good morning. flood zone. the northeast bracing for rains and widespread flooding as a potent storm that spawned 16 tornados in the southeast makes its way up the coast. capitol chaos. [ chanting ] >> republican senators rushed out of wisconsin's capitol building under police escort after they used a surprise maneuver to pass the budget proposal without democrats present. this morning demonstrators are planning another massive rally to voice their anger. 50 days and counting. prince william and kate middleton's wedding day fast approaching and as kate gets

closer to becoming a princess, her relatives are opening up to us about her surprising roots. her relatives are opening up to us about her surprising roots. today, march 10, 2011. captions paid for by nbc-universal television welcome to "today" on this thursday morning. i'm meredith vieira. >> i'm matt lauer. the storm we have been talking about for 48 hours is slowly making its way into our area. it will make for a sense couple of days in the northeast, especially for people in flood-prone area. we are talking as much as five, maybe even six inches of rain in some places. >> in new jersey, governor chris christie has declared a state of emergency. this is part of the same smm that slammed the south wednesday with tornadoes, rain and high winds. by the time it is through more than 100 million americans will be affected by the storm. details coming up.

>> also ahead, mel gibson is set to plead no contests to charges he hit his now ex-girlfriend. is justice being served? did the tapes tell the whole story? the latest on that. >> plus, the age old parenting dilemma sparked by this picture of tom cruise and katie holmes's daughter suri. she's almost 5 and was spotted with a pacifier. how old is too old? problems up and down the east coast. nbc's ron allen is in wayne, new jersey, for us. ron, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you. it's raining and that's about the last thing these waterlogged communities need. the river is several feet above where it normally is this time of year and rising. it's broken through part of this wall and may easily flow over it. that's a possibility. dozens of homes have been evacuated already and town officials are warning residents

this is a serious situation. they should be prepared. all week now the pacaic river has been turning residents into evacuees, forced to use a swimming pool float and a big stick to get from their home to dry land. the river almost rushing in their home. >> they are saying it's supposed to rain all weekend. it will probably come inside the house then. what are you going to do? can't fight with mother nature. >> reporter: downstream in patterson, firefighters were helping people get to higher ground by boat. often dangerous rescues because of swift currents. all of that is just round one. with torrential rain now forecast for the next two days, it is all hands on deck. even these inmates from the county jail were put to work, with guards watching, making sandbags to go. at this strip mall they know what a few more inches of rain

can do. >> last year around the same time, got about four inches that flooded out this entire area. >> reporter: while floods drench the northeast, tornadoes blow through the southeast. as many as 16 tornadoes reported on wednesday from louisiana to florida. part of an intense weather system stretching so far across the country, as many as 100 million americans may be affected. >> i grew up here. i'm 33. so it happens. >> reporter: 33 times? >> not quite that many, but yeah. like most here in the flood zone brian tries to take it in stride, taking a row boat to his house. most people say it usually doesn't get this bad. the fear is it could get much worse. new jersey's governor declared a state of emergency in some parts of the state. given the forecast there is a real possibility that many rivers could reach record levels.

meredith? >> thank you very much, ron allen. >> ron mentions the forecast. let's get more from al who's tracking the storm upstairs. good morning to you. >> good morning. it doesn't look good. we have flash flood watches and flood watches from georgia up to new hampshire in 17 states. on the radar, we are concerned about a double barrelled low pressure system. cold air behind it. the rainmaking its way in. next 48 hours tells the tale. prescriptionwise, from virginia all the way up into new england, at least an inch of rain but the bull's eye of the heaviest rain, northern new jersey, eastern pennsylvania, southeastern new york. three to five inches. could be seven inches of rain. this is what it would take to cause flash flooding. this is what we are looking at where ron allen was. it would take less than an inch of rain to cause flash flooding. three inches in long island. an inch to an inch and a half in pennsylvania and new jersey. with the forecast of up to

three, five, maybe six inches of rain. you can see why flooding is going to be widespread throughout the northeast. matt, meredith? >> thank you very much. al will have more of the forecast in a couple of minutes. >> first a check of the top stories. ann curry is at the news desk good morning. >> good morning. we turn to the outrage in wisconsin where the republican controlled senate voted to cut collective bargaining rights for public employees. nbc's john yang joins us with more from madison. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. this morning's paper tells the story. capitol shocker. democrats left pondering their next move now that republicans seem to figured out a way to outfox them. >> this is a violation of law. >> reporter: with wisconsin's 14 senate democrats still out of state, republicans abruptly ended the standoff over public workers wednesday night using a procedural maneuver to vote on key parts of the bitterly

contested bill. [ shouting ] >> reporter: the debate that went on for three weeks was over in just 30 minutes. thousands of protesters had a one-word chant -- shame. for weeks it's been ground zero in a battle over union rights. in an 18-1 vote with no democrats present republicans removed the spending measures but kept sharp limits on collective bargaining rights for state workers with increases in their health care and pension costs. republican governor scott walker says the bill is needed to help close the $3.6 billion deficit, praised senate republicans saying, "i applaud the legislature's action to stand up to the status quo and take a step in the right direction." senate republicans needed a police escort after sending the bill to the state assembly where it is expected to pass today.

despite the protesters, senate democrats concede it's a done deal. the next step could be to the courts. the democrats maintain that last night's vote was illegal. ann? >> john, thanks. moammar gadhafi's war plans pushed deeper into east libya today as world leaders debate whether to impose a no-fly zone. jim maceda joins us from tripoli. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, ann. well, the diplomatic front is heating up in brussels today with a big debate over the no-fly zone which rebels call a game changer but many others an open invitation to a third u.s.-led war. pounded by bombs and rockets from the air, anti-gadhafi rebels have been sitting ducks on this exposed desert road. they say they need one thing -- a no-fly zone to take away

gadhafi's deadly advantage. is a no-fly zone effective or feasible? it will be debated today in brussels today. britain and france are pushing hard while the obama administration is movinging with caution. >> let's just call a spade a spade. a no-fly zone begins with an attack on libya to destroy the air defenses. that's the way you do a no-fly zone. >> reporter: who would the zone protect? the rebels are a rag tag army of a thousand fighters with old weapons and often no military experience while gadhafi's better trained and equipped ground forces number ten times that. he could still win, even with a no-fly zone. gadhafi was ever defiant in his latest interview when asked about a no-fly zone. [ speaking in a foreign language ] >> reporter: then we'd see that the west's aim is to take our oil. all the people would take up arms and fight, he said. as the momentum shifts to his

side, the old survivor is clearly going nowhere. the u.s. is also looking at the option of providing weapons to the rebels, but that also raises serious questions, not the least of which, who are we really giving them to? ann? >> jim, thanks. new york congressman peter king called a controversial hearing this morning on capitol hill to discuss radicalization in the american muslim community. critics say the hearing is anti-muslim. no leaders of major muslim-american organizations have been invited to this morning's proceedings according to the washington post. for the first time in more than 50 year it is fda approved a drug to treat lupus. hundreds of thousands of americans suffer from the debilitating disease. and a new discovery of what may be the first and only color photographs in the aftermath of san francisco's 1906 earthquake. the six images uncovered by a smithsonian volunteer was shot by freddic eydes just months

after the quake which devastated san francisco more than 100 years ago. it is now 7:10. back to matt, meredith and al. a glimpse into the past. >> seeing it in color. >> thanks, ann. you will be a busy fellow over the next 24 hours. >> i will. but you know what? i'm just covering it. the folks who have to live through it are the ones who really have to deal with it. as we show you what's going on, our friends out west have to deal with rain and snow. another system. it's been a parade of storms for the pacific northwest. this one bringing heavy rain from arcada to seattle. rest of the country, we have the rain along the eastern seaboard. sunshine from the plains all the way to texas and into the southwest. both ends of the country looking at rough weather today. well, we are not going to call it rough weather by any stretch, but we do have some wet

weather coming into the bay area. a little bit slick right now in some cities. the bulk of the moisture is not anticipated until about 9:00 a.m. you have a couple hours before the moisture arrives in the north bay. by noon we'll see pretty good shower activity all across the bay area extending from santa rosa down to redwood city. san jose, row may not see any rain today. a lot of this is virga expected to evaporate before hitting the surface. have a great day. > that r latest weather. meredith? >> al, thank you. now to the turmoil at national public radio. npr's president resigned after hidden camera footage showed a fellow executive making dispar rajjing remarks about the tea party movement. lisa myers has details. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. this could not have come at a worse time for npr and public broadcasting. officials believe they are in more danger of losing taxpayer funding than at any time in their history. when the latest controversy erupted they quickly threw

bodies overboard to tlie ry to steady the ship. >> npr president resigned -- >> reporter: at public radio stations around the country many listeners were supportive but others argued that taxpayer money should not be spent on npr. >> and the reason that i don't really appreciate my tax dollars going to you guys is because i think you are very biased in  your coverage. when i listen to npr i'm listening for the liberal point of view. >> reporter: npr has been a target of conservatives for years, but lately seems to have given critics ammunition. the latest, this guerilla video by james o'keefe. we last saw him wearing a fur coat playing a pimp when he managed to take down the liberal group a.c.o.r.n. this time with people posing as donors he captured a fund raiser making dispa rajjing remarks about the tea party.

>> they believe in the sort of white middle america gun toting -- i mean it's scary. >> reporter: npr came under fire last year after dumping juan williams for comments made about muslims on fox news. the ceo said this about williams. >> his feelings that he expressed on fox news are between him and his -- you know, psychiatrist or publicist or, take your pick. >> reporter: schiiler apologized, admitted making mistakes and was denied her annual bonus. when this video came along it apparently was the last straw. both had to resign. house republicans who long have accused npr of liberal bias changed their rhetoric to focus on the deficit. >> what kind of mission does the corporation for public broadcasting serve in these tough economic times. >> reporter: the house just voted to cut all money for public broadcasting.

$430 million this year. public broadcastinging officials say without federal funds local public radio and tv stations will suffer. ♪ >> reporter: also in jeopardy, programming like "sesame street," big bird and elmo have educated preschoolers for 40 years. >> the success rate of children who watch public media at a young age is higher than those who don't. >> reporter: public broadcasting officials say the quality programming they provide is a great investment which costs taxpayers $1.35 per person per year, meredith. >> all right, lisa. thank you very much. it's 7:15. once again, here's meredith. mel gibson has reportedly agreed to a plea deal on charges that he hit his now ex-girlfriend and it will mean no time behind bars. george lewis has details. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, matt. people familiar with the case are saying gibson will appear in court in los angeles on friday

and that he will enter a no contest plea to charges that he hit his girlfriend. the l.a. county sheriff's department made gibson the target of a domestic violence investigation after the mother of gibson's youngest child alleged he hit her. shocking recordings of the two fighting on the phone seem to back it up. >> you were hitting a woman with a child in her hands. you. what kind of man is that? hitting a woman when she's holding a child in her hands? breaking her teeth twice in the face. what kind of man is that? >> ooh, you're all angry now. you [ bleep ] deserved it. >> reporter: there was a statement saying the actor sought to avoid dragging his family through a media circus. blair berk said it is only with that in mind he asked to bring this to an immediate end.

