四川省木里藏族自治縣中學(xué)2023-2024學(xué)年高三下學(xué)期聯(lián)合考試英語試題含解析

四川省木里藏族自治縣中學(xué)2023-2024學(xué)年高三下學(xué)期聯(lián)合考試英語試題請(qǐng)考生注意：1．請(qǐng)用2B鉛筆將選擇題答案涂填在答題紙相應(yīng)位置上，請(qǐng)用0．5毫米及以上黑色字跡的鋼筆或簽字筆將主觀題的答案寫在答題紙相應(yīng)的答題區(qū)內(nèi)。寫在試題卷、草稿紙上均無效。2．答題前，認(rèn)真閱讀答題紙上的《注意事項(xiàng)》，按規(guī)定答題。第一部分（共20小題，每小題1.5分，滿分30分）1．Heisabad-temperedfellow,buthe________bequitecharmingwhenhewishes.A．shall B．shouldC．can D．must2．WithWeChatPaycomingintowidespreaduse,ourhouseholdbillsareconvenient____.A．paying B．paid C．topay D．tobepaid3．Hehasmadelittlepreparationfortheinterview,sothechanceofhimsucceedinginitis.A．slimB．fantasticC．obviousD．gentle4．Mytoothacheme.Ithoughtitwasgoingaway,butitisgettingworsenow.A．killsB．iskillingC．haskilledD．killed5．Sarah______changehermind,eventhoughsheknewtheplanwashardtocarryout.A．mustn’t B．wouldn’tC．shouldn’t D．needn’t6．Howdiditcomeabout________aquietpersonshouldappearsowildtoday?A．whether B．that C．if D．what7．－Thezookeeperwasreallyannoyedwithme.－Howcouldhehavebeenifyou____stonesattheanimals?A．didn’tthrow B．don’tthrowC．hadn’tthrown D．haven’tthrown8．Menmustconsidereating,drinking,clothingandfindingshelter_____theycanpursueentertainmentandrecreation.A．untilB．unlessC．beforeD．because9．IkeepthepicturewhereIcanseeiteveryday,remindsmeofthedaysinmyhometown.A．that B．whichC．who D．when10．_____withsomuchtrouble,wefailedtocompletethetaskontimeA．Toface B．Faced C．Face D．facing11．Thevarietyoffoodattherestaurantislimited,buteverymealcanserveatleasttwopeopleandisunder￥10,sonotonlyisit______butpracticalaswell.A．a(chǎn)daptableB．a(chǎn)djustableC．a(chǎn)doptableD．a(chǎn)ffordable12．—It______________toplanttreesandgrassonthehillside.—Yes.Theyhelpstopsoilfrombeingwashedaway.A．makessense B．makesmoneyC．makesaliving D．makesamistakes13．Butforyourhelp,I__________theworkontime.IreallydonotknowhowIcanthankyouenough.A．wouldn'tfinish B．hadn'tfinishedC．wouldn'thavefinished D．won'thavefinished14．InApril,2009,PresidentHuinspectedthewarshipsinQingdao,____the60thanniversaryofthefoundingofthePLANavy.A．marking B．markedC．havingmarked D．beingmarked15．Ibelievedhimtobehonestbuthisactionsshowedthathehad________.A．thetopdogB．thefeetofclayC．hiscupofteaD．theappleofhiseye16．Hehaswrittentwoarticlesforthejournal，onetobepublishedinthisissue，theotherto___________inthenext.A．turnout B．comeoutC．bringout. D．leaveout17．_____thatitwassoldoutwhenitcameout. A．Sowashersuccessfulbook B．Sosuccessfulwasherbook C．Soherbookwassuccessful D．Sosuccessfulherbookwas18．Pleaseremindyourgrandpatotakemedicineontime,foramanofhisage____beveryforgetful．A．need B．must C．shall D．can19．It'salwaysagoodideatohaveasecondkeysomewhere________youlosethefirstone.A．incase B．nowthatC．eventhough D．a(chǎn)slongas20．Theyoungergenerationareraisedinamoreopenenvironment,whichhasenabledthemtodevelop____theirvaluesinlife.A．inchargeof B．incontrastto C．inexchangefor D．intunewith第二部分閱讀理解（滿分40分）閱讀下列短文，從每題所給的A、B、C、D四個(gè)選項(xiàng)中，選出最佳選項(xiàng)。21．