How many of you walk out the front door, climb into the car, and drive past a dozen houses filled with people you don’t know? I do it almost every day. I’m more likely to know which cars belong to which houses than which occupants do.
It’s not so easy anymore to feel a sense of community. Front porches have pretty much disappeared as places where people spend leisure time. We’re more crowded, moving faster, and more distracted by indoor activities like television and computing. It’s rare for me to walk very far to run an errand, and usually the people I see on the street are people I don’t know and may not remember. And as often as not, strangers have white earbuds blocking their ears or are talking weirdly into the air via a cellphone earpiece. Eye contact and a smile are as friendly as I typically get with them.
The businesses I interact with most are outposts of chain stores, staffed by anonymous, revolving employees who may or may not live nearby—I don’t generally stop to ask. There are some connections I make and maintain, but it’s much easier to keep my head down and focus on getting home. I wave at neighbors, maybe talk to them on trash day, but I couldn’t pass a test on the most basic details of the lives of people I live by and do business with. I tell myself I’ll get to know them someday, but it doesn’t happen.
This site is a way to reach out and build a sense of community. It’s odd to imagine that we would get to know each other online if we only live a few blocks apart, but given the increasingly insular nature of modern living, maybe this is the appropriate place to break the ice. The intent is to share details of our lives, photos, events, concerns, and anything that relates to life in North Shoal Creek. I’m not coming over to borrow a cup of sugar anytime soon, but I’m hanging out here every day and that’s a start.
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