Here are five of the upmost important things our staff thinks you need to know about to be the king or queen of conversation at the water cooler with your co-workers...and maybe a select few friends:

Residents of Manhattan, IL don’t forget to register for the Community Wide Garage Sales event coming up next month Friday Sept 13th and Saturday Sept 14th. Registration is due by Friday, September 6th. Sales will be held rain or shine. Maps available for pickup Tuesday Sept 10th at Village Hall in Manhattan, Whitmore ACE Hardware and Berkot’s.

Olive Garden’s famous ‘Pasta Pass’ is making a comeback this week! Passes will go on sale starting Thursday at 2 pm, but new this year will be the addition of something a little different: The Lifetime Pasta Pass…for $500.

Sixteen local bike path projects have been awarded grants totaling $2.6 million dollars in all that will assist communities in acquiring, developing and improving bike path facilities throughout the State of Illinois.

Joliet Mayor Bob O’Dekirk will provide an opening keynote address on the importance of getting a complete count for the upcoming 2020 U.S. Census. The event will also feature a presentation by the U.S. Census Bureau on the basics of the 2020 U.S. Census, and by the Spanish Community Center on outreach efforts to hard-to-count populations of the community.

“This legislation brings our medical cannabis program in line with my administration’s vision for equity, and it makes adjustments for the lessons we’ve learned since its inception,” said Governor JB Pritzker.