Fans flock from across the Twin Cities metro to buy this $13 pint of ice cream

If you're having trouble viewing this email, you may [see it online](. [Star Tribune]( Talkers TOP STORIES - Fans flock from across the Twin Cities metro to buy this $13 pint of ice cream: Minnesotans will do almost anything to make winter seem like summer, even line up for ice cream when it's freezing outside. [Zach Vraa makes them work harder than that.]( - Community immunity is up, COVID-19 is down in Minnesota: Case numbers, wastewater surveillance and hospitalizations [are all moving in the right direction](, but COVID-19 vaccination has stagnated. - Minnesota's 2021 death toll well above expected total despite vaccine: The year of COVID-19 vaccines was still a deadly one in Minnesota, [with deaths from all causes in 2021 more than 15% higher than expected]( — mostly because of the pandemic and drug abuse. - State's public defense attorneys, support staff authorize first-ever strike: Minnesota's criminal public defense attorneys and their support staff [overwhelmingly authorized a potential first strike]( Thursday, one that could come in as soon as 10 days if an agreement on new contracts isn't reached. At issue are pay disparities with other agencies, staffing levels and the flexibility to work from home. Public defenders say staffing shortages lead to crushing caseloads that hurt their clients, who mostly are indigent and minorities. - Cargill to scale back in Russia, but continues food operations: The parade of western firms constraining business in Russia has — until now — hada notable absence: Minnetonka-based Cargill, one of the country's largest foreign agribusiness investors. With public pressure mounting, Cargill said Friday morning it will scale back its business activities and has stopped investment in Russia. [But the company also declined to specify where and how.]( President Joe Biden announced Friday [the U.S. will dramatically downgrade its trade status with Russia]( as punishment for its invasion of Ukraine and also ban imports of Russian seafood, alcohol and diamonds. Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar [opposed a bill banning Russian oil and energy imports to the United States]( amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The U.S. House passed the bill on a 414-17 bipartisan vote late Wednesday, with every other member of Minnesota's House delegation supporting the ban. - Russia strikes in western Ukraine as offensive grows: Russia widened its offensive in Ukraine on Friday, [striking airfields in the west and an industrial city in the east](, while the huge armored column that had been stalled for over a week outside Kyiv was on the move again, spreading out into forests and towns near the capital. - Liberal cities in U.S. change course, now clearing homeless camps: Increasingly in liberal cities across the country — where people living in tents in public spaces have long been tolerated — [leaders are removing encampments and pushing other strict measures]( to address homelessness that would have been unheard of a few years ago. - Edina School District officials denounce racist social media video by high school students: A video posted on social media of [Edina High School students mocking Asian accents and giving the Nazi salute]( has "disrupted our school environment," district officials told students and school families this week. - Is it true water only flows out of Minnesota? A rare intersection of North America's continental divides on the Iron Range has [a big impact on the movement of water in the region.]( WATCH THIS Time-lapse shows Australian bridge disappearing under flood waters: This video released by the Queensland Reconstruction Authority shows how [rising floodwaters submerged the Glenore Bridge in just 11 hours]( on Feb. 25 before receding in the following days. Talk to us! Send feedback on this newsletter, questions, story tips, ideas or anything else to [talkers@startribune.com](. TRENDING - Some Twin Cities venues drop COVID protocols, others don't: While large concert spaces don't require mask and vaccine requirements, [smaller ones and professional theaters still do.]( - The 5 best things our food writers ate this week: From bánh mì eggs Benedict to a grapefruit/cream cheese danish, [here's a rundown of the greatest hits]( from their dining diaries over the past seven days. - It's time to "spring forward" this weekend in most of the U.S.: [Remember to set clocks an hour ahead]( before bed Saturday night. SPORTS ROUNDUP - Five questions as the Twins start their sprint to Opening Day: So much is unsettled right now and not even the Twins' front office has answers right now on [issues ranging from unsettled pitching to top prospects to potential trades.]( - These are the players to watch as NFL free agency opens next week: Our NFL Insider Mark Craig [picks the best bets, best bargains and most overrated players]( in this free agent class. The negotiating and signing starts next week. - Semifinal Friday is underway in the state boys' high school hockey tournament: [Here's what you need to know about today's action]( at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. Did someone forward this newsletter to you? You can [sign up for Talkers here](. WORTH A CLICK How medical care for transgender youth became "child abuse" in Texas: "A custody battle in the Dallas suburbs amplified a growing conservative cause and helped fuel a move to treat transgender medicine as abuse." [reports J. David Goodman for the New York Times.]( TALKERS TRIVIA Want to win a $15 gift card of your choice? It's Friday, so that means it's time for another trivia question. The correct answer to this question can be found in a story that appeared in Talkers this week. We can't prevent you from simply Googling the answer, so Googling is encouraged! E-mail your answer to talkers@startribune.com by Sunday at 11:59 p.m. A winner will be selected at random from the correct responses. That lucky reader will receive a $15 card of their choice from one of several retailers — Best Buy, Target, Holiday or Menards — as well as a shout-out in Monday's newsletter. Here is this week's question: An exhibition of artwork by which well-known street artist will open in Minneapolis in May? Good luck! FROM THE ARCHIVES March 11, 2016: Patricia Fields navigated her way around the Edinborough Park pool in a kayak during lessons from instructor Bill Kabitz of Team River Runner in Edina. (Photo: Elizabeth Flores/Star Tribune) Connect with Star Tribune [facebook]([twitter]([pinterest]([instagram]( [Manage email preferences]( • [Subscribe to Star Tribune]( • [Privacy Policy]( • [Unsubscribe]( This email was sent by: StarTribune, 650 3rd Ave S, Suite #1300, Minneapolis, MN, 55488 © 2022 StarTribune. All rights reserved. We value your opinion! 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