I spend half of my life with my mother and the other half with my father. My father lives with a twenty-pound cat named Tofu. He calls me his favorite daughter. I am an only child．

   My father’s apartment is quite different from any other person’s living space. Except for my room, there is no furniture. He doesn’t like sofas or any comfortable chairs, so he has only a drawing table, a desk and his bed．He spends a lot of time lying on the studio floor. That’s how he thinks, he says. Then he does yoga

  He has a big kitchen, and on top of the refrigerator is an old clock he winds every week for good luck. The last time the clock stopped, my father’s car was towed（被警察拖走）and some other terrible things happened, so he has become very superstitious（ 迷信的）. When he goes out of town, he hires someone to feed Tofu and wind the clock so it won’t stop.

  The one thing he has plenty of is house rules. You have to take off your shoes when you come in. He won’t allow anyone who wears a baseball cap into his house. He says only baseball players should wear baseball caps and only the catchers should wear them backward．Every time I go to stay his house, he makes up a new rule. “ House rule number 579, no television programs with laugh tracks!” he will say. But then he can never remember the numbers, so they change constantly.

  The rule that he always enforces is the one that requires me to write a two-page essay anytime I want something. He didn’t speak English until he was sixteen, and he had a hard time learning to write it, so he wants me to become a good writer at an early age. This ritual （仪式） started when I asked him if I could have my ears pierced when I was nine. He said it was very cruel and told me I couldn’t do it until I was thirty-five. But I kept asking him, and he finally said that if I wrote an essay and I could persuade him in writing why I wanted holes in my ears, maybe he would say okay. I wrote my first essay for my father, and after one month of writing and rewriting, he finally gave me his permission.

1. Which of the following is an example of a house rule?

     A．You can’t wear shoes in the house.

     B．Her father does yoga at home.

     C．There is little furniture in the apartment.

     D．The clock should be wound every day.

2. Which of these statements about house rules is TURE?

     A．Her father doesn’t like rules.

     B．Her father’s rules are always changing.

     C．Her father never enforces the rules.

D．Her father made up a new rule every day.

3. You can infer that the writer’s father ________________.

     A．was born in the United States.

     B．does not like to write.

     C．speaks more than one language.

       D．was a famous writer.

Last Christmas was a very difficult time for me. My family and all of my close friends were back home in Florida, and I was all alone in a rather cold California. I was working too many hours and became very sick.
I was working a double shift at the Southwest Airlines ticket counter, it was about 9:00 PM on Christmas Eve, and I was feeling really miserable inside. There were a few of us working and very few customers waiting to be helped. When it was time for me to call the next person to the counter, I looked out to see the sweetest-looking old man standing with a cane. He walked very slowly over to the counter and in the faintest voice told me that he had to go to New Orleans. I tried to explain to him that there were no more flights that night and that he would have to go in the morning. He looked so confused and very worried. I tried to find out more information by asking if he had a reservation or if he remembered when he was supposed to travel, but he seemed to become more confused with each question. He just kept saying, “She said I have to go to New Orleans.”
After much time, I was able to at least find out that this old man had been dropped off at the curb on Christmas Eve by his sister-in-law and told to go to New Orleans, where he had family. She had given him some cash and told him just to go inside and buy a ticket. When I asked if he could come back tomorrow, he said that she was gone and that he had no place to stay. He then said he would wait at the airport until tomorrow. Naturally, I felt a little ashamed. Here I was feeling very sorry for myself about being alone on Christmas, when this angel named Clarence MacDonald was sent to me to remind me of what being alone really meant. It broke my heart.
Immediately, I told him we would get it all straightened out, and our Customer Service agent helped to book him a seat for the earliest flight the next morning. We gave him the senior citizen’s fare, which gave him some extra money for travelling. About this time he started to look very tired, and when I stepped around the counter to ask him if he was all right, I saw that his leg was wrapped in a bandage. He had been standing on it that whole time, holding a plastic bag full of clothes.
I called for a wheelchair. When the wheelchair came, we all stepped around to help him in, and I noticed a small amount of blood on his bandage. I asked how he hurt his leg, and he said that he had just had bypass surgery and an artery was taken from his leg. Can you imagine? This man had had heart surgery, and then shortly afterward, was dropped off at the curb to buy a ticket with no reservation to fly to New Orleans, alone!
I never really had a situation like this, and I wasn’t sure what I could do. I went back to ask my supervisors if we could find a place for him to stay. They both said yes, and they obtained a hotel voucher for Mr. MacDonald for one night and a meal ticket for dinner and breakfast. When I came back out, we got his plastic bag of clothes and cane together and gave the porter a tip to take him downstairs to wait for the airport shuttle. I bent down to explain the hotel, food and itinerary (行程) again to Mr. MacDonald, and then patted him on the arm and told him everything would be just fine.
As he left he said, “Thank you,” bent his head and started to cry. I cried too. When I went back to thank my supervisor, she just smiled and said, “I love stories like that. He is your Christmas Man.”
【小题1】Last Christmas the writer had a miserable time because ______.

