Alex Elman runs a big business — something difficult to imagine after she lost her sight in her twenties. But Elman says that losing her sight helped her focus on finding success.
Elman’s father planted a hillside vineyard in western Massachusetts in 1981. It’s where Elman fled during the darkest period of her life. When she was 27 years old, she went blind due to complications from juvenile diabetes (糖尿病) 17 years ago. She recalled, “I hid in my home. I hid in the place. For me, that was the safest place in the world.”
Elman is now the founder of Alex Elman Wines, a growing portfolio (系列产品) of organic wines from all around the world: Chianti from Italy, Torrontes from Argentina. Elman doesn’t work alone. Her assistant, a guide dog named Hanley, is something of a wine snob, and quite a beggar. Hanley travels to all of the wineries that Elman does, from South America to Europe.
At first, Elman resisted the idea of a guide-dog. Now it’s hard to imagine her life, or her business, without him. She said. “When someone tells me something is organic and I don’t really believe it because I taste something funny on it, I’ll put it in front of his face and if he likes the wine, he’ll go to sniff it. If it’s not right, he’ll turn his head away. He gets in the dirt with me. He scratches around. He makes sure that we see earthworms and butterflies. That’s how we know that the soil is actually organic, and that there are no chemicals.”
Elman told CBS News she believes the loss of her vision was a gift. She said, “It allowed me to pay attention to what I thought was important and also to be able to teach people that the broken hang nail is not a big deal, you know what I mean? Don’t sweat the small stuff. Don’t sweat the big stuff either.”
1.Elman hid herself in her father’s vineyard probably because she ________.
A. suffered from juvenile diabetes
B. was extremely painful for her blindness
C. would like to help her father with the work
D. expected to recover her sight sooner or later
2.The underlined phrase “the broken hang nail” (in Paragraph 5) probably refers to _____.
A. a nail which is of no use
B. a disadvantage you have in your life
C. a person who is hard to deal with
D. a task that is not easy to accomplish
3.This passage is mainly to tell us that _________.
A. Alex Elman leads a miserable life
B. Hanley brings Alex Elman much fun
C. Alex Elman gets along well with her pet
D. a blind woman tastes success in wine business
请阅读下面文字、图片和图表，并按照要求用英语写一篇150词左右的文章。
随着生活水平不断提高，电子媒体日益普及。请你根据下面照片所展示的不同读书方式，结合自身实际写一篇英语短文。内容包括以下要点：
1. 30词左右概述照片内容；
2. 这幅照片所展示何种社会现象及造成该现象的原因；
3. 你更偏爱哪种读书方式，并陈述理由（至少2点）；
4. 字数150左右，文中不得出现真实校名、人名。
（评分标准） 卷面整洁，内容完整，语言规范，语篇连贯，词数适当。
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
阅读下面短文,按照句子结构的语法性和上下文连贯的要求,在空格处填入一个适当的词或使用括号中词语的正确形式填空。
Why is pink or purple a color for girls and blue or brown for boys?The answer depends largely 1.cultural values as well as personal experiences.
People's choice of colors is also influenced by their bodies' reactions(反应)toward them.Green is said to be the most restful color.It has the ability to reduce pain and relax people both mentally and physically.People2.(work) in green environment have been found to have3.stomach aches. To the Egyptians, green was a color4.represented the hope and joy of spring, 5.for Muslims, it means heaven.
Red is a symbol of good luck in many cultures.In China, children 6.(give)money in a red envelope to bring good fortune in the New Year. Red can cause a person's blood pressure to rise and increase people's appetites(食欲).Many decorators will include different shades of red in the restaurant.7.(similar), many commercial websites will have a red “Buy Now” button because red is a color that easily catches a person's eyes.
For many nations, blue is a symbol of protection and religious beliefs.Greek people often wear a blue necklace,8.(hope) to protect themselves against evils(灾祸). Blue is another calming color.9.red, blue can cause people to lose appetite.So10.you want to eat less, some suggest that eating from blue plates can help.