>> reporter: she was asked about the deal. >> some people will think mel gibson is getting the celebrity deal because he's not getting jail time, a no contest, but there may be a problem with the evidence in this case. they got the tape but it seems there is a dispute about what happened. >> reporter: a source close to gibson confirmed the star is in guatemala working on a project to save the rain forests. he plans to be back in time for friday afternoon's court appearance. with that, gibson who won the academy award for directing "braveheart" will avoid serving time behind bars. >> but they will never take our free dom! >> reporter: legal experts say he'll probably be given probation and may be ordered to under go counseling. >> george lewis, thank you very much. it's 7:17. here's meredith. >> the director of broadway's

most expensive musical ever "spider-man" is being relieved of her responsibilities. that's part of major changes on stage and behind the scenes as producers go back to the drawing board to revamp the troubled show. mara schiavocampo is in times square with the latest. good morning. >> reporter: good morning,  meredith. after three months of performances the musical was supposed to open in just five days. now it's been delayed until june at the earliest. a month ago it was ripped apart by critics. now producers plan to revamp the entire production including replacing the director. "spider-man: turn off the dark" has turned off the lights on julie taymor after she's spent a decade on this production. producers have brought on an expanded creative team to make significant and exciting revisions to the production.

though they maintain taymor is not leaving, citing scheduling problems she's been relieved of day-to-day duties and those familiar with the show say she's staying in name only. >> she'll continue to have a financial stake and participation in the show because they will be using her design, but the new team is going to -- and this is a quote -- rip the show apart from top to bottom. >> reporter: taymor is more than just a director. she created the musical, at $65 million the most expensive in broadway history, designed the masks and was one of two script writers, but the show has been hanging by a thread. last month, panned by creator critics calling it dull and unmemorable, lame and a depressing disaster. and sometimes downright dangerous, too. four actors were injured during preview performances, one falling more than 30 feet into the orchestra pit, fracturing

his skull and breaking several bones including four ribs. after being hit in the head and suffering a concussion, the lead actress natalie mendoza quit altogether. >> the producers wanted it to be a fun, thrilling spectacle. julie taymor wanted it to be a kind of myth story. the problem was the critics ended up hating it. >> reporter: "spider-man" was supposed to open officially last week but producers say they will make changes and it will now premier in early summer giving them time to spin a new web. >> there are a lot of opinions about whether it can be saved. a big part of it will come down to the playwright. he's planning to punch up the love story. whether that's enough to make it, you know, a hit on the scale of "the lion king" or "wicked" is hard to tell. >> reporter: we reached out to julie taymor for comment but

didn't hear back. despite the problems plaguing the musical, the show has been one of the highest grossing ever bringing in more than $1.2 million just last week alone. with the changes the producers hope it can earn critical praise to go along with the cash. >> that would be nice. thank you very much. just ahead, new details on kate middleton's roots as the countdown to the royal wedding hits 50 days. we'll hear from her cousin. but first this is "today" on nbc. [ mom ] can a little bowl of cereal change your life? i think it can. one of the challenges for kayla being gluten-free is actually finding choices the whole family will love. then we discovered chex cereals. five flavors of chex are gluten-free,

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good morning. it is 7:26. i'm mike inouye. i want to update on the dudly deadly crash clearing from 101 lanes near san mateo. we know the driver of a honda fell asleep and crashed into the center divider of the freeway on the northbound side just after 5:00. then a few minutes later a motorcycle crashed into the same area possibly into another car. the smoke motorcyclist died on impact. initially three lanes were shut down, but looking at the map all northbound lanes are now open. traffic is still backed up and jammed from before you get to hillsdale boulevard. 92 getting over there is packed as we continue to follow this.

back over to you. : thank you, mike. a livermore engineer is under arrest after standing stabbing another man to death over a case of road rage. this happened at 1:40 yesterday afternoon. colt holbrooke got into an argument with another driver. they say that holbrooke took out a knife and stabbed that other person. the injured driver then managed to drive himself to a livermore hospital where staff called police. now the victim was taken to eden medical center in castro valley because livermore hospital is not a designated trauma center. but the man eventually died later on. the time now is 7:27. christina is here with a look at your forecast coming up. good morning to you. i'm right here, right now. so is the rain. it has not arrived just yet to the bay area, but we are seeing the clouds from the leading edge of this system push into the bay. but for the most part we are not going the see the bulk of the moisture arrive until 9:00 a.m.

in the north bay. we are looking to a mostly wet bay area by noon. we are not expecting a lot of moisture. less than .25. rain showers are pushing into the north bay, novato, fairfield is getting action between 9:00 and noon. then by the end of the day the whole thing clears out. the extended forecast is coming up in five minutes. hope you have a great day. more local news in a half hour. the "today" show is back in less than two minutes.

7:30 on a thursday morning, march 10, 2011. the forecast is gloomy here in the northeast. al's out there trying to brighten up the spirits of people. we'll get rain starting this afternoon or a couple of minutes from now. heavy rain for 24 hours. inside studio 1a i'm matt lauer alongside meredith vieira. also ahead, clothing maker american apparel is known for racy ads. now a former saleswoman filed a $250 million sexual harassment lawsuit against the ceo. the company calls it extortion. details coming up. >> plus property taxes every

homeowner thinks they are paying too much. do you know what you are doing to raise your own tax bill? we'll tell you. and we now use our phones to text, surf the web, take pictures, but when is the last time you had a meaningful conversation on the phone? why some say the art of the phone call is headed for extinction. are you a big phone talker? >> not really. i don't like to talk on the phone. >> you don't return my calls. >> that's a whole different thing. let's begin with a countdown to the royal wedding. we are now 50 days away from the ceremony. for generations kate middleton's ancestors worked as coal miners and the idea of her becoming the future queen would have been unheard of in their time. michelle kosinski caught up with kate's distant cousin. good morning, michelle. >> reporter: hi, meredith. the conditions seem just as brutal above ground today. there is no mining here anymore. the place closed decades ago but this is the same area where

generations ago while prince william's ancestors were sitting high on the throne, kate middleton's great, greats were under ground mining coal. is there a little bit of kate middleton in these confident eyes or this face snoo. >> we can see a bit of a resemblance. >> reporter: if only john harrison while toiling in the black and wet of a coal mine to support his family of nine children. >> such a beautiful family. >> reporter: could have pictures her. his great, great granddaughter kate about to marry the future king. >> we never, ever imagined that this would happen. >> reporter: this, john harrison, a retired mechanic with wife val who wears a ring just like kate's -- >> i had it. >> reporter: is a cousin twice removed. they didn't know about kate until they saw a story in the local paper a few years back.

>> my mother saw it and said, that's strange. i know all these names. >> reporter: john remembers as a child sitting with this john harrison watching queen elizabeth's coronation on tv with awe. today, looking back at their history, the mining history here. >> must have been dreadful. very wet. >> reporter: he still can't believe kate is one of their own. >> of all of the people in england it's our family. >> i think it will be good for the country. she'll be very popular. >> reporter: no doubt life was hard, making a living in cold dangerous pits. by the time her great grandfather thomas came along, he was ready to forge a new path. he became a carpenter, moved to london and the rest is about to bel royal history. >> kate came from a family of very strong women. her great grandmother edith goldsmith was left to bring up six children single handedly on

very little money. >> reporter: kate's mom carol, a flight attendant married michael, started an online party planning company that made them millionaires, sent their children to the best schools where kate met her handsome prince. kate will be the first commoner to marry a future king in 350 years. coal is no longer king around durham, but on that wedding day, they will have their queen. >> just a smile on my face. >> reporter: does this authorize you to wear a little tiara? do you have rights now? >> nothing official. but there's nothing stopping us, i suppose. >> reporter: one of the distant cousins on kate middleton's mother's side is invited to the wedding, but she has to go by herself. she wasn't given a plus one on the invitation. the harrisons plan to have a garden party so the rest of the relatives can watch the wedding together. maybe with a theme of top hats and mining boots or something.

meredith? >> she should have gotten the plus one. that's all i have to say. >> reporter: exactly. come on. >> now a check of the weather from al. >> good morning, everybody. got some nice folks here. you guys -- the first time you have been together in ten years. >> ten years. >> and my mother. >> how come so long? >> we have all just lived apart. >> "today," bringing people together. that's a nice reunion. let's check your weather and see what's going on. temperatures on the chilly side, new england in the northeast. 30s and 40s around the great lakes. upper 70s to low 80s through the southwest and southern florida. as you look we have showers and thunderstorms in florida today. a slight risk of strong storms in the midatlantic states. rain and flooding in the northeast. snow in new england. rain in the pacific northwest. plains to texas sunshine, nice and warm in southern texas.

brownsville with a temperature in the 70s. sunshine and a mix of sun and clouds in l.a. good morning toyou. we have rain on the way. a little bit before we see that rain. i would say maybe an hour and a half before it pushes into the north bay. we expect the bulk of the moisture to arrive at 9:00 a.m. spreading south by noon. i think the peninsula and north bay will get the most out of this system. the south bay nay not see any rain. and everything we do see will be very light in nature. as we head throughout this afternoon temperatures will be in the 60s. this weekend looks good, but more rain on the way. don't forget. you can get your weather any time day or night from the weather channel on cable or weather.com online. matt? >> thank you very much. the ceo of american apparel has been hit with a $250 million sexual harassment lawsuit. it's been filed by a former teenage employee. nbc's peter alexander has details on that. peter, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you. this story comes with ugly

allegations. this is the american apparel store where the alleged victim worked and where she said she was first approached by the company's founder. she said the working relationship quickly turned to an obsession and then crossed way over the line. with its suggestive advertising campaigns including those racy bill boards showing plenty of skin, american apparel has long flaunted its provocative place in the fashion world, but former employee irene morales says for doug charny, sex was more than a marketing tool. >> i don't want to be a victim anymore. >> reporter: in this $250 million sexual harassment lawsuit morales accuses him of being a sexual predator. that she was held prisoner in his apartment for hours and forced to perform sexual acts. >> it's one thing to advertise sex to sell merchandise. it's another thing to subject an employee to abuse.

>> reporter: morales says the 42-year-old canadian entrepreneur first approached her in 2007 when she was a 17-year-old sales associate and a high school student, flooding her phone with requests for explicit pictures and later forcing her to perform sex acts with him for eight months, warning her if she refused she'd be fired. >> i don't want to be secret about this, especially when i know there might be others out there who i can help. >> reporter: in a statement to nbc news, american apparel said morales left the company and left complaint and resigned with a letter of gratitude regarding her positive experience at the company. some say ceo doug charny's celebrity status in the fashion industry is being exploited. charney is no stranger to controversy. he's faced several past sexual harassment suits. during sworn deposition from one of the cases the fashion

executive spoke about his chain that sells clothing including underwear. >> i frequently drop my pants to show people my new product. >> reporter: none of the harassment cases ever went to trial but charney faces problems on the business side. since 2008 american apparel's stock value has plummeted and the company's been dogged by persistent news reports about potential bankruptcy. you might ask why irene morales stuck around for so long. she said she was afraid of losing her job. eventually she said she had an emotional breakdown and finally quit. morales says she finally needed the help of doctors and lawyers to give her the strength to come forward. >> peter alexander for us, thank you very much. coming up next, what you could be doing to raise your property taxes even higher and what you can do to prevent that from happening. plus, the emergency room doctor who realized his patient was his own wife. how he helped to save her life

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we are back and this morning on "today's real estate," rising property taxes. according to the tax foundation, property taxes have increased nearly 35% in recent years. but there are ways you can avoid the spike and even lower your tax bill. "today" real estate expert barbara corcoran is here with

details. good morning. >> good morning. >> it comes down to renovations. >> it always comes down to renovations. you can't control how your particular town does the tax rate but you can certainly have an influence on how they appraise your house. >> you have a list of improvements that almost always require permits and you say the permits can be red flags. >> they are always red flags. the minute you file for a permit you are becoming a public record. the minute that happens, the taxpayer is out looking to charge you more in home taxes. >> what renovations are we talking about specifically where we will see a rise in property taxes? >> almost everything today because almost everything needs a permit. you will have obvious things like a change in the roof line. anyone from the street could see it. something as simple as moving a sink requires a plumbing permit in most towns so it becomes a cause for rising taxes. >> if you change anything in the kitchen or bathroom. >> you will pay twice -- once to put it in and again at tax time. >> even landscaping?

