1. The paczki have been eaten and Fat Tuesday is over, meaning that Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent.
There will be a special mass at the Cathedral of Saint Andrew on Sheldon Boulevard in Grand Rapids.
There will be two services, one at 9:30 a.m. for students from Catholic Central High School, and around 12 p.m. for the general public.
Lent lasts six weeks, and will end on the Thursday before Easter on April 13.
2. Broadway Grand Rapids just announced that seats in the first two rows of the orchestra section will be $20 for every performance.
The tickets are a tradition that began in 1996 in New York when the show moved to Broadway after a sold out run in a small downtown theater. They are available for in-person purchases at DeVos Performance Hall Box Office two hours before the show.
They are available on a first-come, first served basis and are limited to two tickets per person.
“Rent” performs at DeVos Performance Hall March 14-16 at 7:30 p.m.
3. Laughfest Grand Rapids officially has a beverage!
Gilda’s Laughfest teamed up with Vander Mill in Grand Rapids to create the Cherry Chuckle. It’s a hard cider blend made with Michigan Cherry Juice, and described as slightly sweet and refreshingly tart.
There will be an official release party on Friday at Vander Mill’s location on Ball Avenue.
4. YouTube is taking on cable television by launching a streaming service.
On Tuesday Google launched “YouTube TV,” which will cost $35 a month and provide content from major broadcast networks as well as YouTube itself. Some of those networks include Bravo, FX, and ESPN.
Plus, you’ll be able to watch shows that were previously only available on YouTube Red, which is the website’s ad-free subscription service.
YouTube TV will launch in certain markets in the coming months.
5. Some famous women get a Barbie, but five women scientists will be immortalized as Lego figures.
The company unveiled its “Women of NASA” set this week, and it features women who played vital roles in the U.S. Space Program.
The idea came from fans who proposed concepts for new sets.
The figures include Sally Ride, the first American woman in space, Nancy Grace Roman, who’s known as the “mother” of the Hubble Space Telescope, and Mae Jemison, the first African-American woman in space.
Lego is still working on the final design and price for the “Women of NASA” set, but is set to be released later this year or early 2018.
