Twenty years ago, I drove a taxi for a living. One time I arrived in the middle of the night for a pickup at a building that was        except for a single light in a ground floor window. I walked to the door and knocked.

A small woman in her 80’s opened the door. I took her suitcase to the cab then returned to       her into the cab. She thanked me for my kindness. When we got in the taxi, she gave me a(n)      , then asked, “Could you drive through downtown ?”

“It’s not the         way,” I answered.

“Oh, I don’t mind,” she said. “I’m in no hurry. I’m on my way to a hospice (临终关怀医院).”

I looked in the rear view mirror. Her eyes were glistening.

“The doctor says I don’t have very long.”

I quietly reached over and        the meter (计程器). “What         would you like me to take?” I asked.

For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked as an elevator operator. We drove through the neighborhood where she and her husband had lived. Sometimes she’d ask me to       in front of a particular building or corner and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing.

As the sun was       , she suddenly said: “I’m tired. Let’s go now.”

We drove in        to the address she had given me. There were people waiting for her and they put her in a wheelchair.

“How much do I have to pay you?” she asked, reaching into her purse.

“Nothing,” I said.

Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She held onto me tightly.

“You gave an old woman a little moment of       ,” she said.

I squeezed her hand, then walked into the dim morning light. Behind me, a door shut.

I didn’t        any more passengers that shift. I drove aimlessly, lost in thought. We tend to think that our lives revolve around great moments. But great moments often   47  us unconsciously.

1.A. ancient                   B. dark                            C. dirty                    D. remote

2.A. invite                      B. watch                      C. help                        D. receive

3.A. address                  B. letter                      C. speech                   D. present

4.A. wrong                     B. funniest                      C. safest                  D. shortest

5.A. cut out                    B. showed off            C. switched off          D. turned on

6.A. direction            B. order                              C. role                         D. route

7.A. break down           B. get off                              C. speed up               D. slow down

8.A. changing            B. moving                           C. rising                 D. Setting

9.A. darkness                B. noise                       C. silence                   D. sadness

10.A. joy                     B. interest                          C. trouble                   D. surprise

11.A. talk with           B. call up                             C. pick up                   D. take away

12.A. catch                    B. drive                  C. improve                  D. puzzle

Twenty years ago, I drove a taxi for a living. One time I arrived in the middle of the night for a pickup at a building that was 1 except for a single light in a ground floor window. I walked to the door and knocked.
A small woman in her 80’s opened the door. I took her suitcase to the cab then returned to 2 her into the cab. She thanked me for my kindness. When we got in the taxi, she gave me a(n)3 , then asked, “Could you drive through downtown ?”
“It’s not the 4 way,” I answered.
“Oh, I don’t mind,” she said. “I’m in no hurry. I’m on my way to a hospice (临终关怀医院).”
I looked in the rear view mirror. Her eyes were glistening.
“The doctor says I don’t have very long.”
I quietly reached over and 5 the meter (计程器). “What 6 would you like me to take?” I asked.
For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked as an elevator operator. We drove through the neighborhood where she and her husband had lived. Sometimes she’d ask me to 7 in front of a particular building or corner and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing.
As the sun was 8, she suddenly said: “I’m tired. Let’s go now.”
We drove in 9 to the address she had given me. There were people waiting for her and they put her in a wheelchair.
“How much do I have to pay you?” she asked, reaching into her purse.
“Nothing,” I said.
Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She held onto me tightly.
“You gave an old woman a little moment of 10,” she said.
I squeezed her hand, then walked into the dim morning light. Behind me, a door shut.
I didn’t 11 any more passengers that shift. I drove aimlessly, lost in thought. We tend to think that our lives revolve around great moments. But great moments often 12us unconsciously.

1. 1.
   1. A.
      ancient
   2. B.
      dark
   3. C.
      dirty
   4. D.
      remote
2. 2.
   1. A.
      invite
   2. B.
      watch
   3. C.
      help
   4. D.
      receive
3. 3.
   1. A.
      address
   2. B.
      letter
   3. C.
      speech
   4. D.
      present
4. 4.
   1. A.
      wrong
   2. B.
      funniest
   3. C.
      safest
   4. D.
      shortest
5. 5.
   1. A.
      cut out
   2. B.
      showed off
   3. C.
      switched off
   4. D.
      turned on
6. 6.
   1. A.
      direction
   2. B.
      order
   3. C.
      role
   4. D.
      route
7. 7.
   1. A.
      break down
   2. B.
      get off
   3. C.
      speed up
   4. D.
      slow down
8. 8.
   1. A.
      changing
   2. B.
      moving
   3. C.
      rising
   4. D.
      Setting
9. 9.
   1. A.
      darkness
   2. B.
      noise
   3. C.
      silence
   4. D.
      sadness
10. 10.
    1. A.
       joy
    2. B.
       interest
    3. C.
       trouble
    4. D.
       surprise
11. 11.
    1. A.
       talk with
    2. B.
       call up
    3. C.
       pick up
    4. D.
       take away
12. 12.
    1. A.
       catch
    2. B.
       drive
    3. C.
       improve
    4. D.
       puzzle

