Traveler
My fifteen-year-old son has just returned from abroad with rolls of exposed film and a hundred dollars in uncashed traveler’s checks, and is asleep at the moment.His blue duffel(粗呢) bag lies on the floor where he dropped it.Obviously, he postponed as much sleep as he could: when he walked in and we hugged, his electrical system suddenly switched off, and he headed directly for the bed, where I imagine he beat his old record of sixteen hours.
It was his first trip overseas, so weeks before it, I pressed travel books on him, and a tape cassette of useful French phrases; drew up a list of people to visit; advised him on clothing and other things.At the luggage store where we went to buy him a suitcase, he headed for the duffels, saying that suitcases were more for old people.
During the trip, he called home three times: from London, Paris, and a village named Ullapool.Near Ullapool, he climbed a mountain in a rainstorm that almost blew him off.In the village, a man spoke to him in Gaelic, and, too polite to interrupt, my son listened to him for ten or fifteen minutes, trying to nod in the right places.The French he learned from the cassette didn’t hold water in Paris.The French he talked to shrugged and walked on.
When my son called, I sat down at the kitchen table and leaned forward and hung on every word. His voice came through clearly, though two of the calls were like ship-to-shore communication.When I interrupted him with a “Great!” or a “Really?”, I knocked a little hole in his communication.So I just sat and listened. I have never listened to a telephone so attentively and with so much pleasure.It was wonderful to hear news from him that was so new to me.In my book, he was the first man to land on the moon, and I knew that I had no advice to give him and that what I had already given was probably not much help.
The unused checks are certainly evidence of that.Youth travels light.No suitcase, not much luggage and a slim expense account, and yet he went to the scene, and came back safely.I sit here amazed. The night when your child returns with dust on his shoes from a country you’ve never seen is a night you would gladly turn into a week.During the trip, the author’s son ______.
A.ran out of money |
B.had inadequate sleep |
C.forgot to call his mother |
D.failed to take good pictures |
According to the passage, which of the following could best describe the author’s son?
A.Polite and careless. |
B.Creative and stubborn. |
C.Considerate and independent. |
D.Self-centered and adventurous. |
What does the underlined word “that” in the last paragraph refer to?
A.It is important to listen to your child’s story. |
B.It’s easy to interrupt the chat with your child. |
C.The author is proud of her son landing on the moon. |
D.The son no longer needs much help from his mother. |
What can we infer from the passage?
A.Good parents should protect their children from potential dangers. |
B.The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page. |
C.It’s a win-win choice to give a child space to experience and explore. |
D.Communication between parents and children is extremely important. |
“Time is a problem for children,” states a news report for a new Swiss watch. Children in some countries “learn time slowly” because “they don’t wear watches” and “parents don’t really know how to teach them time.” The children grow up with this handicap and become adults-and then can’t get to work on time. Is there an answer to this problem? Of course-it’s the Flick Flak, made by a famous Swiss watch company.
The Flick Flak is being marketed as something teaching watch for children aged 4 to 10. The watch itself does not teach children how to tell time, of course; it merely “takes their imagination” by presenting the “hour” hand as a beautiful red girl named Flak and the “minute” hand as a tall blue boy named Flick. Flick points to related “blue” minutes on the dial, while Flak points to “red” hour numbers. The characters and colors combined with parental help, are supposed to teach young children how to tell time.
The watch comes equipped with a standard battery and a nylon band (尼龙表带). Peter Lipkin, the United States sales manager for the Flick Flak, calls it “childproof: if it gets dirty you can throw the whole watch in the washing machine.” The product is being sold in select department stores in Europe, Asia and the United States for a suggested price of $25. Parents who buy the watch may discover that it is one thing to tell time; it’s quite another for them to be on time.From the news report we know that ______.
A.parents are patient when teaching children time |
B.parents have little idea of how to teach children time |
C.children are likely to learn time quickly |
D.children enjoy wearing the Flick Flak watch |
The author doesn’t seem to believe ______.
A.children will be on time if they have not learnt how to tell time |
B.a Flick Flak can help parents teach their children how to tell time |
C.the Flick Flak can take children’s imagination |
D.children usually have trouble telling time if they don’t wear watches |
The underlined word handicap (Para. 1) means ______.
