Yesterday was my stepmother’s birthday. I haven’t been home for a long time, so I wanted to stop by the house to  36  her on this special day. I have been  37  

on a low income so I was afraid that I couldn’t afford the long  38 . Gas is so expensive nowadays!  39 , I filled my tank with gas and set off.  

I  40  at a shopping mall and found a present. It was the  41  gift and I knew she would love it.  42  when I got to the cashier, my card was 43  !

I didn’t have enough money to  44  the gift!

So I thought about the 45  for a few minutes. I could put it back and get something  46 , but I knew there was 47  else in the store she would have liked as much. So, I transferred some money from my saving account and was able to buy the gift. It took a  48  part of my savings but I wanted her to have something special.

It turned out that she loved the gift and I  49  that even though I had spent almost all my money, my stepmother  50  the best. I was glad I gave her the best I could.

Before I  51  my parents’ house, my dad took me to one side and, with our secret handshake, he gave me some money. I hadn’t  52  anything to him about my financial  53  , but I guessed my dad just knew. When I got to the car, I saw the  54  he gave me was three times what I had spent on the gas and the gift! It shows that doing the right thing always comes with great  55  .

There are still many things that Peter Cooke would like to try his hand at — paper-making and feather-work are on his list. For the moment, though, he will stick to the skill that he has been delighted to make perfect over the past ten years: making delicate and unusual objects out of shells.

As he leads me round his apartment showing me his work, he points to a pair of shell-covered ornaments(装饰品) above a fireplace. “I shan’t be at all bothered if people don’t buy them because I have got so used to them, and to me they’re lovely. I never meant to sell my work commercially. Some friends came to see me about five years ago and said, ‘You must have an exhibition — people ought to see these. We’ll talk to a man who owns an art gallery’”. The result was an exhibition in London, at which 70 per cent of the objects were sold. His second exhibition opened at the gallery yesterday. Considering the enormous prices the pieces command —around ￡2,000 for the ornaments — an empty space above the fireplace would seem a small sacrifice for Cooke to make.

There are 86 pieces in the exhibition, with prices starting at￡225 for a shell-flower in a crystal vase. Cooke insists that he has nothing to do with the prices and is cheerily open about their level: he claims there is nobody else in the world who produces work like his, and, as the gallery-owner told him, “Well, you’re going to stop one day and everybody will want your pieces because there won’t be any more.”

“I do wish, though,” says Cooke, “that I’d taken this up a lot earlier, because then I would have been able to produce really wonderful things — at least the potential would have been there. Although the ideas are still there and I’m doing the best I can now, I’m more limited physically than I was when I started.” Still, the work that he has managed to produce is a long way from the common shell constructions that can be found in seaside shops. “I have a miniature(微型的) mind,” he says, and this has resulted in boxes covered in thousands of tiny shells, little shaded pictures made from shells and baskets of astonishingly realistic flowers.?

Cooke’s quest(追求) for beautiful, and especially tiny, shells has taken him further than his Norfolk shore: to France, Thailand, Mexico, South Africa and the Philippines, to name but a few of the beaches where he has lain on his stomach and looked for beauties to bring home. He is insistent that he only collects dead shells and defends himself against people who write him letters accusing him of stripping the world’s beaches. “When I am collecting shells, I hear people’s great fat feet crunching(嘎吱嘎吱地踩) them up far faster than I can collect them; and the ones that are left, the sea breaks up. I would not dream of collecting shells with living creatures in them or diving for them, but once their occupants have left, why should I not collect them?” If one bases this argument on the amount of luggage that can be carried home by one man, the beauty of whose work is often greater than its natural parts, it becomes very convincing indeed.

What does the reader learn about Peter Cooke in the first paragraph?

A. He has produced hand-made objects in different materials.?

B. He hopes to work with other materials in the future.?

C. He has written about his love of making shell objects.?

D. He was praised for his shell objects many years ago. 

When mentioning the cost of his shell objects, Cooke ____.

       A. cleverly changes the subject.

       B. defends the prices charged for his work.

       C. says he has no idea why the level is so high.

       D. notes that his work will not always be so popular.

The “small sacrifice” in Paragraph 2 refers to _________.?

A. the loss of Cooke’s ornaments?          B. the display of Cooke’s ornaments?

C. the cost of keeping Cooke’s ornaments    D. the space required to store Cooke’s ornaments

What does Cooke regret about his work?

A. He is not as famous as he should have been.?B. He makes less money than he should make.

C. He is less imaginative than he used to be.?    D. He is not as skillful as he used to be. ?

What does the reader learn about Cooke's shell-collecting activities?

A. Not everyone approves of what he does.

B. Other methods might make his work easier.

C. Other tourists get in the way of his collecting.

D. Not all shells are the right size and shape for his work

There are still many things that Peter Cooke would like to try his hand at — paper-making and feather-work are on his list. For the moment, though, he will stick to the skill that he has been delighted to make perfect over the past ten years: making delicate and unusual objects out of shells.

