A committed diary writer in Euroa has attributed his long-standing daily habits to simply being a man of routine.

Arthur Frost turned 102 years old on January 13 this year and for many years has been a regular at the Bowser Bean on Tarcombe Street, riding his 'wheels' there every weekday morning for his coffee.

He is attired in his his finest and not for an interview with The Euroa Gazette either; you will always see him wearing a tie.

"For my age, it's still pretty good that I still get about," Arthur said.

"The people here know my regular coffee every morning and I am always here five days a week."

This dapperly-dressed gentleman will happily chat between reading his daily dose of newspapers.

"I usually bring whatever paper I am reading - the Euroa Gazette is one with me here now - and I read them all while I'm having my coffee."

Known for his other routine of writing a diary entry for all of his adult life, it is somewhat ironic that such a wordsmith now finds the modern crossword a challenge.

"There's such a lot of new words in the vocabulary now, isn't there?" he said.

"So when I get to a crossword, I think 'I've never heard of that word before'."

He said a more modern vocabulary has also challenged and changed how he writes.

"There are now new words with different meanings, different people now have different sayings.

"I think I have just accepted it.

"But I still do my diary every day."

Some years back, Arthur published sizeable excerpts from his diary for his family, not in any particular order but as certain events came to mind.

"I called it 'The Good Old Days' and it refers to how people lived once."

This down-to-earth man is no blowhard or bragger, but after some coaxing, we hear of his glory days as centreman for the Euroa Magpies, where he won the club's best and fairest along with the competition's equivalent medal in the early 1950s.

"Well, as centreman, there's plenty of ground for a kick there, plenty of room - you were always in the play."

Known for his good balance and being very quick, as well as for wearing a home-knitted beanie during games to keep his hair out of his eyes, Arthur Frost was pound-for-pound one of the best at having the ball on a string, which resulted in him travelling to Melbourne for the big league.

"I wasn't there long," he said.

"And I reckon I didn't know anything about football, I wasn't good at it."

Legendary Melbourne coach Frank 'Checker' Hughes was at the Demon's helm then, having taken Melbourne to four VFL premierships and was influential on Arthur's brief professional career.

"Oh, Checker at Melbourne - I only listened to him for five minutes when I got there and thought I had learned in five minutes more than I had in my whole career."

He soon returned to Euroa to play out one more season before retiring.

"I wouldn't get a game today, I think."

Julianne Rawlinson works at Bowser Bean and has been a close friend of Arthur's for decades, on hand to make sure he gets his daily dose of caffeine and helps him plan meals for the week ahead.

Her first impressions of Arthur were rich in character when they met.

"I lived in his street 20 years ago - Templeton Street - where he also lived," she said.

"As a 30-year-old, it was great to see an 80-year-old dressed immaculately while doing his garden.

"And always tipping his hat to me.

"I was always told to respect my elders, but for such a gentleman to tip his hat and give me a 'good morning' every time I passed, he's always been a gentleman ever since I knew him.

"Over time with work and personal life and everything else, we have developed a great relationship."

If there's one lament for Arthur, it is the changing faces in the street where once - his now restricted eyesight not withstanding - he could greet every passerby.

"I used to walk down the street and know everybody," he said.

"I knew who they were and their families but now I find it hard to know them."

There's a moment of reflection as Arthur stops talking and seems to be taking in his own words; the eyes still sparkle, the smile doesn't fade, but there's a short interval as he seems to be diarising and planning his next words.

Some advice: "My tip is to sleep well, which is good for you; I think if you sleep well, you'll stay healthy."

However, Julianne gets the last word:

"He's got the most beautiful heart; he really has."

Arthur finishes his coffee, gathers his thoughts and newspapers and is soon outside in his gopher buggy, perhaps off to write that day's diary entry, possibly about this interview.

He'll be back tomorrow.