>> if you add, for example, a small deck or a wood shed you will get taxed more. if you put a concrete floor in the shed it becomes more livable territory within the home. so your taxes get a double whammy. >> keeping that in mind though you want people to know the renovations are often assessed incorre incorrectly. i couldn't believe the inaccuracy rate between 30 and 60% but less than 5% of homeowners do anything about it. >> no one knows you can. that's a shame because most of us are being overcharged. human error is responsible for most of the mistakes made on taxes today. >> if you discover a mistake, what do you do? >> you can challenge it. one, get the town card of all the pieces that make up the description of your home. >> what is -- the property card? >> the property card. it has the vital statistics like square footage, the size of acreage or the lot. on that you can just check for details to make sure if they are accurate. if you don't like anything on

that card you can challenge it. >> there are also checking for mistakes, you say there are areas that are prone to mess-ups. >> the simple things. bedroom and bathroom count are the top two. after that whether the basement is finished or not. >> do you mean they miscount the rooms? >> picture yourself at a clerk's office posting numbers all day long. there are a lot of errors made. >> once you find errors you say it's time to file a tax appeal. >> it's simple. sounds fancy and people think you need a fancy attorney or specialist. >> you don't? >> not at all. it's a written complaint worth lessur home iscc1: than you are being taxed for. what do you need to prove it? homes.sales ofcc1: tumbling rty taxescc1: across america i would say more than half of the americans are overcharged for property taxes. >> they can do something about it. fm. >> easily. cc >> thank you very much. phone , do you use your1:

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i say i'm so chico's. 135 years ago today alexander graham bell made the very first phone call. he called meredith. while there are now more phones than ever the art of the call seems to be dying. "today" national correspondent jamie gangel joins us. it's a fun thursday here. >> reporter: good morning, matt. remember the pay phone?

remember the land line? remember endless hours talking on the phone? they seem to be becoming a thing of the past so we took a look at why we have fallen out of love with the phone call. ♪ >> reporter: let's face it. ever since alexander graham bell's first call -- >> mr. watson, i want you. >> reporter: we have been obsessed with ourle telephones. we flirted over them. >> hello? >> good morning, miss mara. >> reporter: waited for them to ring. then wasted away hours talking about who knows what? ♪ >> reporter: because the phone calls connected us. >> good night, harry. >> reporter: from main street to wall street. >> this is your wake up call. >> reporter: from beverly hills. >> he gave me a c science. >> reporter: to outer space.

>> e.t. phone home. >> reporter: for better -- >> hello. >> reporter: -- or for worse. but while the phone has evolved beyond mr. bell's wildest dreams and phones are used for everything from angry crowds to angry birds, this phrase -- >> can you hear me now? >> reporter: may soon be a thing of the past. while more people than ever have phones, we are using them to do just about anything but talk. since 2007 the number of calls has been declining. the length of a call, half of what it used to be. >> when you think about it, it's a bad technology. >> reporter: clive thompson of wired magazine predicted the death of the phone call. >> it's dying because it deserves to die. people found other avenues that are more useful and more satisfying to communicate. >> reporter: just look at the

latest ads. people stream, surf, share, but nobody's calling. especially teens and 20-somethings. ali, michael and liz are top students at nyu and self-confessed phone addicts. >> i love my blackberry so much. >> reporter: when they communicate, they text, tweet, share, friend, i.m. and b.b.m. >> we send maybe 20,000 texts a month. >> i guess it takes away the awkwardness of having an actual interaction on the phone. >> i actually think i speak better through text messaging than i do on the phone. >> reporter: the facebook generation admits however there are downsides to text over talk. fingers fly too fast, feelings get hurt and emoticons can only say so much. >> a lot of times you can't pick

up on body language, emphasis on what you're saying or how you're feeling about anything. there is no -- that instinct. it's just a message. >> reporter: after all, how do you text this -- >> whoa. >> reporter: or this? >> phone call for al -- a al coholic. >> reporter: or this. >> show me the money! >> reporter: even so parents are advised to get their thumbs in shape and please don't do any of this. >> really? >> reporter: whatever you do, don't leave a voicemail. no one is checking them. it just sit there is and blinks at home. matt? >> are you a phone caller jamie? >> reporter: i used to be. i confess i have become one of these and i do not check voicemail. guilty. >> that's a warning. don't call jamie.

>> my lawyer's on the phone for you right now for harassment. >> that's a call i will not take. >> lol. >> when we come back we'll talk about when is your kid too old to use a pacifiepacifier. >> stick one in your mouth now. that's after your local news. ♪ stay inside? nah. not when you have a five-star overall vehicle score for safety. one more reason chevy traverse delivers more.

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good morning, everybody. it is 7:56 on the button. i'm brent cannon. san jose is moving forward with plans to reduce the estimated 110 pot clubs to just ten. and permits will be issued to the few clubs that remain via the internet. city leaders have called for an april 12th meeting to decide how to cut back on the number of marijuana clubs in san jose. mayor reed wants to auction off the ten club permits on e-bay. a new spring of smash and grab robberies have taken place within an hour of each other last night in two restaurant parking lots along el camino really. in each case the laptops were taken from the cars.

so far officers have not been able to release a description of any of the suspects. time to check your forecast now with christina. >> good morning, brent. good morning to you at home. we have rain on the way. right now we are just seeing clouds pushing into the bay area. as i zoom in for you you can see the leading edge arriving in san francisco. and the showers are not too far off from santa rosa. you'll see the first action here in the next hour or so. by noon that's when we are expecting the bulk of the moisture to come through the bay area, but the whole system clears out of here by this evening. we'll be left with a pretty nice day. breaks of sunshine throughout the day today. 59 degrees in san jose. 60 degrees in los gatos. and 60 degrees today in redwood city. as we head throughout your weekend we do have another round of rain on the way, but it doesn't look like it will get here for the latter part of sunday. i want to remind you one more time to set the clocks forward one hour saturday night into sunday morning. we'll check your drive with someone who has been very busy this morning.

we could use an extra hour here. not an hour, but we still need extra time along the peninsula. northbound 101 still jammed after the early morning sig alert that cleared at 7:15, but we have the backup kicking off about now. slow as you approach san mateo from out of east palo alto up to redwood city and up to 92. westbound 92 we have reports of a mine snore accident, that could be blocking the lanes. the slowing you see out of daly city is pretty typical. things are starting to jam up past the coliseum as well. thank you, mike. more local news in a half hour. the "today" show returns in less than a minute.

8:00 now on this thursday morning, the 10th of march, 2011. we are waiting on the rain in rockefeller plaza. told by al it will be heavy at times and flood watches and warnings are in effect across the northeast. we'll get to al's forecast in just a moment. i'm meredith vieira along with matt lauer and al roker. just ahead, do your kids ever use a pacifier? >> mickey did. >> none of our kids did. >> it's not that we went out of our way. they never used them.

>> they never sucked their thumb either? >> they still suck their thumbs. >> our kids used them until they were done with them. there is a debate raging over this picture of tom cruise and katie holmes' daughter suri. she's almost 5. that's not her. she still uses a pacifier and all the bloggers are talking about it. we'll get to that coming up. >> also, imagine that emergency room doctors are trained to expect the unexpected. one doctor got the shock of a lifetime when he found out the patient he was called on to treat was his own wife. turns out he had to help save her life not once but two different times. we'll meet them in a little while. >> a little bit later on, the stress, guilt, pleasure. all the pressure moms feel every day. what makes a happy mom? we'll talk to a mom and author who thinks she's got the answer. >> okay. first a check of the top stories from ann curry. >> hey, meredith. good morning again.

in the news wisconsin democrats are vowing legal action after losing a three-week budget battle in just 30 minutes last night. protesters voiced outrage after the republican-controlled senate voted to strip power from public employee unions without a single democrat present. they left the state trying to block the vote. at least 17 states from georgia to new england are under flood watches today with a half foot of rain expected in areas where rivers were already overflowing. the same storm unleashed tornadoes in louisiana and mississippi on wednesday. parts of florida were under tornado watches today. the u.s. and european allies meet today to consider imposing a no-fly zone in libya. rebels have been asking for a no-fly zone were pounded again today by moammar gadhafi's war planes in two eastern strongholds. the dalai lama announced today he will step down as political leader of the tibetan people, shifting the responsibility to a representative to be elected. he said the move will help the

tibetan people in the long run and he will remain as spiritual leader. the man charged with shooting 19 people in tucson including congresswoman gabrielle giffords has pleaded not guilty. mike taibbi has the story. >> reporter: to the question, is your name jared loughner, the accused gunmen, hair growing in with long wispy signed burns said yes it is. his lawyer judy clark entered a not guilty plea to the indictment covering the deaths and injuries of all victims of the january 8 shooting. then the judge released dozens of pams of loughner that he was wearing ear plugs when he was arrested, along with postings saying good-bye showing a pattern of preplanning. >> there is a shooting. >> reporter: searchers found drawings of weapons and has been reported a letter from the office of congresswoman gabrielle giffords and scribbles allegedly by loughner saying, i planned ahead, my assassination

and just the name giffords. the judge ordered a psychiatric examination to see if loughner is able to stand trial. if he's allowed to stand trial restoring him to sanity could delay by months or years, a trial his lawyers are saying shouldn't start until january of 2013. mike taibbi, nbc news, tucson. >> we turn now to mandy drury at the new york stock exchange. what's up today? a number of things which could weigh on our markets today. number one there are signs that china's economy is slowing. that could weigh on commodity plays and mining stocks. elsewhere over in the euro zone there are concerns about the yo euro zone countries after spain was cut by moody, that's a rating agency. it says its fiscal health is not up to scratch. here at home foreclosures plunged 27% in february but it may be a temporary reprieve as foreclosures were delayed by the robo signing debacle.

>> back to you. >> thank you for that report. >> finally the nelson mandela foundation is sponsoring a new clothing line to support the health and human rights projects called 46664. those were mandela's numbers when he was first sent to prison for fighting all-white rule in south africa. it's 8:05. now a check of the weather from al. >> and today's pick city -- houston, texas. houston, we have no problem. did you know that houston's astro dome was built in 1965 and was the first domed stadium? why are you listening to "i can see clearly now"? well, it's by houston native singer/songwriter johnny nash. today for houston, sunny and mild conditions with temperature of 70 degrees. as we show you what's going on

wiinthe northeast, we have rr.an you won't be seeing clearly in a while. look at the rain streaming up. we are looking for anywhere from three to five inches of rain northern new jersey, northeastern pennsylvania and parts of southeastern new york and the problem is we only need for some areas, maybe an inch to half inch of rain good thursday morning to you. well, we're not expecting flooding, showers certainly today up in the north bay and in the peninsula. i think we'll see a little bit of activity in the east bay and in the south bay. but probably just a couple hundredths of an inch at best. a really light weather maker. this actually kind of falling apart as it does push onshore. in santa rosa in the next 45 minutes, get ready for your first rain shower as the bulk of the moisture comes through cc1: between 9:00 a.m. and noon. expecting a quarter of an inch at best. and that's your latest

and that's your latest weather. meredith? >> al, thank you very much. coming up, the emergency doctor who saved his wife's life twice after a devastating accident. that's right after this. bebebebebebaaa! we get double miles every time we use our card, no matter what we're buying. i'll take it. and since double miles add up fast, we can bring the whole gang. fire! [ garth ] it's hard to beat double miles! have you seen garth? oh! [ male announcer ] get the venture card from capital one. money magazine's best rewards card if you aim to rack up airline miles. what's in your wallet? bebebebebebaaa! [ male announcer ] our 16 fresh-picked oranges have a new home. tropicana pure premium now comes in a clear bottle so you can see how much goodness is squeezed inside. ♪ good morning tropicana. the world's best juice never looked better. e announcer ] why do so many car companies compare themselves to camry? maybe it's because camry is the #1 selling car in america.

