“Hi, Mommy, what are you doing?” asked Susie, who was only six years old. “I’m making a casserole(炖锅菜) for Mrs. Smith next door, __36__ Mrs. Smith is very sad. She lost her daughter and has a __37__ heart. We need to take care of her a little while.” Said her mother. “ Why, Mommy?” 
“You see, Susie, when someone is very, very sad, they have __38__ doing the little things like making dinner or other housework. Because we’re __39__ of a community and Mrs. Smith won’t ever be able to talk with her daughter or hug(拥抱) her. You are a very __40__ girl, Susie; maybe you’ll think of __41__ way to help take care of Mrs. Smith.”
Susie thought __42__ about this challenge and how she could do her __43__ on caring for Mrs. Smith. A few minutes later, Susie knocked on her door. After a few moments, Mrs. Smith __44__ the knock with a “Hi, Susie.”
Susie noticed that Mrs. Smith didn’t have that familiar musical __45__ about her voice when she __46__ someone.
“What can I do for you, Susie?” asked Mrs. Smith.
“My mommy says that you lost your daughter and you’re very, very sad with a broken heart.” Susie __47__ her hand out shyly. In it was a Band-Aid. “This is for your broken heart.” Mrs. Smith knelt down and hugged Susie. Through her __48__ she said, “Thank you, darling girl, this will __49__ a lot.”
Mrs. Smith __50__ Susie’s act of kindness and took it one step __51__. She bought a small key ring with a picture frame(框架) ---- the ones __52__ to carry keys and display a family __53__ at the same time. Mrs. Smith placed Susie’s Band-Aid in the frame to __54__ her to heal a little every time she sees it. It has become her symbol(象征) for healing, while not __55__ the joy and love she experienced with her daughter.

I have to admit: I don’t flush(冲) the toilet every time I go to the bathroom. In fact, I firmly believe “If it’s yellow, let it mellow; if it’s brown, flush it down.”

I’m sure a lot of it has to do with the fact that I work at home. Alone (well, except for the cats and dog). All day. And I drink a lot of water, which makes for many trips to the bathroom.

Another thing I have to admit: I also try to use very little toilet paper. I wash my hands after, though. Every time. (So maybe the water I don’t use flushing makes up for the water used to wash my hands?)

Ironically, my husband, who only uses toilet paper when necessary, always flushes. But he doesn’t seem to mind that I don’t flush every time. Or, at least not enough to file for divorce. Yet.

 Posted by Juliet Farmer

 Jun 14, 2010 at 10:21 PM

Comments (2)                                                     

When I’m at home alone I do not flush every time I pee(小便).  My husband hates that, though, so when he’s home, I flush a little more often.  I grew up doing that because I had a family that lived with huge tanks and you have to do it that way because it’s easier on the system, so it doesn’t bother me.  I do flush when I’m out in public, at people’s houses that don’t have big tanks and when we have company!

CherBearCM, Jun 15, 2010 at 4:21 PM

Not always. But I have 4 children who are always hanging from the door knob（球形捏手） while I pee anyway. So I’m lucky I have time to wash my hands after. The average toilet uses 8 gallons of water per flush! Much less than what it takes to wash my hands after. (just saying)

luvbnmomnwife, Jun 15, 2010 at 4:32 PM

CherBearCM doesn’t flush the toilet every time she pees ________.

A. because she can’t afford so much water

B. because her husband doesn’t like that

C. when she is with her friends

D. when she is alone

luvbnmomnwife seems to enjoy ________.

A. washing hands after using the toilet

B. taking care of her four children

C. peeing with her kids watching

D. flushing the toilet after peeing

The text is taken from ________.

A. a newspaper

B. a website

C. a magazine

D. a handbook

Which of the following titles best suits the text?

