morning, march 17th, the cleanup begins following last night's powerful storm. and members of the bay area afghan community plan a rally to condemn last weekend's massacre as an army sergeant is accused of killing 16 afghan civilians returns to the u.s. >> good morning and happy saint patrick's day. i'm katie in for terry mcsweeney sweeney. surely you want to know about the forecast so you can plan your st^patrick's day festivities. lisa joins us. there's a parade in san francisco this morning. what's the forecast? >> we should be okay. you may want to keep the rain gear handy but the bulk of the activity you can see is

offshore, south and east of the bay, with trace rainfall amounts since the cold front passed on through while you were sleeping a little further south, west of the coast around santa cruz you can see more activity offshore. but the winter storm warning has been canceled in the sierra nevada. but look at the tolls. anywhere from 3.5 inches to 2.5 in mount saint helena. we still have scattered showers throughout the weekend but overall the heavy rain is over and we have spring to look forward to monday night. thank you, katie. >> and good news because we saw plenty of damage yesterday. the storm packed a punch with thunder and lightning, downed trees and power outages throughout the bay area. this morning pg&e says all four has been restored to bay area customers. we join nick smith in the east bay where the storm had emergency crews in rescue mode. >> contra costa fire units were called to bancroft road at the

contra costa canal because of reports a young man may have entered the water. there were conflicting reports as to whether anyone had actually gone into the canal, but crews responded out of an abundance of caution, partly due to weather and partly due to last year there were two teenagers who died in the area trying to raft the creek. they tell the news the result of their search did not produce evidence of anyone entering the water. in the rossmoor area of walnut creek, residents were dealing with the loss of power since late afternoon. >> i hope it doesn't take 20,000 years to get it back. >> the loss of power shut off service to this atm and caused area businesses to go dark at the peak of busy friday shopping. customers at this safeway had to leave the store completely empty-handed. >> there was about, i don't know, 40 people standing in my front lobby waiting to see if the registers were going to come on or not, and about 40 shopping

carts of groceries to put back. that's what it looked like for about 20 minutes. >> the power outage didn't only affect residents of walnut creek, they said customers in will you fayette and concord also saw their homes and businesses go dark. >> oh, my gosh, i was about to go home and now i'm stuck. >> the cause of the outages aren't exactly clear, but i did speak with residents who told me they saw a bright flash of lightning and then everything went dark. n walnut creek, abc7 news. >> in the santa cruz mountains this morning conditions are improving after a steady soaking downpour that lasted much of the night. abc7 shows us how much rain coming down so hard makes mountain driving treacherous. >> right now we are just doing traffic control, trying to get people to slow down coming down the mountain. >> the highway patrol officer said his presence on hay way 17 -- highway 17 is an added incentive for drivers to go easy on the gas pedal. >> on the mountain they tend to

slow down because they are scared, which they should be. >> this is what they should be scared of. a morning accident at laurel road. the 57-year-old man behind the wheel of this nissan altima heading southbound drifted into the northbound lanes and hit two cars. he died. the people in the four runner were seriously injured. >> at this point it's not nobody -- no one why he lost control. the road is wet, however. this miff contributed to it. however, at this point in the investigation it's still ongoing and that's unknown. >> while chp is helping keep us safe, they are putting their own lives in danger. >> we had a lieutenant that was actually hit and killed on this mountain about seven years ago, and it was pretty tragic. we've also had another officer, steve, he was hit on this roadway as well. the same type of conditions we are working in now. >> despite the risk, officer raw lines installed and others like him -- >> we will always have a unit in the rain on the hill. always waiting to respond to the next crash. >> if you have taken the ride over the hill, know navigating

can be a challenge on even the best day, why is why chp is keeping an eye on traffic. abc7 news. in san francisco, the storm knocked down a tree last night in the heart of north beach. it happened just before 9:00, blocking all four lanes of columbus near broadway. the tree even fell on to a passing town car. >> i was driving by, and all of a sudden this tree just fell down. it fell down on top of the roof of my car. that's pretty much it. i feel just lucky that it didn't fall on my head. >> his st^patrick's day luck came a day early. columbus was closed from broadway to green street while crews cleared away the debris. in sonoma county, the junction of state highways 12 and 121 is open again this morning. that intersection was closed due to flooding yesterday and last night. abc7 reports from schellville. >> the rain poured down in the town of sonoma. everywhere you looked umbrellas completed many wardrobes.

