Mrs. Squirrel and I Negotiated Terms

       I was sitting in the room reading when I heard a loud noise. To defend my home from break-in, I picked up my defense weapon--- a broom and went out. There on the roof of my porch（门廊）, I saw a grey fluffy squirrel. I drove her away with the broom, but the next day I heard her again.

       I searched squirrels on the Internet and found because their teeth keep growing, they have to constantly chew on things to shorten their teeth. This was disturbing so I asked my husband to call in some wildlife control people.

       On Monday morning two men showed up, with guns in their hands. I pointed uneasily to the hole in my porch roof. They held up their guns. Suddenly I saw in my mind the baby nursery inside. I stopped them and confirmed that they wouldn’t harm her. They hesitated, but finally put down their guns. Then they brought out a bottle of deodorizer（除臭剂）and sprayed it into the squirrel’s home. They told me she would not like the smell and would leave.

       There was no sign of Mrs. Squirrel, so they blocked the hole, took my cheque for $250 and left.

       Shortly after they left, Mrs. Squirrel returned from her shopping trip. She was mad at being driven out and began feverishly clawing at the porch roof. In order to stop the destruction of my home, I drove her away with the broom again.

       Each day thereafter, Mrs. Squirrel continued her attack on my possession. I then called the company to report that “SHE’S BAAAAAACK…” The receptionist said that if Mrs. Squirrel had managed to find another way into my porch roof, it would be a new charge. I replied I couldn’t continue contributing my husband’s hard-earned income to their silly wildlife experts and hung up.

       I went to the porch and banged on the roof. Mrs. Squirrel came out and glared at me. We negotiated some terms, came to an agreeable arrangement and went back into our respective homes.

       All is quiet these days, although large quantities of materials have been removed from my garage wall and my daughter claims that some of her doll-house furniture has disappeared. I still hope that Mrs. Squirrel would leave, but I will wait until it is warmer and hopefully until after the birth of the little ones.

56. What did the author think of the squirrel at first?

       A. Troublesome.         B. Dangerous.            C. Interesting.     D. Clever.  

57. Why didn’t the author ask the wildlife control people to come again?

   A. She worried about the safety of the squirrel.

   B. She thought the company charged too much.

   C. She decided to drive away the squirrel herself.

   D. She doubted the ability of the wildlife control people.

58. What can we learn from the passage?

   A. Getting rid of the squirrel needs patience.

   B. The squirrel has destroyed the author’s house.

   C. The author has developed love for the squirrel.

   D. The author signed an agreement with Mrs. Squirrel.

59. The underline word in the fifth paragraph probably means_________ .

   A. surprisingly        B. delightedly              C. quickly        D. crazily

Mrs. Squirrel and I Negotiated Terms

       I was sitting in the room reading when I heard a loud noise. To defend my home from break-in, I picked up my defense weapon--- a broom and went out. There on the roof of my porch（门廊）, I saw a grey fluffy squirrel. I drove her away with the broom, but the next day I heard her again.

       I searched squirrels on the Internet and found because their teeth keep growing, they have to constantly chew on things to shorten their teeth. This was disturbing so I asked my husband to call in some wildlife control people.

       On Monday morning two men showed up, with guns in their hands. I pointed uneasily to the hole in my porch roof. They held up their guns. Suddenly I saw in my mind the baby nursery inside. I stopped them and confirmed that they wouldn’t harm her. They hesitated, but finally put down their guns. Then they brought out a bottle of deodorizer（除臭剂）and sprayed it into the squirrel’s home. They told me she would not like the smell and would leave.

       There was no sign of Mrs. Squirrel, so they blocked the hole, took my cheque for $250 and left.

       Shortly after they left, Mrs. Squirrel returned from her shopping trip. She was mad at being driven out and began feverishly clawing at the porch roof. In order to stop the destruction of my home, I drove her away with the broom again.

       Each day thereafter, Mrs. Squirrel continued her attack on my possession. I then called the company to report that “SHE’S BAAAAAACK…” The receptionist said that if Mrs. Squirrel had managed to find another way into my porch roof, it would be a new charge. I replied I couldn’t continue contributing my husband’s hard-earned income to their silly wildlife experts and hung up.

       I went to the porch and banged on the roof. Mrs. Squirrel came out and glared at me. We negotiated some terms, came to an agreeable arrangement and went back into our respective homes.

       All is quiet these days, although large quantities of materials have been removed from my garage wall and my daughter claims that some of her doll-house furniture has disappeared. I still hope that Mrs. Squirrel would leave, but I will wait until it is warmer and hopefully until after the birth of the little ones.

56. What did the author think of the squirrel at first?

       A. Troublesome.           B. Dangerous.        C. Interesting.     D. Clever

57. Why didn’t the author ask the wildlife control people to come again?

   A. She worried about the safety of the squirrel.

   B. She thought the company charged too much.

   C. She decided to drive away the squirrel herself.

   D. She doubted the ability of the wildlife control people.

58. What can we learn from the passage?

   A. Getting rid of the squirrel needs patience.

   B. The squirrel has destroyed the author’s house.

   C. The author has developed love for the squirrel.

   D. The author signed an agreement with Mrs. Squirrel.

59. The underline word in the fifth paragraph probably means_________ .

   A. surprisingly         B. delightedly         C. quickly         D. crazily

When a very young squirrel（松鼠）fell off a tree, he didn’t know that would start a most unusual friendship.

Linda found the squirrel and his sister lying on the ground. They had fallen about 40 feet out of their nest（窝）. The sister was dead. The other survived because he landed on his sister. Linda thought their mother, who was found nearby, died from being poisoned. Many people put out mouse poison and squirrels ate it. Linda decided to care for the newly-born squirrel. She named him Finnegan.

But Linda worried that her dog Giselle might hurt Finnegan. “I didn’t know if she wanted the squirrel for breakfast, or if she wanted it as a toy.” However, to her surprise, Giselle liked Finnegan and she took care of Finnegan, too. And they played, ate, and slept together. After a short time, Giselle and Finnegan bonded.

Linda tried to teach Finnegan how to eat nuts, and taught him to find food himself. She said squirrels shouldn’t be kept as pets. When Finnegan was 8 weeks old, Linda started letting him outside. At first, he ran around but would stay in Linda’s yard. Every night, he would scratch（用指甲挠）at the back door or at one of Linda’s windows to be let in. Linda refused. Then one day, he didn’t come back. Two weeks later, he returned with four squirrels, and then disappeared again and returned one more time – on Thanksgiving Day. “He came close, but he wouldn’t let me touch him. He just wanted me to know he was OK. He’s wild, free and happy and doing exactly what he’s supposed to be doing. ”Linda smiled with tears.

1．What does the underlined word “bonded” in Paragraph 3 mean?

A．Met each other.                                    B．Became honest with each other.

                               C．Kept away from each other.                   D．Developed a friendly relationship.

2．According to this passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?

A．Linda had kept Finnegan for about 3 months.

                               B．People didn’t like squirrels and wanted to kill them.

                               C．Finnegan once thought Linda’s house was his own home.

                               D．Finnegan returned to the wild and lived alone.

3．Which diagram can show the structure of the passage?

4．Linda probably felt         when she refused to let Finnegan in.

A．sad but hopeful   B．happy and interested C．afraid and helpless D．excited but lonely

5．Which book is the story most probably from?

A．Jokes and Fun  B．Animal Life      C．Science Weekly       D．Man and Nature

However, I think it is a good idea to squirrel some of your money away each week to make it ________．

1. A.
   lasts
2. B.
   last
3. C.
   lasted
4. D.
   be lasted