Last Christmas was a very difficult time for me. My family and all of my close friends were back home in Florida, and I was all alone in a rather cold California. I was working too many hours and became very sick.

I was working a double shift at the Southwest Airlines ticket counter, it was about 9:00 PM on Christmas Eve, and I was feeling really miserable inside. There were a few of us working and very few customers waiting to be helped. When it was time for me to call the next person to the counter, I looked out to see the sweetest-looking old man standing with a cane. He walked very slowly over to the counter and in the faintest voice told me that he had to go to New Orleans. I tried to explain to him that there were no more flights that night and that he would have to go in the morning. He looked so confused and very worried. I tried to find out more information by asking if he had a reservation or if he remembered when he was supposed to travel, but he seemed to become more confused with each question. He just kept saying, “She said I have to go to New Orleans.”

After much time, I was able to at least find out that this old man had been dropped off at the curb on Christmas Eve by his sister-in-law and told to go to New Orleans, where he had family. She had given him some cash and told him just to go inside and buy a ticket. When I asked if he could come back tomorrow, he said that she was gone and that he had no place to stay. He then said he would wait at the airport until tomorrow. Naturally, I felt a little ashamed. Here I was feeling very sorry for myself about being alone on Christmas, when this angel named Clarence MacDonald was sent to me to remind me of what being alone really meant. It broke my heart.

Immediately, I told him we would get it all straightened out, and our Customer Service agent helped to book him a seat for the earliest flight the next morning. We gave him the senior citizen’s fare, which gave him some extra money for travelling. About this time he started to look very tired, and when I stepped around the counter to ask him if he was all right, I saw that his leg was wrapped in a bandage. He had been standing on it that whole time, holding a plastic bag full of clothes.

I called for a wheelchair. When the wheelchair came, we all stepped around to help him in, and I noticed a small amount of blood on his bandage. I asked how he hurt his leg, and he said that he had just had bypass surgery and an artery was taken from his leg. Can you imagine? This man had had heart surgery, and then shortly afterward, was dropped off at the curb to buy a ticket with no reservation to fly to New Orleans, alone!

I never really had a situation like this, and I wasn’t sure what I could do. I went back to ask my supervisors if we could find a place for him to stay. They both said yes, and they obtained a hotel voucher for Mr. MacDonald for one night and a meal ticket for dinner and breakfast. When I came back out, we got his plastic bag of clothes and cane together and gave the porter a tip to take him downstairs to wait for the airport shuttle. I bent down to explain the hotel, food and itinerary (行程) again to Mr. MacDonald, and then patted him on the arm and told him everything would be just fine.

As he left he said, “Thank you,” bent his head and started to cry. I cried too. When I went back to thank my supervisor, she just smiled and said, “I love stories like that. He is your Christmas Man.”

1.Last Christmas the writer had a miserable time because ______.

A．there were more customers than usual waiting to be helped

B．it was freezing cold in California at Christmas time

C．she was working all alone at the ticket counter

D．she was far away from her family and friends

2.The writer’s first impression of the old man was that he was ______.

