“How are things back at the office?” one of the gentlemen in my bicycle tour group asked me as we were nearing the end of another lengthy ride through Croatia’s scenic countryside.
“I assume they are going fine,” I said. “I haven’t had any contact and I don’t plan to.”
“Your phone isn’t on?” he asked, incredulously. “You haven’t checked your email?”
“My phone is off and no, I’m not planning on checking email,” I said.
My wife Heidi and I took my children, Daniel and Rachel, on a two-week trip to Croatia, one of the most beautiful countries in the world. We made the choice to spend some of our money on this wonderful experience so we could spend time bonding with each other and the kids.
Why would I destroy the environment we had traveled thousands of miles to create by bringing my work environment into it? That would be counter-productive to everything I wanted out of this trip. If I worked during this experience, I would be taking time away from my family and sending them the message that work takes priority over them.
In addition to sharing this incredible experience, I wanted to take us all out of the activity-driven world we live in. If I had my cell phone on and was constantly searching out a wireless connection to keep up with office, I would just bring that hyper-connected environment into the peaceful, meaningful world I was trying to create.
In addition to creating life-long memories with my family, another wonderful thing happened as a result of this bike trip. As we were returning home, I was flooded with new ideas. I came up with concepts for nine blog posts and several ideas that I want to incorporate into my business.
Taking time off restored and rejuvenated me and allowed my creative spirit to really come to the surface. How can you accomplish that goal if you simply move the source of that stress to a different location?
1.From the conversation at the beginning of the text, we can infer that .
A. the author had no access to the Internet during the tour
B. the gentleman was quite concerned about the author’s work
C. the author’s phone was off because he didn’t want to be disturbed
D. the speakers both experienced an unpleasant bicycle tour in Croatia
2.One of the purposes of the author’s Croatia’s bicycle tour is .
A. to experience a primitive life without phone calls
B. to spend some time creating closer ties with his family
C. to tell his family that his work is more important for him
D. to escape from his boring work environment in the office
3.The underlined word “rejuvenate” in the last paragraph means “ ”.
A. drive one mad B. make one more energetic
C. get one exhausted D. cause one to lost temper
4.Which of the following may the author agree?
A. Playing delights us more than working.
B. Working is the foundation of happiness.
C. Cellphones and emails are helpful when we take a trip.
D. When working, work hard; when playing, play crazily.
The Museum: The Charles Dickens Museum in London is the world’s most important collection of material relating to the great Victorian novelist and social commentator. The only surviving London home of Dickens (from 1837 until 1839) was opened as a museum in 1925 and is still welcoming visitors from all over the world. On four floors, visitors can see paintings, rare editions, manuscripts, original furniture and many items relating to the life of one of the most popular and beloved personalities of the Victorian age.
Opening Hours:
The Museum is open from Mondays to Saturdays 10:00-17:00; Sundays 11:00-17:00.
Last admission is 30 minutes before closing time.
Special opening times can be arranged for groups, who may wish to book a private view.
Admission Charges: Adults:￡5.00; Students:￡4:00; Seniors:￡4.00; Children:￡3.00; Families:￡14.00 (2 adults & up to five children).
Group Rates: For a group of 10 or more, a special group rate of ￡4.00 each applies. Children will still be admitted for ￡3.00 each.
Access: We are constantly working to improve access to the Museum and its collection. Our current projects involve the fitting of a wheelchair ramp (活动坡道) for better access, a customer care kit and an audio tour for visitors with impaired vision. Our Handling Sessions are also suitable for the visually impaired. The Museum has developed an online virtual tour through the Museum. Click here to visit all the rooms in the Museum online.
Hire the Museum: The Museum can be hired for private functions, parties and many other social occasions.
Find Us: The Museum may be reached by using the following buses: 7, 17, 19, 38, 45, 46, 55, 243. And by these underground services: Piccadilly Line; Central Line. For a map, please click here. The British Museum and the Foundling Museum are within walking distance.
1.Compared to going there separately, if a family with two adults and four children go to the Museum together they will save .
A. ￡22. 00 B. ￡14. 00
C. ￡11. 00 D. ￡8. 00
2.According to the passage, which of the following statements is true?
A. Anyone cannot hire the Museum for other uses.
B. Visitors with poor vision cannot enjoy the Museum.
C. The Museum is not very far from the British Museum.
D. In any case people cannot visit the Museum after 17:00.
3.The passage is probably from a .
