washout. heavy rains, pounding surf and a big sigh of relief hours after earl's hit and run. as the unemployment rate edges up again, just why is it taking so long for so many to get back to work? and a star is born. you remember susan boyle, don't you? ♪ i dreamed a dream well, now get to know mary burns. from supermarket worker to

potential superstar, we'll introduce her today, saturday, potential superstar, we'll introduce her today, saturday, september 4th, 2010. captions paid for by nbc-universal television good morning. welcome to "today" on a saturday morning. i'm lester holt. >> and i'm amy robach. we're certainly glad hurricane earl did not do anymore damage, but i could have used a drop of an at my house and we didn't get anything. >> it skirted off to the east, heading right toward nantucket, skirted north carolina. this has been a real close call. doesn't mean everyone's out of the woods. they did get a labor day break from hurricane earl in the northeast. actually it's been downgraded to a tropical storm as it brushed the coast of massachusetts this morning with heavy rain and high winds. >> and lots of sighs of relief up and down the east coast because this could have been a lot worse. but it if you're thinking of

testing the waters at the beach, you'll want to watch out for what earl left behind. we'll have a full update. >> half a world away, a big earthquake in new zealand caused widespread damage in their second largest city which is actually locked down today. >> the prime minister said it was a miracle that no one was killed. we will head live to christ church for a look at the damage there in just a few minutes. >> back in this country, coulky horman would have been going back tole school next week, but he's still missing after disappearing three months ago today. we'll get the latest on the investigation. and a bit later, a mother's love. le remarkable story of a woman who actually brought her newborn baby back to life by using the right it touch. we will meet the family right here this morning. >> that's quite a story. but first let's get the latest on tropical storm earl. we've got full coverage this morning. we begin with michelle franzen in chatham, massachusetts on cape cod. michelle, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, lester.

minimal damage reported and no medical emergencies. at this hour reported. it looks like the cape and nantucket really faired well through earl. in the end earl's spin no worse than a classic nor'easter. earl proving even as a category 1 hurricane, he had enough punch left to pound the coast of nantucket. the island received the brunt of the storm with earl carving its path east of nantucket. not far away on cape cod, heavy rain and whipping winds left their mark. but even the power of earl was no match for this bride and groom. margo and hugh married at the chatham bars inn, determined pot to let a hurricane spoil their special day. >> it will also be memorable. it's given us plenty of challenges, but nothing stopping us. >> reporter: or their happily ever after. >> i hope not. we had a whirlwind romance, but

maybe another hurricane just throws some, i don't know, some excitement to it. there is a strange excitement with a hurricane. >> reporter: hurricane earl barreled toward the u.s. as a menacing category 4, but lost steam as it made landfall on the outer banks of north carolina. jim cantore was in hard hit cape hatteras. >> as you can see, we're still taking it on the chin. this water is compliments of pamly company sound and it continues. >> reporter: earl made a turn kicking up occur of surf on new york's long island and creating dangerous rip currents up and down the coast. but in the end, earl whether go down as a near miss for much of the coast. and those who were once bracing for the worst can now look ahead to enjoying the rest of this holiday weekend. and any damage that they find later on this morning, they have crews in place ready to go to

make sure the cape is returned to its glory. >> michelle franzen this morning, thank you. while earl continues to lose steam, it is it is leaving behind some dangerous conditions at the beach this holiday weekend. the weather channel's mike seidel is on the tip of the island . >> reporter: the sun is out but the memory lingers. this is the do you know line. just two days ago go, it was up here. so the beach is being rearranged and now the do you know is left strong and will be more prevalent damage in the next storm. let me take you back to yesterday. we had ten foot waves pounding the beaches and, again, the beach erosion the real impact here. and because of this, the beaches were closed from here down to the outer banks of north carolina, not only because of the surf, but because of dangerous rip currents. in new jersey, a man went this swimming thursday and yet to be

found. they called off the search because of earl. that's the second drowning in a week and the fourth fatality since last weekend because of rip currents. so they closed the beaches yesterday. >> h the beaches be open today, will it be safe to go in the water with those big waves out there? >> reporter: you can be sure they'll get the beaches open for labor day weekend. the concern is swimming and many communities and lifeguards and city managers will meet this morning to make that decision on how far swimmers can go in because the rip current threat is still up. take a look at the forecast from the outer banks up to new england, as earl departs, it will take a while for these waveses to subside and, thus, they may keep swimmers to their news or ankles. things will get better tomorrow, but one group that has loved this swell, the life guards. they have flocked out in droves to the beaches over the past couple days. and i heard one lifeguard say this is the best surf they've

seenfers enjoying the waves. it brings them on the beaches very quickly. back to you. >> mike seidel, thank you. we want to turn to nbc meteorologist bill karins who has been tracking earl and two other storms out in the atlantic. bill, good morning. >> good morning to you. and while we got lucky here in the united states, our friends in canada won't be so lucky. earl is about to make landfall as a very strong tropical storm in nova scotia. so the most damage that earl will sprou going to happen take up this from halifax down to nova scotia. 70-miles-per-hour winds, but the storm is moving quickly. so by later today, the storm will be long gone. so what's next? september is the peak of the hurricane season. usually one storm after another. it looks like we'll miss the storm once again. this is a slow moving system,

should be near puerto rico about five days from now, so we have plenty of time to watch it and there's no threat to the united states as we go through the labor day weekend. back to you. overseas, they're still as cessing the damage this morning after a major earthquake in new zealand. it measure 7.1 and was centered on the south island just west of christ church, the country's second largest city. melissa stokes of tvnz is in christ church for us. we know there was certain for people trapped in rubble. what do we know about any rescues or casualties at this hour? >> reporter: surprisingly people have experienced such surprise over this that there's been such close calls. but no deaths or serious injuries to people. so it is really quite amazing that if you've seen some of the

pictures that people survived, crews did look early this morning to make sure nobody was trapped. police were going around trying to get in touch with anyone that they thought may be in buildings. there were a couple of rescues from apartment buildings, but miles per hour rack could you husbandly, everyone is safe. >> this is the same size as haiti but the damage not nearly as bad. what is that due to? >> reporter: i think the infrastructure here. at the moment we've been told 120 buildings have been damaged, but the estimate is fairly low. that's expected to rise. and of course there's a lot of damage that you can't see which is underneath the city with water mains and also problems with sewage. so people have been told that they need to boil their water and conserve water, but of course just nothing like we saw in haiti. so here we have been very lucky due to the infrastructure. >> are you still getting aftershocks?

>> reporter: we had an aftershock about 30 minutes ago, but it lasted probably around 20 seconds. people have been told to expect that it could happen for the next pew weeks. so there will be very anxious people around christchurch. it was really a big shakeup this morning and it has a lot of people on edge. so they have been told to take care for the next few days. >> and are people being allowed to get out now or is the city still under a lockdown status? >> reporter: people have been told not to go out if they don't have to. and where we are right now in the center of the city is under lockdown. so to get in here tonight, we've got -- i got dropped at a corner and was told by a police officer to walk down the middle of the road just in case there was another quake. very eerie to be out. it's a saturday night. these roads would usually be full of traffic, but there's nobody around and miss on every corner. so very strange sight here in

new zealand. >> we're glad to know most everyone is safe. thanks very much for your reporting. and now to the economy and jobs. employers cut 54,000 workers from their payrolls this august. although that was fewer than analysts expected, the unemployment rate still went up slightly to 9.6%. for more, we're joined by steve liesman, steve, good morning. so we lost 54,000 jobs. that drove the unemployment rate to 9.6%. but as we just heard, there is positive news with the private employers adding about 67,000 jobs. that was better than expected, but obviously it didn't make a dent in the unemployment numbers. explain all of that. >> i thought you were going to explain to me. it's really confusing. so we lost 114,000 jobs from the census worker losing their jobs. the other thing that's happened is state and local governments are really cutting back because of local deficits there. so the market had this concern that we were dipping back in to a recession.