A.displeasure | B.discouragement | C.disappointment | D.disadvantage |
The United State sales manager calls the new watch “childproof” because ______.
A.it is designed to teach children to be on time |
B.it proves to be effective in teaching children time |
C.it is made so as not to be easily damaged by children |
D.it is the children’s favorite watch |
On September 22, 1986, Jay Brunkella, a police-officer in the Rogers Park district in Chicago, was shot during a drug arrest and died. Shortly afterwards, fellow officer Ken Knapcik, a 20-year veteran (老警官) of the force, returned home after work to find a note from his 15-year-old daughter on the dining table.
Dad---This poem came directly from my heart. I love you so much! It scares and amazes me that you go out every day and risk everything to provide us with all that we have. I wrote this to express how much I love you and how much lost I’d be without you-Laura. P.S.: Hey, let’s be careful out there.
Titled “The Ultimate Cop”, Laura’s poem was dedicated “To all the cops in the world who have daughters who love them with all their hearts. And especially to my dad.” It was about a police-officer’s daughter who sees on the night time news that her father has been shot. Part of poem: “Daddy, my Daddy, can you hear me cry? Oh, God, I need my Daddy, please don’t let him die.”
Ken Knapcik stood alone as he read the poem. “It took me several minutes,” he said. “I’d get through part of it and have to stop before I could go on. I was weeping. She had never told me she was scared.” He took the poem to work the next day and showed it to his fellow officers. “I’ve never seen so many grown men cry. Some couldn’t finish it.”
Knapcik keeps Laura’s poem in the pocket of his police jacket. He takes it with him every time he leaves the house for a new shift. “I don’t want to be out there without it.” he said, “I’ll probably carry it with me forever.”Laura wrote the poem ______.
A.in memory of her father who was shot in the drug arrest |
B.to show her great sorrow in losing her father |
C.to show her respect to all the cops who lost their lives |
D.to tell Officer Ken Knapcik how much she loved him |
All the officers cried because ______.
A.Jay Brunkella was shot and died |
B.they were greatly touched by the poem |
C.the poem was so sad that they couldn’t hold back their tears |
D.they thought of their dangerous life |
Knapcik keeps Laura’s poem in his pocket ______.
A.to treasure her daughter’s love and to value his own life |
B.to keep it from missing |
C.because he can’t go out without it |
D.to mourn over the death of officer Jay Brunkella |
Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
A.Poem for a cop | B.An officer’s death |
C.Daughter’s love | D.Love my job, love my daughter |
For many parents, raising a teenager is like fighting a long war, but years go by without any clear winner. Like a border conflict between neighboring countries, the parent-teen war is about boundaries: Where is the line between what I control and what you do?
Both sides want peace, but neither feels it has any power to stop the conflict. In part, this is because neither is willing to admit any responsibility for starting it. From the parents’ point of view, the only cause of their fight is their teenagers’ complete unreasonableness. And of course, the teens see it in exactly the same way, except oppositely. Both feel trapped.
In this article, I’ll describe three no-win situations that commonly arise between teens and parents and then suggest some ways out of the trap. The first no-win situation is quarrels over unimportant things. Examples include the color of the teen’s hair, the cleanliness of the bedroom, the preferred style of clothing, the child’s failure to eat a good breakfast before school, or his tendency to sleep until noon on the weekends .Second, blaming, the goal of a blaming battle is to make the other admit that his bad attitude is the reason why everything goes wrong. Third, needing to be right, It doesn’t matter what the topic is –politics, the laws of physics, or the proper way to break an egg –the point of these arguments is to prove that you are right and the other person is wrong, for both wish to be considered an authority(权威) --- someone who actually knows something --- and therefore to win respect. Unfortunately, as long as parents and teens continue to think that they know more than the other, they’ll continue to fight these battles forever and never make any real progress. Why does the author compare the parent—teen war to a border conflict?
A.both can continue for generations. | B.Both are about where to draw the line. |
C.Neither has any clear winner. | D.Neither can be put to an end. |
What does the underlined part in Paragraph 2 mean?
A.The teens blame their parents for starting the conflict. |
B.The teens agree with their parents on the cause of the conflict. |
C.The teens accuse their parents of misleading them. |
D.The teens tend to have a full understanding of their parents. |
Parents and teens want to be right because they want to ________.