As he leads me round his apartment showing me his work, he points to a pair of shell-covered ornaments(装饰品) above a fireplace. “I shan’t be at all bothered if people don’t buy them because I have got so used to them, and to me they’re lovely. I never meant to sell my work commercially. Some friends came to see me about five years ago and said, ‘You must have an exhibition — people ought to see these. We’ll talk to a man who owns an art gallery’”. The result was an exhibition in London, at which 70 per cent of the objects were sold. His second exhibition opened at the gallery yesterday. Considering the enormous prices the pieces command —around ￡2,000 for the ornaments — an empty space above the fireplace would seem a small sacrifice for Cooke to make.

There are 86 pieces in the exhibition, with prices starting at￡225 for a shell-flower in a crystal vase. Cooke insists that he has nothing to do with the prices and is cheerily open about their level: he claims there is nobody else in the world who produces work like his, and, as the gallery-owner told him, “Well, you’re going to stop one day and everybody will want your pieces because there won’t be any more.”

“I do wish, though,” says Cooke, “that I’d taken this up a lot earlier, because then I would have been able to produce really wonderful things — at least the potential would have been there. Although the ideas are still there and I’m doing the best I can now, I’m more limited physically than I was when I started.” Still, the work that he has managed to produce is a long way from the common shell constructions that can be found in seaside shops. “I have a miniature(微型的) mind,” he says, and this has resulted in boxes covered in thousands of tiny shells, little shaded pictures made from shells and baskets of astonishingly realistic flowers.?

Cooke’s quest(追求) for beautiful, and especially tiny, shells has taken him further than his Norfolk shore: to France, Thailand, Mexico, South Africa and the Philippines, to name but a few of the beaches where he has lain on his stomach and looked for beauties to bring home. He is insistent that he only collects dead shells and defends himself against people who write him letters accusing him of stripping the world’s beaches. “When I am collecting shells, I hear people’s great fat feet crunching(嘎吱嘎吱地踩) them up far faster than I can collect them; and the ones that are left, the sea breaks up. I would not dream of collecting shells with living creatures in them or diving for them, but once their occupants have left, why should I not collect them?” If one bases this argument on the amount of luggage that can be carried home by one man, the beauty of whose work is often greater than its natural parts, it becomes very convincing indeed.

1.What does the reader learn about Peter Cooke in the first paragraph?

A. He has produced hand-made objects in different materials.?

B. He hopes to work with other materials in the future.?

C. He has written about his love of making shell objects.?

D. He was praised for his shell objects many years ago. 

2.When mentioning the cost of his shell objects, Cooke ____.

         A. cleverly changes the subject.

         B. defends the prices charged for his work.

         C. says he has no idea why the level is so high.

         D. notes that his work will not always be so popular.

3.The “small sacrifice” in Paragraph 2 refers to _________.?

A. the loss of Cooke’s ornaments?            B. the display of Cooke’s ornaments?

C. the cost of keeping Cooke’s ornaments      D. the space required to store Cooke’s ornaments

4.What does Cooke regret about his work?

A. He is not as famous as he should have been.?B. He makes less money than he should make.

C. He is less imaginative than he used to be.?      D. He is not as skillful as he used to be. ?

5.What does the reader learn about Cooke's shell-collecting activities?

A. Not everyone approves of what he does.

B. Other methods might make his work easier.

C. Other tourists get in the way of his collecting.

D. Not all shells are the right size and shape for his work

If you think a Web site designed especially for complaining sounds unique, then think again. If you have a complaint, there are hundreds of sites that allow you to get it off your chest. Sites exist for complaining about such things as defective products, government inefficiency, and offensive advertising. There are even sites where you can complain about anything that bugs you, including love, family, or just the weather. These Web sites won’t actually do anything about your problem; they just let you blow off steam. Here’s a sampling of complaints people have written:

1. Something I can’t stand is pencils! They need to be sharpened after every page you write. And then don’t you hate it when they start to make a scratching noise?

2. Have you ever noticed that in most schools you have chairs with armrests to write on attached to the right-hand side of the chair only? Where are the desks for left-handed people? It’s very uncomfortable for us “lefties” to use these desks made for right-handed people!

3. I see red every time I get my credit card bill from the bank. There’s always a check for a large amount attached with an invitation to sign it and spend it on “anything I want.” I have enough sense to rip it up and throw it away, but I bet a lot of people don’t. They don’t realize that when they use the “free check”, the expense gets put on their credit card bill. Boy, they must be surprised when they get that bill! I think that banks shouldn’t be tempting people with those checks.

4. It isn’t fair that only the US controls the Internet! I go to fill in a request for a catalog or a prize or a free offer, and I find it’s limited to residents of the United States. I live outside the US, and it’s frustrating!

60. If you have a complaint and go to some Web sites, ___________.

   A. your problem will be settled                                       B. you won’t be angry any more

   C. you are allowed to check your chest                           D. you will be bugged

61. What is the problem with those checks that people complained about?

   A. People can buy anything without paying the bill.           B. People usually throw them away.  

   C. People are surprised to get the checks.         D. People couldn’t realize they’d used too much with the check

62. Why do people complain about the Internet?

   A. People can’t find the internet outside the United States          B. People can’t get a free offer in the United States.

   C. People can’t get a free offer outside the United States.          D People can’t fill in a request for a free offer.

63. What could be the best title for the passage?

   A. Excellent Web Sites.                                            B. Complaining Online.

   C. Sampling of Complaints.                                       D. Writing out Your Complaints.