Yesterday I was a bit early for an appointment so I stopped in at McDonald's for a coffee. I think they make the best coffee. Two very pleasant young girls were working at the counter and the customer ahead was impossible to please!

The young girl was sweaty and nearly in tears. I only wanted coffee but I liked lots of milk in it. I really didn't want to be difficult so I said,“You go ahead and add lots of milk and if it's not enough, I'll ask for more. ” She smiled. She made a perfect coffee. I left her two pieces of candy as a tip.

I went to her supervisor and let the leader know how well she handled such a difficult customer ahead of me. More of that needs to be done for young people starting out - probably the first job. '

I remember how hard it was. I would have run away crying and quit, if it had been me yesterday serving those customers. I'd still be crying too.

Comments posted by molliecat on July 29

READERS' COMMENTS

FayBaby wrote: Customer service can be one of the most difficult and thankless jobs at times. Your expression of appreciation (感激)probably made her day.

Mish wrote: How dear you were to lend support there, dear molliecat. Love you ! kiwicat wrote: My sons both have dreadful(糟透了的)first job stories of how rude and demanding customers can be. I now always encourage a new cashier or someone to do job training. Thanks for the reminder(提醒物)that we can be more tolerant and thankful to those who offer front-line customer service. mindyjourney wrote: Thank you for helping calm the young worker with your appreciation and thoughtfulness,So many good lessons you have earned are shared. Blessings, dear molliecat.

【小题1】Why did the writer have a coffee at McDonald's?

A．Because she arrived for the appointment ahead of time.

B．Because her appointment was delayed.

C．Because she wanted some coffee to calm down.

D．Because the coffee at McDonald's was very cheap.

【小题2】What can we know about the customer before the writer?

A．The customer was a pleasant young woman.

B．The customer was difficult to deal with.

C．The customer was easy to please.

D．The customer was very sweaty.

【小题3】What does the underlined word“supervisor” in Paragraph 3 mean?

A．A person in charge.

B．A person in need.

C．An elderly customer.

D．A reader of a website.

【小题4】The passage is most likely to be taken from

A．a website	B．a practical guide
C．a newspaper	D．a textbook

William just heard the news that his father had died and he was preparing to make flight arrangements. “I have to have my _______  tidy for the funeral,” thought William. “I want to get a _______  haircut.”
When he arrived at the barber’s shop, just like on any other Saturday, it was _______   . Realising he had to get to the airport on time, he _______ one of the barbers if he could get a _______  right away. And he also explained his _______ to her.
Nhanh Pham was the _______  William spoke to, and after she finished with her customer, she asked William to sit in her chair _______  . William said “thank you” to her. While William was  _______   his hair cut, the other barbers came to William to ________  their condolences（慰问）.
Pham finished the haircut and William prepared to ________ her. As he was pulling out his money, Pham ________ the payment. She told him the haircut was free, and she gave him some ________  that the barbers in the shop had collected. They wanted to make sure William would have some money to buy some  ________  for the funeral.
“They didn’t have to do that,” William said  ________. “They have done something beyond their duty.” William used the money to buy his ________ a dozen roses.
“The way I feel is that it was no big  ________ ,” said Rosalie Le, one of the barbers who contributed to the ________. “We are all human and we help each other.”
As for the woman who started the day’s ________ , Pham, she said she had sympathy(同情)for William and wanted to do something ________. Pham summed up her kindness by saying, “I felt sorry for him.”