A.give orders to the other | B.know more than the other |
C.gain respect from the other | D.get the other to behave properly |
Are you always busy?
Is your schedule hectic?
Do you sometimes forget to take time to eat?
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then you need
QUICKEATS
HEALTHY EATING THAT FITS
YOUR DAILY ROUTINE
Vacuum-sealed meals for people on the go!
Nutritious, low-sugar, low-fat, well-balanced meals in a convenient pocket!
They don’t spoil!
Are you in the mood for a hot meal? Or do you prefer a cold dish instead?
Hot or cold, Quickeats are delicious and the tempting taste will have you
believe you are eating a home-cooked meal. A variety of meals are already
available(可获得的) at leading grocery stores in your area.
Try our Red Hot Quickeats!
( Heat in a microwave for 3 minutes. )
Stew(煮,炖) with Garden Vegetables
Barbecued Chicken and Rice
Creamy Hum and Noodles
Choose one of our Cool Blue Quickeats!
(Refrigerate for extra coldness, if desired.)
Yogurt with Dried Fruit and Nuts
Vegetable Salad and Pasta Salad
Tuna Salad and Whole Wheat Crackers
Quickeats are reasonably priced and ready to eat. Take the coupon(优惠卷)below to a participating store to receive a free Red Hot or Cool Blue container that will fit neatly in your backpack, briefcase, or shoulder bag and keep your Quickeats meal hot or cold until you’re ready to eat it. Each container holds up to 4 Quickeats.
If you have questions or suggestions, please contact our national office:
Neavest Inc., P. O. Box 90210, Lexinet, VA
or call 1-888-293-3151
√One Free container for Quickeats with the purchase of one Quickeats meal.This advertisement is designed especially for those who____________.
A.like eating in restaurants | B.have little time |
C.prefer home-cooked meals | D.want to save money |
What information CAN'T we get from the advertisement about Ouickeats?
A.Different kinds. | B.High quality. | C.Exact prices. | D.Good taste. |
Which of the following can be cooled in a refrigerator before eating according to the ads?
A.Pasta Salad. | B.Dried Fruit. | C.Noodles. | D.Nuts. |
The underlined word “hectic” in the passage means ____________.
A.full of freedom | B.comfortable | C.full of activities | D.terrific |
When I was a boy growing up in New Jersey in the 1960s, we had a milkman delivering milk to our doorstep. His name was Mr. Basille. He wore a white cap and drove a white truck. As a 5-year-old boy, I couldn’t take my eyes off the coin changer fixed to his belt. He noticed this one day during a delivery and gave me a quarter out of his coin changer.
Of course, he delivered more than milk. There was cheese, eggs and so on. If we needed to change our order, my mother would pen a note—“Please add a bottle of buttermilk next delivery”—and place it in the box along with the empty bottles. And then, the buttermilk would magically(魔术般)appear.
All of this was about more than convenience. There existed a close relationship between families and their milkmen. Mr. Basille even had a key to our house, for those times when it was so cold outside that we put the box indoors, so that the milk wouldn't freeze. And I remember Mr. Basille from time to time taking a break at our kitchen table, having a cup of tea and telling stories about his delivery.
There is sadly no home milk delivery today. Big companies allowed the production of cheaper milk thus making it difficult for milkmen to compete (竞争). Besides, milk is for sale everywhere, and it may just not have been practiced to have a delivery service.
Recently, an old milk box in the countryside I saw brought back my childhood memories. I took it home and planted it on the back porch (门廊). Every so often my son's friends will ask what it is. So I start telling stories of my boyhood, and of the milkman who brought us friendship along with his milk.Mr. Basille gave the boy a quarter out of his coin changer.
A.to show his magical power | B.to pay for the delivery |
C.to satisfy his curiosity | D.to please his mother |
What can be inferred from the fact that the milkman had the key to the boy's house?
A.He wanted to have tea there. | B.He was a respectable person. |
C.He was treated as a family member. | D.He was fully trusted by the family. |
Why does home milk delivery no longer exist?
A.Nobody wants to be a milkman now. | B.It has been driven out of the market. |
C.Its service is getting poor. | D.It is forbidden by law. |
Why did the author bring back home an old milk box?
A.He missed the good old days. | B.He wanted to tell interesting stories. |
C.He needed it for his milk bottles. | D.He planted flowers in it. |