In the United States you will find yourself being urged from every page of every newspaper and every
television station to buy all kinds of goods.
Not only is there a wide range of prices for goods in America, there is also a wide range in the quality
of goods offered for sale. Unlike some countries,
Americans generally pay the price of a product without question, instead of trying to get a lower price
by bargaining. However, there are many "sales" in the United States, during which time stores will lower
their normal prices. This may all be very confusing to visitors. How are you going to know how to "get
your money"s worth" when you shop? Perhaps the best advice is: Don"t hurry. Visit various stores and
determine the quality of goods. Read the advertisements so that you can compare prices.
There is a great variety of shops in the United States, ranging from very large stores called "department stores" to very small shops. There are "discount houses" offering goods at low prices, and "dime stores"
specializing in a wide range of inexpensive items.
Most department stores in large cities carry better quality products at higher prices. However, they
offer the shoppers great convenience since they contain such a wide variety of products.
If convenience isn"t as important to you as price, you may want to shop in discount houses. These
stores have nearly as great a variety of goods as department stores, but offer lower prices. They can do
so for several reasons. They don"t offer the same services to buyers that department stores do; there may
be fewer sales people; and the store probably doesn"t deliver purchases.
Another popular shop is the "dime store". No longer selling many things for five or ten cents, these
stores got their name in the last century when it was decided that a small profit on a great quantity of
goods would be better than a large profit on fewer sales. Dime stores specialize in a wide variety of
inexpensive items and today, prices range from a quarter or 50 cents up to several dollars.
A. It is just like trying to drive through strange roads to a city far away. B. It seems to us that everyone knows this. But it is easier said than done. C. Some people achieve success much later in life because they fail to realize earlier the importance of hard work. D. In fact, when you say someone or something outside of yourself is stopping you from making success, you"re giving away your own power. E. Someone else"s opinion of you doesn"t have to become your reality. F. Don"t delay G. Here are some keys to success that they give. | |||||||||||||||||||||||
完形填空。 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
If you are human, you can"t help but experience times when everything seems to be going wrong. You must also _1_as if your life is completely out of control at times. It is during those "down times" that words of encouragement from family, friends, co-workers or 2_strangers can boost(增强)your spirits. It is also during those _3_that negative words can be devastating (毁灭性的) and sink you deeper and deeper into depression. For example, consider this story about a group of _4_who were traveling through the woods when _5_of them fell into a deep pit (坑). All of the other frogs gathered around the _6_.When they saw how _7_the pit was, they told the two _8_frogs they would never get out. The two frogs didn"t obey what other frogs said and tried to _9_ out of the pit. The other frogs kept telling them not to jump, _10_ it was in vain. Finally, one of the frogs followed what the other frogs were saying and simply _11 . He fell down and _12 . The other frog continued to jump as _13_as he could. Once again the crowd of frogs shouted at him to _14_ the pain. The more they _15_, the harder he jumped and finally he _16_to safety. When he _17 , the other frogs asked him why he continued to jump when they were all _18_ him to simply quit. The frog _19_to them that he was a little bit deaf. He thought they were _20_ him all the time. | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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