Making Friends in the Snow

As I pose the question of how to build community here's yet another good example of how this happens in the most unsuspecting ways. Harrisburg was innundated with 30 inches of snow in the past 4 days. That's a lot of concentrated white stuff within a city that has terrible parking to begin with.
Lesson number one for me was looking back on the way I constantly complained to myself about the number of trash cans across the street from my garage - Oh, I did not like that. But then during the storm I got to meet the woman who owned those trash cans - I met her while she was helping me get out of my garage because the alley was not plowed - H-M-M-M put me right in my correct neighborly place. Then I got to meet the woman who owns the taxi that always parks right on the corner, making it impossible for me to see to get out of the alley - I met her while trying to help shovel cars out for the emergency route. And guess what - she's really nice and truly doesn't park there just to annoy me - she parks there because that's the only place she has to put the taxi.
So my lesson is this - get to know these people better and think before I start getting all rightous in my complaining. My neighbors are great - I just don't know yet how great they really are --- but I'm learning.