that's been sort of the rage or the discussion all summer long. in the last week, we got a little bit of data that says, hey, we're not falling off a cliff, creating 67,000 jobs, and plus they revised upward the private sector employment for squun and july, the number of jobs that they counted. so this is not really a great report, noing to write home about or get up on a pedestal and start screaming, but what a lot of people said is it could have been worse. one economy wrote it wasn't a pearl, but it wasn't earl either. >> and yet at the same time so many americans are so frustrate that had there just aren't the jobs out there that they need, that they want, and they're asking why is it taking so long to create new jobs. >> i think there's a binge unch reasons. employers are very uncertain about the future given what we just went through. americans are saving a lot more right now. we used to save almost no money. now we're saving almost 6% of

our salaries. that means malls have to close around the country because americans are saving more, not spending as much. plus there's this idea of political uncertainty, changes to the ax code that are coming, other legislation that's out there that's kaeted more uncertainty. one other aspect which is there was recently a study done by who economists who found that when you go through severe financial crises, it can take from five to six years to recover. i wish i had better news on saturday morning. >> exactly. what about the government's role in all of this, is there anything more that the president can do? the president said he was going to unveil new plans. what is their role? >> around the margin, maybe. if you think about what the debate is in america, it's over the size of the deficits. we spent a lot of money to get out of this hole, $800 billion for the stimulus. we already had when we went in there pretty strong deficits. we also had an issue of all the entitlements that are out there. the ability of the government to respond is limited. i think what president obama is talking about are very limited

programs. there's a $30 billion program to loan to small business that's out there. a possibility of maybe some payroll tax cuts to spur employment. but it may be one of those things where a bit like a slow moving hurricane, we have to batten down the hatches and wait this one out for the private sector to start to feel the confidence to invest and hire people. >> steve liesman as always, thank you. let head over to the news desk now where craig melvin of our wrc in washington has this morning's other headlines. good more than aning and welcom. there has been another attack on a young woman. miss in mesa are looking if a with him who threw acid on the face of another woman. the victim has second degree burns. police say this attack does not appear to be ran can dom. you might remember earlier this week a similar attack happened in vancouver, washington on a 28-year-old woman there. overseas now to pakistan where the death toll is up to 65 now from that suicide bombing friday

when a shiite muslim procession. the attack caught on tape. more than 150 peoples wounded in that bombing. the pakistani taliban claimed responsibility. there will be no more gubernatorial debates in arizona. incumbent republican jan brewer says more debates would only help her opponent. during wednesday's debate, brewer had a brain freeze if her opening statement and after the debate you might remember she refused to answer questions about previous comments she'd made regarding headless bodies in the desert. after searching for five day, helicopters on friday found the body of a missing mountain climber who was the son of a boxing promoter. he was found at the 7,000 foot level of storm king mountain. the experienced climber went to hike there last weekend and never returned. finally now, stubbornness has a price. a new british study finds that men who refuse to ask for

directions waste more than $3,000 on extra gas during their life time. surely this is not shocking news to female passengers. if a guy is most according to the study, 25% of us wait about half an hour before asking for directions. that's the news. back to lester, amy and bill. >> i'm sure you're not in that group. >> no, never. >> i never ask for directions. like you're lost, your wife's getting mad at you and sooner or later you figure it out and then you're really happy. >> it's just so humiliating. >> it's called gps, right? all right. bill karins is here with a look at our forecast. >> especially me, i look at maps for a living. about if i get lost, it's really bad news. let's talk with today's forecast and we're dealing with really nice conditions out there in many places. the weather will improve all through new england. there is the rip current risk. great lakeses, feeling like fall today. even in chicago, temperature only in the 60s.

good morning to you. happy saturday. a couple 50s and look at that the fog is back. we've got some of it spilling inland. haven't seen that in a couple days. it will clear out. more highs back up in the 70s and 80s and a couple of 90s in the warm inland valleys closer to the east bay. temperatures right now about 2 to 10 degrees cooler than this time yesterday. here's your seven-day forecast. you'll notice 90s for a few days through monday, then cooler on wednesday. that's your saturday forecast. amy? in the gulf of mexico on friday, bp removed the failed blowout preventer that was supposed to prevent the disaster from ever happening. charles hadlock is with us this morning. good morning. >> reporter: today is a big day in the history of the gulf oil disaster. at the direction of the coast guard, bp has now disconnect its failed blowout preventer and is

slowly raising it to the surface of the gulf of mexico. it's a key piece of evidence for investigators. the blowout preventer is a safety device that should have prevented the explosion on april 20th that killed 11 workers and led to the largest oil spill in american history. engineers at sea are slowly raising the blowout preventer careful not to drop it or damage it in any way. it's five stories tall and weighs 1 million pounds. they have to raise it up through one mile of water. and when it reaches the sur far, it will be the first time anyone has seen it up close and in person since it was installed on the well earlier this year. and the government investigators will take possession of it. fbi agents are on the rig today to watch the operation very closely. >> so, charles, what will investigators then do with it? >> reporter: they will take it back to shore and take it apart piece by piece trying to determine exactly what went wrong, why did it fail.

and if they determine that it was poorly maintained or altered in any way to make it less effective, that could mean criminal charges against bp or the owner of the deepwater horizon rig, transocean. >> all right, charles hadlock, thanks so much. and now here's lester. to politics now. the white house had hope that had this would be a recovery summer, a goal never realized as unemployment stayed high, as a disappoi d disappointment republicans will try to use. for more, we're joined by mark halperin. we'll pass that labor day mark, the traditional start of people really paying attention to the midterm elections. republicans are using this, they have and he got a press release out that says recovery summer? we hardly new ye with a picture of the president eating a snow cone. no doubt this will be the line of attack going forward? >> no doubt. and takes strong argument. this will be a two month sprint and at the center of it for republicans and for a lot of

americans, there's one issue, what can the country do to turn the economy around. a lot of angry people in the country think that the best way it to send a message that they want change, that's a good word for barack obama two years ago, not such a great word now, is more republicans in washington and a check on spending, which is a lot of what people are angry about. so democrats haven't figured out a way to counter that argument yet. it's one that republicans are unified on. >> what are the democrats' options? >> they're pretty limited. the white house is thinking about making some proposals about the economy. it's going to be difficult, though, because most americans i think realistically and rightly say two months before the election, if you've got some new ideas, why weren't we hearing about those earlier. don't bet against promise. he'll come out strong this week, labor day as you say the traditional kickoff, he'll be very visible trying to make the argument that his ideas still deserve more it time to work, that republican ideas aren't as good. it's a tough argument to make,

but as i say, betting against barack obama and politics in the last few years hasn't been such a great thing h, but it is a very tough argument to make because of the job numbers and the rest of the economy creating that mood that's really shaping the election so far. >> before the vacation season, the president was on the road stumping for some candidates. is he going to go back out again and will every candidate necessarily want him? does he have the kind of star power they need right now or is he too closely lined with some of their issues? >> it's a real quandary. there are some who do not want the president. there are parts of your country where you're more likely to see bill clinton or vice president biden than the president himself. he can still raise money and, again, i think he's got at least one more act to go here, one more chance to bring forward an economic message that could be effective. but there are places where his unpopularity, the fact that he is associated with the bad economy, is going to make democratic candidates not call the white house and ask for the calvary to come in the form of barack obama. >> we can't lose sight that in

are those already align to go run against him in 2012. this is really the traditional point in a presidency we start looking at who is lining up on the other side. what do you sea on the republican side? >> lester that will be one of the great sub plots in the next two months, to see if people like sarah palin, mitt romney, other people thinking about running for president, haley barbour, the governor of mississippi, where do they go, how do they campaign, and what kind of message do they have. because the race to replace barack obama or to challenge him in 2012 is already under way in some ways. but to watch where these candidates go, these perspective candidates, what they say, how popular they are, that will be a big part of this because republicans, they've got this message about the economy, about spending in washington, but they need some public faces, some figures to come forward and make the case. it will be interesting to see who does well at that. >> all right, mark halperin, good to have you on. enjoy your labor day. >> thanks, lester, you, too. more to come here. the latest on chiron who are monday three months after the

young boy it disappeared in m t portland, but first this is "today" on nbc. b-a-c-c-a-l-a-u-r-e-a-t-e.

baccalaureate. correct. [ audience groans ] since this competition has been continuing for 48 hours and we have yet to eliminate anyone, it is the decision of this board to declare all 20 contestants winners. you have all competed admirably. admirably. a-d-m-i-r-a-b-l-y. admirably. [ male announcer ] at&t is making high speed internet affordable for only $14.95 a month with select services. at&t. rethink possible.