A. Stop flushing your toilet!

B. Do you flush the toilet every time?

C. Don’t forget to flush the toilet after peeing!

D. Do you realize the importance of saving water?

第二节 完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5，满分30分）

阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）出可以填入空白的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

One summer night, on my way home from work I decided to see a movie. I knew the theatre would be air-conditioned and I couldn’t face my 1_____ apartment. Sitting in the theatre I had to look through the 2_____between the two tall heads in front of me. I had to keep changing the 3____every time she leaned over to talk to him. 4_____ he leaned over to kiss her. Why do Americans display such 5____ in a public place? I thought the movie would be good for my English, but 6_____ it turned out, it was an Italian movie. 7____ about an hour I decided to give up on the movie and 8_____ on my popcorn. I’ve never understood why they give you so much popcorn! It tasted pretty good, 9____. Afetr a while I heard 10____ more of the romantic-sounding Italians. I just heard the 11____ of the popcorn crunching(咀嚼) between my teeth. My thought started to 12 _____. I remembered when I was in South Korea, I 13 ____ to watch Kojak on TV frequently.

He spoke perfect Korean-I was really amazed. He seemed like a good friend to me, 14____I saw him again in NewYork speaking 15_____English instead of perfect Korean. He didn’t even have a Korean accent and I 16_____like I had been betrayed(背叛). When our family moved to the United States six years ago, none of us spoke any English. 17____we had begun to learn a few words, my mother suggested that we all should speak English at home. Everyone agreed, but our house became very 18_____ and we all seemed to avoid each other. We sat at the dinner table in silence, preferring that to 19____ in a difficult language. Mother tried to say something in English but it 20_____ out all wrong and we all burst into laughter and decided to forget it! We’ve been speaking Korean at home ever since.

.A.warm            B. hot              C. heated            D. cool

. A.crack            B. blank            C. break             D. opening

. A.seat              B. view            C. space             D. angle

. A.while            B. whenever         C. or                D. and

. A.attraction         B. attention          C. affection           D. motion

. A.since             B. when             C. what              D. as

. A.Within            B. After            C. For                D. Over

.A.set               B. chew              C. fix               D. taste

. A.too               B. still              C. though            D. certainly

.A.much             B. any               C. no               D. few

. A.voice            B. sound             C. rhythm            D. tone

. A.wonder          B. imagine          C. wander             D. depart

. A.enjoyed          B. happened          C. turned             D. used

. A.until            B. because              C. then            D. therefore

. A.false             B. informal            C. perfect          D. practical

. A.felt               B. looked             C. seemed         D. appeared

. A.While            B. Before             C. If               D. Once

. A.empty            B. quiet              C. noisy            D. calm

. A.telling            B. shouting            C. saying         D. speaking

. A.worked           B. got                C. came           D. made

In Greek mythology(神话), fire is a gift form God, stolen from Zeus(宙斯) by Prometheus and handed over to humans suffering from cold. What could be more natural than sitting around a beautiful fire on a winter night, at a campsite in the Berkshires?

Hard as it may be to believe, the fireplace—long considered a trophy(奖杯), particularly in a city like New York—is acquiring a social shame. Among those who desire to be environmentally responsible, it is joining the ranks of bottled water and big houses.

Sally Treadwell, a 51-year-old public relations executive in Boone, N.C., said nothing makes her happier than building a fire on a cold winter night. But most of the time she doesn’t, because she feels too guilty about the damage it may do to the environment. Every time she builds a fire, it causes “inner conflict,” she said. “It’s a guilty pleasure”.

“The smoke from a fire smells very nice,” said Diane Bailey, a senior scientist with the Natural Resources Defense Council in San Francisco. “But it can cause a lot of harm. The tiny particles(颗粒) can cause illness, and can cross into the bloodstream, causing heart attacks as well as worsening other conditions.”

Growing concerns about the air pollution and health problems caused by smoke from wood fires are urging a number of areas across the country to pass laws regulating them. Idaho offers a tax cut to people who replace uncertified(不合格的)wood stoves with “greener” ones; San Joaquin County in California forbids selling a home unless its wood stove is replaced with an E.P.A. certified one；and Palo Alto and other governments in California forbid wood-burning fireplaces in new construction.

