| Recalcitrant | Stubborn, often defiant of authority; difficult to manage or control. |
| Prodigious | Remarkably or impressively great in extent, size, or degree. |
| Derisive | Expressing contempt or ridicule; mocking or scornful. |
| Duplicitous | Given to or marked by deliberate deceptiveness in behavior or speech. |
|
Disingenuous |
Not straightforward or candid; insincere or calculating. |
| Atypical | Not conforming to type; unusual or irregular. Deviating from what is usual or common or to be expected; often somewhat odd or strange. |
| Placate | To appease or pacify; make (someone) less angry or hostile. |
| Bucolic | Of or relating to the pleasant aspects of country life. |
| Pugnacious | 1. Quarrelsome or combative in nature; belligerent.
2. Expressing an argument or opinion very forcefully. |
| Anomalous | Deviating from what is standard, normal, or expected. |
| Voluminous | Having great volume, fullness, size, or number; ample or lengthy in speech or writing. |
| Insipid | Lacking flavor or zest; not tasty. Lacking qualities that excite, stimulate, or interest; dull. |
| Fortuitous | Happening by accident or chance. Happening by a fortunate accident or chance. Lucky or fortunate. |
| Ubiquitous | Being or seeming to be everywhere, or in all places, at the same time; omnipresent. |
| Antiquated | Very old; aged. Too old to be fashionable, suitable, or useful; outmoded, obsolete. |
| Penurious | Extremely poor; poverty-stricken; miserly. |
| Loquacious | Very talkative; garrulous. |
| Reciprocity | A reciprocal condition or relationship. |
| Chagrin | A keen feeling of mental unease, as of annoyance or embarrassment, caused by failure, disappointment, or a disconcerting event. |
| Nefarious | Infamous by way of being extremely wicked. Wicked in the extreme; abominable; iniquitous; atrociously villainous; execrable; detestably vile. |
| Vociferous | Characterized by vehemence, clamour, or noisiness |
| Perspicacious | Having strong insight into and understanding of things. |
| Mendacious | Not telling the truth; lying. |
| Rapacious | Aggressively greedy or ravenous; plundering |
| Myopic | Distant objects appear blurred |
| Cerebral | Appealing to or requiring the use of the intellect; intellectual rather than emotional |
| Halcyon | 1. Calm; peaceful; tranquil
2. Rich; wealthy; prosperous |
| Pernicious | Having a harmful effect, particularly in a gradual or subtle way. |
| Bifurcate | Divide into two branches or forks |
| Frenetic | Fast and energetic in a rather wild and uncontrolled way |
The following entry is a part of my grandfather’s travel journal. Grandfather used to travel to India for buying goods and sell it to Bengal (present Bangladesh) which was at that time under British rule. The entry recounts one of his most amusing experiences he ever had.
Thursday, 22 February, 1945
Having bought the cigarette stock from Mr. Nayer, my father decided it was time to return home. At that time there were severe riots going around in the borders of Calcutta and Sri Mongol but we had no choice, we had to take the Calcutta train in order to get back to Bengal. Uncle Mohiuddin was confident regarding the issue that the Almighty Allah would protect us while my father thought it was a bad idea in taking me along on the business trip. Someday or the other I will be running the family business so I had to come along despite the fact that Mother was scornful with Father’s idea of training me. It was evident that the whole Indian subcontinent will one day be divided and we knew that cursed day is creeping every second as we speak. It will completely ruin our trade ending our 52 years of trading but my family members never spoke of it but I knew they too were apprehensive regarding the matter.
We boarded the morning train to Calcutta from Howrah Station with the hope that nothing would go wrong and with the belief that Allah-tala will protect us. Shortly afterwards we started our unanticipated journey. As we emerged the outskirts of Hooghly, we could hear several people shouting and it was coming from the front cabooses. The next minute there were gunshots and a couple of people were tumbling down to our caboose. My father and uncle stood up and started to pant. We knew from that instant that we were entwined in a train robbery!