her act together. the new internet sensation named mary burns. >> plus another palin in the spotlight when bristol palin had to say on the "tonight show." but first these messages. [ female announcer ] we know jerry brown was mayor of oakland, but what were the results? fact: brown promised to improve schools. but the drop out rate increased 50%, and the state had to take over the schools. fact: the city controller found employees paid for 22,000 hours...

they never worked. fact: brown promised to cut crime. but murders doubled, making oakland the 4th most dangerous city in america. jerry brown. he just can't deliver the results california needs now. good morning. a couple minutes before 5:30 on the beginning of your labor day weekend. we know you wait for the forecast on weather on holiday weekends. >> yeah. >> so craig, no pressure. you say ramping up the heat. >> especially on monday. it's going to be warm on monday when everybody's going to be out enjoying the lake. after that it's going to be cold wednesday. so today, similar to yesterday. we're waking up to 50s and a couple of 40s into novato. we have fog which made a return. we haven't had that in a couple days early all the way to concord and parts of the east bay and into the south end of

the bay. lots in the north end of the bay. get ready for that. temperatures have come down a little bit from this time yesterday about 1 to 10 degrees cooler than yesterday. especially in fairfield and napa and livermore. as we get closer to the beaches today, we expect temperatures a little cooler. let me show you the seven-day forecast. i wanted to show you notice the warm spots inland. in the 90s today and sunday. monday we warm up a little more so the warm spots like livermore, concord, closer to the upper 90s. then kr, look at wednesday. 77 degrees in the warmer spots. there's going to be clouds, quite a bit, maybe rain closer to ukiah into the north bay as far as napa and sonoma county. like that, boom. hello. >> thank you, craig. we'll get more at 7:00. a coroner is trying to identify the remains of a body found in the marin headlands. rangers say a kayaker saw a skull in the national recreation

area on monday. that's where many tourists take pictures of the golden gate bridge. rangers found the skull along with several other bones, clothing and a necklace. they did not provide clues. a teenager assaulted an 89-year-old woman. it happened tuesday near where the bike trail crosses the road t. woman said that the boy introduced himself and walked with her before suggested showing her something off the trail. that's when the boy hit her on the head with an object repeatedly t. boy is believed to be around 13 years old. he told the woman his name was cameron and he was just in the seventh grade. the documentary about pat tillman debuts here in the bay area this weekend t. story investigates the events leading up to and following his death in afghanistan six years ago. the army first said that tillman was gunned down by taliban

forces but officers admitted he was killed by friendly fire. the movie is in three theaters in berkeley, the century in san francisco, and camera 7 in san jose. coming up at 7:00, the search continues for the body of a missing hercules man allegedly linked to a killing spree in the east bay. more local news in 30 minutes. right now here is back to the "today" show. l

we're back on this saturday morning. it is labor day weekend. the unofficial end of summer. thanks to everyone out on the plaza. back inside studio 1a -- >> final weekend of summer. >> isn't it feel like we were just saying it eat unofficial start of sum sner. >> i do. >> coming up, the healing power of a mother's touch. >> it's a remarkable story actually of a premature baby born to it an australian couple, little jamie had apparently gone

into cardiac arrest and was brought back to life after his mother and father cuddled him for two hours. a camera was rolling whole time. and the entire family will join us live to tell us about their extraordinary story. >> it is such a great story. plus bristol palin is back in the spotlight. she's now going tole hollywood. last night she stopped by "the tonight show" with jay leno. what did she have to say? we don't know because we were asleep. we'll tell you if you were, too, in just a few minutes. and make room for mary burns. she was discovered on the british tv show the x factor and like boil, she has become an internet sensation. her televised performance brought down the house. coming up we'll meet and introduce mary and find out how these talent shows are creating these global al sensations. >> it's great, it too, because she was working at a grocery story, very humble beginnings and it's great to see somebody who has such an amazing talent

be recognized for it. >> folks who would never get recognized if not for these shows. we want to start out, though, talking about kyron horman. his parents and police have certainly not given up hope. >> reporter: all smiles in front of his science project, this photo of chirkyron horman was t at his school just before he vanished these months ago today. his search was the largest in oregon state history. for weeks crews combed forests, fields and farms for kyron. detectives won't say the case has gone cold, but they appear no closer to finding him that be the day he vanished. >> i feel like we're back in the very first days of the investigation. i can't sleep. nights are restless. some of the days i'm thinking about still him coming home. >> reporter: although investigators have never named a suspect, kyron's parents openly

blame their son's stepmother for playing a role in his disappearance. detectives say terry who are monday oig was the last known people to see chiron. she appears to be at the center of the investigation. kyron's parents say terry is no longer cooperating with miss and that her friends may be holding back vital more information. >> they still forget that kyron is missing and that we need help finding him and that they need to do the right thing. >> reporter: terry horman now has a high profile criminal defense attorney who has called the speculation around his client a witch hunt. meantime new leads could come from a grand jury investigation that's under way. buts a weeks turn to months -- >> k > >> kyron needs to come home. >> reporter: his parents can do it little more than wait.

next week their son would have returned to the classroom and celebrated his birthday. >> clint, good morning, it's good to see you. i was struck by something i heard kyron's appear say in that tape that it almost feels like we're back at the start of the investigation. you've done these kind of cases before. at this point, do the fbi and police almost go back to square one and start retracing their own steps of how they've been investigating this? >> they've got two different ways. number one, they can, they can start redoing the interviews. sometimes people remember things they forgot. sometimes people are willing to talk. but, again, as was said in the setup piece, the grand jury investigation is going on and i think a lot of people hold out hope that that investigation, they've interviewed dozens and dozens of people, that that will result in some type of insight, perhaps even an indictment for something concerning his disappearance. >> it sounds like they have nothing right now to point to

either a homicide or an abduction. so where does that leave them? >> they've got 3700 tips that have been called in. and i think everyone hope, lester, we've covered the jay see due guard case. she was missing for 19 years. elizabeth smart was gone for almost a year. and shawn hornbeck was kidnapped for four years and recovered after his kidnapper grabbed another little boy for four days. so i think that's a lot of hope on the part of everybody, but, lester that plays against the statistical probability that this little boy met with foul play. but as far as investigators, when i was an fbi agent, lester, that emotional porch light we never turned it off. and we always went after the victim as if he or she were alive until we found out otherwise. >> the conversation about kyron always comes back down to his stepmom. kyron's natural mom and dad have real questions about her. police have questions about her.

they think she even tried to plot to kill her husband. yet there's been no indictment there. so where does that leave us with regard to her? >> that plot to alledgedly kill her husband, that didn't come forward until about five or six months later. and if that's just one source, if only the man who alleged that she tried to hire him, that may be a challenge for the local prosecutor. but, again, that's something the grand jury can look at and there seems to be enough in terry horman's back ground notwithstanding whatever her responsibility may be in the disappearance of her stepson, this may be other issues that she could or perhaps other people could be indicted for that could bring pressure and perhaps solve the disappearance of this little boy. >> we'll have to end the conversation there, but, clint, thanks very much. now for a check of the weather, let's check with bill karins. good morning again. good morning. on this beautiful saturday here on the east coast as earl pushes away. a lot of texas people behind me. and you have sweet 16 coming up.

what does your sign say? want me to help you with that? >> finally out of the texas furnace. >> texas has been so hot this summer, right? and this feels nice to everyone from texas and for everyone else. let's get into your weekend forecast preparing for our holiday weekend. it's still hot in texas, but not as bad as it was. also a lot of hot conditions still moving through the inner mountain west. salt lake city and denver unusually hot. the cool air, the great lakes. it will feel like fall this detroit, chicago, through the great lakes. and then as we head into monday, some of the shower activity will push into the northern plains. also showers and thunderstorms down along the gulf. the east coast looking at three or four beautiful days in a row. just be careful at the beach as we get ready for the weekend highs back up in the

90s. 60s and cloud cover, temperatures are a couple of degrees cooler than this time yesterday. highs this afternoon are very similar to yesterday, except in the north end of the bay you'll drop a few degrees from some of the fog headed your direction. 84 san jose, 64 san francisco, 92 concord, warm monday and cool. that's a quick look at your weekend labor day forecast. coming up, what's the yuck? we will have the answer to those pesky medical questions. >> and she's being called the new susan boyle. we'll meet the checkout woman whoos life changed the instant she stepped on page. but first these messages. for those of us who have lactose intolerance,

let's raise a glass to cookies just out of the oven. to the morning bowl of cereal. and to lactaid® milk. easy to digest and with all the calcium and vitamin d of regular milk. [ female announcer ] lactaid®. the original lactose-free milk. no, it's just for new people. hey ! chocolate, vanilla, or strawberry ? chocolate ! chocolate it is ! yeah but i'm new too. umm... he's new... er... than you. even kids know it's wrong to treat new friends better than old friends. at ally bank we treat all our customers fairly. with no teaser rates... ... and no minimum deposits. it's just the right thing to do.

