I tried not to be biased, but I had my doubts about hiring Stevie. His social worker assured me that he would be a good, reliable busboy. But I had never had a mentally handicapped employee. He was short, a little fat with the smooth facial features and thick-tongued speech of Down’s Syndrome (唐氏綜合癥). I thought most of my customers would be uncomfortable around Stevie so I closely watched him for the first few weeks.
I shouldn't have worried. After the first week, Stevie had my staff wrapped around his fat little finger, and within a month my regular truck customers had adopted him as their official truck stop mascot(吉祥物). After that, I really didn't care what the rest of the customers thought of him. He was like a 21-year-old in blue jeans and Nikes, eager to laugh and eager to please, but fierce in his attention to his duties. Every salt and pepper shaker was exactly in its place, not a coffee spill was visible when Stevie got done with the table. Our only problem was persuading him to wait to clean a table until after the customers were finished.
Over time, we learned that he lived with his mother, a widow who was disabled after repeated surgeries for cancer. Money was tight, and what I paid him was probably the difference between them being able to live together and Stevie being sent to a group home.
That's why the restaurant was a gloomy place that morning last August, the first morning in three years that Stevie missed work. He was at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester getting a heart surgery. His social worker said that people with Down’s Syndrome often have heart problems at an early age so this wasn't unexpected, and there was a good chance he would come through the surgery in good shape and be back at work in a few months.
A ripple of excitement ran through the staff later that morning when word came that he was out of surgery, in recovery, and doing fine. Frannie, the head waitress, did a little dance when she heard the good news. Belle Ringer, one of our regular trucker customers, stared at her and asked, "OK, Frannie, what was that all about?"
"We just got word that Stevie is out of surgery and going to be okay."
"I was wondering where he was. I had a new joke to tell him. What was the surgery about?"
Frannie quickly told Belle Ringer and the other two drivers about Stevie's surgery, then sighed: "Yeah, I'm glad he is going to be OK," she said. "But I don't know how he and his Mom are going to handle all the bills. From what I hear, they're barely getting by as it is." Belle Ringer nodded thoughtfully, and Frannie hurried off to wait on the rest of her tables.
After the morning rush, Frannie walked into my office. She had a couple of paper napkins in her hand and a funny look on her face.
"What's up?" I asked.
"I cleared off that table where Belle Ringer and his friends were sitting after they left, and I found this was folded and put under a coffee cup."
She handed the napkin to me, and three $20 bills fell onto my desk when I opened it. On the outside, in big, bold letters, was printed "Something For Stevie".
That was three months ago. Today is Thanksgiving, the first day Stevie is supposed to be back to work. His social worker said he had been counting the days until the doctor said he could work. I arranged to have his mother bring him to work, met them in the parking lot and invited them both to celebrate his day back.
I led them toward a large corner booth. I could feel and hear the rest of the staff following behind as we marched through the dining room. We stopped in front of the big table. Its surface was covered with coffee cups, and dinner plates, all sitting slightly bent on dozens of folded paper napkins.
"First thing you have to do, Stevie, is clean up this mess," I said.
Stevie looked at me, and then at his mother, then pulled out one of the napkins. It had "Something for Stevie" printed on the outside. As he picked it up, two $10 bills fell onto the table. Stevie stared at the money, then at all the napkins peeking from beneath the tableware, each with his name printed on it.
I turned to his mother. "There's more than $10,000 in cash and checks on that table, all from truckers and trucking companies that heard about your problems. "Happy Thanksgiving !"
Well, it got really noisy about that time, with everybody hollering and shouting, and there were a few tears, as well. But you know what's funny?
While everybody else was busy shaking hands and hugging each other, Stevie, with a big, big smile on his face, was busy clearing all the cups and dishes from the table.