Certainly, many think otherwise. In any case, most fireplaces are used far too infrequently to cause any real damage to the environment, said Stephen Sears, the vice president of the Brick Industry Association, voicing an opinion shared by some.

Perhaps not coincidentally, sales of wood-burning equipment dropped to 235,000 in 2009 from 800,000 in 1999, according to the Brick Industry Association. It also reports that approximately 35,000 fireplaces were installed in the United States in 2009, compared to 80,000 in 2005. Certainly those numbers reflect the economic slowdown, but the may also be affected by growing mixed feelings to wood fries.

1.We can infer from the 2nd paragraph that ________.

A. big houses are not considered environmentally friendly

B. bottle water is a good companion for a fire place

C. a fireplace is viewed as a sign of success

D. people in New York are laughed at for their tradition

2.Sally’s “inner conflict” in the 3rd paragraph resulted from ________.

A. her love for the fireplace

B. the damage to the environment

C. the concern about her health

D. her mixed emotion fro the fireplace

3. In terms of the regulations about wood fires we can learn from the passage that_______.

A. uncertified fireplaces are forbidden in Idaho

B. some people are against the woodfire controlling regulations 

C. only energy-efficient wood stoves can be used in the US

D. all the people support measures taken to control the use of fireplaces

4.What is the author’s purpose in writing the passage?

A. To urge people to burn less wood

B. To discuss wood-burning’s impact

C. To throw light on the causes of the fireplace’s decline

D. To indicate the cooling love for the fireplace

第三节：完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分,满分30分）
阅读下面短文,从短文后所给各题的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中,选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
I learned to play on a piano purchased at Grinnell Brothers in Detroit.My brothers and sisters were taking lessons and I  41  to play, too."You're  42  young,"I heard over and over.But when began playing my sister's   43  by heart from hearing her practice, they   44  me begin. I was four.  45   joy and comfort I found at those keys.If I had a rough day at school,I played ragtime hard and loud  46  my frustratio(挫折)was gone, then I calmed my self with Mozart until I was  47  to face the world. The day I lost my first child, and my dad was diagnosed with cancer,I played until I nearly  48  .There was a comfort in those keys.
That piano followed me everywhere.I taught hundreds of  49  and adults on the keys of my own piano in Taylor for over ten years. I  50  my home to a fire in 1998 and my piano was destroyed. I felt  51 I lost my oldest friend.
The insurance (保险) supplied the money to purchase  52  .My mother asked me every time she spoke to me, "Did you get another piano yet?" even when she struggled to call me by name. After she died in 1999, I  53  an envelope containing a gift certificate(礼券)to Hammell Music for a  54 .Mother made sure that I would get another piano, knowing I wouldn't do it  55   .
And so I purchased a Yamaha baby grand. Nearby hangs Mom and Dad's  56  . I play every day when I come home from work. I imagine my folks are in heaven,  57  and smiling. Every song is for them and the  58  goes on.
And although I miss my first piano, the new one is a(n)  59  that old things pass away and new life  60  .
41.A.planned B.allowed       C.begged D.dared
42.A.very       B.so C.not      D.too
43.A.lessons   B.piano   C.keys     D.text
44.A.permitted       B.promised     C.let       D.made
45.A.What a   B.What   C.How    D.How many
46.A.until       B.when   C.as soon as    D.after
47.A.likely     B.ready   C.discouraged D.afraid
48.A.dropped  B.went    C.came to       D.slept
49.A.people    B.students       C.boys    D.children
50.A.destroyed       B.left      C.lost      D.rebuilt
51.A.as though       B.even though C.even if D.though
52.A.the other B.another       C.a house       D.one
53.A.accepted B.gained  C.received      D.won
54.A.present   B.piano   C.house   D.sum of money
55.A.for myself     B.at all    C.any way      D.above all
56.A.bed B.clothing      C.portrait       D.name
57.A.crying    B.listening      C.singing D.playing
58.A.joy  B.piano   C.sadness D.friendship
59.A.book      B.reminder     C.equipment   D.instrument
60.A.disappears      B.remains       C.stops    D.begins