Julia Ramponi was an Italian immigrant who lived across the street from us in Santa Cruz. She kept her small yard and the public area in front of her house spotless well into her eighties. She told me--in very accented English-- that in the Old Country, the centerline of the street marked the edge of the resident's (unofficial) responsibility. I actually saw her once using gasoline to remove oil spots on the pavement left by leaky cars parked in the space in front of her house.
I'll never forget her self-respect and for the respect she had for her neighbors.
