Meet the Stevenage railway cat遇见斯蒂夫尼奇铁路猫

李全忠

主題语境：动物 篇幅：376词 建议用时：7分钟

1 While many cats love to go outdoors， theyusually do not venture far from home. But some catsare the exception. One cat has even made a busyrailway station in the UK， her second home.

2 While Nala， a fouryearoldyellow cat， has ahome in Hertfordshire and a loving owner， the cathas always loved to wander. Her owner， Natasha Ambler， fitted her with a GPS tracking device.But Nala's favorite place to visit is the Stevenage railway station where she delightscommuters （上下班往返的人） every day.

3 Nala， who loves to perch on ticket barriers， has been praised for helping to build asense of community among the commuters. She comes morning and evening to greet hundredsof people who use the station. Ambler said that Nala comes when it is the busiesttime because she loves the attention.

4 The staff at the station， including Shaun Smith， Great Northern's station manager，have grown very fond of Nala. He said，“ She's breaking down barriers by making peoplesmile and starting cheerful conversations between staff and customers—helping our teamand our commuters at the station feel part of the local community， which is rewarding foreveryone.”

5 Nala wears a collar with her name and the owner's details， but Ambler said that she was receiving around 20 calls a day from people telling her they found her cat. She had tomake a second tag to tell people that Nala was not lost， and she was just on an adventure.Nala usually just visits the station and a local park but on some days she travels far andwide.“ Once she spent most of the night in a cinema and a friend had to go and bring herhome，” Ambler said.

6 Nala is so popular that Ambler set up a page where people can post photos oftheir encounters with the cat. One woman posted，“ She makes my morning when I get thetrain to work.” Another said，“ Aww， Nala is simply beautiful. The only real celebrity ofStevenage.”

7 When asked if she had any concerns about her cat's adventures， Ambler said，“ Notat all， she's obviously welllovedand she's very happy doing what she does—I just hopeone day she doesn't actually try to get on a train.”

Reading

Check

1. Where does Nala like to visit frequently？

A. A local restaurant.

B. A busy railway station.

C. A nearby cinema.

D. A community park.

2. What did Nala's owner do to keep track of her wanderings？

A. The owner trained her to come home.

B. The owner hired someone to follow her.

C. The owner put up posters around the town.

D. The owner fitted her with a GPS tracking device.

3. What does Shaun Smith think Nala contributes to the station？

A. He is concerned she might be a safety risk.

B. He believes she causes unnecessary disruption.

C. He finds her presence affects the station environment.

D. He thinks she makes people smile and starts cheerful conversations.

4. What can we know about Nala according to the text？

A. Nala always loses herself.

B. Nala is popular in the UK.

C. Nala's owner thinks Nala likes to be noticed.

D. Nala's owner worries about Nala's adventures.

Language

Study

Ⅰ. Difficult sentence in the text

Nala is so popular that Ambler set up a page where people can post photos of their encounterswith the cat. 娜拉是如此受歡迎以至于安布勒创建了一个网页，人们可以在那里发布他们与这只猫相遇的照片。

【点石成金】本句中，so...that...引导的是结果状语从句；where引导定语从句，先行词是a page。

Ⅱ. Fill in the blanks.

Misty was a black cat that simply 1._________（charm） everyone who met her. She hada collar 2. _________（fit） with a tiny bell. The neighborhood knew her as a friendly cat whovisited every doorstep， 3._________（obvious） enjoying the attention and treats she received.

One morning， Misty's usual routine took an 4._________（expect） turn. With her keeninstincts， she found herself at the old Miller place， 5._________the edge of town. Thehouse had a silence， 6._________for Misty， it was just another adventure. The Millers，7._________（include） their three children， were away on vacation. During their absence，Misty explored every corner， soon 8._________（discover） a spot atop an old cupboard， perfectfor napping.

Days 9._________（pass） and the Millers returned. They found her curled up， on theirliving room couch. The family， already fond of the little visitor， decided it was only fittingfor Misty to become 10._________official member of their home.