Two little acts of kindness

On Monday, two people made phone calls that made my day.

The first was from a woman -- and I wish she'd left her name and number -- saying she liked Monday's column, which talks about the little acts neighbors do to form a safe, connected community. The column also mentioned the mortgage crisis; the woman said she'd lost her house not long ago. My heart goes out to her.

I learned about the second call as I was leaving the newsroom at 8 p.m. The news came from the police scanner, in a dispatcher's voice.

The dispatcher said my next door neighbor had called to report suspicious activity around my home -- burglarized last year. The new security lights were flashing and my dogs apparently were making a huge fuss. I headed home and found, well, nothing going on. I called the landlady to let her know about it.

She called back to say, in a slightly embarrased voice, that she and her husband were out spraying for wasps.

We were both glad the neighbor called.

What's new in your neighborhood?