signs warned of flooding and standing water. the heavy rains really affected highway 121 where it connects to 12 in schellville. the chp closed portions of both. before the closer some drivers, seemingly indifferent to the flooding, plowed through the water. while locals welcomed the rain, the chp said this is the kind of driving this causes serious accidents. >> the obvious danger is they will hydroplane and lose control and slam into the railing or go off into the ditch or go head on with another vehicle. we ask everybody to slow down. >> it's been a little scary not having any water for a while so it's great. living up here, come november, if there's no water, the wells go dry. >> chp detoured traffic around the flooded roads, causing major backups in the area. the chp is keeping a close eye on the weather in case of more flooding. the fast moving water you are

seeing isn't a stream or creek, it's a portion of highway 12. heavy rain saturated the roads earlier. the high tide came in and finished the job of flooding the entire junction. in sonoma county, abc7 news. and in mill valley a viewer sent in this picture through u-report. check out that huge tree that came down. it blacked access to mcgee avenue in a neighborhood northwest of the downtown area. if you are heading to tahoe this weekend, that could be a challenging trip. here's what it looks like near donner summit. the caltrans plows are working to try move the snow. chains are required over interstate 80 and highway 50. last night an accident closed the interstate. a viewer sent us this picture of traffic stopped in near white-out condition. here's another picture showing traffic moving eastbound. the freeway signs are covered with a frosty, white icing. it took a major effort to save a small dog. he was rescued from the pine

creek channel after someone reported the tiny animal in trouble. we hope he's okay. we will be tracking the storm throughout the weekend. keep it on abc7 news. you can also go to abc7news.com/weather to access our interactive live doppler hd or get street level radar. >> coming up next, an army sergeant accused of a horrendous crime in afghanistan has been identified. the key

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>> closed captioning brought to you by mancini sleepworld. >> the army staff sergeant accused of killing 16 civilian afghanistans is back in the u.s. he's been identified at 38-year-old robert bales. he's being held in a military prison at fort leavenworth, kansas. he suffered a head wound during his tour of duty in afghanistan. his lawyer said he may have also been suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder and was devastated about being sent back into combat. >> the family was counting on him not being redeployed. he and his family were told his tours in the middle east were over and literally overnight that was changed. >> a ptsd diagnosis could take the death penalty off the table.

members of bay area afghan community will assemble to condemn the massacre and call to an end to such. rain or sheen they plan a rally at 2:00 this avenue at the fremont amtrak station. they emphasize that this is a human rights rally, not a muslim rally, and they hope that people of all faiths and background will join them. after george clooney walk the walk yesterday, he was arrested, protesting in front of the sudanese embassy in washington d.c.. him and his father were among 17 people taken into custody. police pulled the handcuffs out of a protesters refused to disburse. clooney has traveled to the sudan several times and is trying to get support to stop the government there from slaughtering its citizens.

>> we need humanitarian aid allowed into the sudan before it becomes the worst humanitarian crisis in the world immediately. >> he paid a $100 fine and joked about it afterwards. also this week clooney testified before congress earlier this week about sudan and attended a state dinner with president obama. >> we are keeping our eyes on the sky this holiday. rain lingers. >> it lingers. that's the key here. the cold front has pushed through. the snow front rapidly diminishing but not before it left a couple feet. and a couple inches locally for the rain. outside it's dry, we have fog. the full forecast is next. >> also next, the 49ers secret pursuit. will payton manning be heading this way to wear red and gold? larry beil has the details coming up.

>> welcome back, everyone. lisa argen joins us for the weather. i have to give a nod to my mom's

side of the family. >> of course. and i mentioned before everything greening up the last couple of days. with the welcome rain, the winter-like weather, it will stay cool around here. but the rain, the heavy rain, that's over with. the cold front pushed through. the winter storm warning has been cancelled all but for mammoth and yosemite. here's a look at heavenly where it's quiet. higher elevations picked up a couple of feet. low 20s in lake canyon and tahoe. we are looking locally at the clear sky allowing for fog to form. can you see it there? especially in the north bay valleys. numbers have dropped into the upper 30s. it is a cold start around the bay. we will see a mixed bag today. the live doppler hd shows the snow around mammoth southward. we are looking at bakersfield, looking at rain well south. you see the heavy rain around bakersfield. but offshore we have some returns. that's why we are looking at the chance of showers still in the