A．gentle-looking and weak                  B．tired out and worried

C．confused and very sick                   D．sad and anxious

3.The old man wanted to fly to New Orleans to ______.

A．see his friends there

B．spend the Christmas with his family

C．visit his sister-in-law

D．undergo heart surgery

4.On hearing the old man say that he would wait at the airport the whole night, the writer felt a bit ashamed. This is because ______.

A．she felt sorry that she couldn’t do the old man a favor

B．she realized that someone was even more miserable than she felt

C．it took her a long time to find out how helpless the old man was

D．the old man was like an angel in the writer’s eyes

5.The writer called for a wheelchair for the old man because ______.

A．the old man had broken his leg when he was dropped off at the curb

B．the old man could spend the whole night on it at the airport

C．the old man was carrying a whole lot of clothes

D．the old man had had surgery just before and was very weak by then

6. By calling the old man the writer’s Christmas Man, the writer’s supervisor implied that ______.

A．the old man had told the writer a love story on Christmas

B．the old man had caused a lot of trouble for the writer on Christmas

C．the old man was the best gift the writer could have received on Christmas

D．the old man was the only customer the writer had served on Christmas

Last Christmas was a very difficult time for me. My family and all of my close friends were back home in Florida, and I was all alone in a rather cold California. I was working too many hours and became very sick.
I was working a double shift at the Southwest Airlines ticket counter, it was about 9:00 PM on Christmas Eve, and I was feeling really miserable inside. There were a few of us working and very few customers waiting to be helped. When it was time for me to call the next person to the counter, I looked out to see the sweetest-looking old man standing with a cane. He walked very slowly over to the counter and in the faintest voice told me that he had to go to New Orleans. I tried to explain to him that there were no more flights that night and that he would have to go in the morning. He looked so confused and very worried. I tried to find out more information by asking if he had a reservation or if he remembered when he was supposed to travel, but he seemed to become more confused with each question. He just kept saying, “She said I have to go to New Orleans.”
After much time, I was able to at least find out that this old man had been dropped off at the curb on Christmas Eve by his sister-in-law and told to go to New Orleans, where he had family. She had given him some cash and told him just to go inside and buy a ticket. When I asked if he could come back tomorrow, he said that she was gone and that he had no place to stay. He then said he would wait at the airport until tomorrow. Naturally, I felt a little ashamed. Here I was feeling very sorry for myself about being alone on Christmas, when this angel named Clarence MacDonald was sent to me to remind me of what being alone really meant. It broke my heart.
Immediately, I told him we would get it all straightened out, and our Customer Service agent helped to book him a seat for the earliest flight the next morning. We gave him the senior citizen’s fare, which gave him some extra money for travelling. About this time he started to look very tired, and when I stepped around the counter to ask him if he was all right, I saw that his leg was wrapped in a bandage. He had been standing on it that whole time, holding a plastic bag full of clothes.
I called for a wheelchair. When the wheelchair came, we all stepped around to help him in, and I noticed a small amount of blood on his bandage. I asked how he hurt his leg, and he said that he had just had bypass surgery and an artery was taken from his leg. Can you imagine? This man had had heart surgery, and then shortly afterward, was dropped off at the curb to buy a ticket with no reservation to fly to New Orleans, alone!
I never really had a situation like this, and I wasn’t sure what I could do. I went back to ask my supervisors if we could find a place for him to stay. They both said yes, and they obtained a hotel voucher for Mr. MacDonald for one night and a meal ticket for dinner and breakfast. When I came back out, we got his plastic bag of clothes and cane together and gave the porter a tip to take him downstairs to wait for the airport shuttle. I bent down to explain the hotel, food and itinerary (行程) again to Mr. MacDonald, and then patted him on the arm and told him everything would be just fine.
As he left he said, “Thank you,” bent his head and started to cry. I cried too. When I went back to thank my supervisor, she just smiled and said, “I love stories like that. He is your Christmas Man.”

1. 1.

   Last Christmas the writer had a miserable time because ______.

