And since this is kind of the "neighborhood likes carrots" thread, a couple of vignettes: last night while walking home from a "Renovator's Happy Hour" down the street, I stopped to chat with my neighbor and another neighbor I hadn't met yet, when here comes the local doggie escape artist. I grabbed her collar, guy I don't know offered his belt for a leash and walks around the corner with me to take her home (and retrieve his belt). I was glad to meet him - he rides around on a bike with his parrot. His real, live parrot. You better bet I did a double take the first time I saw them.
Tonight, a guy I know because he hangs out on J's porch gave me some screws to fix the mud guard in my wheel well, and tells me that M has a hydraulic jack I can use. Then J got home and there was good natured ribbing, as always, and then I took Frankie for a walk. Met an older gentleman who's lived in the neighborhood since he was a kid, has a wood shop across from his house (I wondered what that was!), and may buy some wood from my organization. We probably talked for about ten minutes. Reinforcing how crazy block-by-block this town is, he asked where I live and responded to my answer, "All the way down there?" (I live four blocks away towards the river). And then "How is it down there?" I told him it was great. He was complaining how the neighborhood had changed; people used to sit on there porches, kids used to play together... on my block they still sit on the porch, and walking home I passed two dozen kids of all ages at the park.
Good times. I do love this neighborhood.
And Nora cooked me a fab birthday dinner of shrimp and grits last night and we watched an episode of Leverage.