♪ ooh, ooh ♪ ♪ ooh, ooh [ mom ] walmart checks other stores' prices so we can save on all our game time favorites. aah! [ laughter ] [ dad ] what do you think of that, huh? [ mom ] and if there's a better price out there, they'll even match it. which means come game time, i'm just as ready as he is. go! go! yeah! [ mom ] game time costs less at walmart. save money. live better. walmart. so join the sunnyd book spree. as a mom i believe books brighten a child's future.lmart. when your child's class collects 20 labels... they get 20 free books. go to sunnyd.com and help us make classrooms sunnier.

have you tried honey bunches of oats with real strawberries? wow. it's seriously strawberry. they're everywhere. it's in the bunches, on the flakes, even real strawberries in the mix. can i have some more? honey bunches of oats with real strawberries. it's delicious. nobody does it quite like us. this morning on "today," the freaky and fabulous truth about your body. this are medical questions you may be a little too embarrassed to can your doctor about, but we've answered them for you. it's in a new book, "what the yuck ". good morning, love the title. so there are definitely questions. people don't have the guts to ask their doctors. is that why the wrote the book? >> i think we all have the what the yuck moments where we find a stray hair or there's a weird smell. like what is going on with my

body. and it is too embarrassing to talk to your doctor. and t >> and the first one is a little funny. this question brings up those popular skinny jeans. one patient asks how tight would jeans have to be to cause internal damage? is that really a risk? >> the skinny jeans are so popular and they are really tight. so i would say major internal damage, you don't really have to worry about, but this are things that can happen. if they're very tight, they put a lot of pressure on your bladder which can increase your risk of urinary tract infections. they can also irritate the skin in that area. so my advice is listen to your body. if jeans are so tight that they're causing pain, you need to change. >> the next chapt question come from a chapter labels the girl. how much sagging is normal in sn i feel like mine are heading south faster than my friends. >> unfortunately some amount of breast sagging is normal. as we age, the ligaments tend to

get overstretched. but there are things that go on in your life can make it worst. rapid weight gain or loss can cause sagging. every time you're breast feeding, you increase your risk. and going to the gym without proper support will cause more sagging, as well. >> speaking of using the gym, this is something people think of. does wiping sweat off equipment with just a towel do anything to protect from germs? >> it doesn't do all that much. now, it is true that moisture is what germs love the pomost. but unfortunately they can live on dry surfaces. you needed to use an antibacterial wipe to wipe it down. >> and there is a concern about technology that we use.

and this is an interesting one. before i knew i was pregnant, i work order a laptop constantly. could i have done damage? >> many people worry about radiation isk are arisk and that's not a concern. >> why do i always feel magically better the day i go to the doctor? >> there are a couple things going on. sometimes you're so worried about something that it's actually causing you to have more of the symptom and when you finally get to the doctor, you know it's going to be taken care of and you feel reassured. but talk to your doctor about what's been going on for the last few weerks nk, not just th day. >> thanks so much. great tips. and we're back right after this. it's doing season. when we grab a little spare time...and get after it. the home depot has all the right prices... and all the know how...to start making things happen... less with our wallets...

and more with our own two hands. more saving. more doing. that's the power of the home depot. we're lowering the cost of updating your bathroom. with vanities starting at just 49 bucks. [ slap! ] -[ slap! slap! slap! slap! ] -ow, ow! [ male announcer ] your favorite foods fighting you? fight back fast with tums. calcium rich tums goes to work in seconds. nothing works faster. ♪ tum ta tum tum tums when allergies make them itch, don't wait for your pills to kick in. choose alaway, from the eye health experts at bausch & lomb. it works in minutes and up to 12 hours. bausch & lomb alaway. because it's not just your allergies, it's your eyes. it was a mystery to me. i found out that connected to our muscles are nerves that send messages through the body. my doctor diagnosed it as fibromyalgia, thought to be the result of overactive nerves that cause chronic, widespread pain.

lyrica is believed to calm these nerves. i learned lyrica can provide significant relief from fibromyalgia pain. and with less pain, i can do more of what matters to me. [ female announcer ] lyrica is not for everyone. lyrica may cause serious allergic reactions or suicidal thoughts or actions. tell your doctor right away if you have these, new or worsening depression, or unusual changes in mood or behavior or any swelling or affected breathing, or skin, or changes in eyesight, including blurry vision or muscle pain with fever or tired feeling. common side effects are dizziness, sleepiness, weight gain and swelling of hands, legs and feet. don't drink alcohol while taking lyrica. don't drive or use machinery until you know how lyrica affects you. i found answers about fibromyalgia. then i found lyrica. ask your docto about lyrica today. who are you?!? i'm your "genie"! weren't you just wishing for something more nutritious to eat? i was! well, you could enjoy the taste of decadent dark chocolate, the crunch of almonds, plus 35% of your daily fiber... plus antioxidants in a kellogg's fiber plus bar.

mmmm. right then. two more wishes? i'm good. oh. back to the lamp then. see ya! [ female announcer ] kellogg's fiber plus bars. you couldn't wish for more. we get double miles on every purchase. so we earned an l.a. getaway twice as fast. we get double miles every time we use our card. no matter what we're buying. and since double miles add up quick... romans! get em! [ garth ] ...we can bring the whole gang. [ sheep bleats ] it's hard to beat double miles. whoa -- he's on the list. but we're with him. [ male announcer ] introducing the venture card from capital one with double miles on every purchase every day. go to capitalone.com. [ indistinct shouting ] what's in your wallet? .. ..

there is a new susan boyle on the radar. her maim is mary burn. we're joined live from london with the woman wowing judges across the pond. nina, good morning. >> reporter: more than a year after susan boyle became an unlikely singing sensation, the talent shows have once again struck gold. ♪ i dream a dream >> reporter: the talent shows are rewriting the typical route to fame. as jacky ev kexerts say make t wannabee stars so appealing.as wannabee stars so appealing.

at 50 and a single mother, mary burden of proof may not seem the obvious next big singer in the glamorous world of pop, but just as susan boyle proved last year, looks can be deceiving. she wowed judges on the x factor. she's now an early favorite to win the competition and the $2 million record deal it brings. welcome to a woman who spends her day working at a checkout counter and stopped singing years ago, her voice stifled by the struggles of every day life. >> it's amazing how you had the courage to come back and do it. i don't know what ever stopped you. >> reporter: while contestants may once have been chided for their middle aged look, such artists today offer a unique

opportunity to tap the baby boomer market. >> the teeny boppers don't make the big money. in another generation there's no doubt they would never have made it, but they're ordinary people, people can relate to them. >> reporter: but you don't have to win the contest to win hearts. despite losing britain's got talent, boil is now a multiplatinum artist. and after serenading the queen, she's set to sing for the pope later this month. may mary burn is certainly modeling herself over the woman she calls her idle. she's shed 14 pounds ahead of her next appearance. >> a great story. thanks for share it with us. we're back in ament morks b mom first this is "today" on nbc.

still to come, what do women want to watch on television? coming up why networks are

redefining how the classic tv woman is portrayed. plus a mother's teach. we'll meet the mom who brought her newborn son back to life. but fithe meages. i do a lot of different kinds of exercise, but basically, i'm a runner. last year. (oof). i had a bum knee that needed surgery. but it got complicated, because i had an old injury. so i wanted a doctor who had done this before. and unitedhealthcare's database helped me find a surgeon. you know you can't have great legs, if you don't have good knees. we're 78,000 people looking out for 70 million americans. that's health in numbers. unitedhealthcare.

