I've now been warned about winter in Baltimore.....

Evidently, there is a very interesting procedure that occurs during and after a winter storm regarding parking along the street.

Once the snow slows down, people come out to dig out their cars that are parked along the street, often covered by a layer of snowfall AND the snowplows that push even more snow upon their cars. Once people have finished digging out their cars, they feel that they should have some sort of a right to the parking spots that they clear. So they often put various items (examples include garbage cans, lawn chairs, dining room chairs, tools from the garage) in the cleared spot as they leave for work so people know that someone cleared that spot and expects to use it when they get back from work or wherever they are headed.

I've been told by co-workers that I should be aware of this practice in advance for a very specific reason. Evidently, rarely does a snow storm go by where someone isn't shot and/or killed because of a dispute over one of these previously discussed cleared spots. So in summary, if you see a parking spot cleared along the road that has lawn chairs in it, pass it by and find a different spot. It may just be a life-saving decision.