   1. A.
      there were more customers than usual waiting to be helped
   2. B.
      it was freezing cold in California at Christmas time
   3. C.
      she was working all alone at the ticket counter
   4. D.
      she was far away from her family and friends
2. 2.

   The writer’s first impression of the old man was that he was ______.

   1. A.
      gentle-looking and weak
   2. B.
      tired out and worried
   3. C.
      confused and very sick
   4. D.
      sad and anxious
3. 3.

   The old man wanted to fly to New Orleans to ______.

   1. A.
      see his friends there
   2. B.
      spend the Christmas with his family
   3. C.
      visit his sister-in-law
   4. D.
      undergo heart surgery
4. 4.

   On hearing the old man say that he would wait at the airport the whole night, the writer felt a bit ashamed. This is because ______.

   1. A.
      she felt sorry that she couldn’t do the old man a favor
   2. B.
      she realized that someone was even more miserable than she felt
   3. C.
      it took her a long time to find out how helpless the old man was
   4. D.
      the old man was like an angel in the writer’s eyes
5. 5.

   The writer called for a wheelchair for the old man because ______.

   1. A.
      the old man had broken his leg when he was dropped off at the curb
   2. B.
      the old man could spend the whole night on it at the airport
   3. C.
      the old man was carrying a whole lot of clothes
   4. D.
      the old man had had surgery just before and was very weak by then
6. 6.

   By calling the old man the writer’s Christmas Man, the writer’s supervisor implied that ______.

   1. A.
      the old man had told the writer a love story on Christmas
   2. B.
      the old man had caused a lot of trouble for the writer on Christmas
   3. C.
      the old man was the best gift the writer could have received on Christmas
   4. D.
      the old man was the only customer the writer had served on Christmas

Mr. Gray's business was to sell all kinds of machines to farmers. It was not really a very exciting job, but Mr. Gray had always been interested in __1__, and he was quite satisfied __2__ his life.

He had a big __3__ and usually enjoyed driving it long distances, but he was also quite __4__ to go by train sometimes, especially when the weather was __5__. He was a little frightened of driving in rain or snow, and it was less tiring to __6__ comfortably in a train and look out of the__7__without being worried how he was going to get to the next place.

One of Mr. Gray's __8__ was often where to stay when he reached some small place in the country. He did not expect __9__ and wonderful food, but he found it rather annoying when he was given a cold room, and when there was no __10__ water or good food after a long and tiring day.

Late one winter evening, Mr. Gray arrived at a __11__ railway station. The journey by train that day had not been at all interesting, and Mr. Gray was cold and tired and __12__. He was looking forward to a __13__ but satisfying meal by a brightly burning fire and then a hot bath and a comfortable __14__.

While he was walking to the taxi stand, he said to a local man who was also __15__ there, "As this is my __16__ visit to this part of the country and I was in too much of a __17__ to find out about hotels before I left home, I would very much like to know how many you have here."

The local man answered, "We have two."

"And which of the two would you __18__ me to go to?" Mr. Gray asked then.

The local man scratched(挠) his __19__ for a few moments and then answered, "Well, it's like this: Whichever one you go to, you'll be __20__ you didn't go to the other."

1. A. farming B. cooking C. traveling D. driving

2. A. in B. for C. with D. about

3. A. house B. farm C. car D. store

4. A. satisfied B. tired C. unhappy D. easy

5. A. warm B. fine C. hot D. bad

6. A. stand B. sit C. sleep D. wander

7. A. doors B. roof C. windows D. stations

8. A. problems B. machines C. answers D. replies

9. A. pleasure B. comfort C. dance D. dinner

10. A. cold B. cool C. hot D. warm

11. A. small B. silent C. busy D. crowded

12. A. happy B. hungry C. pleased D. satisfied

13. A. nice B. delicious C. simple D. hot

14. A. bench B. table C. seat D. bed

15. A. staying B. walking C. living D. working

16. A. last B. best C. first D. only

17. A. worry B. joy C. chance D. hurry

18. A. hope B. advise C. allow D. permit

19. A. hand B. foot C. head D. back

20. A. sorry B. content C. dull D. glad