forecast. here's a look at the snow. tahoe, cloudy skies right now and the activity well south. this is cold front rapidly pushes into southern california. another glimpse here. the best chance of showers today will come from the central coast into the san joaquin valley in southern california while most of the bay area on the back side. all of the bay area on the back side, but still instability out there to allow for some showers today and tomorrow. upper 30s. it's chilly out there in napa. fairfield 39. 45 in redwood city. good morning san francisco, 45 for you. 46 at the coast with 8-mile visibility half moon bay. a half-mile in novato, as well as santa rosa. a mile in napa. definitely some problems navigating up to the north bay. keep that in mind. boy, you will feel the chill with 16 degrees of cooling from yesterday morning to this morning around the delta. livermore, you are 15 degrees

colder. san francisco and redwood city and half moon bay, everywhere a chilly start. partly cloudy skies with some clouds. scattered showers today. possibility of a thunderstorm later on tonight and tomorrow more showers with temperatures in the 50s. but we will see the scattered showers. we aren't seeing any organized frontal band move through the area. spring arrives monday night. but with the passage of the cold front, high surf advisory from 9:00 tonight to 3:00 tomorrow morning. breakers up to 17 feet. nearly an inch of rain in san francisco, .6 in hayward, half-inch in livermore. quickly the storm is exiting and we will be looking at partly cloudy conditions and the chance of showers remains throughout the day. here's why. notice at 7:00 today we are quiet. but as we go through the rest of the morning and the afternoon, the clouds increase. there could be some run around morgan hill in santa cruz. lake county.

the low snow levels. you see some activity offshore. so the butt being of the activity. cool numbers with 55 in richmond, 57 san jose, 56 in livermore, and down by the monterey bay we are looking at mid-50s and the possibility of a few showers tomorrow. look for another cool day. some showers, a dry day on monday, and the chance of showers just north tuesday and wednesday. even though it's spring, i don't think that's it for the rain. we could see a little more. >> it's just delayed run we should have been getting all this time. >> exactly. >> thank you, lisa. dan harris is going to join us now live from new york to tell us what is coming up at 7:00 on "good morning america." good morning, dan. >> good morning to you. happy saint patrick's day. coming up on gma, we have a name and a picture of the american soldier who is accused of massacring 16 civilians in afghanistan. he's back in america this morning. we are learning a lot more this morning about what could have mid-him snap and we will have a full report coming up.

also coming up, for the first time we will be hearing the frantic 911 calls just before a man on neighborhood watch shot and killed a young and totally unarmed teenager. this young man with a very sweet face. this has sparked a national outcry about racism and injustice with no arrests made yet. we will hear from the boy's family. and a shocking turn of events in a story that has been the talk of the internet for a week now. the founder and the face of that viral video about the african warlord, the so-called stop kony movement that's been seen by millions of people, especially young people. he was caught on tape with no clothes on apparently having some sort of very public meltdown. we will ask what went on here. and on a much lighter note, jack has been any will be here with unusual friends from three separate continents, including an animal with a sweet name but a savage reputation. know what i'm talking about, the honey badger, it's one of the most fearless animals in the

world. and he will be facing up with bianna and ginger this morning. >> not the cuddliest of choices. >> no. >> good luck. thank you, i appreciate it. >> see you at seven. >> take care. >> in sports, march madness resumes today with teams battling to get into the sweet 16 after a full day of upsets. on the women's side the ncaa tournament begins tonight for top-seed stanford in norfolk, virginia against hampton. and meanwhile the 49ers have become the dark horse in the peyton manning sweepstakes. here's this morning's sports. >> good morning. operating in super secret mode, peyton manning worked out with the 49ers and they are reportedly one of the three finalists. according to espn, george harbaugh flew to watch him three. manning missed all of last season coming off of neck surgery. if healthy, he could play over another player that has manning's agent. will they cut him lose and pay up to $18 million a year for

manning, hoping he stays healthy? think about a five-year, $90 million commitment. here's espn's adam. >> they are the dark horse in this race. i think most people around the league still think that denver and tennessee are the favorites to land peyton manning. but the 49ers, if they were able to land payton manning, would become an immediate super bowl favorite. >> the raiders, they cut linebacker cameron wimbley. he had seven sacks last season. the silver and black still owe him $6.5 million as part of his contract guarantee. they signed him just last year. a few days after being traded by the warriors, monta ellis and udoh were back to face the warriors. they were with third new team, the milwaukee bucks. monta was the face of the franchise ball the warriors felt they needed a dramatic move to improve for the long-term. ellis goes to the buck.

