Late last year, I needed to transport some furniture from our house to my son’s flat in central London. I should have paid a man to do it, but foolishly confident in my driving ability, I decided to hire a lorry and drive it myself.
Moving the lorry backward in my yard, I crashed into a small shed, causing permanent damage. Fortunately, I owned the shed. I loaded up with the furniture and set out. By now it was rush hour. My nerves broke down, as I drove the huge lorry through the streets nervously.
At last I arrived at Charlotte Street and found an available parking space. I moved the lorry into it only to notice three people at a pavement cafe waving to me. I got out, trembling violently, like one who had just finished a stormy Atlantic crossing. “You’ve hit the car parked behind you,” they said. I examined the car. There were white scratches on its front face. It bore a disabled sign. So, now I was a bad driver and a bad man. Under the severe look of the three, I left an apologetic note on the damaged car’s windscreen, giving my phone number.
I unloaded the furniture, dripping the sweat, wanting only to escape from the monster. I drove it back to its base at Edgware. On arrival, the boss told me I must fill it up with petrol before returning it. “Just charge me,” I cried, still shaking with fear. He stared at me with understanding. No doubt he’d witnessed others in this state before. “How about I drive you to a petrol station, you fill up, and I drive it back?” he asked.
He danced the great lorry through the traffic so carefully that it would have shamed me if I had not been so grateful.
4. The man felt ______ to have delivered the furniture himself.
A.grateful | B.regretful |
C.proud | D.confident |
5. The man trembled violently because ______.
A.he caused a terrible traffic accident |
B.driving the lorry was too difficult for him |
C.he was afraid to see the three people |
D.the furniture was too heavy for him |
6. The man said he was a bad man most probably because ______.
A.he made the traffic accident on purpose |
B.he parked the big lorry on the pavement |
C.he shouldn’t have driven the lorry himself |
D.he shouldn’t have caused trouble for the disabled |
7. The writer intended to suggest that ______.
A.it was exciting to drive a lorry | B.it was hard to avoid accidents |
C.being too confident is foolish | D.the boss was expert in driving |