my friends at work think there's more than one "me." ...because on our trips, i always get there faster. see, expedia lets me mix and match airlines. so i can take one airline out... and another home. so with more flight options, i can find the combination that gets me there and back quickest.

with a little help from expedia, my friends will think i can be everywhere at once. where you book matters. expedia.

good morning. a live look at oakland this morning. fog in spots but it is going to give way to a very nice day. your weekend holiday forecast with craig herrera now. >> it's already the end of summer, right today it's nice. monday is going to be nice around the bay area, we'll get 90s again. close to 100 on monday. after that it's all over. at least for a day or two. on wednesday we're going to see a big change. 48 in novato. 50s for the rest of us. you talked about the fog. here is the satellite. under the banner where it says nbc bay area there is cold air

coming in, that is wednesday. meantime, this ridge with us now will keep us warm. temperatures are slightly above average for at least the next three days. so through labor day, after we get through the fog we'll get some sunshine going. again, monday will be the warmest day this week. major cooling on wednesday, though. sunrise 6:42. sunset, 7:34. notice the low and mid 80s for the north end of the bay. in the east bay inland and south bay inland valleys in the low and mid 90s, you have 70s and a couple of 80s. 84 san jose. 94 in livermore. here is the seven-day forecast. monday warm even at the beaches, but wednesday we drop a good 10 to 15 degrees from monday. >> all right. this morning the search will continue at a landfill in pittsburgh for the body of a missing hercules man. they searched looking for

frederick solis missing almost a week. police he may have been killed. cindy tran was found dead in a car. a livermore mother pleaded not guilty to having sex with two 14-year-old boys. christine faces 67 sex crime charges. the 42-year-old appeared in a courtroom with her attorney yesterday. she was arrested in august after the mother of one of the alleged victims contacted police saying she suspected her son was sexually involved with her. we'll look at how traffic controllers learned of a plane crash. the plane went down after lifting off from the san carlos airport thursday night. all three people on board were killed when the plane plunged into the lagoon. crews were able to lift the plane out of the water and recover the two bodies still inside. now we have audio of air traffic controllers talking to a pilot

about the crash. >> have an aircraft that appeared to go down. you make a left turn and proceed, see if you can see anything. >> the cause of that crash is still under investigation. >> coming up at 7:00 on the bay area saturday, where sand meets security. there will be more officers in uniform patrolling santa cruz this weekend but they won't be police. the new twist on labor day patrols. more local news in 30 minutes. !%

good morning. washout. heavy rains, pounding surf and a big sigh of relief hours after hurricane earl downgraded by leaving danger behind. >> a mother's touch. remarkable story of a woman who was told her newborn baby didn't make it. how she loved him back to life. meet the family here today. >> and star turn, while her mother's going rogue, bristol palin is going hollywood. dancing into the spotlight. today saturday, september 4, 2010.

welcome back to "today." i'm lester holt. >> i'm amy robach. you can see the beautiful, blue skies that means hurricane earl came and went and a lot of us didn't notice he was in the area. >> unless you're along the coast, you noticed it was high winds and waves coming up. earl has been downgraded to a tropical storm as it brushed the coast of massachusetts with heavy rain, and winds we talked about. lots of relief. this could have been a lot worse if you've watching it over the last several days. a mighty big storm. >> that's right. looking today here, earl has left behind big waves and big rip currents, potential dangerous conditions for beach go who want to take a swim. we'll tick a close loosh at that and the forecast. >> so deceiving. the water looks refreshing and inviting. you need to be careful. then, we'll switch gears and bring you one family's incredible story. when twins were born, one of

them, baby jamie, declared dead, his mother held him close, cuddling him for hours and his heart started beating again. we'll meet them all. >> sleeping peacefully. a story that caught our attention, what women want to watch on tv. decades after "charlie's angels" the figure seems to be making a comeback. we'll have details later. but first, the latest on tropical storm earl. we're covering it from several vants annual points. we begin with michelle franzen on cape cod. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. you can see behind me, earl has given way to a beautiful, sunny day here on the cape. in chatham, very minimal damage overnight as well as the rest of the cape though earl certainly showed its stuff on the island of nantucket. certainly pummeling the coast for a while. but winds, sustained winds, never reaching more than 50 miles per hour. certainly earl, though, has

potential to be all that and more. of course, throughout the week, showing a menacing category 4, further south in the carolinas, before barreling up here. touching along the coast, the category 1 tropical storm winds here. the height of the storm coming around 10:00, 11:00 last night, and by the time 2:00, 3:00 in the morning came around, it was starting to move out of the area. lester? >> about this time yesterday, watching that radar satellite image, and it looked like it was going to be a direct hit. they took it seriously, in terms of preparations. did a lot of people go into the shelters? >> reporter: not a lot of people ended up going to the shelters. for the first time the red cross and sl vation army had set up a number of shelters, able to take as many as 10,000 people because a lot of people, residents and vacationers on the labor day weekend, ended up staying here, hunkering down, and they did take it seriously. in the end, fewer than 100 hadded to take cover. >> we're all happy everyone is

safe. michelle franzen, thank you. the weather channel's mike seidel in montak, new york, with dangerous waters. >> reporter: good morning. once again, another beautiful day, the sun is back out, much like cape cod. the memory lingers from earl. let me show you what i'm talking about. beach erosion, the major impact. this dune line was here. you can see how much sand has been pushed in eating away at the protective berm. in future storms the property will have less sand and less protection. check out the storms. we've got 4 to 6 footers pounding away at beaches. yesterday they were 10 to 12-footers as earl blew by the east-the beaches were closed not only here but south to the carolinas. not only because of the dangerous surf, but because of the rip currents we've dealt with for a week. in bellmar, new jersey, a swimmer went in thursday, they

have not found him yet. they called off the search. that's two drownings on the jersey shower because of danielle and earl's dangerous rip currents. they closed the beaches from the mid-atlantic up to new england yesterday. >> they are back open today but swimmers need to take that warning. mike seidel, thank you. nbc meteorologist bill karens tracking earl's movement and another storm named gaston, good morning. >> good morning to you. we got the update from the national hurricane center, earl is making landfall this hour up in nova scotia. we've seen the reports on the east coast, damage wasn't bad. the strong side of the storm always out to sea. that's not case. the strongest winds and the most damage that earl is going to produce is up in nova scotia, winds gusting up to 90 miles per hour, sustained winds 70 miles per hour. friends in canada are getting hit by earl worse than we did here in the u.s. what is next? this is the peak of the

hurricane season. usually you get one storm after another in september, and it looks like gaston should reform, as we go throughout the weekend. but this is a slow moving system. it's going to take until wednesday or thursday to approach any land areas down in the caribbean. puerto rico, we'll watch you closely through the end of next week. still not sure yet exactly what the intensity will be by the time it gets there. we'll track it over the next five days. >> thank you. >> we want to head over the newsdesk. craig melvin of wrc in washington is here, he's got the other headlines. >> good morning. we start in new zealand where a powerful 7.1 magnitude quake hit, happened in the southern city of christ church, the second largest city. buildings damaged, power cut off across the region, broken water mains flooded many streets. it appears no one was killed and two serious injuries reported. president obama will unveil new job creation plans to improve the economy. in his weekly radio address the

president insisted that the economic stimulus package prevented the economic slide from being worse. yesterday, we learned the unemployment rate increased one-tenth to 9.6% in august. the bp blowout preventer that failed to stop tons of oil from spilling into the gulf of mexico has been replaced. workers are hauling it up from the bottom the ocean. charles hadlock is live. >> reporter: good morning. the blowout preventer is a key piece of evidence into what went wrong on the deepwater horizon rig site. the blowout preventer is the safety device that should have prevents the explosion that killed 11 workers and led to the big oil leak in american history. engineers at sea and slowly and carefully raising the blowout preventer to the sur sfas, careful not to damage or drop it. five stories tall, weighs 1 million pounds, and they have to bring it up through 5,000 feet of water. now, government prosecutors will take control of the blowout