55. Which of the following is true about Stevie?
A. Stevie worked on a bus selling bus fare.
B. Stevie was a mentally healthy boy.
C. Stevie was bad-tempered because he suffered Down’s Syndrome.
D. Stevie wiped tables and mopped floors in a restaurant.
56. According to the story, which of the following sentences is true?
A. Stevie made customers uncomfortable. B. Stevie usually cleaned the table too early
C. Stevie often spilled coffee out of cups. D. Stevie couldn’t fix his attention on his work.
57. By saying the underlined sentence in Para. 3, the author meant that the money she paid Stevie ________.
A. could help Stevie out of the money trouble.
B. couldn’t thoroughly solve Stevie’s problem.
C. could make a great difference to Stevie’s life.
D. couldn’t send Stevie to a group home.
58. Why did Frannie sigh after she got word that Stevie would be OK ?
A. She was worried about Stevie’s finance problem.
B. She was worried about Stevie’s health.
C. She was worried that the owner would fire Stevie.
D. She was worried that no one would help Stevie.
59. Why did the author ask Stevie to clean up the mess on the table after he returned?
A. It was Stevie’s duty to clean the table.
B. The table was so dirty that it needed cleaning.
C. Stevie would find the money that was given to him.
D. She wanted to congratulate Stevie on his coming back.
60. Stevie was popular among the staff and customers in the restaurant because of ______.
A. his special appearance. B. his hard work and optimism.
C. his funny speeches and actions. D. his kind-hearted behaviours.
科目：高中英語 來源： 題型：閱讀理解
“Mom, can I bake some bread?” We were 15, my best friend, Hanna, and I, determined to try our hands at creating some beautiful bread.
“It’s not worth the trouble,” my mother said. “It takes lots of time and makes a big mess. Our bakery bread is delicious without all that effort.”
Begging was useless. Mom’s “no” meant “No!”
But several weeks later, opportunity knocked: My parents were going out for the evening. I immediately invited Hanna to be my partner in bread-baking crime.
We studied the recipe. That was easy. “Mix oil into flour then beat in four of the eggs, one at a time, with remaining sugar and salt.”
We were not good at breaking eggs. I tried to learn from my mother.
“Gradually add eight cups of flour. When dough (面團) holds together, squeeze it.”
We took turns working like that. “Is the dough ‘holding together’?” we asked each other.
I remembered my neighbor’s instructions: “If it’s too sticky, add some flour; if too dry, add water.”
We added water. Then more flour. Then more water. By then, the mass of our dough had grown very much.
“Place dough on floured surface and squeeze till smooth,” the recipe instructed.
We took turns burying our hands in the damp dough, pinching, squeezing, and feeling it leak between fingers.
“Clean and oil bowl, then return dough to bowl. Cover and let dough rise in warm place for 1 hour.”
This was good news --- we’d have a break. On dirtied kitchen chairs, we dreamed about our beautiful bread. “See?” we would tell my mom. “Isn’t it worth the work?”
Hanna and I couldn’t help glancing at the rising process every few minutes. But nothing was happening.
“Maybe something will happen in the hot oven,” I said.
Unfortunately, when we removed the loaves from the oven, they were like hard stones.
Mom was right; it takes time and effort. It sometimes makes a mess. But still it feels good, somehow, to be part of that long, ongoing chain of bread bakers. Since that night, both Hanna and I have learned to do it right.
To the writer, what her mother said was __________.
A. law B. rubbish C. advice D. warning
Which of the following can best describe the children’s feelings while making their first bread?
A. Confident; hopeful; disappointed. B. Curious; hopeful; disappointed.
C. Interested; excited; satisfied. D. Worried; satisfied; proud.
Which of the following did the writer do without instructions?
A. Placed dough on floured surface. B. Added eight cups of flour to eggs.
C. Returned dough to a cleaned bowl. D. Placed the dough into the hot oven.
The passage mainly tells us ______________.
A. the process of making bread B. the conflict between mother and daughter
C. the first experience of making bread D. the way of doing housework
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科目：高中英語 來源：2011-2012學年福建省三明一中高二下學期第二次月考英語試卷（帶解析） 題型：完型填空
Several years ago, while attending a communication course, I experienced a most unusual process. The instructor asked us to list__36__ in our past that we felt __37__ of, regretted, or incomplete about and read our lists aloud.
