What's the matter? You look down. ____. Well, better luck next time.
A、I never look down upon anyone
B、I have a bad cold
C、I failed an important exam
D、Why, always look up to you
A、I never look down upon anyone
B、I have a bad cold
C、I failed an important exam
D、Why, always look up to you
The idea had come to me as I listened to a talk on my car radio.The speaker was quoting a Biblical (圣经的) passage about husbands being thoughtful of heir wives.Then he went on to say, “Love is an act of will.A person can choose to love.” To myself, I had to admit that I had been a selfish husband.Well, for two weeks that would change.
And it did.Right from the moment I kissed Evelyn at the door and said, “That new yellow sweater looks great on you.”
“Oh, Tom, you noticed,” she said, surprised and pleased.Maybe a little puzzled.
After the long drive, I wanted to sit and read.Evelyn suggested a walk on the beach.I started to refuse, but then I thought, “Evelyn’s been alone here with the kids all week and now she wants to be alone with me.” We walked on the beach while the children flew their kites.
So it went.Two weeks of not calling the Wall Street firm where I am a director; a visit to the shell museum though I usually hate museums.Relaxed and happy, that’s how the whole vacation passed.I made a new pledge to keep on remembering to choose love.
There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment, however.Evelyn and I still laugh about it today.On the last night at our cottage, preparing for bed, Evelyn stared at me with the saddest expression.
“What’s the matter?” I asked her.
“Tom,” she said in a voice filled with distress, “do you know something I don’t?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well… that checkup (体检) I had several weeks ago … our doctor… did he tell you something about me? Tom, you’ve been so good to me… am I dying?”
It took a moment for it all to sink in.then I burst out laughing.
“No, honey,” I said, wrapping her in my arms.“You’re not dying; I’m just starting to live.”
26.In the first paragraph, “No ifs, ands or buts” probably means “_________”.
A.unintentionally
B.inevitably
C.impressively
D.unconditionally
27.From the story we may infer that Tom drove to the beach cottage ________.
A.with his family
B.with Evelyn
C.alone
D.with his children
28.During the two weeks on the beach, Tom showed more love to his wife because ____________.
A.she looked lovely in her new clothes
B.he had made a lot of money in his Wall Street firm
C.he was determined to be a good husband
D.she was seriously ill
29.The author says, “There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment.” What was the one thing that went wrong?
A.He praised her sweater, which puzzled her.
B.She insisted on visiting a museum, which he hated.
C.He knew something about her illness but didn’t tell her.
D.He was so good to her that she thought she must be dying.
30.By saying “I’m just starting to live,” Tom means that ____________.
A.he is just beginning to understand the real meaning of life
B.he is just beginning to enjoy life as a loving husband
C.he lived an unhappy life before and is now starting to change
D.he is beginning to feel regret for what he did to his wife before
Yet, when one becomes rich, he wants people to know it.And even if he does not become very rich, he wants people to think that he is.That is what “keeping up with the Joneses” is about.It is the story of someone who tries to look as rich and as successful as his neighbors.
The expression was first used in 1913 by a young American by the name of Arthur Momand.He told this story about himself: he began earning $125 a week at the age of 23.That was a lot of money in those days.Young Momand was very proud of his riches.He got married and moved with his wife to a very wealthy neighborhood outside New York City.But just moving there was not enough.When he saw that rich people rode horses, Momand went horse riding every day.When he saw that rich people had servants, Momand and his wife also hired a servant and gave big parties for their new neighbors.
It was like a race, but one could never finish this race because one was always trying to keep up.Momand and his wife could not do that.
The race ended for them when they could no longer pay for their new way of life.They left their wealthy neighborhood and moved back to an apartment in New York City.
Momand looked around him and noticed that many people do things just to keep up with their neighbors.He saw the funny side of it and started to write a series of short stories.He called it “keeping up with the Joneses”, because “Jones” is a very common name in the United States.“Keeping up with the Joneses” came to mean keeping up with the people around you.Momand’s series appeared in different newspapers across the country for over 28 years.
Every city has an area where people want to live because others will think better of them if they do.And there are “Joneses” in every city of the world.But one must get tired of trying to keep up with the Joneses, because no matter what one does, Mr.Jones always seems to be ahead.
1.The writer of the selection believes ().
A.anyone in the United States can become rich
B.anyone in the United Sates can become rich if he works hard and has some good luck
C.he can become rich in the future
D.many people in the United States think anyone can become rich if he works hard and has some good luck
2.Some people want to keep up with the Joneses because ().
A.they want to be as rich as their neighbors
B.they want to be happy
C.they don’t want others to know they are rich
D.they want others to know or to think that they are rich
3.It can be inferred from the story that rich people ().
A.like to live in apartments
B.like to live in New York City
C.like to live outside New York City
D.like to have many neighbors
4.Arthur Momand used the name “Jones” in his series of short stories because Jones is ().
A.an important name
B.his neighbor’s name
C.a popular name in the United States
D.not a good name
5.According to the writer, it is ().
A.correct to keep up with the Joneses
B.interesting to keep up with the Joneses
C.impossible to keep up with the Joneses
D.good to keep up with the Joneses
1.A parrot can be trained to do all the following but ____.
A、talk
B、help its owner
C、sing
D、create a lively atmosphere
2.Which of the following is NOT a reason for the easy raising of the parrot? ____
A、It eats very little.
B、Its food is inexpensive.
C、It does not need a house sitter.
D、It does not require daily walks as dogs do.
3.The word "tameness" in the passage means ____.
A、the quality of being brave or unafraid
B、the quality of being kind or warm-hearted
C、the quality of being uncontrollable or fierce
D、the quality of being gentle or trained
4.The word "jungle" probably means ____.
A、boundless desert with very little plant life
B、large apartment building with pleasing surroundings
C、wild land overgrown with thick bushes and trees
D、snow-covered mountain top in very cold areas.
5.The writer ____.
A、likes the parrot
B、dislikes the parrot
C、does not like nor dislike the parrot
D、values the parrot highly
What type(s) of control-Newfoundland, occurrence, or feedback-do you think would have been most useful in this sinusoidal? Explain your choice(s).
A.were sitting;Mr.Brown
B.were sitting;Mr.Brown’S
C.was sitting;Mr.Brown
D.was sitting;Mr.Brown’s