【小题1】

A．suit B．jacket C．hair D．tie

【小题2】

A．fresh B．funny C．cheap D．strange

【小题3】

A．dirty B．limited C．empty D．crowded

【小题4】

A．demanded B．asked C．waited D．followed

【小题5】

A．haircut B．ticket C．reply D．record

【小题6】

A．position B．thought C．promise D．situation

【小题7】

A．customer B．barber C．teacher D．guard

【小题8】

A．rudely B．suddenly C．politely D．seriously

【小题9】

A．changing B．keeping C．having D．checking

【小题10】

A．express B．share C．begin D．carry

【小题11】

A．stop B．thank C．return D．pay

【小题12】

A．accepted B．refused C．compared D．expected

【小题13】

A．money B．food C．wine D．water

【小题14】

A．pictures B．cakes C．clothes D．flowers

【小题15】

A．hopefully B．gratefully C．luckily D．perfectly

【小题16】

A．mother B．wife. C．father D．friend

【小题17】

A．problem B．trouble C．deal D．signal

【小题18】

A．collection B．practice C．experience D．decision

【小题19】

A．sadness B．safeness C．loneliness D．kindness

【小题20】

A．easy B．nice C．normal D．hard

   Mary Krupa became friends with the grey squirrels during her first week at Penn State University, after spotting them running around and idly（漫不经心地）wondering what they would look like with tiny hats on their heads. Today, everyone at the university knows her as the “Squirrel Girl”.

Mary started bringing them food, and gradually they began to trust her. She managed to put a hat on a squirrel and take a picture. Thinking that she could do something to lift up people’s spirits, she started posting similar photos on Facebook. The response was greatly positive, and before long Mary and her squirrels became an Internet sensation.

Growing up in a neighborhood outside the state college, Mary was always fond of birds and animals around her home, but she didn’t interact with people very much. She was later diagnosed with Asperger syndrome（阿斯伯格综合征）, but the squirrels changed that. “The squirrels are actually a good way to break the ice, because I’ll be sitting here patting a squirrel and other people will come over and we just start feeding the squirrels together and chatting about them,” “she said. “I am a lot more outgoing.”

And in case you’re wondering how Mary is able to get the squirrels to do what she wants for her photos, it has a lot to do with food. For example, whenever she wants them to hold or play with something, she puts peanut butter on the prop（道具）, and they’ll grab it. But getting to that part took a while. In the beginning, she would throw peanuts up the trees on campus and invite the squirrels to come down and get them, but they hesitated to approach her. She had the patience to earn their trust, though.

This year, Mary is graduating with degrees in English and Wildlife Sciences. She wants to be a science writer and educate people on how to preserve the environment. As for her furry friends, Mary plans to stay in the area and visit them as often as she can.

【小题1】What kind of change do squirrels bring to Mary?

A．She is healthier than before.

B．She became interested in animals.

C．She is more sociable than before.

D．She began to love taking photos.

【小题2】How did Mary manage to take photos of squirrels wearing hats?

A．By putting them in cages.

B．By playing music to them.

C．By attracting them with colorful food.

D．By building a close relationship with them.

【小题3】Which words can best describe Mary?

A．Patient and caring.

B．Confident and strong.

C．Sociable and healthy.

D．Traditional and hard-working.

【小题4】What can be the best title for the text?

A．Mary’s experience in university

B．Making friends with wild animals

C．The “Squirrel Girl” of Penn State University

D．The bridge between Mary and squirrels

语法填空

I was in the ninth grade when I began to suffer depression（精神忧郁）. My parents noticed but felt that since I'd always been 【小题1】 good child, this was temporary（暂时的）.

【小题2】（unfortunate）, it was not to be so. I didn't have friends. Hardly could I share my problems. Deep worry began to destroy my 【小题3】（confident）. Finally I refused to attend classes, 【小题4】（shut）myself in my room for hours.

The examination was coming near, but I simply didn't care. My parents and teachers were 【小题5】（surprise）at my bad performance. One morning, 【小题6】 a particularly severe lecture from my father, I stood at the school gate, sad. Then as the other students went to their classrooms, our headmaster called me. The next forty-five minutes was one of the 【小题7】（wonderful）moments in my life. She said she 【小题8】（notice）a big change in me and wondered why.

At first she took my hands in 【小题9】（she）and listened patiently as I mentioned my worries. Then she hugged me as I wept. Months of frustration and loneliness disappeared.

No one had tried to understand what the real problem was except the headmaster, 【小题10】 helped me out simply by listening and hugging.

假设你是李华，你的朋友John上周邀请你周二一起去听一场关于文化差异的讲座，你答应了。但现在因为学校临时有任务安排，你不能赴约，请你用英语写一封信，向他赔礼道歉，并解释原因。
注意：1. 词数100左右；2. 开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数。
Dear John，
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Yours，

Li Hua