Four Seasons. Same Dang Week!
Todd Swank's Diary Entry for March 22, 2026
It was the first day of spring this week, but in Minnesota that doesn’t mean much. Our weather is completely bipolar. Last Saturday we got almost 14 inches of snow, this Saturday it was pushing 80 degrees, and today we’re right back down to 35 like nothing ever happened. At least the ice on the lakes, ponds, and rivers is finally starting to give up. Judging by this crew, the birds have been waiting all winter for their pool to reopen… and they’re not wasting a second.
I was pretty excited to get this shot, even though apparently this guy is a fairly common sight around Prior Lake. ChatGPT tells me it’s a male Hooded Merganser, which sounds impressive until you realize it’s basically the bird version of “yeah, we’ve got a lot of those around here.” Still… look at him. This guy walked into the barbershop and said, “Just a little off the sides,” and the barber chose violence.
Long-time readers of my blog know our history with albino squirrels. I’d never seen one in my life, and then after our twin boys were born, they started showing up in our yard every time something stressful was going on. This happened across two different houses in differnt cities. It got to the point where we started thinking of them as little guardian angels. Then the boys moved out… and the sightings stopped. Until this week. My mom called with good news that her hip surgery was being moved up, and while I was on the phone I looked outside and saw this guy across the street. I told Grandma Linda that means she’s gonna be just fine.
Tuesday night was our last regular season home game for the Timberwolves, and also our last time sitting in the end zone. We only had these seats for part of this season, but it was a fun perspective… minus the small issue of the basket occasionally blocking everything important. After a few games of guessing what just happened, we decided to switch it up for next year and try a new angle. Same team, same energy, just hopefully a clearer view of the actual game.
The opponent Tuesday night was the Phoenix Suns, a team that’s given the Wolves problems before, and we had to face them without Anthony Edwards. Add in the fact that we’d lost 4 of our last 5 and the Western Conference playoff race is basically a knife fight right now… not exactly the confidence boost you’re looking for walking into Target Center. Everything I was seeing beforehand said this was a huge opportunity for Phoenix with Ant out and the Wolves slipping a bit, which is usually right about the time Minnesota fans start emotionally preparing for the worst.
Then the game started and all that worry went out the window. They were down early which felt very on brand, but once they settled in they completely took control. Julius Randle was unstoppable with 32, Bones Hyland gave them a huge spark off the bench, Gobert owned the glass, and the defense started making life miserable. They broke it open with a big run late in the third and cruised to a 116-104 win. No Ant, no problem.
With the temperatures finally warming up this week, we’re trying to take advantage and get back out for our hikes. On Thursday we made it over to Sunset Pond in Savage and did a loop around the water, which is still covered in that dirty, end-of-winter ice that looks like it could give up at any second. It’s that awkward Minnesota phase where it’s warm enough to be outside, but everything still looks like winter’s hanging on out of spite.
Saturday felt like Minnesota showing off, flirting with 80 degrees like it hasn’t spent the last five months trying to freeze us out of existence, so we headed over the Bloomington Ferry Bridge to soak it in. The Minnesota River was actually moving like it remembered its job, which was nice to see, but the trails were still a soggy mess, cutting our walk shorter than we wanted. Classic early spring here… perfect weather, terrible footing, and just enough hope to keep you coming back.
We wrapped up the walk with a stop at The Landing, which always feels like you accidentally stepped onto the set of Little House on the Prairie and nobody told you to act normal. It’s this preserved 1800s village along the river with old shops, homes, and just enough history to remind you how different life used to be. We don’t get out there often, maybe once every few years, but every time we do it’s a cool reminder that people survived just fine without Wi-Fi, DoorDash, or complaining about soggy trails.
This week we got lucky and had Avery and Abby stop by twice, which doesn’t happen often with how busy their schedules are. Sometimes a couple weeks go by without seeing them, and then out of nowhere we get back-to-back visits like this. Nothing big planned, just time around the table catching up, but those are the nights you realize how much you miss it when it doesn’t happen.
