Thumbs up to members of the Montana Contractors Association who came up with $125,000 to contribute to the Montana Meth Project.

The money will be matched by the Siebel Foundation, making the total amount a quarter of a million dollars.

Thumbs up to all those who took part in last week's Homeless Persons' Memorial Day to honor homeless people who died in the past year. The event takes place on the first day of winter and marks the longest night of the year.

Thumbs down to some less-than-savvy alleged burglars. Police say that while two young people entered a pizza parlor to steal beer and cigarettes, two others waited outside thinking they couldn't get into trouble because they hadn't entered the restaurant. The responding officer, however, though it obvious that the two were expecting to benefit from stolen items.

Thumbs up to the city's ongoing program to collect Christmas trees for the state Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks, which sinks them in Canyon Ferry Reservoir to provide habitat for spawning fish. That certainly beats filling up the city's landfill with trees.