Have you all heard of the new social network “Nextdoor”?  I have to confess that when someone first told me about it, all I could think was “I don’t need one more social anything in my life”.  Despite being initially cranky, I looked into it & it’s got a really different concept — basically, it’s a social network for your immediate neighborhood.  Sort of like Neighborhood Watch taken online and updated.  A few weeks ago, I asked a general question about what people did with their backyards as I think mine has potential to be more than the patch of dead grass it currently is.  I ended up getting tons of responses with suggestions on landscapers, gardners, and the like, and then a nice neighbor organized a “progressive garden party.”  This past Saturday, a bunch of people in the neighborhood opened their yards to the rest of us, served tea, lemonade, artisan cheeses, and smoked brisket sliders as we made our way from home to home to see the lovely gardens.  I was floored.  It was a wonderful way to meet my neighbors.  In a big city, you usually don’t interact all that much with the people sharing  your sidewalks, so it was great to do that too.  It all came together online – very much the future met the olden days of neighborly niceness.  Check it out & see if it’s in your hood.