So how did he know ?

 Ive taken to greeting a friend of my wife's by calling her " comrade ". It just seems to suit her slow grinding determination to drag herself through life with her particular problems.

Now when my neighbor approached me this week, being in a good mood I thought I might greet him as " comrade " too ,but then thought better of it. But imagine my surprise when he gave me a mock salute totally randomly in jest. I have never used that phrase openly or at all before last week, and even that was in private.

Its beyond coincidence.