阅读理解

     I was very disappointed not to be able to go to the jazz concert last Friday. The advertisement in the paper said that you could buy tickets at the theatre box in Richland Hills any day between 10:00 and 4:00. Since I work from 9:00 to 5:30, the only time I could go to the theatre was during my 45-minute lunch break.

    Unfortunately, the theatre is on theother side of the town, and the bus service between my office and Richland Hills is not very good. Butif you are lucky, you can make the round trip in 45 minutes. Last Monday, Istood at the bus stop for 15 minutes waiting for the bus, By the time I saw onecome around the corner, there was not enough time left to make the trip.

     So I gave up and went back to the office. The same thing happened on Tuesday, and again next day. On Thursday, my luck changed. I got on a bus right away and arrived at the theatre in exactly 20 minutes. When I got there, however, I found along line of people at the box office, I heard one man say he had been waitingin line for over an hour. Realizing I would not have enough timeto wait in line. I caught the next bus and headed back across the town.

    By Friday I realized my only hope was tomake the trip by taxi, it was expensive, but I felt it would be worth it tohear the concert. The trip by taxi only took 10 minutes, but felt like an hour to me. When I got to the theatre, I was relieved to see that nobody was waiting in line. The reason, however, I quickly discovered, was that they had already sold all the tickets.

    邵民瞻^①为东坡^②买一宅，为钱五百缗^③，东坡倾囊^④仅能偿^⑤之。卜^⑥吉日入新第^⑦，既得日^⑧矣。夜与邵步月，偶至一村落，闻妇人哭声极哀，东坡徙倚^⑨听之，曰：“异哉，何其^⑩悲也！岂有大难割之爱，触于其心欤？吾将问之。”遂与邵推扉而入，则一老妪^⑪，见东坡，泣自若^⑫。东坡问妪何为哀伤至是。妪曰：“吾家有一居，相传百年，保守不敢动，以至于我。而吾子不肖^⑬，遂举以售诸^⑭人。吾今日迁徙来此百年旧居一旦诀别^⑮宁^⑯不痛心此吾之所以泣也。”东坡亦为怆然。问其故居所在，则东坡以五百缗所得者也。东坡因再三慰抚，徐^⑰谓之曰：“妪之旧居，乃吾所售^⑱也。不必深悲，今当以是屋还妪。”即命取屋券^⑲，对妪焚之。呼其子，命翌日^⑳迎母还旧第，竟不索^㉑其直 。

【注释】①邵民瞻：人名。②东坡：苏轼的号。③五百缗：五百贯钱。④倾囊：尽出其所有。⑤偿：偿还。⑥卜：选择。⑦第：按一定等级建造的大宅院。⑧得日：过了几天。⑨徙倚：走过去斜靠着。⑩何其：多么。⑪老妪：老妇。⑫自若：依然如故。⑬不肖：不成材。⑭诸：相当于“之于”。⑮诀别：分别。⑯宁：难道。⑫徐：慢慢地。⑬售：这里是“买”的意思。⑲券：契据。⑩翌日：次日。㉑索：求取。 直：同“值”，价钱。