I needed to get some money during my winter holidays.So after Christmas I took a job in the clothes department at Graham’s for the first fortnight of the January sale.I can’t say that I enjoyed it,but it was an experience I’ll never forget.

I could never understand why there were so many things in the sales;where did they all come from?Now I know the secret! Firstly,there is the special winter stock(货物)and the stock that people buy all the year round;some of these things are slightly reduced.Secondly,there are the summer clothes they couldn’t sell last year,these are heavily reduced to clear them.Thirdly,there are cheap clothes bought in specially for the sales;these are put out at high prices ten days before the sale begins and then are reduced by 60% in the sale.Clever! Later,they buy in “seconds” (clothes not in perfect condition) for the sale and they are sold very cheaply.

When I arrived half an hour before opening on the first day of the sale,there was already a queue around three sides of the building.This made me very nervous.

When the big moment arrived to open the doors,the security guards,looking less confident than usual,came up to them,keys in hand.The moment they had unlocked the doors,they hid behind the doors for protection as the noisy crowd charged in.I couldn’t believe my eyes;this wasn’t shopping,it was a battlefield! One poor lady couldn’t keep her feet and was knocked over by people pushing from behind.

Clothes were flying in all directions as people searched for the sizes,colors and styles they wanted.Quarrels broke out.Mothers were using their small children to crawl through people’s legs and get hold of things they couldn’t get near themselves.

Within minutes I had half a dozen people pushing clothes under my nose,each wanting to be the first served.Where had the famous English Queue gone?The whole day continued like that,but I kept my temper (脾气)！I was taking money hand over fist and began to realize why,twice a year,Graham’s were happy to turn their expensive store into a battlefield like this.

In the sale fever,people were spending money like water without thinking whether they needed what they were buying.As long as it was a bargain it was OK.

You won’t believe this but as soon as I got home I crashed out for four hours.Then I had dinner and went back to bed,fearing the sound of the alarm which would tell me to get ready for the second day of the sale.

1.What kind of clothes is likely to be sold 5% cheaper?

A.Last summer’s clothes.

B.Clothes not in perfect condition.

C.Clothes bought in specially for the sales.

D.Clothes for winter.

2.Which of the following statements is true?

A.The customers gave up the queuing,for which the English are famous.

B.The customers kept their temper while looking for clothes they wanted.

C.Small children enjoyed crawling through people’s legs.

D.The security guards were fearless of the crowd.

3.In the author’s opinion,why were Graham’s happy to make their expensive store into a “battlefield”?

A.There were too many clothes and they wanted to clear them in the sales.

B.They were eager to show that they were clever at doing business.

C.They could take the chance to raise the prices of all their clothes.

D.They wanted to make more money by having sales.

4.What would be the best title for the passage?

A.The Best Bargain

B.Hunting for a Job

C.Sale Fever

D.A Pleasant Fortnight

 

I needed to get some money so, after Christmas, I took a job in the clothes department at Graham's for the first fortnight of the January sale．I can't say that I enjoyed it, but it was an experience I'll never forget．

       I could never understand why there were so many things in the sales, where did they all come from? Now I know the secret! Firstly, there is the special winter stock （货物） and the stock that people buy all the year round;  some of these things are slightly reduced．Secondly, there are the summer clothes they couldn't sell last year; these are heavily reduced to clear them．Thirdly, there are cheap clothes bought in specially for the sales; these are put out at high prices ten days before the sale begins and then are reduced by 60% in the sale．Clever! Lastly, they buy in “seconds”（clothes not in perfect condition） for the sale and they are sold very cheaply．

       When I arrived half an hour before opening on the first day of the sale, there was already a queue around three sides of the building．This made me very nervous．

       When the big moment arrived to open the doors, the security guards looking less confident than usual, came up to them, keys in hand．The moment they had unlocked the doors, they hid behind the doors for protection as the noisy crowd charged in．I couldn't believe my eyes; this wasn't shopping, it was a battlefield! One poor lady couldn't keep her feet and was knocked over by people pushing from behind．

