We wanted donuts, and even though there's a lock-down in effect, we thought we'd dash for some take-out.

One of our favorite local places, Glam Doll Donuts, is on the far side of the lakes that separate our neighborhood from the urban parts of the city. We tried to order in advance for a quick pick-up, but they have a day-after-tomorrow ordering system, so we decided to brave the trek and assess the crowds when we got there.

We've been visiting Dunkin' Donuts, which are fine but not the same, but they offer a fast-food kind of drive-through experience, which has been great during the pandemic.

Other local favorites are Valley Pastries and YoYo Donuts, both also fantastic, but for which you need to queue or order in advance, too.

The drive through our Uptown neighborhood along the business street through the city neighborhoods was a little saddening or sobering. So many things are boarded-up and sprayed-over with graffiti. So many little shops and restaurants and my old favorite gaming store. I've been in some rough neighborhoods in a few countries, and this looked like those. Debris on the street, few if any pedestrians, not a lot of cars parked. There were a few driving through, but nothing like there would be in the past, even at 7:30 on a cold Saturday morning.

We rolled up to the front door of the bakery. No cars were parked outside, so we parked right in front. Peeking in the window, it looked dark, except behind the counter that was visibly manned. The lights in the window were also on. The tables and chairs were moved out of the way or stacked to the side.

One fella walked out with a box in his hands, and no one else seemed to be inside, so we ventured in. Usually, we make the kids wait in the car. It was super early, and with no one else, I told them if they stayed right by me, we could all go and see the array of donuts.

It's a favorite place for the whole family, so even though we couldn't be inside and listen to the retro rock to eat our fresh donuts with hot coffee, I thought it might be a good release from the norm. As expected, the glass-covered counters were filled with the explosion of color and flavor. The kids chose their usual chocolate-covered with sprinkles, and I got ten other flavor-filled random donuts. We paid and left.

As we walked out, three other cars of families were getting out of their cars or walking on the sidewalk toward the door.

We got home with no fanfare, taking a more house-lined route, which looked fairly normal.

A good adventure, with no real trouble. I'm a little hesitant as we wandered into a heavily-populated area, but we didn't encounter anyone not behind masks and glass, and all separated by many feet or minutes.

Delicious, colorful, and escapist.

Everyone is healthy.