Borrowing used to mean “I will take this thing and then bring it back in one piece.” Somewhere along the way, it quietly turned into “I will absorb this object into my life, and your role is to fund the experience.” The neighbor part is just cosmetic. The core is the same little fantasy that other people’s time, money, and patience are unlimited resources.
But the worst offenders are the ones who combine laziness with entitlement and then decorate it with fake friendliness. They show up only when something useful appears in public view, a power tool, a parking outlet, a snowblower, or a ladder.
Suddenly, it is not your gear on your property. It is our situation. They talk like you are being unfair to the community when you hesitate, even though the only “community” involved is them and their inability to plan ahead.