       Clothes were flying in all directions as people searched for the sizes, colours and styles they wanted．Quarrels broke out．Mothers were using their small children to crawl through people's legs and get hold of things they couldn't get near themselves．

       Within minutes I had half a dozen people pushing clothes under my nose; each wanting to be the first served．Where had the famous English queue gone? The whole day continued like that, but I kept my temper81 was taking money hand over fist and began to realize why twice a year, Graham's were happy to turn their expensive store into a battlefield like this．

       In the sale fever; people were spending money like water without thinking whether they needed what they were buying．As long as it was a bargain it was OK．You won't believe this．But as soon as I got home I crashed out for four hours．Then I had dinner and went back to bed, fearing the sound of the alarm which would tell me to get ready for the second day of the sale.

What kind of clothes is likely to be s0ld 5% cheaper?

A．Last summer's clothes,     

B．Clothes not in perfect condition．

C．Clothes bought in specially for the sales．

D．Clothes for winter．

Which of the following statements is true?

A．The customers gave up the queuing, for which the English are famous．

B．The customers kept their temper while looking for clothes they wanted．

C．Small children enjoyed crawling though people's legs．

D．The security guards were fearless of the crowd．

In the author's opinion, why were Gradhani's happy to make, their expensive store into a "battlefield"?                

A．There were too many clothes and they wanted to clear them in the sales．

B．They were eager to show that they were clever at doing business．

C．They could take the chance to raise the prices of all their clothes．

D．They wanted to make more money by having sales．

The expression "crashed out" means _____．

A．chatted with her friends       B．slept soundly

C．broke down                 D．dined out

What would be the best title for the passage?

A．The Best Bargain．       B．Hunting for a Job．

C．Sale Fever．               D．A Pleasant Fortnight．

Attempt a guess at the following question: In the English-speaking world, which country has the least affordable homes? You are wrong if you guessed the US, even with the housing bubble (气泡) and main sadness. Nor is it the UK, where prices have risen because demand is far from supply. According to a recent survey of 227 cities around the globe, you must go south of the equator (赤道) to Australia to find the priciest homes.

The report measured a city’s housing market along the following guidelines. An “affordable” home required three times or less of the average family’s income to purchase. At four times earnings, a home fell into the “unaffordable” category. And a “seriously unaffordable” home needed five times a family’s income. In Australia, homes in the least affordable city cost just about 9.5 times the average income. Sydney, Perth, and Melbourne were only a little under this figure.

Australian officials offered little comment, apart from a general statement on the dismal findings. These prices make the possibility that many Australians will one day own a home largely unbelievable. Land rationing (配给制) and excessive development charges have raised prices, and the problem will only be solved through urgent action by the Rudd government.

Some American cities were also included on the least affordable list, four of which were in California. America is still involved in a mortgage（抵押）crisis, though, affecting the affordability of homes. Yet a number of US cities garnered “affordable” status, namely Dallas and Kansas. Australia had no cities listed in the top fifty places with affordable homes.

The survey suggests that you can find affordable homes in most places, just not if you’re Australian and choose to live down under.

To buy an affordable house, you should pay _____.

A. 3 times or less of the average family’s income

B. 4 times or less of the average family’s income

C. 5 times or less of the average family’s income

D. 9.5 times or less of the average family’s income

What caused the prices of houses to increase in Australia?

   A. The rising family’s income.

   B. The demand over supply.

   C. The excessive development charges.

   D. The decrease of land.

The underlined word “dismal” in Paragraph 3 may mean _____.

   A. cheerful       B. satisfactory       C. difficult        D. gloomy 

What might be the most suitable title for the passage?

