He was standing by the payphone outside Bentleigh Post Office, as I checked my post box about 45 minutes ago. He might still be there now. Asking passers-by for money to make a long-distance call, regarding his father, who had passed away.

Was he telling the truth? I don’t know. I told him I had no coins — which was true. He asked if he could borrow a $5 note, to pay back tomorrow when his pension arrived. Yeah right — you couldn’t use that to make a phone call, and I’d never see it again. “I’m sorry,” I said, as I walked away.

But he cut such a pathetic figure. I hadn’t seen him around before, trying it on. Perhaps it was true? How gutted would you feel if it were you, needing to make that phone call in that situation? Yet I wasn’t willing to just hand him my mobile phone.

I went home with my groceries. Karma. Guilt — despite my usual policy of never giving to beggars; giving to charities who are in a better position to know who’s genuine and who isn’t.

No coins in the house. Maybe I could offer him a payphone card, and see what he said?

I went back out. Had a look. He was still there, asking people. I went to the newsagent to buy him a payphone card. They were shut. Went to Coles. No, they said, they have prepaid mobile phone cards. They suggested a post office (shut) or a 7-11 (miles away; I was on foot). Went to Safeway. They don’t sell them anymore either. Nowhere else was open.

Now I’m back in my warm house. I’m sorry mate, I can’t help you. If you’re genuine, then I hope someone else can.

I rarely read the paper in great detail, except perhaps on Saturdays when I have the time. I value the content, and I value the fact that my subscription money is helping support a competing newspaper to the top-selling Herald Sun, but I probably get more value by reading The Age’s web site than the paper edition.

So is it worthwhile having a subscription? I did look at the various prices for different days, but assuming I wanted a paper copy at least on Thursday (for the Green Guide), Friday (for the EG) and Saturday, there’s no easy option that would cost much less than the $6.25 per week I currently pay. I can always ring up their automated hotline and suspend delivery if I don’t want it on a particular day, so if I had the energy I could do that every week to avoid getting copies from Sunday to Wednesday.

Perhaps, as the electronic delivery medium becomes better/more portable, and the cost of distributing it approaches zero, they’ll offer good quality electronic subscriptions that pay for the content, rather than the delivery of masses of paper onto my driveway every morning, most of it destined to be recycled without being read.