（6分）RockJunketisTheOriginalRocknRollWalkingTourofNewYorkCity.RockJunketfounderBobbyPinnisanauthor,formerrockradiopersonality,rockhistorianandhe’sspent17yearsasamusicexecutive(總監(jiān)).Readthereviews,bookthebestandforgettherest!Checkavailabilityandbuyticketsonline:EastVillageRockTour-#1seller-MondaythruSaturdayGreenwichVillageRockTour-SundayUnionSquareRockTour-TuesdayandThursdayBeatlesTourCustomized(定制的)ToursAdvancepurchaserequiredasToursselloutquicklyPurchasebyphoneat(212)2-3370GroupandPrivateToursAvailable—fordetailsclickhereorcall(646)515-7874RockJunketWalkingToursarenotonlytheperfectwaytodigdeepintoNewYork’srockscenebutalsolearnaboutart,fashion,rockn’rollclothingstoresandgreatlocalbarsandrestaurants.TheEastVillageRockTourisverypopularaswedemonstratehowtheneighborhoodwentfrompoortobeingthebirthplaceofpunkrock.OnTheGreenwichVillageRockTourwe’lllookattheinfluenceBobDylanhadontheVillageplussitesaboutJimiHendrixandTheAnimals.WecoverlotsofclubsalsoincludingCafeWha,BitterEnd,andothers.TheUnionSquareRockTourdetailstheimmoralbehaviorofMax’sKansasCity,WebsterHall,AndyWarholandhis2ndand3rdFactory,afamousClashalbumcoverandmuchmore.TheBeatlesTourtakesusthroughMidtownandUptownasweexplorethesitesthatgavebirthtoBeatlemania(披頭士狂熱).OurCustomizedRockTourshavebeenbookedandlovedbyschools,universities,writers,museumcurators(館長)andmanyothers.1、FromthepassageweknowRockJunketis.A．a(chǎn)travelagency B．a(chǎn)famousmuseumC．a(chǎn)websiteformusiclovers D．a(chǎn)surveycompany2、IfyouwanttojoinintheRockJunket’sactivities,youmust.A．haveagiftformusic B．readonlinereviewsC．buyaticketinadvance D．wearrockn’rollclothes3、Whichofthefollowingismostpopularamongstudentgroups?A．TheEastVillageRockTour. B．GreenwichVillageRockTour.C．UnionSquareRockTour. D．CustomizedRockTours.22．（8分）In2016,ateamofJapanesescientistsfoundbacteriacapableofbreakingdownand“eating”oneoftheworld’smostpopularplastics-polyethyleneterephthalate(PET).Itwasvaluedasapotentialbreakthroughatthetime.ButanewdiscoverycameasateamofBritishscientistsexaminedanenzyme(酶)producedbytheJapanesebacteriatofindoutmoreaboutitsstructure.Whileoperatingthestructuretobetterunderstandhowitworked,theyaccidentallycreatedthechangedenzymethat’sevenmoreefficientatbreakingdownplasticbottles.Theresearchersarenowworkingtofurtherimprovetheenzymesoitcanbeusedonanindustrialscale.It’spossiblethatwithinthenextfewyearstherecouldbeanindustriallypossibleprocessforturningPETintoothersubstancessoitcanberecycled.Theabilitytoscaleuptheprocesswillbeimportant.Plasticpollutionisfastbecomingoneofthebiggestenvironmentalissuesofourtime.Morethan1millionplasticbottlesareboughtaroundtheworldeveryminute.MostofthesebottlesaremadefromPET，whichcantakeupto00yearstobiodegrade(生物降解),andmanyareleftintheoceans.OverhalfofglobalPETwasteisnotcollectedforrecyclingandonly7percentofbottlesarerecycledintonewbottles.Somescientistssaythebreakthrough,thoughpromising,isnowherenearenoughtosolveourpollutioncrisis.Theseenzymesarenotabundantlypresentinnature.Soyouwouldneedtoproducetheenzymefirst,thenaddittothePETplastictodegradeit.”Thisislikelytobeaslowprocess.IfyouhavegonethroughthetroubleofcollectingthePETwaste,thenthereareclearlyfarbetterwaystorecycleitorburnitforenergy,”saidWim,headoftheIndustrialBiotechnologyCenter.Hesuggestedtheuseofcommerciallyavailablebiodegradablebioplasticswouldstillbeabetterbet.1、WhatunexpecteddiscoverydidtheBritishscientistsmake?A．Aneffectivewaytodealwithplasticwaste.B．ApotentialsolutionincollectingPETwaste.C．