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we're back now with a call to action for an emergency physician that soon became anything but routine. that's because dr. tim delgado discovered the critical patient he was working on was his wife. we'll speak with the delgados in a moment but first amy robach has the story. >> reporter: 28-year-old newlywed allison delgado was a marathon runner, a second-year medical resident and avid cyclist. her life took an unexpected turn when a vehicle crashed into her

when she was on her beloved bike. it was a quiet october day at university hospital cincinnati when emergency helicopter physician tim delgado got the call. >> a female cyclist in her 20s, head injury patient. >> reporter: when the flight crew arrived shefts in critical condition. >> quickly looked at the patient's head. she had jaw injuries, blood on her face. >> reporter: moments later delgado noticed the patient was wearing his team's cycling uniform. >> i was like, please don't let it be ali. looked up and it was her. i just -- i just said, that's my wife. the room got silent. >> reporter: after the initial shock, dr. delgado's flight nurse radioed for another crew to fly in and take over. then you had to wait for a second helicopter because technically you're not allowed to treat your wife. >> it's not against the law, but

technically i'm not supposed to treat my wife. at the same time, one of the hardest things about this entire experience was kind of balancing the two competing roles of being both a husband and a physician. >> reporter: did you want to break the rules? >> i did. i wanted to do everything possible to make sure she had the best chance possible for sur vooif -- survival. i was crying, holding her hand saying, hold on, babe, keep fighting. in between i would say, we need to give her medication. >> reporter: with her husband's help al son made it through the first critical night but fell into a week-long coma. what was your first memory? >> the first thing i remember is tim being dressed up on halloween like the mad hatter. >> reporter: that's when allison learned about the accident. she had broken her clavicle, jaw, sternum. she had several fractures in

vertebrae, bruised lungs, a bruised heart and a head injury that was about to create her biggest scare yet. surgeons repaired an aneurysm in her brain but two days after being sent home allison had a seizure. tim called 911 and once again while waiting for help had to step in. >> i knew she needed the tracheostomy tube because her mouth was wired shut from surgery. she was filling up and wasn't responsive to pain or doing anything. i had never put one in myself before. but i had seen it done. >> reporter: five months later with the nightmare almost behind them, allison rehabs at the gym seven days a week, exceeding her doctors' expectations. >> recovering from that is nothing short of remarkable. having said that, brain injury is a tricky thing. to be able to recover takes a long time and a lot of patience. >> she really kind-redefined the

rules of what is possible this soon after such an injury. >> too much pressure on me. >> she's very close with her speech. i think it will get to where it will be completely normal. if it's not, i don't care. she's close enough. >> reporter: allison plans to be back at work next month and also intends on running cincinnati's flying pig marathon in 2012. matt, she won the first marathon she entered in 2005. i'm sure she'll do well. >> nobody could doubt her. thank you very much. tim and allison delgado, good morning to you both. >> good morning. >> good morning, matt. >> allison, everyone says you have defied the odds. how are you feeling? >> it's been tough. it's been tough not being able to go to work and going through the recovery process. but overall, i have been feeling well.

i don't question why this happened every day. it just happened and it's something i have to move forward on and try to get to normal as quick as possible. i'm looking forward to going back to work. >> tim, i was thinking back to amy's piece there. when you got the first phone call and you hear you're about to respond to a female cyclist who's been in an accident, you know your wife is an avid cyclist, did it even cross your mind at that moment you might be responding to something wrong with your wife? >> not at all, matt. i thought she would be running that day. it never crossed my mind. it's something you never think could happen to someone you know or love. so it just wasn't even on the radar screen at all. >> you talk about when you got there you didn't immediateli ll realize it was allison and you said when you did it was like being stabbed in the gut. for our viewers' information,

this idea that technically you're not supposed to treat your spouse, what's the logic behind that? >> well, i mean, when i walked into the room i was a physician treating a patient. as soon as i saw allison i was no longer a physician. i was just a panic-stricken, distraught husband. you know, the judgment in my thinking at that point was clouded because, you know, i was worried allison was, you know, critically injured and dying in front of me. so you're more prone to errors and given the real possibility that allison could have possibly died in the helicopter on the way there, you know, i would have been a liability to try to continue caring for her. >> but you do take part in saving her life that first time. five weeks later, two weeks after she goes home from the cc: hospital, the seizure she suffers and you're put in the position again and you say

inserting the tracheostomy was the hardest thing you have ever done. >> it was horrible. i was alone. i mean, it was harder the second time than the first time. the first time we had the other -- another doctor there. we had nurses there. they could step up where i couldn't. i felt like i was an island at home. i just felt out of control. you know, i had never put one in before. you know, she needed it. i knew that it was just me and i had to do this. it took me three tries before i actually got up the courage to actually put it in. >> right. >> you know, allison, when i hear your story and the story of you two as a couple, the expression what doesn't kill you makes you stronger keeps popping into my head, both personally for you and i would say for your marriage as well. isn't that true? >> yeah. i think we became a lot stronger

after this. i mean, we trust each other. we have always said that we're a team. we continue to be a team through this. i always know tim will be here for me and i will be there for him as well. >> i know you celebrated your 28th birthday over the weekend. happy birthday belatedly. our best on a continued recovery. >> thank you. >> we wish you all the best. >> thank you very much. >> thank you so much. >> nice talking to you both. when we come back, how old is too old for kids to use pacifiers? we'll talk about that, but first these messages. to skate on th. what was i thinking? but i was still skating on thin ice with my cholesterol. anyone with high cholesterol may be at increased risk of heart attack. diet and exercise weren't enough for me. i stopped kidding myself. i've been eating healthier, exercising more and now i'm also taking lipitor. if you've been kidding yourself about high cholesterol, stop.

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this morning on parenting c: today, the great pacifier debate. tom cruise and katie holmes' turns 5 in i whocc1: april was spotted with a pacifier over the weekend and bloggers are polarized. when is it time to take the b g binky away. denise is a mom blogger and has two boys, the youngest is two and a half and still uses a pass fire. debra cogan is the author of "hell is other parents." none of her kids use a pacifier. good morning. >> good morning. >> this pacifier caused controversy. everybody talking about it. doctor, is this a matter of health with a child? or is it a socialization question here? >> there are two things going on. certainly it is a socialization question and by the time you're five the other kids on the playground who aren't using a looking at you cc1: like, what's with the thing in your mouth?

the other thing is using it long term can cause ear infections and certainly dental problems after about the age of 4. we're way outside of that. 5 is probably too old. >> you have three kids and you had trouble -- was it the youngest? >> yes. >> with a pacifier? >> right. >> she's now 12. >> she's 10 now. i thought it was about age 2. my husband said it was about 3. we had to really -- we did a ceremony. we had to say, okay, we're going to say good-bye to paci, let's collect them, put them in a bowl and we had a good-bye ceremony. we had her take them out to the outside garbage from where nothing ever returns. that was it. she did well with it. >> but that was a big production to get her to let go. >> my husband and i were afraid of the first night. we thought, ooh, what's going to happen. she did okay. >> your son, denise, is 2 1/2. >> i'm not in a hurry to get rid of it. it's my best friend, too.

i work from home. if i am on a conference call and i can't get him to chill out for a few minutes, i give it to him. i try to set rules for myself and only keep it to sleep time, but sometimes you have to break your own rules. recently we went to the circus. it was his nap time and he only made it halfway through. so i had the paci and a blanket and he fell asleep on my lap. >> this is an issue? your husband -- >> he thinks it's a cop out. that's okay. he's entitled. to me, it saves my life. we'll get rid of it hopefully soon, but when we are all ready. it's not just when is the right time because doctors like you say is the right time. i actually took him to the dentist and i started to almost apologize because i felt like the dentist would yell at me. i said, my son has a paci and we're going to get rid of it soon. he said, he'll probably need braces anyway. we all have bad habits.

i'm okay with it. >> none of your kids ever used one? >> i saw each kid sucking their thumb in utero. i thought, there's the pacifier. far be it for me to tell anyone how to parent. by the way, if i were hounded by the press as much as this little girl i might be sucking a pacifier as well. but at 5 it looks odd. it's like hannibal lecter. i didn't have one also because if you're raising kids in the city you don't want to have one more thing to carry around. i figured, i will lose that, too, and be tuck stuck in the w without it. >> did they suck their thumbs? >> two of them were. they were made fun of at pro school and they stopped. >> suri isn't 5 yet. maybe they will take it awayen oh her 5th birthday. a lot of parents have rules for themselves. we tried to do it on my older son's 3rd. >> if you decide -- and the

american academy of pediatrics says 18 months? >> no, by 1. >> by the age of 1 it is ex-recommended they get rid of it because you get more ear good morning, everybody. 8:26 right now. i'm brent cannon. bay area transportation officials are looking for ways to keep caltran rolling along enough to keep its budget. they're working on ways to keep the trains running until the 2012 election. that way tax measures to support caltrain could be placed on the budget. caltrain faces a $30 million ter et deficit.trr anc affi afr whetanc afr fi thheis. cc1:is

welcome back. good thursday morning to you. well, we do have rain on the way. we're not expecting a lot of it. not a washout, by any means, but definitely enough to get the roads wet in places like ukiah. santa rosa, i say you're about 15 minutes out from your first round of showers and the showers will become a little bit more steady as we head between 9:00 a.m. and noon. 58 in fremont. 59 in san jose. and 57 in gilroy. i think the south bay will remain relatively dry. most of the moisture is expected along the peninsula and up in the north bay. as we head into tomorrow, we are going to drop off in temperature just a little bit, but we'll get a nice dry day. let's check your commute with

mike inouye. >> you've got rain coming into the north bay, traffic traveling through the south bay. here are the speed sensors jamming pup. all the northbound routes showing a slow drive here. southbound 280, look at that jam. heading down to an earlier accident at woodside. all lanes had cleared, but we've got one lane blocked again. other side of the water, 880 slows down northbound past the coliseum. it's slow there. >> thanks a lot, mike. more local news in half an hour. the "today" show returns in less than a minute.

