Slick move of the day: busting out the Bengali.

After I finished a film at the Angelika, I decided to wander around St. Mark's a bit in search of food & fun. Wanting to get a pair of glasses, I went to a shop on the corner where I knew for a fact the men who worked there were Bengali-speaking.

I got there and was trying on some glasses when I saw a hat I liked too. Seeing as I wanted to purchase glasses and a hat, and I still needed to pick up dinner, I knew it was haggling time. I asked for the prices -- $27 for both items -- and then waited for the inevitable question.

"Where are you from? Philippines?"

"No, Hong Kong."

"You live there?"

"No, I was born there but I live here in Manhattan now. Where are you from?"

"Bangladesh."

"Ah!" I feigned surprise, "Amar nam Gabrielle!"

At this moment, the two men burst into excitement with a bunch of oohs, ahhs, giddy laughter, & giant smiles like they just discovered the answer to a NY Times crossword puzzle clue.

I topped it off with, "Kamon achen?" which elicited an even more excited response (though neither of the men actually answered the question).

To top it off, I inquired where in Bangladesh they were from, guessing, "Dhaka?" (the capital city...and the only one I can remember off the top of my head, sadly). The men shouted yes so excitedly, I was convinced that they had just completed a Sunday crossword.

After pretending to peruse a bit more, I asked for the prices again. When I said $27 was too much, they dropped it down a good amount. Still, I shook my head and they, without any reluctance, responded with, "Okay, fine, for you, $17 for both, no problem."

Three letters, one word: WIN.