monta on his return. >> i just really want to get the win. i'm not going to try to come out here and kill the warriors because like i said, they was great to me, they gave me my shot. if it weren't for them i wouldn't be the monta ellis that i am today. i just want to come out and try to get a win. >> number 11, monta ellis! >> warriors owner, joe, thank monta for his years of service. he got a warm greeting from the fans and old teammates. waist the no time going to work. first jumper, hit it. had 12 at the break. this game was all bucks. ekpe udoh. the rejection of brandon rush. bucks up by 13 at the half. and klay thompson was guarding monta. he had 19 points. monta down the lane, hits the lefty lay-up, had 18 points and it was a runaway, basically. the bucks victorious, 120-98. to the madness in the ncaa tournament. we will start with saint mary's. one and done losing to purdue. and matthew only 3 of 10 from the field in this game.

boilermakers all over the gaels. louis jackson down the lane. purdue was up by 18 with 4:30 to go. suddenly the gaels awake. the runner. rob jones turn around. he had 23. gaels down 2. 45 seconds left. jordan page. for the lead. 14 hitch 2 run, gaels up by 1. gaels up by one. 31 seconds left. called for traveling. running on the baseline. purdue gets it back. jackson fouled. makes two free throws. so purdue goes up by 1. gaels were down three in the final moments. jones for the tie. the senior, his final shot in college basketball. gaels eliminated, 72-69. saint mary's, just 4 of 29 shooting beyond the arc. >> you can hash it out in a lot of ways, but the bottom line, if they are going to play and you not guard your three-point shooters, you have to make those. we didn't. >> no, they didn't.

15th seed lehigh taking on duke. c.j. mccollum putting on a show. the steal and slam. lehigh down by just a deuce at the half. mccollum getting better and better. had 30 points. lehigh up 5. duke within three. lehigh breaks the press. jordan hamilton throwing down the 15th seeded lehigh mount hawks. two seed missouri, number 15. norfolk at this time. tied under a minute left. the kyle o'quinn, right place at the right time. he snatches the air ball. 17 points, 14 boards. up by two. a chance to steal the game away. o'quinn misses two free throws. last chance for mizzou. phil pressey gets a look at the three for the win. no! norfolk state, stunner. 86-84. the first 15 seed to upset a number two in 11 years and then it happened a few minutes later with duke. that's a wrap on morning sports. mike shumann will be here with your hoops and highlights at

five, six and eleven. have a great weekend, everybody. i'm larry beil. >> next at 6:30 a missing mother and a murdered sister. the clues found inside a gilroy veteran's car, tieing him to the crime. he is dead too. also it's the stuff skiers have been hoping for all season. storms have dumped lots of snow in the sierra, and there is okay, team! after age 40, we can start losing muscle --

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may be at the heart of a terrible crime in gilroy. police are afraid the mother of an iraq war veteran is dead, killed by her son, and he is suspected of killing his little sister before killing himself. karina rusk has more. >> there's no one picture that conveys the pain of this crime. not the memorial for the 11-year-old lucera luna or for the somber face of bob diaz at the vfw hall in gilroy. >> it hurts to see a fellow veteran come back and these tragedies happen. i mean, it's something you don't want to think about that's going to happen, but it does happen. >> police say before specialist abel gutierrez killed his little sister and then himself on wednesday, the iraq war veteran shot his mother, martha gutierrez, inside his car. >> based on the evidence in the car, we fear the worst. we believe she is, if not critically wounded, that she's

dead. >> police are asking the public to remember if they have seen a green ford mustang similar to this one with a washington state license plate 169 vvj. any sighting on tuesday or wednesday could help narrow the search for gutierrez. jill gonzalez said he didn't know gutierrez but he does know about posttraumatic stress disorder. >> we are walking wounded. we might look healthy, but we are not. deep inside we are hurting so bad it isn't funny. >> these people don't talk about ptsd easily. but multiple deployments in iraq and afghanistan has revealed a new generation of problems. >> they go over there and they are killing people, and it's not something they want to do and then they send them back again. a lot of them crack up and they fall apart. >> specialist gutierrez did do two tours in the middle east.

