I'm a 48 year old man with a beard. I've also been a shy loner type most of my life. I spent most of Black Friday's morning at Joann Fabrics waiting for my fabric to be cut. I stuck out like a sore thumb. Most of the very few men there were with thier wives-they weren't buying fabric for themselves like I was. While there I had more than one conversation with the ladies sitting around waiting for thier turn too. If I can have decent conversations with people with no more in common than we're in the fabric store together you can too.
If you want to start a conversation ask questions. Most people love to share what they know. I say go and have fun, at the very least you're bound to learn some new things.
Rodney