I have this old clock that belonged to my mom. My dad gave it to me years ago after mom passed away.
I have mixed feelings about having the clock. I love it because it was my mom’s, but it also holds some bad memories.
You see, it chimes. It counts out the hour and rings once on the half hour. Or at least it used to. Now you never know what number it will ring.
When my mother was at home dying from cancer, she asked for the clock to be unplugged. Hearing the hours count down really angered and frightened her.
Mom passed away. I decided I wanted to get the clock fixed so I could remember the good hours we had with her.
I took it to a local clock shop the other day.
“I know this has no particular value as a clock, but it was my mom’s and I need to get it fixed,” I said to the shop owner.
I went on to describe the problem.
“We get a lot of these in,” he told me. “Here’s what I do. We remove the clock works (机件) and replace it with a battery-operated movement (机芯) that chimes electronically,” he told me.
“You can’t fix this?”
“No, we don’t have the time nor the parts.”
I thanked him and went home. I called a few other places and was told the same thing.
“How incredibly sad,” I told the last one disappointedly.
How incredibly sad that we have become a society that replaces craftsmanship with convenience and easy fixes. We copy the original instead of creating something new. We duplicate (复制); we don’t originate (发明).
Sadly, the same goes for our attitude to life itself.
Each of us is an original, one of a kind. But we find it so much easier to copy another style than to develop our own.
We are wannabes (崇拜别人的人) rather than hey-world-look-at-mes.
We fail to see the real value in who we are, so we spend our lives trying to be someone else.
1. Why did the author decide to get the clock fixed?
A.Because it was a really old and valuable clock.
B.Because it was the only thing that her mother had left her.
C.Because it brought her memories of being with her mother.
D.Because it left the author with mixed feelings.
2. What did the clock shop owners tell the author?
A.The parts that the clock needed were electronic.
B.It would cost a lot to repair the clock.
C.They had never repaired a clock like this before.
D.They could only make the clock electronic.
3. The author intends to ________.
A.criticize the irresponsible clock shop owners
B.criticize people who do not value things with a history
C.criticize people who do not have a creative attitude toward life
D.criticize people’s ignorance of traditional craftsmanship
Brownie and Spotty were neighbor dogs who met every day to play together. Like pairs of dogs you can find in any neighborhood, these two loved each other and played together so often that they had worn a path through the grass of the field between their houses.
One evening, Brownie’s family noticed that Brownie hadn’t returned home. They went looking for him with no success. Brownie didn’t show up the next day, and, although they made their efforts to find him, by the next week he was still missing, Curiously, Spotty showed up at Brownie’s house alone, barking and jumping. Busy with their own lives, they paid no attention to the nervous little neighbor dog.
Finally, one morning Spotty refused to take “no” for an answer. Ted, Brownie’s owner, was continuously disturbed by the angry, determined little dog. Spotty followed Ted about, barking all the time, then rushing toward a nearby empty lot and back, as if to say, “Follow me! It’s urgent!”
Eventually, Ted followed Spotty across the empty lot as Spotty stopped to race back and barked encouragingly. The little dog led the man to a deserted spot a half mile from the house. There Ted found his beloved Brownie alive, one of his legs crushed in a steel trap (圈套). Frightened, Ted now wished he had taken Spotty’s earlier appeals seriously.
Then Ted noticed something. Spotty had done something else besides leading Brownie’s human owner to his trapped friend. In a circle around the injured dog, Ted found some food remains of every meal. Brownie had been fed that week! Spotty had been visiting Brownie regularly, in the hope of keeping his friend alive. Spotty had actually stayed with Brownie to protect him from hunger and other dangers, and keep his spirits up.
Brownie’s leg was carefully treated and he soon got well again. For many years thereafter the two families watched the faithful friends chasing each other down that well-worn path between their houses.
1.At the very beginning, Ted paid little attention to Spotty because __________.
A.he was not free at the moment
B.he was sure Brownie would be OK
C.he didn’t like Spotty at all
D.his missing dog made him sad
2. After Ted was brought where Brownie was trapped, he ___________.
A.managed to free his dog at once
B.was very thankful to Spotty
C.regretted not following Spotty earlier
D.was angry with the trap-maker
3. The BEST title for this passage might be____________?
A.Dogs in Love B.A Friend in Need
C.Human and dogs D.Dogs Are Communicative
4.We can infer from the passage that ___________.
A.humans and animals depend on each other for comfort
B.It’s not right to hunt for animals in any neighborhood
C.Ted has to take better care of his beloved dog later on
D.Brownie would have died without Spotty’s timely help
完形填空(共20小题;每小题1分。满分20分)
This was an unforgettable and wonderful experience. It happened about three years ago and it has had a 26 effect on me. I would like to show respect here for the two men I do not know 27 but whose actions gave a new 28 to the words—kind and generous.
I was walking down a busy street on a cold, windy day in early 29 . A homeless man, probably about 60 and without wearing any shoes, was 30 for change on a street corner.
A BMW car 31 on the other side of the street and an executive(主管)who was perfectly dressed stepped out of the car. He was probably about 32 years old. He was wearing a blue business suit with a deep red silk tie. He walked 33 across the street and over to the homeless man. Without saying anything, he first gave him a lot of 34 and then he sat down and took off his gloves(手套), beautiful black leather shoes and his black dress socks. Then he 35 them to the homeless man. The homeless man took them and stared with a/an 36 mouth.
As he drove off, I couldn’t 37 thinking that it was probably the first time he had 38 the pedal(踏板)of that top-brand BMW car with a 39 foot! I stood there and the looks of 40 appeared on my face and the homeless man’s.
Two men of about the same age, 41 very different lives had met and the one who was 42 in materials had offered 43 than his shoes. He had left his BMW car and 44 down from his high position. He lifted up the other man when he offered respect, 45 and real generosity.
1. A.strong B.bad C.light D.slow
2. A.officially B.personally C.similarly D.generally
3. A.benefit B.attitude C.meaning D.award
4. A.spring B.Summer C.autumn D.winter
5. A.searching B.making C.blaming D.begging
6. A.called up B.broke up C.pulled up D.sped up
7. A.40 B.50 C.60 D.70
8. A.directly B.usually C.unwillingly D.fluently
9. A.money B.water C.sand D.oil
10. A.posted B.handed C.kicked D.threw
11. A.closed B.full C.open D.empty
12. A.stand B.delay C.forget D.help
13. A.bended B.cut C.repaired D.pressed
14. A.relaxed B.large C.bare D.single
15. A.excitement B.astonishment C.sadness D.pride
16. A.but B.or C.and D.before
17. A.successful B.careful C.useful D.helpful
18. A.rather B.more C.other D.better
19. A.broken B.fell C.stepped D.rolled
20. A.surprise B.disappointment C.anxiety D.kindness
The new tax would force companies to __________energy-saving measures.
A. adapt B. adopt C. adjust D address
If the American government the expert’s suggestion, the world economy would not be in such a mess now.
A.followed B.follows
C.should follow D.had followed
He had hardly reached home _______ an unexpected guest came to visit him.
A.then B.when C.the moment D.than