Thewaytounderstandthestructureofenzymebetter.D．TherealvalueofthediscoverybyJapanesescientists.2、Whatdoestheunderlinedphrase“theprocess”inParagraph3actuallyreferto?A．Theprocesstofindtheenzyme.B．Theprocesstomakemoreplastics.C．TheprocesstoreducethePETwaste.D．TheprocesstoproducekindofnewPET.3、WhatistheproblemaboutrecyclingthePETwaste?A．Largequantitiesofplasticbottlesareused.B．OceanplasticwasteishardertobiodegradeC．MostofthePETwasteisleftwithouttreatment.D．MostoftheplasticproductsaremadefromPET.4、Whatcanbeconcludedfromthelastparagraph?A．Theenzymedoesnotexistinnature.B．Theenzymehashelpedtosolvetheplasticproblems.C．Burningplasticwasteforenergyisnowthebestwaytoridit.D．WehavealongwaytogotousetheenzymetorecyclePETwaste.23．（8分）FourappsforstudentstolearnEnglishQuizletQuizletisalearningapp—acomputerprogramyouuseonyourmobiledevice.ItcanhelpusersbuildandtesttheirknowledgeofEnglishwordsandterms.Quizlethaswordsetsformillionsofsubjects.And,itisquicklybecomingausefulmobiletoolforlanguagelearners.SocrativeInSocrative,teacherscancreatetimedlearninggames.Inclass,studentscompeteindividuallyoraspartofateamagainstclassmates.OnegamestudentsloveiscalledspaceRace.Inthisgame,ifateamanswersaquestioncorrectly,theirrocketmovesforward.Thisteamwhoserocketgetstotheendfirstwins.Also,teacherscanuseSocrativeasan“exitticket,”aquestiontheycanaskstudentsaboutwhattheylearnedinthatday’sclass.Studentswritetheiranswersontheirmobiledevices.Then,theteachercanshowtheanswersonasharedvideoscreen.QRCodesAQRCodeisakindofsignthatasmartphonecanreadwithitscamera.WhenyourphonecamerareadsaQRcode,ittakesyoutoawebsite,image,videooranythingyouwanttoshare.Forexample,onewilltakeyoutotheVOALearningEnglishwebsite.EvernoteEvernoteletsusersstoreandsharenotes,imagesandrecordingsinoneplace.TeacherscanalsouseEvernotetogivehomework.1、Whichisthebestforstudentstobuildupvocabulary?A．Quizlet.B．QRCodes.C．Evernote.D．Socrative.2、What’sthepurposeofthetext?A．Tomakeanadvertisement.B．Toencourageusingmobilephones.C．ToimproveEnglishlearning.D．Tointroducesomelearningapps.24．（8分）AbooksellerinChongqinghasbeenleavingnovelsontrainsandatstationstoinspiremorecommuters(上下班往返的人)toread,afterseeingBritishactressEmmaWatsontakepartinasimilarprojectinLondon.AuthorandbookstoreownerJiangLin,29,randomlyplaced40worksalongthecity’slight-railsystemonSunday.Whoeverfindsabookcanreaditinpublicortakeithome,buttheyareencouragedtoleaveitagainonpublictransportationoncetheyhavefinishedwithit.Jiangsaid,“Iconsideredtheneedsofcommuters,"hesaid."Ihopestrangerscanfeelcomfortedbythebooksandfeelconnectedwithotherreaders."All40bookswerechosenfromJiang’sstore,Razor’sEdgeBookClub,whichheopenedinthesummer,andincludedfictionandnonfiction,withtopicsrangingfromartandsocialsciencestophilosophyandhistoryJiang’sBooksontheChongqingLightRailprojectfollowsthesamemodelasBooksontheUnderground,whichwasstartedin2012andsees“bookfairies”leaveworksonLondonTubetrainsandatstations.Readersareencouragedtosharetheirviewsonthebooks.ItwasrevealedonNov.1thatWatson,whoisbest-knownfortheHarryPottermovieseries,isabookfairy.