8:30 now on what promises to be a very rainy thursday morning here in the northeast. not started yet, but looks like it could happen any minute. up to three to five inches of rain for some parts. we were thinking of course of the people who have experienced flooding over the past couple of days. hope things work out for them. i'm matt lauer along with

meredith vieira, ann curry and al roker. just ahead, what does it take to keep a mother happy? >> we are under such pressure. >> i think that's true. >> we are. >> yeah. >> a lot of the pressure moms put on themselves actually. self-imposed. how do you strike a realistic and enjoyable balance? we have tips from the author of "the ten habits of happy mothers". >> nice. >> cool. >> also ahead, michael jackson's oldest sister rebbe will be hitting the concert tours for a very personal and specific reason. she will explain it in just a bit. >> also suze orman has been talking about the new american dream. this morning she's answering our e-mail questions. >> first, remember all the way back to erin brockovich? fast forward to her love interest and he's now fighting aliens in "battle los angeles." he plays a marine. aaron, nice to see you.

i love a good alien movie. i think "the king's speech" would have been better if it had aliens in it. >> yes! >> this had to be fun to make. >> it was a blast. it was a childhood dream to get out and play with our weapons and shout and all that stuff. lots of fun. >> you went to boot camp? >> we did three weeks in the middle of summer in louisiana which was hard enough. really got to know each other. all that camaraderie and friendship in the film we developed in boot camp. >> you were tough. you broke your arm during filming and kept on shooting? >> i did. i tried to get fancy and do an air jordan through a huge fireball. fell seven feet on my arm, heard it crack when i hit the ground and did the charlie chaplin thing and kept going. i said "don't cut" if i'm going to break my arm. >> you did it as an excuse. >> i was just feeling it. >> what else did you break,

aaron? >> it was this one, too. i broke my rib. >> somewhere on your back. >> this was really a band of brothers thing. >> yes. blushing now.c1: if i'm not mistaken that was the first time you have played a member of the u.s. military? >> i was honored to. i felt we treated them with honor and respect. i have showed the film to marines in quantico and pendleton. >> can i ask why the aliens decide to attack los angeles? issues with we havecc1: that. why los angeles? >> it's masochistic. the studio wants to wipe themselves out. i don't know. we'll go other places. >> part of a continuing series? >> i don't know. >> do you want it to be? >> i would like it to be. this is the only character i was sad to leave. i was sitting on the tarmac with

marines and helicopters and i to misscc1: 'm going those guys. >> thinking paris? >> the caribbean maybe. >> battleground bahamas. >> why not? >> the movie opens tomorrow. >> yeah. >> good luck. having me.orcc1: >> mr. roker, a check of the weather. ground barometer. let's see what's happening for today. we have a mess in the east with a risk of strong storms along states.atlantic cc1: rain and wind in the pacific northwest. sunny skies from the plains to texas. 87 in the southwest.cc1: tomorrow, more heavy rain in the northeast and new england. rain continues in the pacific northwest. mild and sunny in the southwest. sunshine in the western great lakes. well. just as we thought, we've got the rain pushing into the north but1: it is not heavy, by any means. in fact, it's really light in nature. santa rosa, a couple of showers on the way to your neck of the

woods here in the next five to ten minutes. as we head throughout this afternoon, we will see on and off scattered showers, but only for the first part of the day. i think by about 1:00 p.m., most of the moisture will clear out of it. 50 in san rafael, 58 in oakland, and 60 in los gatos. showers1:m., just a fewcc1:cc leftover. a lot of clearing throughout the rest of the evening. forget.cc1: day your weather any timecc1: or night at weather channel on cable or weather.com. >> what channel? >> weather channel. home of "wake up with al." >> thanks, al. up next, michael jackson's opens up.tercc1: first this is "today" on nbc. versus toyota. which is better? [ male announcer ] why do so many car companies compare themselves to toyota? maybe it's because toyota has more hybrids on the road than all other automakers combined. like the 50-mpg-rated prius, the best selling hybrid in america. and prius was also named a best overall value of the year. plus, every new toyota comes with toyotacare, a complimentary maintenance plan with roadside assistance.

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♪ [ male announcer ] the new citi thankyou premier card gives you more ways to earn points. what's your story? citi can help you write it. we are back at 8:37 with a new mission for a member of the jackson family. michael's eldest sister and her daughter are now going public with a very personal problem hoping to save lives.

here's george lewis. >> reporter: rebe jackson, the eldest of the singing jackson touring again for a special reason. it's called the "pick up the phone tour" to heighten awareness about mental illness, suicide and help that's available. why did she get involved? >> my daughterproblem. she's bipolar. >> reporter: her daughter yashi, now 33 began having problems 11 years ago. >> in the beginning it was deep depression, hopelessness, unbearable at times painful. when she would speak to me even though she knew who i was it was as if i were another person. >> reporter: did you, as a mom, worry she would hurt herself or try to take her life? >> i remember one episode where

she was not herself. do you remember running in the house from room to room? we had to get her. >> reporter: yashi wound up at ucla hospital. what was the diagnosis? >> severe bipolar. >> reporter: illnesses like bipolar and depression that underlie many suicides. >> i have had to tell myself five, six -- tried to kill mooirs fi myself five, six, seven. >> reporter: she's alive because she called the suicide crisis line. licensed crisis counselors at places like this field about 800 calls a day. erica got immediate support from a female counselor. >> she said i wouldn't have to li like this forever. that was the first time that anyone had said that to me, that this wasn't going to be the rest of my life. >> reporter: that call helped turn erica's life around. she's studying to be a

psychiatric nurse to help others. >> i need to be able to find somebody who's in pain and show them there is a way out. >> reporter: yashi has written a book of poetry and joined her mom in helping to raise awareness about the support available for people with mental illness. >> its only friend is endlessness and spiralling up or down. >> reporter: is it important to get past the stigma of mental illness, the shame and to be able to talk about it? >> there is secrecy about it. hush, hush. keep it under the carpet. sweep it under the carpet, so to speak. ♪ >> reporter: jackson says it's important to be there for people like the yashis and the ericas when they are in severe mental pain. so she'll keep touring, telling people to pick up the phone when they are hurting. for nbc news, george lewis, los

angeles. >> for more information on the pick up the phone tour go to today.com. up next, the ten habits of happy mothers. first, this is "today" on nbc. [ male announcer ] diane was already the chief operating offi at a national tissue bank when she decided to get her masters in healthcare administration. by choosing a university that connects working students to faculty who are also leaders in their fields... she was able to apply her studies to the real world...

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we are back at 8:43. this morning on "today's moms" the pressure many moms feel that doing their best isn't enough. what does it take to be happy? we hit the streets to ask moms about happiness. ♪ >> i consider myself a happy mother. i have four amazingle healthy wonderful children and a supportive husband. i just couldn't ask for any more. >> you want to be the best mother you can be. if you're not happy then you

can't possibly project that to your child. >> i do consider myself to be a happy mother. the kids kind of make my world. >> money issues. you know, not knowing if i'm going to have the means to support my son the way i would like. >> what scares me most about being a mother is failing. >> you're as happy as your least happy child. when they have a problem, you have a problem. >> expectations stress me out. i want everything to go a certain way. if you're not flexible, you just really can make your day impl e implode. >> my secrets to being a happy mom are you've got to take care of yourself. get sleep if you can, pamper yourself. >> i keep myself happy by having time when i sit down and don't take care of everybody. >> my secret to being a happy mother i think are that they are

happy. they're happy and lots of laughter. don't be a smother mother. >> dr. meg meeker practices pediatric and adolescent medicine and is the author of "ten habits of happy mothers." good morning. >> good morning, meredith. >> is there a difference between being a good mother and a happy mother? >> i think they are kind of one and the same. what kids tell me is when i ask them about their moms they tell me, you know, whether mom is affectionate, admires them. they don't tell me what their moms do for them but how their moms feel about them. so i think that the happier we are as mothers -- unhappy moms. >> it's a lot. i have been professionally listening to mothers for about 25 years now.

>> what are you hearing? >> the stress level in mothers' lives has elevated. we feel a lot of peer pressure to be better mothers, raise better kids, perform better at our jobs and always be losing weight and going to the gym four times a week for 45 minutes. >> of course. >> we put a lot of pressure on ourselves and we feel it from our peers. >> we might say we are happy even when we're not. >> exactly. really what i wanted to do in the book is have mom take a deep breath, stand back and say what matters in my life, what is a happy life all about because at the beginning and end of life that's what matters. >> you describe ten habits in this book, thus the title. the first one is give and get love in healthy ways. >> yes. >> why do people overlook this? >> because loving is hard. loving well is hard. giving love to our kids, expressing love to kids is hard. what kids say is how they feel loved is how much time mom

spends with them. is mom relaxed around them? we, as mothers, feel loing our kids means running them around. >> that's the unhealthy way of doing it. >> we need to have more face to face time. kids just want to live life next to us. they don't want us to perform for them. that's a way we can help love our kids better and we receive more joy in return. >> one of the habits you suggest is to find ways to live simply. easier said than done. hard to live simply. >> it is. but things like turning off the cell phone, the blackberry, having electronic-free times at night. starting to take charge of our schedule and our kids' schedules. i personally think kids are way overbooked. again, parents feel they need to overbook kids because everybody else is. >> exactly. >> they want their kids kpet t competiti competitive. it's not what matters to kids or us. i challenge moms to take charge

of the schedules. pare it down. >> a lot of moms want to provide for kids. >> exactly. we forget that what our kids need from us is more intimate time, more love time. just relax time with us. not more schedule time. >> i want to get in an e-mail from a viewer. this is from shelly in maryland. she writes, i work full time by choice. i think it makes me a better mom. when i come home i am always happy to see my husband and children and hear about their day. i think i value the time i have with them more because i am not with them all day. >> yes. absolutely. i think some mothers just need to be out working. that's perfectly fine. >> others feel quite the opposite. >> that's fine, too. we are all wired to parent differently. one thing we need to do is be comfortable and trust our instincts in how we parent. good for her. >> you say it's important to maintain key friendships. >> indeed. women need women.

we have to have women friendships. friends are the first thing we cut out but we can't. even coffee once a month. a phone call every other week. we need to keep contact with other women. our husbands cannot be women friends. >> quickly, is there a common thread? >> it's prioritizing our life. standing back saying how do i want to live and how do i feel pressure to live. i want to say happy birthday to my laura. she's 23 today. >> that's a good mom and a happy mom. >> happy mom. thank you, meredith. >> thank you very much. the book is "the ten habits of happy mothers." you'll be back in the fourth hour with kathie lee and hoda. we look forward to that. we are back in a moment. this is "today" on nbc. ♪

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[ fiber seeker ] really? try it. [ mr. mehta ] honey, touch of brown sugar, crunchy clusters -- any cardboard? cardboard no, delicious yes. so where's the fiber? maybe it's in the honey clusters. [ male announcer ] fiber one. cardboard no, delicious yes. ♪ we are back at 8:51. this morning on "today's pets" we are talking about a safe haven for elderly pets. jill rappaport is here with details on this. sounds like a nice one. >> at this wonderful sanctuary it's the seniors getting a second chance. a loving home in the twilight of their lives. ♪ >> reporter: lying in the heart of maryland is a very special place that provides love and care for older pets and animals

with disabilities. house with a heart senior pet sanctuary was created by cher pavenelli who opened her heart and home to these ailing and aged animals. she now has 30 wonderful roommates vying for attention. >> it's truly a mission of the heart. >> it sure is. i have been doing rescues for a zillion years. i started getting phone calls from people who would ask me if i would take their senior dog. i decided i would continue to rescue but i would keep the dogs until they passed away so i knew 100% that they were loved until the end. >> reporter: you not only take in the seniors but many animals here have serious disabilities. >> she's a little girl with no jaw. her teeth rotted out. she has none. we have blind dogs. dogs who can't walk well. >> reporter: right now you are at full capacity. you have 30 dogs. >> five cats and a horse.

>> reporter: these animals will be here, as you said, until their last breath. >> mm-hmm. >> reporter: when one passes on, that's the only time you then have an opening. >> right. when one goes to heaven, another one can come in the door. we make sure that right until the end they are loved. >> reporter: we should explain that none of the animals are up for adoption. >> no. >> reporter: they come here -- >> they come and stay. >> reporter: caring for dozens of pets with special needs is no easy task, especially at meal time. >> we have 30 pups that need to be fed. >> reporter: each animal has different dietary needs. it's a daunting financial undertaking, butcher prevails. thanks to donations and the help of wonderful volunteers. >> this special girl. >> that's mooshi, she's 19. >> what's your name?

