Ques: I sure have Shannon. But, not for very long! My apologies as I need to give a little back story first. Please bear with. I first came to the DC/NOVA area via the US Army. It had a very small town feel. I was amazed no traffic, extremely affordable housing market, friendly, helpful and caring people and trees as far as the eyes could see. It was top 3 places I had lived in this country. After the Tech boom peaked near 2000 and after 9/11 the flood gates opened and people spilled in from all over the Earth for the bountiful opportunities. The housing market skyrocketed and people were tripling++ the values of their homes. It is now home to some of the wealthiest counties in the US. Why is this all relevant? All the prosperity brought greed, selfishness and gluttony to a whole new level. People had massive disposable income they had never had before. Nothing is too grossly indulgent anymore and they throw away vast amounts of money trying to one up the last kids party without giving a thought to what a kid needs or the fact they are teaching kids that over indulgence is okay. Now, my son and I were invited to a birthday party for this FIVE year old. The sole Parent had rented the club house, surrounding grounds and pool area of a local country club. I would estimate around 30 kids x 1.5 adults. It was catered with both adult and children's foods and beverages, including Wine and Champagne (few here seem able or willing to parent without it). A company was hired to bring in 6 industrial fair/carnival type rides. A mini Ferris Wheel and a mini Roller Coaster included. She even had hired help that distributed Party Bags/Swag Bags that included cologne/perfume for the kids. I don't think my jaw closed the entire time we were there. This was for a FIVE year old! Could you believe she talks about the daughters poor behavior frequently? My Son asked to leave after around 20 mins, According to the above context, choose the correct option to answer the following question. Question: How long did the party probably last? Options: - Two weeks. - not enough information - A few hours. - A week.
Ans: A few hours.

Ques: It was a hot summer afternoon; I think I was 12. It was too hot too cook in the kitchen, so Mom decided we'd grill hot dogs & stuff outside. But we needed some things so Dad was elected to go to the grocery store. This turned out to be a big production; Dad was trying remember what all was needed without writing a list, and Mom kept adding things even as he was trying to leave. Finally, he got in the car and drove off. Mom & I had just turned around and sat down at our picnic table when all of sudden here was Dad pulling back into the driveway. He'd apparently just driven around the block & came right back. Mom & I looked at each other and smirked- she was thinking the same thing I was: "what'd he forget this time?" But then Dad got out of the car.. and on his face was the look. In my young life, I'd never seen that look before, but it chilled me to the core and I just knew something bad was coming. Mom knew it too; the smirk quickly left her face as Dad came over and said.. "Mom.. I hope I heard this wrong.. but on the radio they said a woman drowned at the lake.. I hope I'm wrong, I barely caught the name, but I think they said it was your sister.." The cookout was forgotten; we went inside & started making phone calls, and unfortunately it was indeed my aunt. She & her family had gone swimming to cool off; apparently she'd gotten a cramp or something and gone under while nobody was looking, and by the time she was missed it was too late. To this day, my Mom is miffed at some family members that we had to find out that way (she was pretty close to this sister so she feels someone should've called before it got on the news) but as for me, I will never forget that look on my Dad's face. According to the above context, choose the correct option to answer the following question. Question: At the end of the story, the family is Options: - Sad - Indifferent - Happy - not enough information
Ans: Sad

Ques: As I mentioned in my previous post on Sacre-Coeur, one of the other places I didn't get a chance to see when I was in Paris last summer was the catacombs so I wanted to be sure to fit in a visit this time around. Long Queue vs Online Tickets You can either wait in line to get in or buy tickets online for specific time slots to bypass the line. Wait times can be anywhere from 30 minutes to 3+ hours and in the summer time, it's common to wait for hours. I definitely recommend buying a ticket online. Keep in mind that they have a limited number of tickets for each time slot, so don't wait too long to buy or you may be stuck in that loooooong line. We got quite a few less-then-friendly looks from those in the line when we bypassed the entire queue and went right in. C'est la vie (insert Gallic shrug here). For some inexplicable reason, the site says you must print your tickets if you buy them online. Given that most visitors to the catacombs are tourists with limited or no access to a printer, this seems particularly silly, but what can you do? Luckily, we were in a hotel with a small business center so we printed our tickets there. Online tickets cost quite a bit more (27 compared to 12 for adults and 10 for those age 26 or under). Totally worth it if that works with your budget. Online tickets also come with an audio guide. If you buy tickets at the door, the guide is an extra 5. It's a nice cool 14C (57F) down there, a lovely break from the hot summer weather above. It is damp in places and the ground can be slippery so watch your step as you walk. According to the above context, choose the correct option to answer the following question. Question: Why is the author concerned about a budget? Options: - the catacombs are very expensive to see - not enough information - travelling is expensive - Online tickets cost a lot more
Ans:
Online tickets cost a lot more