Minnesota's new state flag officially takes flight this weekend.

Why it matters: Unlike before, we'll actually be able to tell ours apart from the dozen other states with flags that feature a detailed emblem on a blue field.

State of the masts: The new blue-on-blue banner will be raised at several state sites for the first time at sunrise on Saturday.

• The Minnesota National Guard will retire the outgoing flags and give them to the Minnesota Historical Society.

Catch up fast: The Legislature created a commission last year to redesign the flag and seal in response to criticism that the old imagery was a "cluttered genocidal mess."

• The old flag, which dates back to 1893, depicted a Native American riding away on horseback with a farmer in the foreground.

Inside the room: The commission spent months narrowing down more than 2,000 public submissions (including a very good dog and a laser-eyed loon).

• The final pick was based on a design created by Andrew Prekker, a 24-year-old artist from Luverne.

Friction point: While many of us probably couldn't have picked the old flag out of a lineup, everyone had an opinion on what the new one should look like — and whether it should change at all.

What they're saying: Ted Kaye, secretary of the North American Vexillological Association, gives the final design an A+.

• "It's different from all other U.S. state flags and actually most flags that I've seen," he told WCCO. "This special stylized form of the state is a very unusual flag design element."

The other side: Critics say it's too simple and doesn't contain enough imagery specific to Minnesota. Some argue the old flag was fine.

• More than 70% of respondents to a February KSTP poll said they thought the state should revert to the old one or pick a new design.

Share this story with your favorite vexillologist.

Downtown Minneapolis will be hopping this weekend as a Wolves team taking the sports world by storm returns home for two playoff games against the Denver Nuggets.

Why it matters: Excitement about the team should provide another shot in the arm for a downtown already seeing one of the best visitor rebounds in the country.

Stunning stat: With a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series, there's huge interest in tickets.

• Games on Friday and Sunday quickly sold out, and the cheapest tickets on the secondary market start around $225 before fees and taxes.

State of play: For those who can't afford those prices, eleven downtown bars will host official watch parties with merchandise giveaways.

• Otherwise, tonight's 8:30pm game is on ESPN and Sunday's 7pm tipoff is on TNT.

Friction point: The last Blue and Green line trains normally leave the Warehouse District Station at 11:22pm and 11:26pm, respectively, but a Metro Transit spokesperson said it's tacking on one extra trip for each line after the last scheduled departure.

Fun fact: Following Monday night's blowout win, a pair of Twin Cities tattoo artists promised $20 Naz Reid tattoos to anyone who wanted them.

• There's a 200-person backlog, according to Racket.

What we're watching: Whether the city shuts down streets for outdoor watch parties if the team makes the Western Conference finals or NBA Finals.

• Milwaukee has done something similar, though its arena has its own large plaza.

What they told us

🌳 The Minneapolis City Council voted to move forward with a plan to reconnect Nicollet Avenue and add a new park and path at the former Kmart site. (Star Tribune)

🎯 Target will sell its Pride Month collection in fewer stores after last year's right-wing backlash over LGBTQ+-themed products. (Axios)

👀 House Speaker Melissa Hortman told reporters that productive talks to strike a deal to legalize sports betting have picked up ahead of the final days of the session. (Torey via X)

• She now puts the odds of passage at 60-40.

🎂 Lake Harriet Lower Elementary School in Minneapolis turns 100 tomorrow. She doesn't look a day over 99 if you ask us!

🤷 One Minnesotan loves the new flag enough to get it tattooed on his back. (MPR News)

This 147-year-old townhome filled with historic character on Nicollet Island is now on the market for $1.2 million.

Why we love it: Travel through the home and you'll take a trip around the world — and through history.

• Each level is entirely its own: a Gilded Age-esque main floor with hand-painted walls, a lower level heavily influenced by Asian architecture, and a Baroque-inspired basement with hand-carved woodwork.

Take a look around

📆 Start planning your days ahead.

Heritage Fire Tour at KEG & CASE on May 19: Enjoy live fire cooking, farm-fresh feast, all-inclusive tickets.

Hosting an event? Email [email protected].

Anglers across the state will drop a line during this weekend's Minnesota Fishing Opener.

The big picture: About 1.4 million Minnesotans will get a fishing license this year, Gov. Tim Walz said as he and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan purchased their own last week.

• That puts the state in the top five nationwide for the number of people who fish, Walz said.

Catch up fast: The Governor's Fishing Opener, which always falls two weeks before the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend, has been on the books since the 1940s.

• This year's event will take place in Lake City.

Editor's note: This story has been corrected to  reflect that 1.4 million Minnesotans will get a fishing license this year.

"My plan was to ride camels in the Arabian desert, frolic across the famed beaches of Zanzibar, and catch the Great Migration in the Serengeti. Julian's, like most toddlers with the iron will of a dictator and self-control of an inebriated rock star, was to foil my ambitions at every turn. Though we both had our share of teary meltdowns, this was the most rewarding trip I've ever done."

Read her toddler travel tips via Afar