A. Affordable Houses

B. A House is a Dream First

C. Housing Bubble

D. Homes Too Expensive

Attempt a guess at the following question: In the English-speaking world, which country has the least affordable homes? You are wrong if you guessed the US, even with the housing bubble （气泡） and main sadness． Nor is it the UK, where prices have risen because demand is far from supply． According to a recent survey of 227 cities around the globe, you must go south of the equator （赤道） to Australia to find the priciest homes．

The report measured a city’s housing market along the following guidelines． An “affordable” home required three times or less of the average family’s income to purchase． At four times earnings, a home fell into the “unaffordable” category． And a “seriously unaffordable” home needed five times a family’s income． In Australia, homes in the least affordable city cost just about 9．5 times the average income． Sydney, Perth, and Melbourne were only a little under this figure．

Australian officials offered little comment, apart from a general statement on the dismal findings． These prices make the possibility that many Australians will one day own a home largely unbelievable． Land rationing （配给制） and excessive development charges have raised prices, and the problem will only be solved through urgent action by the Rudd government．

Some American cities were also included on the least affordable list, four of which were in California． America is still involved in a mortgage（抵押）crisis, though, affecting the affordability of homes． Yet a number of US cities garnered “affordable” status, namely Dallas and Kansas． Australia had no cities listed in the top fifty places with affordable homes．

The survey suggests that you can find affordable homes in most places, just not if you’re Australian and choose to live down under．

To buy an affordable house, you should pay _____．

   A． 3 times or less of the average family’s income

    B． 4 times or less of the average family’s income

    C． 5 times or less of the average family’s income

    D． 9．5 times or less of the average family’s income

What caused the prices of houses to increase in Australia?

   A． The rising family’s income．       B． The demand over supply．

   C． The excessive development charges． D． The decrease of land．

The underlined word “dismal” in Paragraph 3 may mean _____．

   A． cheerful       B． satisfactory

   C． difficult           D． gloomy 

What might be the most suitable title for the passage?

    A． Affordable Houses   B． A House is a Dream First

    C． Housing Bubble      D． Homes Too Expensive

Below you will find a selection of helpful books to learn more about effective campaigns(运动) and one-to-one permission email marketing and more.
●  Advanced Email Marketing
Email is specially brilliant: low cost, high speed, personal, moving , and interactive. But there’s a big difference between knowing that email is a powerful marketing tool and proving it. —A1 ＄15.00
●  Sign Me Up!
Imagine it: prospects (前景) actually ask you to email your marketing information to them. At a time when people wouldn’t give out their email addresses and don’t believe most emails, it’s harder than ever for ordinary marketers to separate their emails from waste emails.—A2 ＄13.00
●  The Quiet Revolution
A revolution is taking place which will forever change the world of marketing. The strategies (策略)and techniques that have served marketers for years will not only decline in effectiveness, but will begin to quietly decline the very brands and the customer relationships that companies have worked so hard to create. —A3 ＄18.00
●  Permission Marketing
Seth Godin, one of the world’s foremost online promoters, offers his best advice for advertising in Permission Marketing. Godin argues that business can no longer rely only on traditional forms of “interruption advertising” in magazines and mailings, or radio and television commercials.—A5 ＄19.05
●  TOTAL E-Mail Marketing
Total E-Mail Marketing shows how to run effective e-mail campaigns aimed at both getting and keeping customers. The book covers much more than simply guidelines on e-mail creativity. It explains how to plan and carry out e-mail campaigns which connect with other online and offline communication. —A6 ＄39.5
●  Persuasive Online Copywriting: How to Take Your Words to the Bank
This copy of the book offers the most comprehensive (and immediately usable) information on “how to make your website usable” in the fewest amount of pages possible. —A7 ＄31.4
【小题1】It can be inferred that all the books can be relative to _______.

A．agriculture skills	B．everyday life
C．the Internet	D．hotels

【小题2】If you want to communicate with the bank, you’d better buy ______.

A．1

B．A3

C．A7

D．A5

【小题3】The prices of all the books are between _____.

A．ten and forty dollars

B．Fifteen and twenty dollars

C．twenty and thirty dollars

D．Thirty and forty dollars