> Building communities is a lot of work and takes time. Have to agree with Thomas here: When people are socialized to be neighborly, then communities tend to f

> Building communities is a lot of work and takes time. Have to agree with Thomas here: When people are socialized to be neighborly, then communities tend to form in a short time. Everyone likes to be liked and accepted; signaling friendliness can quickly pay dividends. We've seen that happen repeatedly on our block in Houston: Young-ish professional couples — not a few of whom are immigrants and/or foreign expats in the energy industry — move onto the block and almost immediately are attending — and often hosting — the Neighborhood Night Out, the holiday parties, etc. (When families with young kids are new to the block, the moms seem especially prone to connecting with the other block moms.)