preventer, they will take it apart piece by piece to try to determine exactly what went wrong. if they determine that it's poorly maintained or altered in any way, to make it less effective, that could mean that criminal negligence charges could be filed against bp or transocean, the operator of the deepwater horizon rig. >> nbc's charles hadlock, thanks. kara dioguardi is out. after months of speculation, fox announced the songwriter stepping down after two seasons. judges simon cowell and ellen degeneres also left the show. rocker steven tyler and jennifer lopez are reportedly front-runners to join the panel. some very special twins making their debut at a japanese zoo. you can't get much cuter than this pair of twin panda cubs. brother and sister, three weeks ago -- i should say just 3 weeks

ago. they've quadrupled in weight to a healthy 1.5 pounds. back to you guys. >> is it just me? they get really cute when they get big. >> not quite there yet? >> right there. >> wow! you're saying that's a face only a mother can love? >> yeah, i am. they get fatter, they'll be cuter. some hair, maybe, more hair. >> dissing the poor pandas. >> they'll be cute one day. thank you. >> bill karens on the plaza. >> everyone thinks it's cute as can be, fuzzy things. just hairy at this point. let's talk about your 60th birthday, right? >> yes. >> who is this. >> daughter leah. >> oldest sister. >> how was she when she was young? >> no comment. >> oh! it is her 60th birthday, we'll be nice. have a wonderful birthday in new york. talk about your weekend forecast. we are going to continue to watch warm conditions in the west, very warm. areas of arizona, up through utah, and even 93 today in

denver. cool weather arriving in the great lakes. everyone in the east coast that dealt with the big heat wave, that's long gone. cooler conditions throughout happy saturday to you. getting ready for the long weekend around the bay area. beautiful especially into monday the warmest day, 50s now. we have fog out there. we'll get afternoon sunshine going. 65 in san francisco today, low to mid 80s for the north end of the bay and low 90s flew san ramon and livermore. san jose 84 and a couple of low 90s for the almaden valley. much cooler into wednesday. monday the hottest day in the forecast. you had a hot week. the weekend on the coast is only going to be in the 60s. that's a look at your labor day weekend forecast. >> bill karens, thanks. now to bristol palin, stepping out the shadow of her famous mom and the white hot spotlight of hollywood. palin appearing on "dancing with the stars" and last night made

an appearance in late night. here's jeff rossen. welcome. >> reporter: friday night, bristol palin's latest stop, "tonight show." were you disappointed it didn't work out with levi? it seemed like you were on the cover of everything, you were engaged. >> yeah, i'm not disappointed. not heartbroken. no? >> reporter: good to see a smile, after the run she's had. after giving bifre ining birth bristol and the father split up, but this summer announced their engage innocent is back on, giving this iterview to "us weekly." i want to get married to him, just so we can live together and be together all the time. we can always come together as a family. >> reporter: but weeks later, bristol said levi johnston came clean, admitting he may have fathered a baby with another woman. then bristol found out he shot a music video, mocking the palin

family. so she dumped him. again. >> have you started rehearsing? >> yes, we've had three days of rehearsals. >> and is it way harder than you thought or the same? >> i expected it to be hard work. i'm so uncoordinated and don't have rhythm, so we're starting from scratch. >> alaska's most famous daughter, bristol palin. >> reporter: now, bristol palin is on a tv blitz. competing on abc's "dancing with the stars" next season. >> i have to ask you, what does your mom think about you being on the show? >> she's excited for me. she knows this is hard work but excited. >> will we be seeing her in the ballroom? >> reporter: all this as her mother remains in the political spotlight with questions swirling about a possible run for president in 2012. >> the publicity surrounding bristol palin, her baby, her on again, off again relationship with levi johnston has potential to make sarah palin look like a celebrity gossip fodder as

opposed to serious television. >> reporter: a young woman coming of age on national tv. for "today", jeff rossen, nbc news. back to the future. the return of the female action hero on television. but next -- the amazing story of a mother whose loving touch brought her newborn back to life after these messages. i'm iris cross. bp has taken full responsibility foeaear e clr n in the lf e and that includes keu inrmg yofoined. my job is to listen to the shrimpers and fishermen, hotel and restaurant workers and find ways to help. i was born in new orleans. my family still lives here. bp is gonna be here until the oil is gone and the people and businesses are back to normal... until we make this right. ♪ [ male announcer ] ever have morning pain slow you down? ♪ introducing bayer am,

an extra strength pain reliever with alertness aid, specially formulated to fight morning pain and fatigue. ♪ so get up and get goin'! with new bayer am. the morning pain reliever. the book of truth. food myth #9. [ woman ] chopping, peeling and sauteing can be kinda relaxing at the end of the day. [ female announcer ] relaxing? for who? for fresh taste without the fuss, try new market creations from lean cuisine.

the new garlic chicken is freshly steamed in this revolutionary steam pouch that unlocks the flavors of tender white meat chicken, crisp farm picked veggies and al dente pasta, for a steamed dinner like never before. now that's fresh thinking. new market creations from lean cuisine. keep life delicious. in late march, kate gave birth to twins after only 27 week. soon after, doctors told kate

her newborn son didn't make it. but kate took the baby in her arms, held him close, in ynurtu him with kangaroo care and remarkably brought him back to life. we're delighted to have the whole family here. i feel like i have to talk quietly because they're sleeping. but it's nice to see help hel e healthy and happy. >> they're booth doing fantastically well. there's no complications. both doing everything newborn babies should do. >> and i know you consider this a miracle. i want to go back to that day. 27 weeks. you said you actually started to go to labor at 26 weeks. >> yeah. >> but when you were in the delivery room and you were delivering the babies, did you have any idea that something may go wrong? >> no, we'd always maintained a

positive attitude so we were hoping everything would just be fine. we knew we wouldn't get to hold them and they'd be in the hospital for while. >> so tell me what did the doctor say to you. >> he said have you picked a name for your son and kate said jamie. and at that point we thought he was going to turn around and say here's your son and hand him over. but he turned around and said, i'm sorry, but your son didn't make it. so that was quite devastating. >> and then he suggested you say your good-byes about. >> yeah, he sat down on the bed and explained how he'd died and he said his heart's still beating, but he's not been breathing for the last half an hour. his heart will eventually stop. so you have a couple minutes to say good guy and that-bye and t. >> did you think for even a second that maybe there would be

some -- it's kangaroo care. had you ever heard of that before? >> i had heard about it years ago, yes. about a mother with a very premature baby keeping the baby warm and stimulating it that way. >> you're smiling there, but a lot of people wouldn't be smiling. >> he was moving and starting to breathe. >> but you doctor told you that was just a reflex. >> just reflex. >> but you had hope. >> we did it. >> so the doctor didn't believe that jamie was alive and you were convinced obviously that he was. there was a moment, though, when you decided to take breast mill him and put it your finger. tell me what happened. >> he licked it and i thought, oh, and he is showing good responses. we've got a chance. >> did you bring the doctor back in at this point? >> we tried. we asked a few times over the period of just over two hours. and the first two times he sent nurses back saying it's purely

reflex. about can can't be possible. on so it can take a lot of convincing to get him back in the room. >> and jamie opened his eyes. >> yeah, and picked his head up and tried to cry. >> what was that moment like for you? >> amazing. >> hope was welling up inside that maybe this was a miracle. >> your story brings so much inspiration and promise. anyone who has been in this position can't even imagine something like this happen. how do you describe what happened? what do you think happened? >> we think maybe he was in shock. he was very early and just taking his own sweet time in coming around. just wanted to cuddle and a bit of, you know, time to relax and needed some mp witharmth and lo. >> are you going to it teit tel

this story? >> we'll show him some of the footage. >> and to have it all on tape like that. have you gone back and watched it? and i can't imagine the emotion that that brings for you. >> we didn't watch it for months afterwards, but then it was quite surprising. we were as emotional as when it first started. >> what a sweet beautiful family. david, kate, thank you so much. and twins, thanks so much for being so quiet and well behaved. we hope you're like this for the next 18 years. we'll be right back, but first, this is "today" on nbc. [ male announcer ] when meg whitman arrived at ebay, they had 30 people and an idea. meg's job was to make it happen. it took leadership. focus. and the ability to bring people together. meg whitman delivered. named one of america's best ceo's by harvard business review,

she grew ebay 15,000 strong and made small business dreams come true. now meg has a plan to create jobs. fix sacramento. and deliver results. meg whitman. for a new california.

still it come, packing up your summer gear the right way. >> plus irresistible barbeque. but first, these messages.

