we would have moved heaven and earth to buy her every bicycle on the planet!
1.Choose the right time order of the following events.
a. The girl asked for a new bike.
b. The girl opened the little heart-shaped package.
c. The parents bought the girl a modern and popular doll.
d. The father made the girl a bike with clay.
e. The girl would rather keep the clay bike than get a real one.
A. a, b, c, e, d B. a, c, d, b, e
C. a, c, b, d, e D. a, b, d, c, e
2.Why did Dad make the clay bicycle?
A. He wanted his daughter to buy a real one.
B. He didn't want to disappoint his daughter.
C. He thought his daughter would like it.
D. He wanted to give his daughter a surprise.
3.What can be inferred from the last sentence?
A. The parents were happy and encouraged.
B. The parents felt comfortable and relaxed.
C. The parents were moved and felt proud of the girl.
D. The parents felt disappointed and sorry for the girl.
4.Which do you think is the best title for the story?
A. A Lovely Little Girl
B. A Great and Serious Father
C. A Clay Bike
D. Christmas Shopping
Become a Volunteer and Make a Difference
The First Tee, as an outstanding youth development organization, is always searching for good people that want to volunteer at one of our many Pittsburgh area locations.
We're Looking for You!
Nationwide, we currently have more than 3,700 coaches signed up with The First Tee as well as volunteers. But you don't have to be a golf professional or even a good golfer. With The First Tee Coach Program, we provide the training you need.
Developed with input from leading experts in the field of positive youth development, our program focuses on making participants stronger and more confident through decision-making and exploring options, inspiring the golfers of tomorrow to look to the future, set goals, and unlock their potential.
We also need more volunteers to make The First Tee possible. Opportunities include:
Assistant Coach: assist in our weekly golf clinics. All that we request is that you make a 7-week commitment (one day per week), for 2 hours each week. Each clinic is led by one of our trained staff members who creates a written lesson plan for our volunteers to follow.
Database Manager: input data entry of participants, volunteers, and community relation records and update chapter information for Home Office and community relations. The database manager is expected to update the data a minimum of every other week.
Equipment Manager: organize and sort donated equipment, get rid of unfit equipment, and arrange equipment for distribution to participants at least once a week.
Greeter: register participants, hand information to parents, greet visitors, answer phone calls and provide general program information.
Process of Becoming a Volunteer
Begin by filling out the Google Forms application below. Once Alison Boyle (our Director of Volunteer and Participant Services) receives your completed application, She will contact you for an in-person interview.
CLICK HERE to fill out a Volunteer Application via Google Forms.
For more information, please contact our Director of Volunteer and Participant Services, Alison Boyle, at aboyle @ thefirstteepittsburgh. org.
1.The First Tee Coach Program centers on __________.
A. helping participants get stronger B. training professional coaches
C. attracting more visitors D. looking for golf stars
2.If you are good at using computers, you may choose to be a (an)__________.
A. greeter B. assistant coach
C. database manager D. equipment manager
3.To become a volunteer at The First Tee, one must__________.
A. be a good golfer B. have an interview
C. consult Alison Boyle D. promise to work 7 weeks
As a young man, Al was a skilled artist. He had a wife and two fine sons. One night, his older son developed a severe stomachache. Thinking it was only some ______ intestinal(肠内的) disorder, neither Al nor his wife took the condition very seriously. But the boy ______ suddenly that night.
Knowing the death could have been ______ if he had only realized the seriousness of the situation, Al's emotional health became worse under the huge burden of his ______. To make matters worse, his wife ______ him a short time later, leaving him alone with his six-year-old younger son. The hurt and pain of the two ______ were more than Al could handle, and he ______ to alcohol. In time Al became an alcoholic.
____ the alcoholism progressed, Al began to lose everything he ______－his home, his land, his art objects, everything. ______ Al died alone in a San Francisco motel room.
When I heard of Al's death, I thought that Al's life was a complete _______.
As time went by, I began to re-evaluate (重新评价) my earlier judgment. I knew Al's now ______ son, Ernie. He is one of the kindest, most caring, most loving men I have ever known. I ______ Ernie with his children and saw the free flow of love between them. I knew that kindness and caring had to come from somewhere.
I hadn't heard Ernie talk much about his ______. One day I worked up my ______ to ask him. "I'm really ______ by something," I said. "I know your father was ______ the only one to raise you. What on earth did he do to make you become such a special person?"
Ernie sat quietly and ______ for a few moments. Then he said, "From my earliest ______ as a child until I left home at 18, Al came into my room every night, gave me a kiss and said, 'I love you, son.'"
Tears came to my eyes as I realized what a fool I had been to ______ Al as a failure. He had not left any material possessions behind. But he had been a kind loving father, and he left behind one of the finest, most giving men I have ever known.
1.A. certain B. rare C. common D. basic
2.A. choked B. died C. starved D. worsened
3.A. cured B. saved C. forbidden D. prevented
4.A. guilt B. debt C. disease D. duty
5.A. quarreled B. scolded C. left D. forgave
6.A. conditions B. situations C. conflicts D. adventures
7.A. turned B. drank C. got D. sank
8.A. Because B. Though C. As D. If
9.A. needed B. shared C. benefited D. possessed
10.A. Gradually B. Eventually C. Therefore D. Meanwhile
11.A. failure B. hardship C. trouble D. waste
12.A. teen B. adolescent C. aged D. adult
13.A. identified B. watched C. catered D. treated
14.A. mother B. brother C. father D. child
15.A. belief B. confidence C. courage D. faith
16.A. puzzled B. worried C. interested D. attracted
17.A. especially B. basically C. merely D. specially
18.A. argued B. searched C. reflected D. analyzed
19.A. thoughts B. ideas C. minds D. memories
20.A. treat B. call C. judge D. feel
－ I don't understand why you didn't go to the lecture yesterday afternoon.
－ I'm so sorry, but I ________ my homework.
A. have done B. am doing
C. would do D. was doing
—Haven't seen you for ages! Where have you been?
—I went to Ningxia and there for one year, teaching as a volunteer.
A. stayed B. stay C. had stayed D. am staying