This seemed like a very __38__ process, but there’s always some __39__soul in the crowd who will volunteer. The instructor then __40__ that we find ways to __41__ people, or take some action to right any wrong doings. I was seriously wondering how this could ever __42__ my communication.
Then the man next to me raised his hand and volunteered this story: “Making my__43__, I remembered an incident from high school. I grew up in a small town. There was a Sheriff __44__ of us kids liked. One night, my two buddies（同伴） and I decided to play a __45__ on him.
After drinking a few beers, we climbed the tall water tank in the middle of the town, and wrote on the tank in bright red paint: Sheriff Brown is a s.o.b. (畜生). The next day, almost the whole town saw our glorious __46__. Within two hours, Sheriff Brown had us in his office. My friends told the truth but I lied. No one __47__ found out.”
“Nearly 20 years later, Sheriff Brown’s name __48__ on my list. I didn’t even know if he was still __49__. Last weekend, I dialed the information in my hometown and found there was a Roger Brown still listed. I tried his number. After a few __50__, I heard, “Hello?” I said, “Sheriff Brown?” Paused. “Yes.” “Well, this is Jimmy Calkins.”
“And I want you to know that I did it.” Paused. “I knew it!” he yelled back. We had a good laugh and a __51__ discussion. His closing words were: “Jimmy, I always felt bad for you __52__ your buddies got it off their chest, but you were carrying it __53__ all these years. I want to thank you for calling me...for your sake.”
Jimmy inspired me to __54__all 101 items on my list within two years, and I always remember what I learned from the course: It’s never too late to __55__the past wrongdoings.
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科目：高中英語 來源：2013-2014學年安徽省馬鞍山市高三第一次教學質(zhì)量檢測英語試卷（解析版） 題型：閱讀理解
My wife Julie and I were out on the road that runs around where we live, when we saw an old worn-out dog stumbling (蹣跚) painfully up the road. We stopped, bent down, talked gently to the dog and patted it. I checked and there was a collar with a phone number. I called but no one answered.
The dog was painfully thin. So Julie ran home to get some of our dog’s food while I tried to encourage the dog. After Julie came back, we sat down on the sidewalk while our new friend made short work of the food. Eventually we got her home.
After trying for many times we got a response from the number. A lady came around with a bunch of flowers for us. She explained that Tara had been her father’s dog. She was very old and got lost that morning. So, Tara was safely returned home.
Here is the truth of the story:
Actually Julie and I were out that morning because I was leaving. She was trying to persuade me to come back, but I wasn’t hearing anything that made that sound likely.
I was about to turn and go when an old black dog walked between us and almost fell down. Suddenly we had something more important than our problem to worry about. There was a creature in need right before us and we had to work together to help it.
We did help it. And here I am writing the story in my own home, in my own family.
In the song “Love Is Not a Fight” Warren Barfield talks about marriage. At one point he sings, “And if we try to leave, may God send angels (天使) to guard the door.”
Sometimes angels come disguised (偽裝) as dogs.
1.How was the dog when found?
A. Too weak to walk. B. Thin and worn out.
C. Unable to eat food. D. Homeless but gentle.
2. We can infer from Paragraph 2 that .
A. the dog didn’t go with the writer
B. the writer had his own pet dog
C. Julie bought some food for the dog
D. the dog didn’t eat any of the food
3.The underlined part “our problem” in the passage refers to the fact that .