a washington national guard spokesperson told me the most recent tour in iraq was a voluntary mission and specialist gutierrez also took part in a weekend military training exercise just this month. in gilroy, karina rusk, abc7 news. president obama is again calling for congress to move america's energy policy into a new direction by focusing his weekly address on rising gas prices. he says we can't expect to meet our energy needs by just drilling more domestic oil. the u.s. consumes 20% of the world's oil market, but has just 2% of the world's oil reserve. he said his administration's tighter regulation of wall street is helping to expose profiteers who artificially drive up prices. he wants to end subsidies on big oil companies. >> the next two weeks i expect congress to vote on ending the subsidies. when they do, we will put every single member of congress on record.

they can either stand up for the oil companies or they can stand up for the american people. they can either place their bets on a fossil fuel from the last century or they can place their bets on america's future. >> the president said america's future rides on developing renewable energy and technology to squeeze more miles out of every gallon of goods. speaking of gas prices, here's what you can expect to pay today according to triple-a. the state-wide average for a gallon of regular is $4.35 this morning. a month ago it was $3.90. in the bay area, oakland's average price is $4.32. in san francisco it's $4.40 and san jose drivers are paying $4.34 a gallon. if you are heading to the sierra, high gas prices aren't going to be your only problem. there's a lot of snow on the road ways. ski resorts could get another three feet of snow. but if you are headed there. bring tire chains. they are required on highways 50 and 80.

george warren reports from donner summit. >> after a mixed week of a little snow and a lot of rain, no one is complaining about having to use a snow shovel. >> it's good. can't really complain too much. >> happy to get some real snow, though? >> right, yeah. >> no matter how much we've been talking about it this week, the late-season storm seemed to catch some people by surprise. people who really thought they might make it over the summit without tire chains. >> my dad is talking me through it. >> you are on the phone with your dad? >> yeah. i keep calling him back after i go forward and pull backward and get wet in the slush with my non-weatherproof boots. >> needless to say, the people who make their living off winter weather couldn't be happier. >> we finally got some snow up here, okay? i've been looking forward to it. looks like it's going to get worst next couple days. we are going to have a lot of snow. >> worse or better, depending on your perspective? >> it's better for me, worse for the people who have their mishaps, you know. >> with the snow level finally

at or below 6,000 feet, every tahoe area resort is getting covered. the crowd was relatively light here, but with as much as four feet of new snow expected, saturday looks like a winner. >> this is what we like. it's a perfect storm. storms during the week and clear up for the weekend so everybody can get up there. >> at donner summit, george warren, abc7 news. >> called it the perfect storm. it look beautiful. >> a popular place this weekend. the winter storm warning has been lifted for the sierra nevada. the roof camera showing partly cloudy skies. fog in the north bay. a much colder day. still a few showers but is the bulk of the rain over? i'll let you know coming up. >> also ahead, what happens when art meets technology. two-day extravaganza that begins today, showcasing just that.

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>> good morning, everyone. thanks for joining us on this saturday morning. it's 6:38. you are looking live at the toll plaza at the golden gate bridge. the headlights heading into san francisco in a steady stream. it's hard to tell exactly what the weather is being as dark as it is. but it is not raining and certainly not windy. things are looking good heading into st^patrick's day. the parade is 11:30 this morning in san francisco. the technology for predicting weather is improving all the time.

but when you hear the forecast, you might not give much thought about the research behind it or the people who are risking their lives to find out more. in this morning's assignment 7 dan ashley has more on the science of weather on display in san francisco. >> reporter: you can see the updraft. this simulated tornado is one of the exploritorium's most popular exhibits. >> the children can get into it and any exhibit that involves you personally is a great exhibit. >> for the next week they will have more opportunities to get involved in weather as the exploritorium focuses on the science of severe storms. >> you fly balloons inside thunderstorms. this balloon got struck by lightning. see the burn marks? >> we are simulating lightning. we build up static electricity on a big metal ball and we use this little wand to have lightning basically run from the wand to the bigger ball. >> you can actually feel the electricity in the air. >> i felt some kind of a tingly sensation all around here.