>> that's bratty. >> reporter: so sweet. this gives new meaning to the phrase animal house. >> she's converted her house for them. does everything for them. >> reporter: kimberly neville from the mobile animal services unit comes twice a week doing everything from routine check-ups to surgeries. as a vet you know the expenses an animal can incur in its lifetime. >> most are on medications on a daily basis. >> she finds a way to make it work. >> she's amazing. she finds her way somehow. >> reporter: tell me what the animals have given to you in life? >> oh, my goodness. i'm never tired. i never get sick. i'm doing what i love. i'm so lucky. i guess i was born a caregiver. i'm in the right place for that. >> she's the ultimate caregiver. cher sleeps on the sofa to keep an eye and ear on them 24/7.

she encourages pet owners to make sure you have a life plan for your pet so they don't end up abandoned when they are older. to us they are like family members and we should treat them like that. >> i hope people who watched in other cities and towns across the country have the same idea. great story, jill. thank you very much. just ahead, suze orman answers financial questions. all part of her new book helping people reassess the american

good morning. everybody. 8:56 now. i'm brent cannon. a warning for women walking on the uc berkeley campus. police say a sexual predator is on the loose. a female student says she was walking near grinnell pathway late tuesday night when she noticed somebody following her. she told police a man exposed himself and grabbed her. she screamed and other students came to help, but the man got

away. right now, we want to check your forecast with christina. >> good morning to you. we are starting to see the showers push into the north bay, stretching from ukiah, now santa rosa, the outskirts, finally getting your first round of rain. rain isn't going to be all that heavy for us and it's not going to last that long either. we're expecting a good deal of clearing as the core of low pressure is really pushing into the pacific northwest, dragging a really weak little cold front through our area. today's temperatures will end up in the upper 60s, low 60s. 58 today for you in fremont. >> thanks a lot. more local news in a half an hour. and "today" show returns in less than two minutes.

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we're back with more of "today" on a thursday morning the 10th day of march 2011. these are some great people sticking it out in the plaza this morning. they are kind of looking at the camera, looking to the sky seeing when it will open up because rain is on the way here. that's not the news that people in the northeast need especially in new jersey where there's already been widespread flooding. al will be talking about the situation coming up. >> 17 states under flood watches now. we'll have the details. after all of the bad weather news you may feel like getting away, getting a vacation. you think you can't afford it but guess what.

we have great news. that's not a good vacation. wow. our director joe michaels came back from vacation a little slow. if you can't afford some of this stuff, we have good news. >> the flooded plains? >> captain wants to water ski! we have knockoff vacations. just like designer shoes there are designer vacations. we have no video whatsoever to roll. do you? anyway. we'll show you some of the great vacations coming up. >> ifs a knockoff if you're cruising -- >> i would like to knock off my director. >> plus, she's tough talking and pulls no punches. suze orman is back with tough lo and says it's time to reimagine the american dream. she'll answer your questions from what to do if you're behind on house payments to how to establish a good credit rating. >> important information.

let's go inside -- oh, there we go. >> let's take a vacation. >> that's how you save money on the car. ann has a check on the headlines. >> all right, matt. thank you very much. good morning, everybody. in the news at least 17 states from georgia to new england are under flood watches today with a half foot of rain expected in areas where rivers are already overflowing. ron allen joins us from wayne, new jersey, with more. no laughing matter there, ron. >> reporter: no. it's a serious situation. we are getting more light rain now. it's been off and on this morning. that's the last thing people in these waterlogged neighborhoods need. most of the homes have been evacuated down there. the water is about at least a foot or more deep. some people are hanging in. the man who lives here has several boats to get where he needs to go. town officials have been warning people that this is a serious situation and they have been urging them to be prepared. >> reporter: all week now the passaic river has been wreaking havoc along its banks.

turning residents into evacuees. forced to use a swimming pool float and a big stick to get from their home to dry land. the river almost rushing in their home. >> they are saying it's supposed to rain all weekend. it will probably come inside the house then. what are you going to do? can't fight with mother nature. reporter: downstream in ound by boat.get to higher e often dangerous rescues because of swift currents. all of that is just round one. with torrential rain now forecast for the next two days, it is all hands on deck. even these inmates from the county jail were put to work, with guards watching, making sandbags to go. at this strip mall they know what a few more inches of rain can do. >> last year around the same time, got about four inches that flooded out this entire area. >> reporter: while floods drench the northeast, tornadoes blow through the southeast. as many as 16 tornadoes reported

on wednesday from louisiana to florida. part of an intense weather system stretching so far across the country, as many as 100 million americans may be affected. >> i grew up here. i'm 33. so it happens. >> reporter: 33 times? >> not quite that many, but yeah. >> reporter: like most residents here in the flood zone, brian tries to take it in stride, taking a row boat to his house. most people say it usually doesn't get this bad. the fear is it could get much worse. the rain is supposed to start falling heavily later in the day. the problem is the passaic river is about a hundred yards behind this house. and it is now all over this community. the state of new jersey governor chris christie declared a state of emergency in much of the state. the concern is rivers like this could reach record levels given the forecast. ann? >> thanks for the warning this

morning. ron allen on the scene there. also in the news, wisconsin democrats are vowing legal action after losing a three-week budget battle in 30 minutes last night. protesters voiced outrage after the senate voted to strip power from unions without a single democrat present. they left the state in an attempt to block the vote. moammar gadhafi's forces say they have retaken control of zawiya, the strategic city near the capitol that had fallen to the opposition. government forces are using war planes to push back rebels from the towns in the east and the rebels have asked the international community to establish a no-fly zone. defense secretary robert gates warned that such a move would have to start with an attack on libya's air defenses. for the first time in more than 50 years the fda approved a new drug to treat lupus. hundreds of thousands of americans suffer from the debilitating disease. the price of a drug that prevents premature labor in high

risk women is about to skyrocket. a weekly dose currently costs about $10. now that kv pharmaceutical has won exclusive marketing rights they are raising the price to $1500. microsoft chief bill gates hasn't just given a third of his fortune to charity. he's given away the title of world's richest person for the second year in a row. he donated billions making him a distant second to the $74 billion amassed by mexican business tycoon carlos lien. it's six minutes past the hour. now out to matt and natalie. >> thank you very much, annie. >> now a check of the weather. we know what it will be for the east coast, al. >> we have friends here from brooklyn college. from london, they are here in case they decide to come over here for the royal wedding. let's see what's going on again. we are talking about rain.

we have flash flood watches all the way to new hampshire today. as you can see here's the system making it up to the ohio valley. a lot of rain from raleigh up to bangor. we could be looking at an inch of rain but the heaviest rain will be in northwestern new jersey, northeastern pennsylvania. new york. three to seven inches of rain possible in some areas. to get flash flooding, all you need is less than an inch of rain and generally an inch to an inch and a half everywhere around the northeast will cause flooding. you do the math. well, we're not talking about flooded roadways, but we are talking about a little bit of rain coming down in the north bay right now. all this shower activity will continue to head south as we head throughout the afternoon making for on and off scattered showers throughout the day. your city especially in the

south bay or east bay may not even see the rain, as what's happening is we have a core of low pressure, it's going to pass us well to our north, dragging a weak little cold front through the bay area, bringing some shower activity for the first part of the day. and that's your latest weather. ann? >> all right, al. thanks. this morning more of our series "the new american dream." on tuesday and wednesday financial guru suze orman told us why it's time to rethink our financial plans for the future. today she's back to answer more of your questions. her new book is called "the money class: learn to create your new american dream." good morning. >> good morning. >> a lot of responses to calls for questions. the first question is on the phone from sharon in virginia. she has a question about the dream of owning a home. hey, sharon. what's your question? >> caller: good morning. my husband and i have no credit cards. his credit rating was zero when we applied for a car loan. mine was around 650. we got the loan and have been

paying it on time. what can we do to get ourselves in a position to try to buy a home? we are in our 50s and would love to make this dream come true in the next two to three years. >> first of all, sharon. everybody listening to the question should be aware that in order to have a fica score you need a credit card. if you don't have one you don't generate information and therefore you don't have a score. you need a score to be able to get a home loan. the problem is not only do you need one, but your husband needs one as well because when you both apply for a home in both names, the mortgage lender is going to look at both of your fico scores and probably take the lowest of the two for your interest rate. your goal right now is to make sure your husband does things so he can get a fico score. what should he do? yes, the car loan. he should open up a secured credit card in his name that reports to the credit bureaus. you need to build a credit file. you also need to make sure you have enough money for a 20% down

payment, eight-month emergency fund but keep doing it, girlfriend. in two, three years you should be fine. don't worry about interest rates or the price of real estate. i don't think anything's going anywhere quickly. >> right, but you don't want to open a credit card and create debt. >> a secured credit card is where they take money, put it down and the credit limit is based on how much money the bank is holding. >> there's the secret. sharon, thanks for the question. we now have susan in connecticut. she's got a question on the phone. you have a question about affording college? >> caller: i do. my husband and i are both behind in our house payments. we are basically behind in everything and we have a daughter going to college in the fall -- maybe. i hope we haven't trashed her dreams. it's just broken our hearts. we need help before we both have a nervous breakdown. >> oh, susan, listen to me, sweetheart. the new american dream isn't

about you feeling like you trashed your daughter's future because you can't pay your own bills. your daughter can dream on her own. your daughter can go to school and take out student loans. in fact, the less money you have the more she'll qualify for financial aid so that may be a great thing. but you aren't trashing her dream because things have happened to you and you can't pay your own bills. the greatest education you can give your daughter is to show her that mom and dad can take care of themselves. they need to make hard decisions. they need to do things. just stand in your truth. maybe the best move if you can't afford your mortgage payment which is more important than sending your child to school right now is to possibly do a short sale, let the house go. stand in your truth. take the actions right now so that your life isn't miserable. you can do things. >> i'm going to jump in here. i know you can hear in the question she cannot -- you can see it. she wants to make sure her daughter goes to college. so what is a way her daughter

can go to college and she stands in her truth? >> the best advice there, ann, like i said. tell the daughter the truth. she can want afford it. >> apply for loans? >> yes. that's what i said. the less money she has now the more the daughter qualifies for financial aid. the daughter may have to go to community college or a college she can afford. >> she can also move up eventually to another college. >> correct. >> it's about rethinking. >> she hasn't trashed her daughter's dreams. she's going to show her daughter how her daughter has the ability to do it herself. >> good luck to you and your family. >> you can do it, susan. >> i'm sure she knows from the question how much you love her. we have another question now from amber in maryland. her question is via e-mail about affording a car. she's saying we are getting a $4,600 tax return. we have $10,000 in credit card debt. we own two cars but it is a struggle to fit a family of four in the back of a small car. do we use our tax return to pay

down our credit card debt? or add it to a trade-in for a down payment on one really great and affordable family car? your answer? >> oh, my dear amber. the truth of the matter is that if you have credit card debt, you don't have the money to buy a new car. it also probably means you don't emergency fund. please do not buy a new car. if you have to, go in two cars.: do not increase your expenses that way. simply stand in your truth which is save the money or pay down the credit cards. don't you dare buy a new car at this point in time. >> suze orman helping us with finances. thank you so much. good answer this is morning. coming up we'll mention that suze orman will be back tomorrow. that's right. with another money lesson from her book. still to come, the latest on mel gibson's domestic battery case and also coming up next, want to get away? we'll show you how you can share the splurge experience without paying big bucks.thft's aheer tm

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this morning, splurges. everything has inexpensive knockoffs. travelle journalist valerie is here to tell us when the splurge and when to go for the knock off deal. >> good to see you, al. >> spring break's coming up, family vacation, so you want to splurge. >> for families the gold standard is beaches resorts. there are three in jamaica. they have an association with sesame street. so you can go to a lot of activities.

that's $7,000 for a family of four, but it's 65% off in the summer. that's as good as it gets. to go for the steal. >> especially for characters. >> "sesame street" is with beaches but then norwegian cruise line has the nickelodeon characters. that's good for older kids with spongebob squarepants. for a family of four that would be $3,000 versus $7,000. >> you save four grand. >> you do. that's correct. >> that's pretty good. there's chum-chum and fanboy. nickelodeon is on in my house all the time. you want to do foodie travel. say you want to go on the ship without the kids. >> this is the oceana marina, a new luxury cruise ship. they have a relationship with the bon appetit. you can do hands on cooking. this is $10,000.

all inclusive. >> two people? >> yes. ten days. >> now if ten grand is hard to -- stomach. >> exactly. >> go to the culinary institute of america and do a day-long five-hour saturday class for $250 a person. this is in hyde park, new york. combine it with a trip to new york city. they also have four-day boot camps for $1700. >> there is a savings there. >> right. >> spas. the gold standard? >> pritiken. the no salt, low fat diet. it's a life changer. i made a visit a couple years ago. i have not touched a salt shaker in years. for people with high blood pressure, hypertension and people without acute conditions can get the benefit. >> that's $8,000 for two people for a week. it will make a difference in your life. >> if you want to save.