A. the writer didn’t want to take Julie’s advice
B. an old black dog appeared in front of them
C. Julie disagreed with the writer’s travel on business
D. the couple had some trouble with their marriage
4.Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
A. An Angel Dog B. A Helpful Couple C. Saving the Dog D. A Famous Song
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科目：高中英語 來源：2012年北師大版高中英語選修一Unit5練習卷（解析版） 題型：單詞拼寫
單詞拼寫（15）
1.He was very _________ (失望的)with my performance． _______________
2.The magician is ________ (表演)some astonishing tricks． _______________
3.She showed us the athletics ___________ (獎品)she had won． ________________
4.They export their products to markets__________ (遍及)the world． _______________
5.I shall always ___________(珍視)the memory of our meetings． ________________
6.I tried to persuade him，but with little or no e__________． ________________
7. His first speech as president made a strong i________ on his audience. ________________
8.Do you know what X r__________ in this equation(方程式)? _______________
9.G__________ speaking，all of us felt happy this week． _______________
10.Theory(理論) ought to be c_______ with practice. _______________
11. The audience were greatly i___________ by what she performed. _______________
12.The story happened on a e__________ cold winter night. _______________
13. Children under 18 are not p________ into such occasions. _______________
14. In order to keep fit, I q__________ smoking . ______________
15.Folk songs hand down from one g__________ to another. ______________
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科目：高中英語 來源：2012-2013學年江蘇省高三期初（暑期）檢測英語試卷（解析版） 題型：完型填空
It was just getting dark. There was a touch of fog and I was on a lonely stretch of road. 36
I was going along cheerfully, thinking about the dinner I would eat when I got to Salistury.
I was going along 37 at about thirty-five miles an hour when suddenly I heard a scream, a 38 scream--- “ Help! ” I looked round, but the only 39 of life was a large, black, rather suspicious-looking car just 40 a bend in the road about a hundred yards away. That was where the cry had come from. I 41 speed and went after it. I think the driver saw what I was doing, for he did the same and began to draw 42 me. As I drew near, the girl’s voice came again, a lovely voice but trembling with 43 .
“Let me go, you coward; you’re hurting me. Oh ! Oh ! ”
I felt my 44 boil. The fog was coming down 45 now, and the countryside was lonelier. I had no 46 that the murderous guy in the car noticed this. Again came a cry.
“Drop that knife, you fool. Oh ! ” Then a cry and a groan（呻吟）.
If I was to save her, it was now or 47 . Perhaps even now I was too late. But if I couldn’t save the girl, I would at least try to bring the murderer to 48 . The car was only a couple of yards away now. I drove the bike right across its 49 , and its brakes screamed as the driver tried to pull it over and 50 into the ditch（溝）at the side of the road. The door of the car was pushed open angrily and a dark, evil-looking fellow stepped out .
“You fool!” he shouted as he came towards me with his fist raised to hit me. But I was 51 than he. I put all I could into 52 that would have knocked out Joe Louis. It 53 him right on the point of the chin; his 54 slowly bent under him, and he dropped to the ground without a sound. I rushed to the car, 55 open the door and looked inside. There was no girl there. Suddenly from the back of the car came a voice.
“You have been listening to a radio play, Murder in Hollywood, with Mae Garbo and Clark Taylor. The news will follow immediately . ”
1.A. And B. Though C. Therefore D. But
2.A. quietly B. quickly C. carefully D. nervously
3.A. boy’s B. man’s C. woman’s D. driver’s
4.A. person B. sign C. sound D. form
5.A. turning B. crossing C. going D. driving
6.A. slowed down B. put on C. added to D. took up
7.A. right behind B. close to C. away from D. near by
8.A. joy B. sorrow C. fear D. anger
9.A. tears B. heart C. face D. blood
10.A. slighter B. thicker C. lower D. harder
11.A. need B. effort C. trouble D. doubt
12.A. never B. late C. ever D. then
13.A. justice B. court C. lawyer D. sentence
14.A. direction B. path C. front D. nose
15.A. drove B. ran C. crashed D. sped
16.A. slower B. quicker C. taller D. heavier
17.A. an anger B. a fist C. a beat D. a blow
18.A. caught B. struck C. knocked D. beat
19.A. chin B. fists C. knees D. body
20.A. hit B. brought C. pushed D. pulled
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