The Legislature’s special session began Thursday. According to the figures we’ve seen, the session costs the taxpayers about a cool $38,000 each day.

It’s hard to give that a thumbs up — in fact, some office jokers have suggested we’re talking about the wrong finger here — but we’ll withhold judgment until we see how things go.

Meanwhile, it’s getting to be the end of the school year, which in Helena and the surrounding area always means an influx of good news about successful students.

There are too many to list here, but congratulations and a big thumbs up to you all.

Similarly, graduation season is beginning.

We want to join in the chorus of congratulations — and maybe indulge in a little nostalgia — as we watch graduates move on to the next part of their lives.

Thumbs up. Good luck. And be sure to stay in touch.

Graduates hopping in their cars for a post-graduation trip might not get as far this year, what with gas prices in the area topping $3.

Yes, oil is a commodity. We understand supply and demand. And we know about the argument over whether oil companies are making excess profits.

But let us say that it feels good to forget all that for a moment and just say “thumbs down” to high gas prices.

Come on, everybody join in.

Thumbs down to high gas prices! Thumbs down to high gas prices!

And finally, a thumbs up in relation to the unexploded ordnance that’s shown up in the area over the last couple of weeks.

How it got there is still being investigated, but a thumbs up to the Explosive Ordnance Disposal Team from Malmstrom Air Force Base and all the other military and law enforcement officials who took care of what could have been dangerous situations.