This story began about 10 years age. I was coming out of a very bad marriage. For seven long years my husband spent his every waking moment telling me just what was wrong with me. When I finally asked for a divorce, he answered by telling me that I would never find anyone to love me because I was just so unattractive. This went on for about two years. One night one of my friends convinced me to go out with her. We went to a nightclub and that's when I met him.
Clint was playing a game with a girl. I sat in the corner watching him. I didn't feel that I had whatever it took to get up and mix with others because of my self-esteem problem. Finally I got up the courage to order a drink for him. When he got it, he gave me the most dazzling smile. We spent the rest of the evening talking until I realized that it was almost morning. I figured that he was simply being nice to me because I had bought him a drink, but the very next day he called and told me that he could not stop thinking about me and that he wanted to meet my kids too.
(81) About 3 months later, my divorce was final and Clint sat my boys down and asked them if it was all right with them if he asked me to marry him because he could not imagine life without the three of us anymore. I was so touched that he went to my boys and asked for their approval because they were the "men of the house" at the ripe old ages of 2 and 4. They said yes and we have all been together ever since. Clint gave me and my boys a second chance at a wonderful life. (82) Not a day goes by that he doesn't tell we are the best thing that ever has happened to him and that he loves us.
The writer's first marriage was unsuccessful because______ .
A. her husband often woke her up at midnight
B. her husband kept criticizing her
C. she was unattractive
D. she had a self-esteem problem
The word" compartmentalize" in the first paragraph means" ______ ".
A. seperate in categories
B. treat differently
C. evaluate accordingly
D. judge fairly
It wasn't always this way in Britain. once, beauty queens dated footballers, traveled the world and were guaranteed fame, fortune and fun. Now, they open new supermarkets, are sponsored by dry-cleaning companies and, if they're lucky, they get free clothes from supermarkets.
When Francesca Merchant was crowned Miss Sussex in 1969, it was something to be extremely proud of. "I came from a small town, and all my friends were green with envy when they found out I'd won. My boyfriends at the time thought it was terrific and boasted to everyone that he was going out with a beauty queen."
But the good times couldn't last The feminist movement gathered momentum. Some women were determined to bring an end to these" cattle shows". Nowadays, saying that you were a beauty queen just doesn't sound good.
Miss World organizers claim that contestants are judged on qualities other than just their physical appearance. But, Jacqueline Gold, England's representative at this year's contest, was not chosen because of her academic record. The Miss World Website states that she "left school having gained many computer qualifications, and certificates in First Aid and Life Saving", meaning, not much of an education.
The only time the contests attract attraction now is because of the protesters. At the 1999 Miss World in Britain, around 60 demonstrators hurled flour bombs and fought with the police. They denounced the beauty contest as a "sexist cattle market". They waved banners saying "fat girls are cool" and "women's bodies are not for sale".
Beauty contests in Britain are now ______ .
A. bringing huge benefits for the country
B. as popular as the World Cup Final
C. no longer popular in the country
D. widely protested in the country