1. Eight hospitals and hundreds of care sites across the state will re-brand under one name. Mercy Health locations will now be called "Trinity Health", the healthcare system's parent company of 22 years.
The move was announced on Wednesday in a video message to the community, saying unifying their brand will help assure patients they will receive the same level of care as was provided under the Mercy Health name.
Mercy Health Muskegon was the first West Michigan branch to reveal its new signage. Replacements for the remaining locations will happen in the next eight months.
2. If you plan to travel, you'll still need to mask up on planes, trains, and buses through May 3.
The Federal Transportation Mask Mandate announced in January 2021 was set to expire on Monday, but will now be extended 15 days because of an increase in COVID-19 cases in the United States.
This is the fifth federal mask mandate extension and comes despite repeated pleas from airlines and other travel industry officials to drop it and other restrictions, including a coronavirus test requirement for travelers flying into the U.S.
3. Egg nog is a popular drink at Christmas, but what about egg liqueur for Easter?
The yellow drink is made from eight egg yolks and is a traditional Easter liqueur in Germany.
The specialty holiday drink has been made since the 1900s with the original recipe coming from Brazil.
While it is a high-calorie drink, egg liqueur is becoming more popular, even outside of the Easter season.
4. Panera is testing a new automated way to make and serve coffee. The restaurant chain is the first one to try the new coffee system "Cookright" by Miso Robotics.
The product aims to eliminate manual checkups from baristas and monitor coffee brewing. Panera says the coffee urn will be monitored for volume, time, and temperature.
Miso Robotics has also worked with other brands like Chipotle with their mechanic tortilla seasoner, Chippy, as well as Caliburger and White Castle with its automatic fry cook, Flippy.
5. It's time to give your garden some care, and celebrate National Gardening Day!
It's a day set aside to encourage both gardeners and would-be gardeners to pick up a shovel and plant some seeds.
Promoters say the day is a call to action to get out and plant your flower and vegetable gardens, and you don't need to have a ton of space.
You can plant in containers or flower boxes if you don't have a yard.
Put your skills to the test and share them with others on social media to celebrate.