>> the severe weather exhibit is a partnership with the national oceanic and atmospheric administration, noah. they are trying to get close, but not too close. >> you have to have an exit strategy. >> graduate student, sean, helps put together those vehicles and one of them is on display now at the exploritorium. the high-tech weather instruments on top feed data into a computer system build into the door. >> we can monitor the data in realtime. see what the wind and temperature and pressure and all that stuff is doing. >> the exhibit features dramatic video and photos taken by the storm chasers during their research. >> there's a lot of information contained in just the shape of the storm and how the storm looked. >> hail is one of the most dangerous things they face. it's big and has spikes and it can come down hard. >> it's like making an ice cube the size of a grapefruit and throwing it out of an airplane. >> the hood of the vehicle is covered with battle scars caused by hail and that's not the

worst. the windshields have been replaced a number of times. it can break bones, it can kill you if you are out exposed to it. >> all the weather exhibits are a preview of what's to come next year. the exploritorium is opening a new building on the waterfront where they will collaborate on noah on cutting etch research. dan ashley, abc7 news. >> they are featuring weather exhibits through march 25th. tomorrow it will host a special severe storms day with all kinds of demonstrations, talks and tours. we have a link on abc7 news.com. so just head there and click "see it on tv." we have our own weather exert -- expert right here this morning, lisa argen. >> it looks like things are getting a little more interesting pour spring. the weekend at hand, we are just talking about scattered showers

and the bulk of the activity. the heavy rain and organized cold front passed through the bay area. you probably heard it while you were sleeping. emeryville right know with partly cloudy conditions. we are talking about still a winter storm warning in mammoth but it's been cancelled for the sierra nevada. already we are looking at cloudy skies and the snow and rain quickly heading south. live doppler hd shows points south through bakersfield, and some pretty good rain here and the returns offshore. so we still will be caught up in a few afternoon showers. the snow anywhere from four to six inches around yosemite, and the higher televisions one to two feet above 6,000 feet in yosemite and mammoth is expected to pick up a good deal of snow. here we are a little further south from watsonville to gilroy, highway 101. morganville looking at the wet

weather. be careful out there. slippery conditions and cold conditions with fog in the north bay. so wind to talk about but upper 30s napa. livermore at 40 with mid-40s san jose and mountain view. we are looking at visibility reduced in santa rosa, novato down to a half-mile. 8 miles on the coast. temperatures this morning, boy, are they cold. 16 degrees colder than yesterday morning in napa with 15 degrees colder in mountain view, and san jose 13 degrees colder. so partly cloudy with the fog. the shower activity, don't really have to worry about it this morning. we will see some scattered showers this afternoon, and for tomorrow afternoon. a chance of thunderstorms tonight. and training arrives. high surf being generated from the storm with west, northwesterly swells12 to 15 feet, 9:00 tonight through 3:00 tomorrow. an inch to inch and a quarter in

santa rosa. we haven't seen this all season long, so pretty impressive. .6 in concord, fairfield .68. we are looking at 3.5 here. there it goes. quickly eckitying the bay area into southern california. hears the rest of the day. notice 7:00 we are quiet, but scattered showers will be from the south bay, offshore rotating anywhere around the bay area today. keep that rain gear handy. they will be brief and we will look for the low snow levels around lick county, mount hamilton could see a few flakes as well. afternoon highs very chilly. but the active weather from mr. fresno south to san diego and los angeles. palo alto 67. 56 livermore. down by the monterey bay a chance of showers really for everyone in the afternoon. 56 in salinas. and with the unstable air and another weak system pushing through tomorrow we will see the scattered showers and some sun.

a dry day monday and then it looks like we could get wet in the north day tuesday, wednesday and thursday. but getting warmer. >> looks good to me. thanks, lisa. when artists and engineers come together it might look like the creator's project. it's happening at fort mason in san francisco. abc7 jonathan bloom explains why tens of thousands of visitors are expected to attend. ♪ >> in a warehouse, the ominous sounds of a choir singing in latin surround an 8-foot tall circa larry beil projection screen. the animation you see is generated by the body movement of the singers themselves. >> it's innovative art. it's lots of people actually inventing things in order to help express themselves. >> she is one of more than a dozen artists exhibiting at the creators project this weekend in san francisco. >> the celebration where art and technology collides demonstrates something pretty magical. >> intel helped organize the

event, which is in its third year and is being held in the city by the bay. >> san francisco is the heart and soul of technology. >> he helped create the giant living sculpture called origin. he calls it a machine with a penalty. >> it will lure you and charm you, and it can be violent as well. >> origin is interactive, responding to movement. other exhibits respond to touch. >> i can change all the colors, i can move them around. they are magnetic. >> made of over 200 tiny custom computers, this piece tells a bigger story. more and more people communicate through machines, but these machines literally communicate through people. >> it starts to pulse and then anything else i touch will take on that color. so i can copy it through my body and it's actually taking, sending a current through my skin to do this. i become a part of the circuit. >> his piece tells a bigger story too, but the voices so often not hurt.