>> if you are not as much into deprivation and want pampering head to the mountains outside mexico city. this resort is a week for $2400 for two. you get two spa treatments a day. 18 spa treatments in that week. 50-minute treatments. >> a lot of folks think about safari. to splurge? >> best trip is bali. they can be expensive. i priced a luxury one with extraordinary journeys for $29,000. i know. for a family of four. it includes three nights on the savannah, four nights in cape town and travel. if you want something -- >> the steal deal. >> the steal is down at disney at the animal kingdom. they have a wild africa trek where you tether yourself to a safety line and you go over bridges and look down at hippos and crocodiles. $1100 for three hours. this is not disney animatronics.

real animals. >> if you want a splurge or a steal it's right there. coming up, giving your home made pizza pizzazz with flavors from portugal. we'll show you how after these messages. iny apartmenenenen and decided hey, let's go buy a house! i could go to quickenloans.com and sign all of the paper work i needed to take care of. it was nice to being able to call them whenever i needed to answer questions. quicken loans made everything super convenient and easy. so the fact that they could work with my schedule was just wonderful. that's why i love quicken loans! [ male announcer ] and you'll be glad to know ranks quicken loans "highest in customer satisfaction." to learn more call 800-quicken or visit us online at quickenloans.com. is a fun way to hydrate. that's a choice you can respect. ♪ other choices...not so much. [ pbht! ] capri sun roarin' waters.

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coming up, the trend for spring is 70s looks reinvented. >> and dine warwick stops by to tell us about "celebrity apprentice." >> first your local news and weather. to the chobani factory just so that i could see where my favorite yogurt is made. cc1: and i got lost a few times. sure, go up the road, make a big right at the tree there. it's down there. no, it's a left. hey, those are some fancy pants. ha. i finally made it to the chobani factory. this is awesome. it was totally awesome. that's what we do for love, people. chobani. rich and creamy yogurt, with only natural ingredients. share your story at chobani.com

♪ [ female announcer ] mini, meet berries. introducing new kellogg's frosted mini-wheats with a touch of fruit in the middle. helloooooo fruit in the middle. good morning to you. it's 9:26 right now. i'm laura garcia-cannon. new developments this morning as yet another defendant in the de anza college rape case is dropped from the lawsuit. the third defendant to be cleared from the case, he owns the house where the alleged attack took place and was accused of negligence. two other men were also cleared earlier this week, leaving six out of the original nine defendants. several former members of the de anza baseball team are accused of gang-raping a teenage girl at a house party in march of 2007. we have an update to a story you about on c1: tuesday morning.cc1: police have returned part of an alameda man's remains to his family. as we reported, someone stole

some boxes from the christ saturday.church oncc1: one of the boxes contained the remains of marvin hockabout, but that box has been found. the man who found it said he found the box and realized it contained stolen ashes. he had seen the reports on the news. still no sign of a oxd th that was taken. 9:27 right now. we'll take a quick break. california should be proud.: we were the first to ban smoking on airplanes. cc1: the first to have smoke-free bars and restaurants. all while saving over $86 billion in health care costs...

cc1: and over a million lives. cc1: we've done a good job. but even if you were born today, you'd still grow up in a world where tobacco kills more people... than aids, drugs, alcohol, murder and car crashes... cc1: combined. we have a lot more work to do. good morning and welcome back to you. had a little piece of hair in my face there. we're looking really good right now. not a great hair day in places like santa rosa, where the moisture is coming down. yeah, you're probably going to see the frizzies today all across the boy area. we have a really moisture rich nvironment, but we're notcc1: expecting a lot in terms of rainfall. and the showers that we do see will move out of here just as in.t as they came cc1: in fact by about 1:00 p.m., we're only going to see a little bit of action lingering over the east bay hills. after that, complete clear big 3:00 p.m. and then we'll see a really nice dry friday. today looks pretty good.

60s in los gatos and 62 in cruz. we'll ramp up your rain chances once again this weekend. today, not too bad. tomorrow looks even better. let's check your drive. >> it's been kind of a rough day, despite the fact there's no rain. thank goodness it's very light right now. we have the south bay with northbound 10185. 280 also in typical spots for slowing, but no major issues. on 880 southbound, i have an accident, but it's northbound. the southbound side is slow all the way out of newark and fremont. the peninsula still recovering, but all lanes of the cig alert are clear. >> 9:29 right now. i'll have another local news update for you in about half an hour. the "today" show back in less than a minute.

♪ i think i love you ♪ america's favorite singing family from the '70s, the partridge family. mom played by shirley jones who won an oscar in 1960. she has a new album and e we'll visit with her tomorrow on "today." >> that will be fun. she's so gracious. i loved watching that show growing up. "the partridge family" also inspired fashion.

fans coveted the style worn by the stars. the '70s style is back. some of us wonder how, but in fact they are better and updated. we're showing you those styles with a modern twist courtesy of bobby thomas. >> and on a more serious note mel gibson is due in court to he r a plea to charges thatcc1: hit his ex-girlfriend during a rage-filled argument last year. we'll get the latest on that. then switching gears we'll show you three different ways to whip up a pizza with portuguese flair. >> i thought it was italian, the pizza. >> portuguese. and a sauce called espresso ragu. >> they use powdered espress, oh. great for the kids. sleep!, i can't cc1: i can see through my eyelids! let's see what's happening today. we have heavy rain in the northeast. a slight risk of strong storms along the midatlantic states.

wet in the pacific northwest. sunny texas into the plains. tomorrow, heavy rain in new england. more wet weather in the pacific northwest. along the unshinecc1: southern tier of our country. well, it's kind of a gray, overcast day setting up for us here in the bay area. we had a little bit of sunshine earlier in places in san jose, san francisco, along the peninsula, even saw a little bit of sunshine, but that's all changing as the clouds are rolling in. and some showers are actually starting up in the north bay. we're not going to see a lot of activity. not a lot of accumulation either. maybe a quarter of an inch at best. by 3:00 p.m., the showers clear out and we're looking at a nice evening. have a great day. that's your latest weather. let's check in with uncle willy scott. >> come see us. captiva, florida is always perfect and beautiful.

happy birthday to north carolina's macie garmon. 100 years old. take a look, if you will. here comes lawrence hurd, bangor, maine. 100 years old. we did pretty shows up there years ago. anyway, served in world war ii and the united states navy. my kind of guy. to paint and he has mastered the art of basket-making. sweet, very nice. mary miller fromle wellsboro, pennsylvania. loves to watch jeopardy. one of alex trebek's favorite. he gives me a plug on there as the first ronald mcdonald. glen yarger from boone, iowa.

still drives his own vehicle. attributes longevity to riding his bicycle every day. and beautiful maria trevino from falfurria, texas. loves to make home made corn and flour tortillas. i bet they are good. stuff them with some meat. >> leo weisz from philadelphia, pennsylvania is 100 years old. he walks and swims. loves to play pool and poker every weekend. that's all from beautiful florida. back to new york. >> willard, thanks. now to today's royal treatment. we're sending a lucky viewer and a guest, all expenses paid, to england during the week of the royal wedding. only a few days to send your most creative video to tell us

why you want to be in london during the wedding. >> i have two tickets to london, the place i love with a guest. tickets are now a double decker bus. they will take me right by westminster abbey. >> that's pretty good. almost as good as one of our '70s models that made a surprise visit. think you can top it? the winner gets two first class tickets on british airways to london during the week of the wedding. be creative. the deadline is tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. for details, head to today.com. >> up next, switching gears here, mel gibson heads to court. is a plea deal in the works? >> and the fashion show on the '70s. right? this looks better on her. riteafghr this. i couldn't wait to skate on that ice. what was i thinking? but i was still skating on thin ice with my cholesterol. anyone with high cholesterol

may be at increased risk of heart attack. diet and exercise weren't enough for me. i stopped kidding myself. i've been eating healthier, exercising more and now i'm also taking lipitor. if you've been kidding yourself about high cholesterol, stop. lipitor is a cholesterol-lowering medication, fda approved to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke in patients who have heart disease or risk factors for heart disease. lipitor is backed by over 18 years of research. [ female announcer ] lipitor is not for everyone, including people with liver problems and women who are nursing, pregnant, or may become pregnant. you need simple blood tests to check for liver problems. tell your doctor if you are taking other medications or if you have any muscle pain or weakness. this may be a sign of a rare but serious side effect. let's go! [ laughs ] if you have high cholesterol you may be at increased risk of heart attack and stroke. don't kid yourself. talk to your doctor about your risk and about lipitor. talk to your doctor about your risk introducing honey bunches of oats, raisin medley. cc1: there's nothing like it! .cc1: .

[ sneezing ] ♪ [ male announcer ] what are you gonna miss when you have an allergy attack? benadryl® is more effective than claritin® at relieving your worst symptoms and works when you need it most. benadryl®. you can't pause life. thanks, skyler. let's go to last night's highlights. there's mom and dad cleaning up. and there's the meatloaf. yuck. look what sometimes happens with the ordinary bag.

it slips, oh, bingo, falls in. mom was mad. mom should have used glad forceflex with the stretchable drawstring that grips the can and stays in place. plus, it has the stretchable strength of forceflex. that's all today for glad tv. [ both ] don't get mad -- get glad! that's all today for glad tv. heaven comes to earth. rich, creamy, thick dannon greek, the most delicious yogurt imaginable. heaven on earth! discover dannon greek from hollywood comes from hollywood comes word that mel gibson is set to appear in court and face charges that he hit his girlfriend in a fight last year. good morning, george. >> people with knowledge of the case are saying mel gibson will appear in court in los angeles

and they will enter a no contest plea, stemming from a fight gibson had in january of last year with his girlfriend, oks a oksana. gree g shocking recordings of the two of them fighting on the phone seemed to back that up. >> you are hitting a woman with a child in her hands! you, what kind of man is that, hitting a woman when she's holding a child in her hands, breaking her teeth twice in the face? what kind of man is that? >> you're all angry now. >> you know what? [ bleep ]. you're going to answer. >> reporter: gibson's lawyer released a statement saying the actor sought to avoid dragging his family through a media circus. attorney blair burke saying it is only with that in mind that he asked me to approach the district attorney with a proposal that would bring all of this to an immediate end.

she refused to talk to the media about the plea deal when confronted thursday. >> some people will think mel gibson is getting a celebrity deal because he's not getting jail time, he's getting a misdemeanor count, no contest. but there may actually be a problem with the evidence in this case. they got the tape, but it seems that there is a real dispute as to what really happened. >> reporter: a source close to gibson confirmed the star's in guatemala right now working on a project to save the rain forest. he plans to be back in los angeles in time for friday afternoon's court appearance. with that, gibson who won the academy award for directing the movie "brave heart" will avoid serving time behind bars. >> they'll never take our freedom! >> reporter: legal experts are saying mel gibson will probably be given probation, told to behave himself and maybe be ordered back into counseling. coming up next, that '70s

style is back. we're going to show you a modern twist on that retro look, right after these messages.