单词拼写
1.Patience _________(结合) with diligence is necessary to success.
2.The police launched a ____________(运动) to reduce road accidents.
3.I find it _________(尴尬,难堪) for an adult to admit that he/she can’t read.
4.With the development of tourism, more local _________（就业机会） will be created, particularly in service industries.
5.Nancy ___________(逃跑)successfully when the earthquake happened.
6.A medical group c____________ of doctors and nurses has been sent to rescue the passengers trapped on the Oriental Star.
7.The Great Wall is so well-known a tourist attraction that millions of people p________ in every year.
8.The volunteer comes to visit these disabled children on a regular b_________.
9.It’s c__________ to pay by credit card, so you needn’t take much cash.
10.The design has to a___________ to all ages and social group.
请认真阅读下列短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入最恰当的单词。注意：每个空格只填1个单词。
There's a huge power in knowing how to make adjustments（调整，调节） in life. In fact, it's possible to turn failure into success by making the right adjustments. The trick is in knowing where the adjustment is needed and how much.
We call people who have the ability to make the best life adjustments happy. And on the other hand we call people who refuse or neglect to make adjustments sador confused.
Whatever your stage in life, age or financial (经济的) level, everyone will face what I call the 3 C's. The 3 C's are changes, challenges and choices. The person who handles the 3 C's the best we call happy and well adjusted.
One obstacle many people trip over is assuming money will help them make the best life adjustments. Wrong! It may help in some ways, but even money won't help unless you have the knowledge and put in the effort. For instance, it is not hard to find wealthy people who find it hard to deal with the challenges, changes and choices of life.
So, what's one of the key factors of people who fail to live up to their potential(潜力)? They fail to make life adjustments when faced with changes, challenges or choices.
Here are 3 simple but powerful tips to help you make effective life adjustments when faced with the 3 C's or changes, challenges and choices.
Learn To Think With Your Eyes And Ears
When you learn how to think with your eyes we call that observation and when you learn how to think with your ears we call that hearing. Most people see but few people know how to observe. The difference between seeing and observing is like the difference between reading and studying.
The same goes with listening. It only requires ears to hear, but it often takes awareness and thought to listen. One factor in helping you to listen better is to hear not only what people say but what they don't say. Reading body language and voice change can help you listen between the lines. All these play an effective role in helping you to think with your eyes and ears.
Learn To Go With The Flow
The people who learn to make the best life adjustments develop the habit of going with the flow. For example, they refuse to worry too much about the small affairs and remain flexible to life changes. The best way to do that is to trust your instincts(直觉). The more you do that, the more they will work for you.
Worry tends to ruin your God-given instincts. Notice people who can go with the flow and you'll find a person with sharp instincts.
Be Prepared For Changes, Challenges And Choices
If you can keep an attitude of preparation you'll have the best chance of making effective life adjustments. What kind? The kind that can see you through problems, setbacks and challenges.
As the saying goes, “If you stay ready, you don't have to get ready.” That's the best advice for anyone who wants to make the best life adjustments and win!
Title: 1.Makes The Best Adjustments Wins
Outlines | Supporting details |
Introduction | Failure can turn into success when the right adjustments are made. |
2. | 3C’s stand for changes, challenges and choices. And people goodat 3.3C’s are happy and well adjusted. |
Wrong 4. | Money 5.than your knowledge and effort will help you make the best life adjustments. |
Three tips | Learn to 6. and listen. * Different from seeing, observation means thinking with eyes. * 7.hearing, listening requires awareness andthought. |
Learn to go with the flow. * Adapting to life changes without being 8.about small stuff. *9.the habit of going with the flow by depending on your instincts. | |
Be prepared for 3C’s. With an attitude of preparation, it is more 10.that you will adjust to life effectively. |
Oliver Twist was born in a workhouse, and when he arrived in this hard world, it was very doubtful whether he would live beyond the first three minutes. He lay on a hard little bed and struggled to start breathing.
