While waiting friend to emerge from a cafe with coffee in the Victorian town of Newstead, I noticed an elderly gentleman with a hat walking along the footpath. We m, made eye contact and struck up a conversation. Tom walks the main street every day, still chops wood nightly, and has been a resident in the town since 1976. I enjoy having these spontaneous conversations and gaining insight into other people's lives. Chances are, we will never see each other again.