Thumbs up: "Get your mowers running. Head out on the highway." A handful of jail inmates will be humming that tune over the next couple of months in a grass-cutting work-release plan fashioned by County Executive William McReynolds and Sheriff Robert Carlson. After the state of Wisconsin told the county to cut the median grass along state highways only once during the summer it didn't take long for area highway medians to start looking shaggy. A few public-spirited residents answered the call to mow - and now McReynolds and Carlson have expanded the volunteer opportunity to inmates in the jail for things like child support or traffic offenses. About four inmates a day will be working to keep the medians in shape. The common-sense, low-cost law'n order initiative will aid safety and give some of the gateways to our community a much more presentable look.

Thumbs up: Stroke, stroke, stroke. Even if you're not a paddler on one of the 40 teams in the Great Midwest Dragon Boat Festival, you can still find plenty of fun cheering on the team of your choice all day Saturday as they race on Lake Michigan south of Samuel Myers Park. A mix of pageantry, drama and fun-filled competition - and fundraising for Racine Rotary Clubs - the fest is one of the gems of Racine's summer. While the racing is Saturday, the event kicks off tonight with a parade of teams along Pershing Park Drive to the festival grounds where there will be food vendors and live music.

Thumbs up: The Dragon Boaters will have some company along the lakeshore this weekend as the 35th annual Big Fish Bash begins and anglers angle for thousands of dollars in prizes for landing the biggest trout and salmon. Fishing begins a minute after midnight Saturday and the fishing contest runs until 11 a.m. July 19. The festival portion of the Bash, with food vendors and bands, starts on Thursday at

4 p.m. at Racine on the Lake Festival Hall. Admission after 6 p.m. is $5 (or donation of two nonperishable food items) for those older than 12. Fish on!

Thumbs up: To the city Landmarks Preservation Commission for being able to read the writing on the wall. The commission voted unanimously not to create a historic district south of Downtown this week, influenced no doubt by the furor that erupted with property owners who didn't take to the idea of getting city permission before they could make structural renovations. The stick approach didn't work, so now maybe the commission will turn to a carrot approach to induce homeowners to participate in historic preservation efforts.

Thumbs up: A tip of the fire helmet to Racine County firefighters who answered the call for help in fighting the massive, long-running blaze at the Patrick Cudahy meatpacking plant in Cudahy, a suburb south of Milwaukee. As the fire got bigger, the help kept coming until fire units from Racine, Rochester, Waterford, Raymond, Caledonia, Union Grove, Tichigan, South Shore and the City and Town of Burlington were involved. The fire and threat of an ammonia explosion caused hundreds of area residents to be evacuated and temporarily idled

1,400 plant workers.