Serendipitous (noun): the faculty or phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for.

“This was urban walking after a fashion, repetitive and serendipitous.”

“Walk with Me” – David L Ulin

This word can be seen as a very difficult one to get into as its dictionary definition does not give much insight to the actual meaning, especially in this context. In this context it can be said that the walk was very repetitive, and he was able to find things he did not actually look for? The wording sounds a bit off in either sentence and is clunky both ways. Perhaps this sentence could be structured differently?

Sequence (noun): continuity of progression

“On my phone, I have a slow-motion series of photographs tracing the sequence of my arrival, taken through the driver’s side window of my car.”

“Walk with Me” – David L Ulin

This is another one of those words with many meanings and, without context, or even with context, can be somewhat difficult to discern. In essence, this meaning was that of the order of things done to be able to get to his destination.

Joshing (verb): to engage in banter

“I stood for a few minutes here as well, took in the looping motion of the bowler, the joshing exhortations of the players, tamped down and softened by the rain.”

“Walk with Me” – David L Ulin

This word honestly is very interesting as it is rarely used today, so seeing a person josh is something that you might not understand without getting a clear picture of what is happening. It could be thought of as just a name but you would surely be mistaken.

Facsimile (noun): an exact copy

“The Statue of Liberty has never made me feel at home, either in the New York Harbor or on Las Vegas Boulevard, where it stood squat and compressed as I drove past, a facsimile in incremental scale.”

“Walk with Me” – David L Ulin

This word was a very hard one for me to distinguish as it was a word I had actually never came across. The only thing I could make of it was simile which is comparing two unlike things. However, the author was comparing two Statue of Liberty’s so that could not have been it. When researched, it turns out that the prefix changes a lot of the meaning of the word.

Façade (noun): the front of a building

“Still, when I thought about where I’d be living – no Googling for me, no mapping and no photos, not a single search to see the street, the façade of the building, the pocked ribbon of Maryland Parkway stretching north toward Downtown, pavement dusted white with alkaline, homeless huddled at intersections, hiding first from the piercing winter wind and later from the sun – the image that arose was that of a college town.”

“Walk with Me” – David L Ulin

This is another one of those words that have a dual meaning as when I first encountered this word I thought of its meaning as fake or superficial, however that did not make sense in the context as you can not really have a superficial building. This caused me to look up the word and find out its alternate meaning.

Exhortations (noun): language intended to incite and encourage.

“I stood for a few minutes here as well, took in the looping motion of the bowler, the joshing exhortations of the players, tamped down and softened by the rain.”

“Walk with Me” – David L Ulin

This word was intriguing as it meant something very different than I thought. Exhort means to incite by argument, which is the complete opposite of this words meaning. This threw me off a bit but I was then able to properly understand the statement.

Elusive (adjective): hard to comprehend or define

“This is how you ground yourself in an elusive, unfamiliar city – on foot, walking it into focus in all its specificity and wonder.”

“Walk with Me” – David L Ulin

Initially when this word was first encountered, the initial thought was that it meant something that was hard to catch. However, upon looking up the word I found out that it can also mean something that is mental.

Disquiet (verb): to take away the peace and tranquility.

“This preparation, or, more accurately, its lack – this was the key to my disquiet”

“Walk with Me” – David L Ulin

Initially disquiet may sound like its roots: dis – take apart and quiet – silence; when read it can be thought of as a lack of quiet, which can be true.

Designation (noun): the act of indicating or identifying.

“Every now and again, I would see him, a burly man with close-cropped graying hair, pushing a shopping cart or sitting at an outside table at the Starbucks on Maryland and Dorothy, sipping from a container of coffee, wearing what looked like a Runnin’ Rebels basketball shirt, slit up the sides all the way to the armpits, with that designation – Facebook president of the world – hand-painted on the back.”

“Walk with Me” – David L Ulin

This honestly was a new one for me as I have always known per say what it meant as if someone was designated as the leader, or as the designated driver that meant they were chosen to do it. However, it has a slightly different meaning as it is more of a choice by your peers rather than yourself.