1
My conscience(良心) opened its mouth and swallowed me in one big bite. I couldn’t 44 over it. I just couldn’t go back to the cashier and 45 for my stolen pizza. I was so upset that I 46 to give myself the pleasure of an ice cream for 47 that someone would say, “Hey, Jeff, why don’t you use the change 48 the pizza instead of that nice, new $ 20 bill?” I was not so 49 of my cash now.
For the next two years, whenever I was 50 of the “pizza incident”, I would say to myself, “Don’t think about it … …”
I have learned two things from this 51 . Maybe I was a fool for 52 in to my conscience, and being too stupid to enjoy a 53 pizza. But the real lesson is that even if you get away from what you have done, your conscience will 54 up with you.
This reflects (反映) the saying, “A coward (懦夫) dies a thousand deaths, a hero dies one.” I was a coward and have felt terrible about that incident at least a thousand times. If I had been a “ 55 ” and gone back to pay for the pizza, I would have felt a little uncomfortable about it only once, or maybe twice.
36. A. say B. talk C. share D. explain
37. A. as B. while C. then D. when
38. A. lost B. tired C. hungry D. anxious
39. A. excited B. eager C. satisfied D. encouraged
40. A. rest B. food C. travel D. drink
41. A. Luckily B. Finally C. Immediately D. Actually
42. A. thought B. recognized C. noticed D. realized
43. A. walked B. left C. worked D. found
44. A. look B. get C. turn D. think
45. A. ask B. pay C. apologize D. send
46. A. refused B. wanted C. hoped D. meant
47. A. hope B. surprise C. anger D. fear
48. A. into B. with C. for D. from
49. A. sure B. upset C. proud D. pleased
50. A. warned B. reminded C. thought D. told
51. A. experience B. experiment C. story D. mistake
52. A. turning B. taking C. handing D. giving
53. A. free B. cheap C. plain (简单的) D. delicious
54. A. make B. wake C. catch D. put
55. A. coward B. fool C. loser D. hero
2
Last year I ruined my summer vacation by bringing along a modern convenience: the iPad.
Instead of looking at nature, I 31 my e-mail. Instead of paddling an old boat, I 32 my Twitter feed. Instead of reading great novels, I stuck to reading four 33 each morning.
And that was the problem: I was acting 34 I were still in the office. My body was on vacation but my head wasn’t.
So this year I made up my mind to try something 35 : getting away from the Internet. I knew it wouldn’t be easy, since I’m not good at self-control. But I was determined. I started by 36 the iPad to my wife. Then, a stroke of luck: The cell phone signal at our cabin was 37 than in the past, meaning that I couldn’t cheat. I was 38 , forced to carry out my plan. Largely 39 from e-mail, Twitter and my favorite newspaper websites, I had little way to connect to the world 40 radio —and how much radio can one listen to, really? I had no 41 but to do what I had planned to do all along: read books.
This experience has had a 42 ending—for now, at least. With determination and the strong support of my wife, I succeeded in my vacation struggle 43 the Internet. I 44 realized that it was me, of course, not the iPad, that was the problem.
I knew I had 45 when we passed a Starbucks and my wife asked if I wanted to stop to use the Wi-Fi. “Don’t need it,” I said. 46 , as we return to post-vacation situation, a test begins: Can I 47 when I’m back at work? And I don’t plan to 48 my convenience completely. But I hope to resist the temptation(诱惑)to check my e-mail every five minutes, 49 often leads to following my Twitter feed.
A vacation is supposed to help you reset your 50 to become more productive(高效的). Here’s hoping this one worked.
31. A. received B. wrote C. checked D. recognized