A. magazine B. website
C. guidebook D. newspaper
Shopping for clothes is not the same experience for a man as it is for a woman.
A man goes shopping because he needs something. His purpose is settled and decided in advance. He knows what he wants, and his aim is to find it and buy it; the price is a secondary consideration. All men simply walk into a shop and ask the assistant for what they want. If the shop has it in stock (有现货的), the business of trying it on follows at once. All being well, the deal can be and often is completed in less than five minutes, with hardly any chat and to everyone’s satisfaction.
For a man, slight problems may begin when the shop does not have what he wants, or does not have exactly what he wants. In that case the salesman, as the name implies, tries to sell the customer something else. No good salesman brings out a substitute impolitely; he does so with skill: “I know this jacket is not the style you want, Sir, but would you like to try it on for size? It happens to be the color you mentioned.” Few men have patience with this treatment, and the usual response is: “This is the right color and may be the right size, but I should be wasting my time and yours by trying it on.”
Now how does a woman buy clothes? In almost every aspect she does so in the opposite way. Her shopping is not often based on need. She has never fully made up her mind what she wants, and she is only “having a look round”. She is always open to persuasion; indeed she is influenced by what the saleswoman tells her, even by what companions tell her. She will try on any number of things. What she wants is to find something that everyone thinks suits her. Contrary to a lot of jokes, most women have an excellent sense of value when they buy clothes. They are always on the lookout for the unexpected bargain. Faced with a roomful of dresses, a woman may easily spend hours going from one shop to another, to and fro. It is a tiring process, but apparently an enjoyable one. Most dress shops provide chairs for the waiting husbands.
1.The underlined sentence “the price is a secondary consideration” in the second paragraph means when a man is shopping .
A. he buys things without considering its price
B. he buys whatever he likes without considering its value
C. he buys things of good quality even if they are very dear
D. he cares about whether the thing is what he needs first and then the price
2.What does a man do when he can not get exactly what he wants?
A. He usually does not buy anything.
B. So long as the style is right, he buys the thing.
C. He buys a similar thing because of the color he wants.
D. At least two of his requirements must be met before he buys.
3.What does the passage tell us about women shoppers for clothes?
A. Women rarely consider buying cheap clothes.
B. They welcome suggestions from almost anyone.
C. They try to buy clothes for more than its real value.
D. Women buy things without giving the matter proper thought.
4.What is the main difference between men and women shoppers?
A. Women buy more clothes than men.
B. Women bargain for their clothes, but men do not.
C. Men go shopping based on need, but women often not.
D. Men do not try clothes on in a shop while women do.
假设你是红星中学高三学生李华，请给你的外教Mr. Black写一封邮件，邀请他参加你们学校举行的英语读书会(reading circle)活动，邮件的内容包括：
介绍读书活动的相关信息（例如：时间、地点、活动目的、内容等）；
1.说明你发出邀请的原因；
2.询问对方的意向。
注意：1. 词数不少于100词；
2. 开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数。
Dear Mr. Black,
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Your,
Li Hua
Every boy and every girl are eager for success. But what can we succeed in life? Here are my opinions:
First, we must be friendly and kindly. It allows us to make friends but survive wherever we are. Second, we must set a goal, which motivates us to pursue our dreams. Third, it’s better to believe in us. Only with self-confidence we realize our goals. Fourth, we should develop good characters, such as a strong will and diligence, because good qualities help us to hold on to our dreams since we get into the trouble.
As far as I’m concerning, success belongs to those who keep on trying. So let’s take actions now!
Long ago the Emperor decided 1. (hold) a swimming race among 13 different animals. The order in2.they finished would decide the order of their 3.（appear）in the Chinese calendar. All the animals lined up on the river bank and were given4.task of getting to the opposite shore. The cat wondered 5.he would get across because he was afraid of water. The ox worried how he would cross 6.his poor eyesight. The calculating rat suggested that he and the cat should jump onto the ox's back and guide him across. The ox, steady and hard-working, did not notice the two animals on his back. In the meanwhile, the rat7._(run)behind the cat and pushed him into the water. As the ox came ashore, the rat jumped off and finished the race first,8.the rat got the first year 9.（name）after him and the ox got the second year. When the lazy pig reached the finish line in 12th place the race was over and he 10.(award) the final place on the calendar. From that day on, the cat, who never finished and lost his place on the calendar, became the enemy of the rat.
