Space-Saving Chairs Appear; Any in Your Neighborhood?

Baltimoreans are famous for going into panic mode at the mere mention of the word "snow."

The battle cry of "milk, bread, toilet paper" is heard across the land and hoards descend upon local grocery stores, wiping shelves clean of the time-honored storm staples.

Sometimes it actually snows; sometimes it doesn't. But that's not the point. Folks were prepared to defend castle and family; the homestead would stand to see another day.

Patch associate regional editor Bryan Sears provided me with a hardy laugh-out-loud moment today when he posted on Facebook a picture of three lawn chairs staked out on a completely dry, clear road in Loch Raven Village.

And for the record, Sears' (privately owned) car was in park when he took the picture.

Loch Raven residents are apparently taking this most recent storm warning to heart, and are using the lawn furniture to save their parking spaces long before the first snowflake is spotted.

Having lived in several rowhome communities, I'm quite familiar with this practice. As illegal as it might be, it's still a time-honored way of saving parking spaces, and residents mostly respect the space-saving maneuver.

But this is the first time I've ever seen the chairs go out in advance of a storm.

What's happening in your neighborhood? Have you seen any chairs, traffic cones or other devices in the streets yet? Let us know in the comments section below, and feel free to add pictures.

Now go get your bread, milk and toilet paper, if you haven't already.