Two masked men arrived with guns in their hands, kicking their way over the tumbled passengers. The children began to weep while my father pressed my right arm in order to give me the message of remaining silent no matter what. I was silent and did not dare to utter a single word but I could clearly hear the throbbing of my heart. I wished I could warn my father against those robbers as he has a tendency to become adventurous at times but I could barely maneuver my mouth. Our feet were pinned to the ground as the robbers slowly approached us. They were speaking Hindi which implied that they were not locals. They were gesturing to all passengers to drop their belongings in a jute sack they were carrying. My father, uncle along with some other passengers just stood and gaped at the robbers but did not dare to do anything rash. Suddenly we could hear a woman whimpering from the seats behind. The robbers heard it too and looked front. After spotting her they rushed towards her. She was far behind from our place but from her actions I could interpret that she was pregnant and now she was about to give birth!
The next few seconds were simply incredible. One of robber pulled the emergency chain brake which halted the running train and then another robber (perhaps their leader) ordered the others to carry the woman to the hospital. One man, whom we guessed to be the woman’s husband, followed the robbers silently as they got off the train. The train started its journey soon enough leaving us completely bemused to ponder over the puzzling incident which occurred a while ago. The robbers, having forgotten their assigned task, turned desperate towards such a duty which was not a part of their daily routine. Indeed they did something which was completely unexpected from all of us in order to prove that even robbers have a caring heart. We never got to hear about the aftermath of the incident, surely we loved to but my guardians thought we had to flee back home as soon as possible. I wished we would have stayed for another day at least to read the next day’s newspaper but fate did not allow us such…
This is one of my most favorite stories of my grandfather as it holds a lot of meaning in itself. This incident is quite similar to one of the most famous short stories by a master of short stories which I have read a year back. Curious readers are thus suggested to read “The Chaparral Prince” by O. Henry which holds a similar moral.
Recently, few people knocked me at an online postcard swapping platform named Poscrossing, asking me to swap postcards with them and they claimed of having read my blog and was willing to swap since they claim me of being a good writer. I truly felt honored there.
Yesterday, I got one from Czech Republic containing a very deep and meaning message from an animal rights activist. This is the first time ever I got to receive a postcard from abroad unenclosed in an envelope. Here’s the pic of it along with its message:
This has brought me a brilliant idea of exchanging postcards with my readers and fellow WordPressers. I believe that by postcard swapping, we get to learn about each other culture in an amazing manner plus we get to revive the old habit of exchanging postcards. Moreover, I personally feel that this initiative is indeed a very creative manner of promoting interaction between the writers and his readers.
If anyone of you want to swap postcards with me, you are all most welcome. You can knock me at my Postcrossing profile or you can email me at saiyanislam@gmail.com. I truly appreciate all your long lasting support towards me and I eagerly look forward towards all the lovely messages wrapped up in your postcards.
Have a nice day,
With warm regards,
Saiyan Islam
P.S. This post is not sponsored by any third parties, this is fully my honest opinion. Thank you.
Advice: Do not ruin your job interview like the way I did.
Location: Interview Board
Interviewer: You have accomplished so much in life despite being so young, you should rather fly off abroad to get a Ph.D degree and become a professor at a University instead of getting a job.
Me: Sir, I am not into academics, I like doing jobs.
Interviewer: From the way I see you would do great as a teacher.
Me: Sorry sir, I am not into teaching.
Interviewee: Can I know the reason?
Me: I just don’t like teaching, to be honest, even I don’t know the reason perhaps it may be because I am a shy person. In fact one time one of my tutor even arranged a private tuition and told me to go for it saying the family would pay me 8,000 taka for teaching 3 O Level subjects and my student would have been a very attractive girl from a very reputed school and also coming from a very wealthy family, I had just finished A Levels at that time but in the end I rejected the offer since I never liked teaching so neither the money nor the very attractive woman- two of the greatest motivators which drive a man’s action wasn’t enough to entice me to do what I don’t like doing. This goes to show that the things I like doing, I always do it with seriousness and vice versa.
Interviewer- *With the biggest poker face.* Can you work while studying MBA because we require a lot of extra effort here?
Me: Yes I can. *Trying to sound determined*
Me: Yes I will be able to do both.
Interviewer: Okay, we will contact you and let you know if you are in.
End Result: They never call. 😥
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