Yesterday morning I had to run an errand in downtown York. The local Democratic Party office offered a virtual inauguration package — a party bag of two bottles of sparkling cider, plastic glasses, buttons, flags, and other stuff — with a donation, and I thought that sounded cool, so I ordered one, which necessitated a trip into York. Walking from the parking garage to the party offices on Duke Street, I passed this striking abandoned Lutheran church.
Zion Lutheran was founded in the 1840s for the English-speaking Lutherans of York, since the town’s Lutheran church of the time was German-speaking, but the building fell into disrepair and the congregation moved to West Manchester in the 1990s. It’s a pretty building from the outside, and I’m sure fifty years ago it was lovely on the inside as well. Naturally, I had to take a couple of pictures. You can’t see it from these angles, but there’s a little cemetery on the belltower side that I’d have loved to look at, for no other reason than it’s there, were it accessible.
It’s owned by the city now. This article in the York Daily Record — five years old now, with pictures of the interior — indicates that, at the time, parts of it might be torn down for a hotel while the sanctuary proper might be rehabbed into a ballroom for the hotel. Five years later, they’re working on that hotel, hence all the construction equipment.
It was pretty dreigh yesterday.
I felt unwell on Wednesday — super congested, super sneezy, tired — and I thought, “OMG! Is this it? Is this the coronovirus?” Then I realized there had been a lawn crew here Tuesday and Wednesday taking out dead trees (so there was dust everywhere) and we had “code orange” air quality days, too, so when all of that passed on Thursday (still mildly congested but not sneezy), I went, “Yup, there it is.” Yes, the more contagious variant of COVID is one county away. Yes, there’s a lot of bad behavior in the community. All I can do is pay attention to how I feel and be as careful as I can be, which is why I limit my trips.
I have no idea what was going on here. I will tell you that watching a pick-up truck back that up onto the snow bank was amusing. I just happened to be standing outside, drinking my morning coffee, and he took a couple of whacks at getting it on the snow bank until he was satisfied.
I bought a ukulele, the Enya 25D Soprano. It arrived on Tuesday. I’ve been plucking at it, and today I’ll use the digital tuner to tune it so I can start practicing with it. (Note: it has nothing to do with Enya, the Irish singer. Her music is so layered I doubt you can do any of it justice on the uke.) It has screws for a guitar strap, and I have a Thor guitar strap from Peavey around here somewhere, so when I find that I’ll attach the strap and probably call it Mjölnir.
Uke! 
Marty!
Marty, the robot at Giant that checks for spills and obstructions in the aisles can wear a mask, so why can’t Giant’s customers?