[ male announcer ] rome wasn't built in a day... ...and it wasn't built on coffee and a danish. quaker instant oatmeal. now with bigger oats for a heartier texture, so you can be amazing. does your breakfast make you amazing?

but what we can do is arm ourselves for the ones we love with a flu shot from walgreens. ♪ [ coughs ] [ female announcer ] with the most pharmacists certified to immunize... [ sneezes ] ...and walk-ins welcome everyday, we're making it easy for everyone to get their flu shot, no matter how small their motivation may be. ♪ so stop by and get your flu shot today at walgreens. there's a way to stay well. pediatrician recommended pain reliever for children. plus, children's advil® brings fever down faster than children's tylenol®. choose children's advil®. relief you can trust.

good morning. a live look at the golden gate bridge. doesn't feel much like labor day there but the forecast includes a warm-up. i'm kris sanchez here with craig herrera. we know you like to hear about the weather on the holiday weekend. >> you got the long weekend, ready to go. what's going to happen. you got the fog. by monday it's gone. the beaches, 70s by monday. today nice. 60s out along the beaches, it's going to take time for the sunshine. we're at about 50 in novato. 50s all over the bay area. here is the satellite and there are changes that happen on wednesday, cold air is coming in. for now, this big ridge of high

pressure is keeping us warm. it will stay with us at least through monday. and again we'll wake up to clouds and fog each morning. monday with the off shore returns, not strong but enough to give us some mid and upper 90s and the warmer spots 70s at the beaches. that is monday. here's the forecast for today. 65 san francisco, low to mid 80s for the north end of the bay, low to mid 90s from concord all the way to livermore and about 80s from fremont down to san jose. a couple of low 90s for gilroy, morgan hill, san martin, up in through the peninsula into the low and mid 70s. there is the seven-day forecast. cooler as we get into wednesday. kris, back to you. >> thank you, craig. the wife of a fremont police officer who was shot in the line of duty is speaking publicly for the first time about her husband. nicole young says doctors told her friday that they didn't think her husband would make it off the operating table alive. officer todd young was shot while trying to serve a warrant in oakland. she says he called her in the

minutes after he was shot but didn't let on how bad things were. >> i talked to him but he -- he's sedated but i talked to him every day all day. >> when he's conscious what's the first thing you're going to say? >> that i love him and i want to bring him home to our kids. they miss him. >> doctors say officer young is under heavy sedation and will likely require one more surgery but his prognosis is good. 66 days without a state budget, fueling support for the proposition that would punish lawmakers for missing the deadline. proposition 25 is on the november ballot. it would force lawmakers to forfeit pay if they don't send the governor a spending plan by the constitutional deadline. >> there is no incentive to pass the budget on time. under prop 25 no budget on time,

no pay, benefits and no paybacks later. >> conservatives may oppose prop 25 because it would change the budget vote from two thirds to a simple majority in the legislature that would tend to put all of the budget making power in the hands of the majority party. coming up on the bay area saturday, friends and family gather to celebrate the life of a 13-year-old track star who was gunned down in oakland. we'll tell you about the search for his killer coming up. we have all of the top news coming up at 7:00 of it right now here is back to the "today" show.

we're back on this saturday mornings, september 4th, 2010. it is labor day weekend and the unofficial end of summer. we want to thank our crowd for spending part of their morning with us. coming up, what do women want to watch on television? would you believe the violence and action? >> but with women as the strong central character. we'll look at the new trend. the women crime fighter is back. >> they identified with woman power. and then as we said it's the

unofficial end of summer. the days are getting shorter, the kids are going back to school and it's time to put away your outdoor furniture and supplies. coming up we'll walk you through the best ways to do all of that. >> and the alternate theory, there's still plenty of good weather like for barbequing. a delicious twist on the labor day barbeque. >> i think those are red velvet brownies and they're all mine. just warning you. let's go out karins with a check of your weather. let's talk about st. louis. what are your names? >> wayne and joy. >> i notice that these three here are in the middle. who is taylor, claudia and casey? >> those are our pets at home. >> what kind? >> we have two cats and a dog.

>> who is watching them? >> we have a wonderful pet sitter. >> that's very nice. works out well. let's talk about st. louis and so many other gorgeous area as we go throughout the beautiful weekend. let's talk about sunday, tomorrow, hot weather in the west, but it will spread a little bit into the areas of the northern plains. and as we go into the east coast, saturday, sunday and monday looks perfect. the only wet areas as we go throughout the weekend will be down there along the gulf from texas and louisiana also around florida, showers and thunderstorms. and then by labor day, a new system comes into the plains and that's where we'll be dealing with wet weather. but overall a lot of great weather. finally we can all i hope you enjoy the weather around the bay area. should be nice through 10:00 and the fog is gone. we'll manage low 60s close to the beaches, low and mid-60s at that. 65 in san francisco, downtown, 70s around the rim of the bay and 80s for the north bay. the rest of us in the low to mid

90s. sunset, 7:34. seven-day forecast, monday being the warmest day with mid to upper 90s inland. tuesday a change. and if you want to get your hour by hour forecast, you can always get that at weather.com. a amy? the new fall tv season begins next week and viewers who grew up with wonder woman and lara croft are in for a real tree. they're redefining how the classic heroin is portrayed. on many women are portrayed as helpless victims oft brutal crimes. but now a new group of women are falling back. they're the heroins of the fall it tcht tv season.

and they don't need to be rescued. new shows like chase on nbc all feature women as their main characters. they use their wits and guns. >> the reason audiences want to see more women this charge is that most audience members are women and it makes complete sense that they're tired of being the damsal in distress. >> shows like wonder women have featured women as crime fighter and action heros who battle the forces of evil. the new shows while not a novelty are gritty and the characters complex. the portrayal of women as strong purposeful heroins comes at a time when reality shows featuring women are at their peak. women fight in those shows, too, but it's hugely amongst themselves.

in reality, many women do face dangerous work along with their male colleagues. the action stars in this season's new shows, while fictional, may reflect the expanding roles of women. >> i think it's a very positive shift that we see that the action heros are not just men now, but more and more are women. and i think it's good for men to understand that women can keep up with them, pot just intellectually, but certainly physically, also. >> for more insight, we're joined by jennifer posener, executive director of women in media and news. jennifer, good morning. so the new fall tv lineup definitely emphasizes woman as the action hero. that's not anything new. we saw it with charlie's angels of decades past. but what do you think it is about women now that we're ready for that reemergence of the

female action hero in. >> i think we've always been ready for female action here rows and always been ready for fully defined women with agency. unfortunately too often we don't get that in terms with what we're given. we see the put-upon mom who is always gorgeous but harried by her obnoxious husband like on king of queens. we see the women who are portrayed of bill bombos fighti amongst themselves. and when it comes -- basically what women are looking for are strong, independent, fully defined characters who stand up for themselves and others. it's too bad that they're only given that option in action roles. >> what about the notion that women really do like the blood and silence and they want to see other women a part of all of that, is there any truth to

that? >> i think there's a absolutely -- this is all sort of based on market research that the networks did and i think that there's a crisis of vision in the interpretation of those -- of that research. if it they had asked the real questions of these women they were talking to, 18 to 34-year-old women, they would have found that, yes, they want strong, they want women bike buf like buffy the vampire sleigh, but they want intelligent women. it's not about the blood, items about the fully flushed out idea that women can be anything they want to be.idea that women can be anything they want to be. >> and then you have the other genre where you have the house wives series, you see the strong women but they're catty. sometimes as a woman it's embarrassing to watch because it feels like such a stereotype. and yet are women watching?

>> that's interesting. the former executive over at vh-1 said that if women didn't want these shows, they wouldn't be made. but what's really true, that's just a shallow justification for what networks want to put on the air, these shows, the reality show, cost upwards of basically it can cost less than 75% less to make a reality show than a scripted program. so it's not what women want to see. it's what net works want us to want to see because it's really cheap to make. then you get all the product placement and sponsorship cash and it's a party. it doesn't mean that women are being represented in any kind of realistic way. >> and speaking of maybe more of the genre that we're hoping to see, we know nbc has two shows out. what do you think the networks need to do to get women hooked for all the right reasons on these types of shows?

