I have a best friend called Mike. He and I have been friends for years. When I first knew Mike, we lived in 【小题1】 small town. We always went to school together. Every morning when I went to Mike’s house, 【小题2】 mother would say, “I’m sorry. He’s a bit late this morning”, and therefore I had to wait. Each day we were late 【小题3】 school, and I still remember the teacher 【小题4】 always got 【小题5】 (anger) with us.

Now 25 years later, I play tennis with Mike. I usually drive him to the tennis club. I go to his flat and he opens the door and says, “I’m sorry. I’m a bit late today.” As boys we spent a lot of time out 【小题6】 (explore) on our bikes. We went walking and fishing, too. Probably the 【小题7】 (fun) thing we did was that we 【小题8】 (steal) a bottle of whiskey from my dad. We cycled about 5 miles away to drink it in one of our favorite 【小题9】 (place). When we finished it, we did not cycle back. I’m sure if our parents knew it, they would be 【小题10】 (shock).

Happiness Is an Attitude

The 92-year-old confident and proud lady, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o'clock, with her hair fashionably combed and makeup perfectly applied, moved to a【小题1】(nurse) home today.

Her husband of 70 years recently passed away, 【小题2】 (make) the move necessary.

After many hours of waiting patiently in the hall of the nursing home, she 【小题3】 (smile) sweetly when told her room was ready. As she got into the elevator 【小题4】 her wheelchair, I provided a description of her tiny room.

“I love it,” she started with the enthusiasm of 【小题5】 eight-year-old child having just been presented with a new dog.

“Mrs. Jones, you haven’t seen the room….just wait.”

“That has 【小题6】 to do with it,” she replied. “Happiness is something you decide on ahead of time. 【小题7】 I like my room or not doesn’t depend on how the furniture is arranged…it’s 【小题8】 I arrange my mind. I already decided to love it. It’s a decision I make every morning when I wake up. I have a choice; I can spend the day in bed 【小题9】 (recount) the difficulty I have with the parts of my body 【小题10】 no longer work or get out of bed and be thankful for the ones working. Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open, I’ll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I’ve stored away… just for this time in my life.”

Few people ever took notice of Mr. Jimmy Tan whenever he entered a room. He was a shy, quiet and simple man who 【小题1】 (prefer) to keep to himself in public. On the other hand, Mr. Thomas Kim, a fellow scientist, was a man everyone would notice on the streets. He wore bright outfits with huge flower prints, spoke with a booming voice, and his laughter could 【小题2】 (hear) from all corners of a room. 【小题3】 the differences in character, Mr. Kim and Mr. Tan were also great rivals (竞争者) at work in the Institute of Future Science.

【小题4】 Christmas Eve, everyone left work early to celebrate the special occasion, except Mr. Tan and Mr. Kim. They were in their laboratory 【小题5】 (analyze) the results of their latest experiments. Mr. Tan realized that something special was taking place in his experiment — the bacteria he had cultured 【小题6】 (growing) extremely quickly under high pressure and at a very low temperature. After noting down the findings in his notebook, he left the room to prepare for another round of tests. Shortly after, Mr. Kim entered.

“Hey Jimmy,” Mr. Kim called out, “do you have 【小题7】 extra copy of the laboratory booking form?”

There was no reply, so Mr. Kim looked through Mr. Tan’s things. He soon found Mr. Tan’s notebook and was surprised 【小题8】 (see) that Mr. Tan had managed to make one of the most important discoveries in modern science. He then looked into the deep-freeze cupboard 【小题9】 a dish containing the bacteria was kept. He put them into his pocket and returned to his own laboratory.

Mr. Tan came back an hour later to find his notebook and the dish missing. He knew that Mr. Kim 【小题10】 (take) them and went to Mr. Kim’s laboratory to find out. When he opened the door, he found Mr. Kim lying on the floor motionless. The deadly bacteria had been handled improperly.