Last year I ruined my summer vacation by bringing along a modern convenience
that was too convenient for my own good: the iPad. Instead of looking at nature, I checked my email. Instead of paddling a small boat, I followed my Twitter feed (推特简讯). Instead of reading great novels, I stuck to reading four newspapers each morning. I was behaving as if I were still in the office. My body was on vacation but my head wasn’t.
So this year I made up my mind to try something different: withdrawal (退出) from the Internet. I knew it wouldn’t be easy, since I’m bad at self-control. But I was determined. I started by giving the iPad to my wife.
The cellphone signal at our house was worse than in the past, making my attempts at cheating an experience in frustration (沮丧). I was trapped, forced to go through with my plan. Largely cut off from e-mail, Twitter and my favorite newspaper websites, I had few ways to connect to the world except for radio and how much radio can one listen to, really? I had to do what I had planned to all along: read books.
This experience has had a happy ending. With determination and the strong support of my wife, I won in my vacation struggle against the Internet, realizing finally that it was I, not the iPad, that was the problem.I knew I had won when we passed a Starbucks and my wife asked if I wanted to stop to use the Wi-Fi. “ I don’t need it,” I said.
However, as we return to post -vacation life, a harder test begins: Can I continue when I’m back at work? There are times when the need to know what’s being said right now is great. And I have no intention of giving up my convenience completely. But I hope to resist the temptation (诱惑) to check my e-mail every five minutes, which leads to checking my Twitter feed and a website or two.
I think a vacation is supposed to help you reset your brain to become more productive. Here I hope this one worked.
41. What do we know about the author’s last summer vacation？
A. He was determined to enjoy the beautiful view.
B. He felt satisfied that he had stuck to his usual timetable.
C. He hated himself for acting as if he were at work on vacation.
D. His iPad ruined his plan of finishing a great novel.
42. What did the author do to keep away from the Internet this year？
A. He cut off his cellphone signal.
B. He handed his iPad to his wife.
C. He refused to cheat in his house.
D. He listened to the radio most of the time.
43. When back at work, the author will probably choose to_______.
A. continue to read more and more books.
B. stay away from the Internet for ever.
C. stop checking what is being said right now completely.
D. keep control of when and how to use the Internet.
44. What is the author’s opinion of a great vacation in the passage？
A. A vacation means a change of pace to make one more creative.
B. A vacation is a period of time to do whatever one wished to.
C. A vacation is having nothing to do but read all day.
D. A vacation proves that a life of pleasure is overvalued.