共用题干 第一篇TV Shows and Long Bus TripsLong bus rides are like televisions shows.They have a beginning,a...

共用题干
第一篇

TV Shows and Long Bus Trips

Long bus rides are like televisions shows.They have a beginning,a middle,and an end一with commercials
thrown in every three or four minutes.The commercials are unavoidable.They happen whether you want
them or not.Every couple of minutes a billboard glides by outside the bus window."Buy Super Clean
Toothpaste.""Drink Good'n'Wet Root Beer.""Fill up with Pacific Gas."Only if you sleep,which is
equal to turning the television set off,are you spared the unending cry of"You Need It!Buy It Now!"
The beginning of the ride is comfortable and somewhat exciting,even if you've traveled that way
before.Usually some things have changed一new houses,new buildings,sometimes even a new road.The
bus driver has a style of driving and it's fun to try to figure it out the first hour or so.If the driver is particu-
larly reckless or daring,the ride can be as thrilling as a suspense story.Will the driver pass the truck in
time?Will the driver move into the right or the left-hand?After a while,of course.the excitement dies
down.Sleeping for a while helps pass the middle hours of the ride.Food always makes bus rides more
interesting.But you've got to be careful of what kind of food you eat.Too much salty food can make you
very thirsty between stops.
The end of the ride is somewhat like the beginning.You know it will soon be over and there's a kind of
expectation and excitement in that.The seat,of course,has become harder as the hours have passed.By
now you've sat with your legs crossed,with your hands in your lap,with your hands on the arm rests一even
with your hands crossed behind your head.The end comes just at the right time.There are just no more
ways to sit. The writer thinks that the end of the ride is somewhat like the beginning because both are_____________.