Oliver fought his first battle without much assistance from the two people present at his birth. One was an old woman, who was nearly always drunk, and the other was a busy local doctor, who was not paid enough to be very interested in Oliver’s survival. ____________________.
However, Oliver managed to draw his first breath, and then announced his arrival to the rest of the workhouse by crying loudly. His mother raised her pale young face from the pillow and whispered, “Let me see the child, and die.”
The doctor turned away from the fire, where he had been warming his hands. “You must not talk about dying yet,” he said to her kindly. He gave her the child to hold. Lovingly, she kissed the baby on its forehead with her cold white lips, then stared wildly around the room, fell back—and died. “Poor dear!” said the nurse, hurriedly putting a green glass bottle back in the pocket of her long skirt.
The doctor began to put on his coat. “The baby is weak and will probably have difficulties,” he said. “If so, give it a little milk to keep it quiet.” Then he looked at the dead woman. “The mother was a good-looking girl. Where did she come from?”
“She was brought here last night,” replied the old woman. “She was found lying in the street. She’d walked some distance, judging by her shoes, which were worn to pieces. Where she came from, where she was going to, or what her name was, nobody knows.”
The doctor lifted the girl’s left hand. “The old story,” he said sadly, shaking his head. “No wedding ring, I see. Ah! Good night.”
And so Oliver was left with only the drunken nurse. Without clothes, under his first blanket, he could have been the child of a king or a beggar. But when the woman dressed him later in rough cotton clothes, yellow with age, he looked exactly what he was—an orphan in a workhouse, ready for a life of misery, hunger, and neglect.
Oliver cried loudly. If he could have known that he was a workhouse orphan, perhaps he would have cried even more loudly.
There was no one to look after the baby in the workhouse, so Oliver was sent to a special “baby farm” nearby. There, he and thirty other children rolled around the floor all day, without the inconvenience of too much food or too much clothing. Mrs Mann, the old woman who “looked after” them, was very experienced. She knew what was good for children, and a full stomach was very dangerous to their health. She also knew what was good for herself, so she kept for her own use the money that she was given for the children’s food. The board responsible for the orphans sometimes checked on the health of the children, but they always sent the beadle, a kind of local policeman, to announce their visit the day before. So whenever the board arrived, of course, the children were always neat and clean.
This was the way Oliver was brought up. Consequently, at the age of nine he was a pale, thin child and short for his age. But despite frequent beatings by Mrs Mann, his spirit was strong, which was probably the reason why he managed to reach the age of nine at all.
On Oliver’s ninth birthday, Mr Bumble, the beadle, came to the house to see Mrs Mann. Through the front window Mrs Mann saw him at the gate, and turned quickly to the girl who worked with her.
“Quick! Take Oliver and those others upstairs to be washed!” she said. Then she ran out to unlock the gate which was always kept locked.
1.According to the passage, a workhouse was where ________.
A. many women died unexpectedly
B. workers helped each other
C. the poor and homeless lived
D. people were only interested in money
2.Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A. Oliver was born into the world on a cold day.
B. Many people, especially women, drank heavily at that time.
C. The children in the baby farm were taken good care of.
D. Doctors were usually paid too little for the work they did.
3.Which sentence is most suitable for the blank in Paragraph 2?
A. Therefore, he felt very lonely in the world.
B. Frightened at the sight of the two, he started to cry.
C. After all, death was a common event in the workhouse.
D. In fact, the world was privileged to have him in it.
4.It can be inferred that the gate of the baby farm was always kept locked in order to ________.
A. protect the children inside from dangers outside
B. prevent official visitors walking in unexpectedly
C. keep the children inside working all the time
D. ensure the children were always neat and clean
5.According to the passage, Mrs Mann ________.
A. was mad keen on looking after children
B. provided children with little food and few comforts
C. beat children frequently to make them mentally strong
D. cared little about Mr Bumble’s abrupt appearance