>> the choir that you here is a 100-strong choir. all people here were homeless or are currently homeless. >> the creator' project runs saturday and sunday at fort mason. admission is free. saturday is pretty much booked up but there is plenty of room on sunday. in san francisco, jonathan bloom, abc7 news. >> don't go away. 7 on your side is next. >> media reports say we are paying down or credit card debt, but we aren't. i'm michael finney. coming up, 7 on your side gut coming up, 7 on your side gut check. switching to progressive could mean hundreds more in your wallet year after year. feed me! saving you money -- now, that's progressive. call or click today.

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that's why it's listed first on the side. from honey nut cheerios to cinnamon toast crunch to lucky charms, get more whole grain than any other ingredient... without question. just look for the white check. with the recession easing it seems americans are once again racking up credit card debt. here's michael finney with the results of a new study. >> you saw it last holiday season, i reported on it. sales were up, way up, as americans went on a spending spree. as it turns out that confidence, or overconfidence, had actually started well before the holidays. a new study commissioned by card hub looks back at credit card use in 2011 and finds americans had been racking up debt. >> you find out they definitely went crazy, but i would say that we looked at, you know, the

previous quarter, as well as 2011, and let's say on the first quarter they paid down 25% less than they paid down a year before that. >> that's the ceo of cardhub.com, a credit card website. he said last year's debt was higher than a year before and 100% higher than 2009. so what's a consumer to do? he says get real. >> prior to the great recession, your spending was linked directly or indirectly to the bubble. no matter how much this economy improves, unless we get into another bubble, you cannot expect for your spending to go back the way it was. >> i'll bet he is fun at a party. he is, however, right, and just because we have been in an

extended economic downturn doesn't mean we are going to get out of it anytime soon. keep saving and put together an emergency fund. i'm michael finney, 7 on your side. >> coming up next, nature imitates art at san francisco's deyoung museum, but time is running out if you want to see it.

>> welcome back. here are the winning numbers from last night's megamillion dollars draw. nobody won so the big money for the jackpot for tuesday's drawing will be $241 million. one of the most pop letter annual exbiggings at the deyoung museum at golden gate park opened this week. but today is the last day to check it out. it's "bouquets" to art. works in the gallery inspire floral design. arts and entertainment reporter don sanchez shows us the result. >> it offers a floral perspective of great classical works and the world famous african art and sometimes just a touch of wimsey. the deyoung museum is known for its permanent collection, but this week it's all about interpretation. they show you designs from the 150 floral artists who pay tribute and draw inspirations from the works, like the 1848 painting "a dining table at night." in the brilliant floral version the emphasis is on the table setting. sometimes the work is quite

literal. the painting of a tulip culture comes alive in the floral artist's impression on canvas and on display on a stand. the painting of a woman is so eloquently transformed, the desert sand roses give it a texture of age and style. floral artists pick their favorites. this is "grape juice and sandwiches." and if you are like the hillsboro garden club, this is their interpretation. designers submit portfolios, choices and concepts to a panel of judges who take months narrowing the list of exhibitors. they are always looking for something special. >> i guess creativity is the most important. and their use of flowers and color. it's fascinating. >> she's been a judge for 26 years. the centerpiece is the bamboo rainforest suspended on rotating carousels above the court. it creates patterns of light and shadows.

this touching work is the tribute to the late director of the museum. whose vision and choice of exhibitions transformed the deyoung and region of honor into major world-class museums. the world of art is up until saturday evening. in san francisco, don sanchez, abc7 news. >> the saint patrick's day but -- parade is going ahead, rain or shine. it is the largest celebration of irish history and culture on the west coast. the parade kicks off at the corner of 2nd and market street and it is make its way to the vic center plaza. what we need to know is is it rain or shine? >> anything goes on saint patrick's day. >> true. >> it will be sunshine, cool, a chance of showers. we have partly cloudy skies, clouds in the north bay and the cold front has swept through the bay area.

we have snow on the doppler hd radar. the havering bakersfield. rain offshore half moon bay today. highs only in the mid-50s. with the scattered showers a chance of a thunderstorm, and tomorrow same thing, chance ever showers. overall not looking bad. trending pretty dry for the weekend. >> good luck of the irish with us. thanks, lisa. and thanks, everyone, for joining us. our next newscast starts at 8:00 a.m. keep track on twitter at abc7 news bay area. see you in an