“AfterIreadthenewsaboutherleavingbooksontheLondonTube,IwassoinspiredthatIimmediatelydecidedtodosomethingovertheweekend,”Jiangsaid.However,hisdecisionwassospontaneousthathehadnotimetomakethestickersthatareusuallyplacedoneachbooktoidentifythemaspartoftheproject.Instead,heputanoteontheflypagetointroducetheconcept.Tohissurprise,oneofhisfriendswasamongthosewhofoundhisbooksandpostedapictureonWeChatMoments,asocialmediafunctionontheinstant-messagingapp.Jiangsaidmorethan20peoplehavesincecomeonboardandarenowworkingonamoredetailedthantospreadtheloveofreading.Althoughincreasingnumbersofpeoplereadondigitaldevices,bookshavenottotallygoneoutoffashion.JiangmentionedthattheyneededthesupportfromChonqingLightRailCo.toensurethebookstostaythereandalsohopedtheprojectcouldbewelcomedacrossthecountry.1、JiangLinleftbooksontrainsoratstationsinorderto______.A．raisemoneyforpoorreadersB．openanewbookstoreC．helpsellmorebooksD．a(chǎn)dvocatereadingbooks2、Jianggotinspiredtostarttheprojectby_________.A．HarryPorterB．WechatmomentsC．EmmaWatsonD．Razor’sEdgeBookClub3、Theunderlinedword“spontaneous”isclosestinmeaningto__________.A．unplannedB．unwiseC．firmD．thoughtful4、Jiang’sattitudetowardsthefutureoftheprojectcanbebestdescribedas___________.A．positiveB．doubtfulC．reservedD．worried25．（10分）Forthefirsttimeeverscientistspreparetosetabouta3-year-longproject，theNektonMission，toexploretheIndianOceananddocumentchangestakingplacebeneaththewavesthatcouldaffectthesurroundingregionoverthecomingdecades.Theambitiousexplorationteamwillreachoneofthelastmajorunexploredfrontiersontheplanet，avastbodyofwaterthat’salreadyfeelingtheeffectsofglobalwarmingwithrisingwatertemperaturesdamagingitscoralreefs(珊瑚礁).UnderstandingtheIndianOcean’secosystemisimportantnotjustforthespeciesthatliveinit，butalsoforthe2.5billionpeoplelivingintheregion.TheNektonMissionissupportedbymorethan4organizations.Researcherswillspendsevenweekssurveyingunderwaterlife，maptheseafloor，anddropsensors(傳感器)todepthsofupto6，560feetintheseasaroundtheSeychelles.TheSeychellesaimstobecomealeaderinthedevelopmentofa“blueeconomy”thatdrawsontheresourcesoftheocean.Itreliesonfishingandtourism，buthaslatelyalsobeenexploitingoilandgasfrombeneaththeseafloor.“Ouroceanisundergoingrapidecologicaltransformationbyhumanactivities.TheNektonMissionisvitaltohelpusbetterknowouroceanspaceandresourcestomakewisedecisions.Onlywhenweknowwhatwehaveintheoceanandwhatisitsvaluecallweproperlydecidewhattoexploitandwhattoleaveuntouched，”saidJumeau，theSeychelles’ambassadortotheUN.ThemissionwillconductfurtherdivesinotherpartsoftheIndianOceanoverthreeyears.Theresearchersexpecttodiscovernewspeciesandsendvideostotheworldbysatellite.Theresearchwillprovideinformationforasummit(峰會(huì))abouttheIndianOceanplannedforlate2021.1、WhydothescientistsplantoexploretheIndianOcean?A．Tosavetheendangeredcreatureslivinginthesea.B．Todiscoverthedamagemankindhasdonetotheocean.C．Tomakethebestuseofthenaturalresourcesinthesea.D．Toprotectitsspeciesandpeoplelivingaroundtheregion.2、WhichisnotincludedinthetaskstobecarriedoutaroundtheSeychelles?A．Drawingmapsoftheseafloor. B．Findingtreasuresunderthesea.C．Puttingsensorsintothedeepsea. D．Studyingunderwaterlife.3、WhatcanbelearnedabouttheNek-tonMission?A．ItwillextendbeyondtheIndianOcean.B．Itwillbenefitalotfrom“blueeconomy”.C．Itwillcontributetothe2021conference.D．