>> they should do what for example buffy the value smpire sleigher. female characters that rely on each other to defend themselves, to defend other women and other people. and they shouldn't do these sort of rape, incest, torture of the week types of not lines. they should focus on women using their skill and toughness and their negotiation to problem solve. >> all the things we clearly possess. all right. jennifer, thanks so much. coming up next, storing your summer gear. but first these messages. [ female announcer ] there's complete.

and then there's most complete, like what you get from centrum ultra women's, the most complete multivitamin for women. it has vitamin d, which emerging science suggests supports breast health, and calcium for bone health. centrum ultra women's. ♪ now the healing power of touch just got more powerful. introducing precise from the makers of tylenol. precise pain relieving heat patch activates sensory receptors. it helps block pain signals for deep penetrating relief you can feel precisely where you need it most. precise. only from the makers of tylenol.

precise. have you tried honey bunches of oats yet? every spoonful is a little different. mmm. they got three kinds of flakes. this is delicious. it's the perfect combination of sweet and crispy. i love it. this is so good. this is great. the magic's in the mix.

this morning on today's quick fixes, storing your summer gear and furniture with fall around the corner. this has become an issue as you wind down your summer gardening and lawn activities. here to talk more about it, justin hancock from better homes and gardens. nice to have you here. we'll first talk about the lawnmow lawnmower. at some point it will be the time to put it away. i put it in the corner and call it quits. there's more to it. >> if you want to keep your mower in tip top shape, empty the gas tank. super easy to do. just run it until it runs out of gas. it's important to do that because you don't want bad gas to gunk up the engine over the winter. and then you want to change the oil.

lawnmowers have air filters. if it's brown and gunky, replace it with a fresh one. simple. and a lot of people also don't know you want to sharpen the blades. just get a blade sharpner, run it up and down each of the edges. a clean cut on your lawn will keep it looking beautiful and healthy. >> let's it ta talk about lawn gardening tools. >> you can stop rust by cleaning them off really well so you don't get the rust building up underneath the bridge. i use mineral spirits to wipe them down. it gives you an extra layer of location. and store them in a bucket of sand. it will help prevent further oxidation. >> garden hose obviously when we get into freezing weather, you don't want any water this there. >> so stop watering your plants

wans once it gets to about 45 degrees. drain all the water out so it won't freeze and crack it. >> outdoor furniture. this can go back in a hurry. >> it's best to move it inside if possible. if not, cover it with a waterproof tarp. >> should you do anything to the wood itself? >> if you want to, you can stain and seal this time of year. it's a great way it to keep it looking new. and then with your smaller pieces, tuck them underneath the bigger piece so is ipiece, so we them below them away. >> the barbeque, hate to put this away. gr sta . >> at that time gtake the gas nt it inside so it doesn't get jostled around. clean it with a striff brush, warm season any water.

clean out the drip tray. and protect the exterior was covering it with a grill cover and then bungee it down so it doesn't blow away during any winter storms. >> all good advice. stick around if you want some barbeque because we have some barbeque coming up. appreciate you being here. and we'll take a break. be back with more "today" after this.

i can't think of a better way to end the unofficial end of summer than with barbeque. for great new ideas, we've got some tips for you. >> and sunny anderson is here, host of cooking for real. always good to see you. >> i thought today we'd do a pattie melt, but we're doing a little bit of swiss -- >> i've never heard of that.

>> you just take some ground chicken. >> you can get it just in the grocery store? >> oh, yeah. >> i've seen ground turkey, but not ground chicken. >> i think it's just all the super healthy people -- >> i'm not super healthy, right. >> is there something else in there? >> yeah, we bought the chicken and a little bit of oregano and garlic. so these are all things that you can easily find at the grocery store. i put a little bit of oil in the batter so it doesn't stick to the grill here. a little salt and pepper. and you just grill it on each side for about three minuteses, it's nice and done and yummy. >> and nothing says pattie melt like grilled onion. >> exactly. i love to get them down to where they're nice and caramelized. so just onions, butter, salt and

pepper. and in about 20 minutes, if you do this slow and low like barbeque, it will turn into the sweetest onion you'll ever have no matter what kind of onion you put in there. >> how do you prepare the whole thing? >> over here i've got some patties that are almost done. these look great. so what i like to do is right on my grill i take -- >> usually you put it on bread. >> you can totally do rye bread. a pattie melt is usually beef and of course you've got some swiss cheese, onions and bread and they sandwich it together. what i like to do is get this on the grill and then day my -- this is in the family of swiss. put it on one of our patties. and then some of our caramelized

onions. nice and sweet and yummy right over the top there. never can have too many onions. and then more cheese right over the top. >> and just melt it on there? >> leave it on the grill. this will get nice and warm and then you flip it over and give it a cut and you've got them right here. do you want one? >> i'm saving room for the red velvet brownies. >> i've go with the pattie. >> let's get to the chips and salsa first. you couple he wid this with ice? >> this is brooklyn iced tea. we've got some tequila from sunset park. and there's actually tea in here. >> i like that. >> so it work great and tastes great. you guys have the recipe on your website. and then over here, i have my

sal salsa. it tastes like an apple or a pai pear. i pair that had wied that with smith apple and cilantro mix. you have got to give this a try. >> yummy. >> and then for dessert, i'll look you up with this brownie. >> easy to do. tastes great on the first and second day. and that's just a quick little dressing of hot sauce, a little bit of lime juice, sugar. now, here we go. let's bring this to you. i love red velvet cake from grandma and i love cream cheese and cheesecake. i have to say happy 39th anniversary to my parents today. 39 years, still in love and they started out -- >> what are hatheir names? >> daddy and mommy.

>> you have nuts in here. >> there are walnuts in here which are typical for the frosting of red velvet cake. >> you're going to town there. >> these are perfect for your last cookout of the summer. >> always nice to have you here. >> we'll be right back after these messages. ime nasal congestion meant, i couldn't breathe right. i couldn't sleep right. next day it took forever to get going. night after night, i sat up. sprayed up. took a shower... or took a pill. then i tried drug-free breathe right. and instantly, i breathed better! i slept better. i felt...better. thank you, breathe right! [ male announcer ] breathe better, sleep better, feel better. now try breathe right for free... at breatheright.com. [ woman ] it's my right to breathe right. isn't it your right, too?

they're oven-baked flatbread crisps. ♪ with the tastes of sea salt and olive oil. ♪ or sprinkled with italian herbs. ♪ townhouse flatbread crisps. they're perfect for snack time, party time, any time. ♪ new townhouse flatbread crisps. the everyday cracker with the specially-crafted taste. can your moisturizer do that? [ female announcer ] dermatologist recommended aveeno has an oat formula, now proven to build a moisture reserve, so skin can replenish itself. that's healthy skin for life. only from aveeno.

that will do it for us on this saturday. our thanks to craig melvin and bill karins. tomorrow on "today," with the unemployment rate at 9.6%, many are asking where are the jobs. we'll tell you. >> and we'll tell you about a major league family splitting up. have ayaytur rdrd saturday, everody. [ man ] i was deciding what to do

with my citi thankyou points when it happened... [ glass breaks ] ...again. ♪ [ child ] run! [ man ] first it was the mailbox. then my squirrel. and now, this. so i used my points to make a donation

to get the park down the street built. when it finally opened, i also used my points for... car repair. [ male announcer ] use your citi thankyou points for almost anything, even local charities. what's your story? citi can help you write it. good morning. next at 7:00, this morning police continue to dig through 3,000 tons of garbage looking for clues to an east bay killing spree. >> my whole life turned upside down in that moment. >> that -- those are the first public words of the wife of a police officer shot in the line of duty. we'll show you what she says about the phone call her husband made to her as he was going to the hospital and the first thing she'll tell him when he wakes up. and where sand meets security. there will be more officers in uniform patrolling but they won't be police.

the labor day twist ahead. !%

[ female announcer ] we know jerry brown was mayor of oakland,

but what were the results? fact: brown promised to improve schools. but the drop out rate increased 50%, and the state had to take over the schools. fact: the city controller found employees paid for 22,000 hours... they never worked. fact: brown promised to cut crime. but murders doubled, making oakland the 4th most dangerous city in america. jerry brown. he just can't deliver the results california needs now. a cool start to the labor day