Hypes and Gripes

• Gripes to flower shops that promise a dozen cellophane-wrapped flowers for dirt-cheap, but then jack up the price $30 to add baby’s breath and a cheap glass vase—and this after Valentine’s Day. Though, we suppose we should also Gripe ourselves for falling for the upcharge.

• Hypes to the Missouri State Ice Bears. We’re more than a little enamored with the boys of the rink. They recently won their league tournament and were runners-up in the ACHA regionals, bowing out with a 5-3 loss to Michigan (where, you know, people play hockey).

• Gripes to the Rev. Larry Rice for pushing ahead with plans to open a homeless veterans’ day shelter within yards of a Central High School parking lot and a Springfield Public Schools swimming facility. We have no problem with the vets—they deserve the best care. But can Rev. Rice supply that? The safety record at his facilities includes an alleged rape last year at his Free Store on Commercial Street, a chain saw attack at his facility outside Jefferson City, and a murder this month in St. Louis. Clean up your houses, Rev. Rice, then people might listen to you. Though shame on all of us for being blasé about Rev. Rice while his violations were “just” limited to Commercial Street. The time to start caring was a year ago.

• Hypes to Mystery Jeff Houghton for bringing the best Branson talent to the Skinny for bull sessions on his monthly Mystery Hour talk show. Yakov Smirnoff has become a frequent presence at Skinny events, and the March 7 Mystery Hour will feature none other than Jim Stafford.

• Hypes to OTC for its aggressive new recycling program. There are recycling containers for cans, plastic bottles, paper, and something else in almost every corner of every hallway. (Submitted by reader Greg Patton.)