Itwillfindsolutionstoglobalwarming.4、Whatcanbeasuitabletitlefurthetext?A．ScientistsAretoExploretheIndianOceanB．TheSeychellesAimstoBuilda“BlueEconomy”C．EffectsofGlobalWarmingonMarineEcosystemD．IndianOcean:theLastUnexploredFrontieronthePlanet第三部分語言知識(shí)運(yùn)用（共兩節(jié)）第一節(jié)（每小題1.5分，滿分30分）閱讀下面短文，從短文后各題所給的A、B、C和D四個(gè)選項(xiàng)中，選出可以填入空白處的最佳選項(xiàng)．26．（30分）完形填空閱讀下面短文，掌握其大意，然后從1～20各題所給的四個(gè)選項(xiàng)（A．B．C和D）中，選出最佳選項(xiàng)，并在答題紙上將該選項(xiàng)標(biāo)號(hào)涂黑。Visionistheartofseeingwhatisinvisibletoothers.--JonathanSwiftIwalkedintoawildthird-gradeclassroom.Musicwasplaying1,childrenwereundertablesapplyingmake-up,kidswerethrowingafootballindoors,andstudentswere2wherevertheycouldfind3Iwasamid-year4Theprevious5saidhecouldnolongermanagethesechildrenand6withoutnoticeduringtheholidaybreak.AssoonasIwalkedintheroom,Irealizedwhyhe7Isatdown8inmychairandbeganreadingtheir9softly.Aftereachname,I10,askingGodtohelpmeunderstandthatchild.Ithennaileda11tothewallnexttothechalkboardandbegan12mynameandareadingassignmentontheboard.Ithenaskedeachchildtocometome,andtellmetheirnamesandwhattheywantedtolearn.Itwasa13task,becauseonlytwochildrentherewantedtolearnsomething!Ruleswere14,boundariesestablished,parentscontacted.Butthemirrorsavedtheday--no,theyear!Unbeknownst(不知的)tothechildren,themirrorallowedmetoseetheirevery15whileIwaswritingontheboard.Theysoonbecame16astohowIknewwhowasmisbehavingwhileIwaswritingontheboard.Whenonestudentfinallyaskedme,ItoldhimIhadaspecialteacher’seyeinthebackofmyheadthatmyhair17Atfirsttheydidnotbelieveme.18theydidbegintoexhibitbetterbehavior,especiallywhileIwroteontheboard,thinkingIhadmagical19Inevertoldthemdifferently.Why20agoodthing?1、A．softly B．clearly C．loudly D．peacefully2、A．speaking B．laughing C．standing D．dancing3、A．space B．music C．partner D．joke4、A．representative B．replacement C．reference D．reward5、A．teacher B．headmaster C．director D．leader6、A．retired B．remained C．resigned D．returned7、A．went B．came C．left D．disappeared8、A．a(chǎn)ngrily B．restlessly C．indifferently D．quietly9、A．names B．faces C．figures D．minds10、A．prepared B．prayed C．protected D．preferred11、A．board B．mirror C．cross D．picture12、A．noting B．copying C．writing D．drawing13、A．difficult B．different C．distant D．direct14、A．dated B．written C．worked D．set15、A．make B．move C．matter D．mind16、A．pleased B．puzzled C．known D．worried17、A．covered B．hooked C．hung D．displayed18、A．So B．However C．And D．But19、A．view B．scene C．eyes D．vision20、A．mixup B．bringup C．messup D．burnup第二節(jié)（每小題1.5分，滿分15分）閱讀下面材料，在空白處填入1個(gè)適當(dāng)?shù)膯卧~或括號(hào)內(nèi)單詞的正確形式。27．（15分）ChuckWallteachesmanagementandhumanrelationsatBakersfieldCollege.Oneday,hetoldhisstudentsthattheirhomeworkwastoperformasimpleandrandomactofkindness.Not1．(understand)thehomework,thestudentsdidn'tknowwhattodo.Chuckdidn'tanswertheirquestions.2．,heencouragedhisstudentstoworkitoutbythemselves.Oneweeklater,thestudentsenteredtheclassroomandbegansharingtheirstories3．(excited).Onestudentreportedhelpingapoordog4．(abandon)byitsowner.Anotherstudenttoldothersaboutgivingblanketsawaytothehomeless.Gradually,moreandmorestudentsdevelopedthehabitofdoingsuchkindacts,from5．theybenefitedalot.Sincethen,similarkindacts6．(perform)inschoolsaroundtheworld.ManyschoolsorganizeaRandomActsofKindnessWeek7．