Washington, November 1, 2012  (CNN) -- After years of planning and months of campaigning（竞选）, the most expensive presidential race in history comes down to a final five-day whirlwind of speeches and television ads in the eight states still up for grabs.

President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney plan to hold virtually nonstop events between now and the Tuesday election considered too close to call.

The focus is on battleground states worth 95 of the 270 electoral votes needed to win. Both sides are trying to close the deal with a decreasing number of uncommitted(未表态的) voters, while making sure supporters actually cast ballots.

That means a game of campaign chess that started Thursday, with appearances by the candidates (候选人)and their assistants as well as advertising dollars allocated to the places considered most vital to success.

Concluding a race expected to cost more than $6 billion overall, Obama and Romney and their running mates will hit all the battleground states -- Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Ohio, New Hampshire, Nevada, Virginia and Wisconsin. The campaigns also are unloading a blast of television ads and mailings that threaten to overwhelm voters already saturated with politicking. Perhaps no one said it better than 4-year-old Abigael Evans of Fort Collins, Colorado, who -- according to NPR -- cried after listening to more election coverage on the radio and told her mother, ‘I'm tired of Barack Obama and Mitt Romney.’

1.The underlined phrase “too close to call” probably means               .

A．a game that one side is clearly winning.

B．a tie in which neither side seems likely to win

C．so close that you need not use a telephone

D．a visit close to one’s home state

2.What is the focus of the last-5 -day campaigns for both presidential candidates?

A．To make sure that their supporters understand their policies.

B．To collect enough money for campaign ads.

C．To paint their rival as black as possible.

D．To win over the voters who have not decide which candidate to vote for.

3.The public generally feel ________ about these last-days election efforts.

A．excited           B．disappointed       C．annoyed          D．relieved

What is freedom? It seems like such a simple question. Freedom is being able to do what you want to do. Allow me to explain it.
I’m tired of working for a living. I’d rather collect taxes. So that’s what I’m going to do: collect a kind of tax. You are ordered to estimate your income from the past 12 months, and write me a check for 1%. I have provided a mailing address for this purpose on my contact page …
What? You have a problem with my plan? Oh, I see. If you have to send me a check for the tax, then I have hurt your freedom to spend that money as you see fit. We have a conflict! And our basic problem is: we cannot enjoy freedom at the same time; we must settle for a limit. But what limit?
Libertarians (自由论者) believe freedom should be based on self-control. They describe freedom as being able to do what you want to do as long as it doesn’t influence the equal right of others to do what they want to do. That is, freedom is being able to do what you like as long as you do not harm another person’s life, liberty or property.
You can build a set of legal and ethical (道德的) rules on the principle of self-control, and libertarians do. Their request for self-control often becomes more important than common sense, or even freedom itself.
The definition rules out the freedom to steal, murder, and so on. Otherwise, you can do whatever you want. There is no problem until you realize that taxation is theft, that war is murder, and that national service is a form of slavery. Since only the government has a legal right to use force, libertarians focus on making the government smaller, or even going without it. The libertarians’ definition of freedom is thus freedom from the government. Isn’t it ridiculous?

1. 1.

   According to the first three paragraphs, the author’s idea of collecting taxes is _________.

   1. A.
      reasonable
   2. B.
      responsible
   3. C.
      unacceptable
   4. D.
      understandable
2. 2.

   The author takes tax-collecting as an example in the passage to prove that freedom is _________.

   1. A.
      unreal
   2. B.
      unbelievable
   3. C.
      achievable
   4. D.
      limited
3. 3.

   In the opinion of libertarians, freedom is realized mainly by _________.

   1. A.
      the law
   2. B.
      self-control
   3. C.
      ethical rules
   4. D.
      common sense
4. 4.

   Which of the following statements is supported by libertarians according to the passage?

   1. A.
      National service should be canceled.
   2. B.
      People can do whatever they want.
   3. C.
      The government should have more power.
   4. D.
      They should be governed by the government.