(celebrate)WorldKindnessDay.SomeschoolsuseeachdayoftheRandomActsofKindnessWeektoperforma8．(differ)kindact,such9．makinganewfriend,helpingsomeone,doingcommunityserviceorraisingmoneyforacharity.Inthisway,studentslearntoconsiderotherpeopleandthinkabouthowsmallactionscanmaketheworlda10．(good)place.第四部分寫作（共兩節(jié)）第一節(jié)短文改錯(cuò)（滿分10分）28．（10分）文中共有10處錯(cuò)誤，每句中最多有兩處。每處錯(cuò)誤涉及一個(gè)單詞的增加、刪除或修改。增加：在缺詞處加一個(gè)漏字符號(hào)（∧），并在此符號(hào)下面寫出該加的詞。刪除：把多余的詞用斜線（＼）劃掉。修改：在錯(cuò)的詞下劃一橫線，并在該詞下面寫出修改后的詞。注意：1.每處錯(cuò)誤及其修改均僅限一詞；2.只允許修改10處，多者（從第11處起）不計(jì)分。3.將改正后的答案按要求寫在答題卡的相應(yīng)位置。ItwasextremecoldlastMondaymorning.WhileIwaswalkinginmywaytoschool,Inoticedtwostreetcleanersweepingthestreet.Seeingthemareworkingsohardonsuchacoldmorning,Iwasmovedandmadeupmyminddosomethingforthem.Afterarrivingatschool,Idiscussedwithsomeclassmatesthatwecoulddo.Thenextday,wegotupearlyandpreparingporridgeathome.Whenwehandedthecleanersthehotporridgeandexpressedusappreciationfortheirhardwork,theylookedalittlesurprisingatfirst.Andthentheytooktheporridgeandthankedushappily.Sinceitwasverycold,weallfeltwarmatthatmoment.第二節(jié)書面表達(dá)（滿分25分）29．（25分）假定你是李華，暑假參加了澳大利亞游學(xué)活動(dòng)，回國后給hostfamily的女主人Helen寫一封信表示感謝，要點(diǎn)如下:1.感謝他們一家的照顧;2.分享游學(xué)體會(huì);3.詢問你寄的禮物(漢語詞典)是否收到;4.邀請(qǐng)他們一家來中國游覽。注意:1.詞數(shù)100左右;2.可以適當(dāng)增加細(xì)節(jié),以使行文連貫。______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

參考答案第一部分（共20小題，每小題1.5分，滿分30分）1、C2、C3、A4、B5、B6、B7、D8、C9、B10、B11、D12、A13、C14、A15、B16、B17、B18、D19、A20、D第二部分閱讀理解（滿分40分）閱讀下列短文，從每題所給的A、B、C、D四個(gè)選項(xiàng)中，選出最佳選項(xiàng)。21、1、A2、C3、D22、1、A2、D3、C4、D23、1、A2、D24、IhadjustmovedtoSanAntonio,Texas.Iworkedforthetourbusservicetakingtouristsonashorttourofthecity’shistoricplacesandwouldendupattheAlamo.IwasdrivingbackfrommylasttouronacoolFebruarydayonmywaybackfromtheSanFemandoCatholicchurchwithnooneonmybuswhenIsawamandressedinrags,thinkingthispersonmustbeanactororsomethingwalkingaround.Istoppedandaskedhim,“Needaride?”Withoutsayinganythinghejustwalkedonbroadandsatdowninseatbehindme.“Whereareyouheading?”Iaskedhim.Helookedupintothemirroratmeandreplied.“I’vegottogettothefort(要塞)andreporttoColonel(上校)TravisthattheMexicansarehere!”Ilaughedtomyselfthinkingthatthismanwasaseriousactor.“I’mguessingyoumeantheAlamo?”Isaidbacktohim.Ilookedupandsawhewasn’tsmilingnorlaughing.Allthroughouttheridehewasstaringinamazementatallthetoweringskyscrapersandthebuildingsalongthestreet.“Irememberwhenthistownwasnothingmorethanalittletradingvillage!”Hefinallysaidtome.“Sowhat’syourname?”Iaskedhim.“DanielCloud,yours?”“DavidZime.”IrepliedasIturnedthecornerofthestreetandlaideyesupontheAlamo.Ipulleduptothesidewalkandopenedthedoor.Cloudgotoutofhisseatandcameuptome.“Thanksfortheride.”Hesaidextendinghishand.Itookhispalmanditwasfreezingcoldlikehejuststeppedoutofthefreezer.“Notaproblem,Mr.Cloud,anddon’tworryaboutthefee.It’sonthehouse.”HenoddedhisheadingratitudelikeallusTexansdoandwalkedaway.Itwasn’tuntilthenthatInoticedthathewassoaked(浸；泡)totheboneindrippingwaterandwehadnotasingledropofraininamonthormore.Ijustshookmyheadandclosedthedoorbehindhim.WhenIturnedaround.DiscoveredamazinglyhowfastCloudhadgoneaway!AfewdayslaterIwasreadingabookabo