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so i feel better by the time we tee off. ♪ [ female announcer ] mini, meet berries. introducing new kellogg's frosted mini-wheats

with a touch of fruit in the middle. helloooooo fruit in the middle. ♪ this morning on bobbie's style buzz, '70s chic brings us back to the days of disco. this season it's all about retro style with an updated look that is boath soft and sophisticated. bobbie thomas is here with tanaya to show how you can bring that '70s style back into your wardrobe. one of our little models. >> she loves this but the clogs keep falling off her feet. on or off? off. we have our inner '70s groove going on. >> i'm actually going to stand up. we are wearing some longer dresses. because the length this season is all about a longer hem line. this, of course, we got these at

bloomingdale's, but diane von ferstenburg rereleased some. >> the trend is longer lengths. >> we have new lengths. we're going to show you a mini length. >> we're going to be talking about that coming up also. let's talk about fit and flare. let's bring mom out, tanaya. now with denim, it is all about sort of the bell bottoms and the fuller waisted look. the high waisted. >> absolutely. >> there, she's going to dance. >> this is a great thing. especially if you're curvy. skinny jeans have been around for a while. the fit and flare is flattering for a lot of body types. you can wear -- she has on great clip-on clog heels. they are from call it spring. she's balancing it out with a striped top. she looks fantastic. just have fun with the flare. that retro bag is a great extra touch that you can find at a

vintage store. this is an inexpensive find at any thrift shop. >> that '70s music, the po polyester and platforms, it's been updated a little bit. the modern woman. >> right. >> a mom with a little gorgeous girl. >> absolutely. >> all right. do you see yourself on camera? yeah! all right. thank you so much. she loves the camera. >> next we have melanie. this is the example of sort of the longer, the midi length skirt which also is all the rage on the runway. >> all the rage on the runway. this is from anthropology. what i like is it is a more cc1: demure length. have fun with the prints. a lot of women are saying, i'm not sure i can pull off that length. >> i'm one of those. i'm petite. you think it's going to overwhelm. >> the most important thing is make sure you cinch it at the waist with a belt and have a heel. if you do a flat you have to be taller. >> right. >> but you really can pull this off and believe it or not, it really can be flattering.

>> a simple silhouette on top with a fuller, longer skirt. >> yes. a little simple lsilhouette, specially with a print. but something more fitted to show off the hour glass silhouette. we have curves. we're supposed to. >> yes. embrace them. next we have maggie showing us the high-wasted pant look. >> say hi, maggie! >> it looks great on her. a lot of people would think this is something that is not going to be flattering to a lot of figures, but you can pull this off if you do it the right way, right? >> absolutely. >> what's the key? >> again, the belt. you want to do a feminine top. what you also want to make sure of is if you are on the more petite side like myself put a pair of platforms on underneath these pants. that will give you a couple extra inches. >> you will look good but you won't be able to watch. >> this will elongate the frame. these pants are $50 from h & m. it's an instant update to the wardrobe. the '70s have effortless confidence. this is great for the office. >> you do. you look wonderful, maggie.

thank you so much. let's take a look now at the jumpsuit, which is not really just for teens or 20-somethings. we have barbara showing us a great way to wear this fashion. just as i do think of really leisure suit '70s thing, not when you see barbara. >> the fabrics are updated. this is for women of all ages. you don't have to be in your trendy 20s. barbara's working it. >> she's got a gorgeous body. >> this is by aqua. i really like that it's loose. in the summer she could take off the jacket and wear it for an evening out. the blazer gives you that effortless cool again and add a few bohemian organic accessories. you've got that perfect balance. >> i love that it's so easy. you put the jumpsuit on and that's it, you're dressed. >> the wood jewelry dresses it down. especially something black and shiny from the silk. it's great. >> beautiful. more natural looking. ladies, let's bring everyone out

one more time for a last look here. >> go stand with mom. >> thank you very much. >> no. >> you don't want to leave? okay. >> that's okay. bobbie has a new child. thank you, ladies. you look great. thanks for the outfit. >> you bet. up next, pizza with a portuguese flavor. three tasty ways. first this is "today" on nbc. cc:

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portuguese ingredients. >> like -- >> collard greens, chorizo, quince paste, sardines. >> you made this up? >> i made up the espresso sauce. >> why do you want to wire up the kids? >> we use decaf. >> use a little bit of garlic -- little bit? >> and then a pinch of chilies. we'll toast up the espresso. >> you get this -- >> ground espresso. >> do you want to stir it before i mess it up? that smells amazing. >> red wine to deglaze the pan. >> does it matter what wine you use? >> usually something hearty and robust. that's good. let it come down and simmer and add fresh crushed tomato sauce. >> which we can get out of the can? >> you can. >> now you're doing it by feel.

>> this is all by feel. i do it every day. so i know. we have the sauce going. >> come cook at our house. >> absolutely. this is fresh chopped parsley to add herbage to the sauce. >> i like the color. >> the product looks like this toward the end. take this. >> smells amazing. you're not using a pizza dough but a flat bread. >> it's easier for the home cook. it gives it a different texture from regular pizza dough. take a little bit of sauce. add it to the center, layer it out. now here comes the portuguese toppings. we have a few collard greens here. >> i had no idea that was portuguese. >> one of the staples. >> wow. >> a little bit of goat cheese. >> there you go. >> sauteed shitake mushrooms. two or three minutes in the oen. we have one here ready to look at. >> beautiful. oh, this is beautiful.

it's fantastic. >> there we are. >> nice and crispy. pretty, pretty. >> now we'll cut it up. >> i don't want to miss the chance to tell people what you have over here, so i'll cut it. >> over here we have sardines, ricotta and baby arugala done on the naan bread. we have chorizo, manchego cheese. >> you could have a little pizza party. >> great appetizers to start with or serve it for cocktail hour. again, get creative and add your different toppings. >> fantastic. you invented all of this. >> right. >> you invented the portuguese pizza. you heard it here. >> yes. >> we serve it at the restaurants. people love the quince and cheese. it's a big popular one. >> it has the sweet underneath.

>> sweet and sour. it's good. >> thank you so much. >> thank you. >> coming up, we have dionne warwick in studio. >> first a check of your local news and weather. cc1: >> right now in america, one out of four children doesn't know where their next meal is coming from. >> food insecurity is a growing problem in the united states. >> tune in march 19th atcc1: 7:30 p.m. on nbc to see child hunger ends here: a special report. a spec cc1:cc1:cc1:cc1:

good morning to you. it is 9:56 right now. garcia-cannon. and this morning, dozens of suspected criminals are back on the streets in the wake of an officer misconduct scandal in

san francisco. 57 criminal cases have been dropped by city prosecutors so far. it's all because of an undercover narcotics unit accused of illegal searches and arrests and lying in police reports. we caught up with the first round of suspects released from jail last night. >> i mean, i think it was bad, what they did. you know, i'm saying i think that, you know, we need some better cops in this system. but, i mean, god is good. because i'm on my way home. >> all of the dropped cases can be refiled. meantime, the officers under investigation are on paid administrative leave. let's check the forecast with christina right now. >> good morning, laura. we have some rain moving into the north bay. we had a lot of sunshine earlier over san francisco, but that's all changing. you'll get your first showers in the next 15, 20 minutes, but the showers aren't going to last all day. in fact, we're expecting a good deal of clearing. what's happening is, we've got a core of low pressure crossing to our north that's dragging this cold front through, but that

cold front is falling apart as it makes its way through the bay area. so a fast-moving system gets out of here quick and we'll be left with temperatures in the 50s and 60s. 58 degrees today in oakland. 58 in fremont, and 60 degrees today in los gatos. let's see if that rain is impacting your drive, though. >> good morning. we've had some problems, southbound 880 jammed up coming down in towards milpitas. so still a very slow drive for 880 south of highway 92 and the san mateo bridge. the northbound side beginning to show a slowdown. steady slow of traffic past the coliseum. it was really bogged down about five minutes ago. so it's starting to move here. another live look at the golden gate bridge. laura, those low clouds hanging out there like christina's talking about, cloud and mist hanging through the area. >> another local news update in

about half an hour. the "today" show returns in about a minute. have a great day. [ wheezing breaths ] [ woman ] the first time i smoked, i was 13. i was in a hurry to grow up and wanted to look cool. big tobacco knew it, and they preyed on me. i'm here to tell you that big tobacco hasn't changed.

they continue to profit... by selling kids the same lies... to get them to use... the same deadly products. don't be big tobacco's next victim. "today" with kathie lee gifford and hoda kotb live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >> hello, everybody. we're so glad you're with us today. it's thursday. somehow we made it all the way to thursday, march 10. how you doing? >> i'm good. >> you look improved a little bit from the trip to jamaica. you look beautiful. >> thank you. there's a lot in the news today. when i turned on the news and

saw surrey cruise, i wondered why she was on the news. i saw that she was sucking a bin binky and then realized she was five. when is it too old to have a binky? >> when i was a mother in the 1800s, i was told by age two, they should not suck on a binky any longer because it affects how your mouth shapes. we took it away from cody -- i don't think they were even invented when i was a baby, but we took it away from cody by the time he was two. he freaked and freaked and freaked, but we blamed it on the garbage man. we said the garbage man came and took his binky. but after that, every time he saw a garbage truck, he said, that guy took my binky!

some people say santa took it. >> i think your kids end up sucking on something, their hands or something else, when you take their binky away. >> we have a fixation on something our whole life. we do. >> people are saying she's too grown up. >> i would have liked to see the picture of the binky and the high heels and the lipstick. that's interesting. yesterday she joined us on one of our wednesday wine day matinees. we went to frankie and johnny's like we like to do and had the best shrimp scampi we'll ever have. we went to see a show where the title was familiar to me. apparently goldie hawn won an oscar in it with walter mathou.

>> this is the crew, and they were fabulous. i mean, they were just terrific. >> basically, the story, to tell you about it, it's a dentist -- there we all are together -- it's the story of a dentist -- i don't want to give everything away, but he's dating a much younger, darling girl, loves her, but has told her he's married and has three children, when in reality, he's single and has no children. >> it just shows how one lie can lead to another can lead to another. it's really funny. little lies turn into -- >> monster, monster epic things. of fun.a lotcc1: >> i needed a good laugh yesterday. i don't know why. some days you just need a good delivered.cc1: >> yesterday was one of those days. >> thank you for the earrings, jen. i was noticing them on her. you wear her jewelry all the time. i'll show you real quick.

she took them off right then and there and gave them to me. >> they look great on you. beautiful! check.sending her acc1: a small one. anyway, should we talk about the dentist? >> yes, i think we should. >> there is apparently a dentist who got into a whole lot of trouble -- where does he live? well, he's 35 years old -- in london. he was suspended because while he does dental work on his patients, he has a problem in the gas department. >> not the kind they put on your face. >> no, the other kind. >> and people couldn't stand it. they couldn't take it. they found him offensive. dunn nash in our control room is probably going crazy. we should say breaking wind. and he had the gall after doing all that to tell his patients that they had bad breath. i'm sorry, but how did this guy get through dentist school? >> there was this other dentist who was apparently walking along and found a credit card that did

not belong to him. >> right. pocketed it. >> so he took the credit card -- this happened in michigan -- and he went and decided he wanted to buy peelizza, because why would you? so he goes and buy pizza, and the guy reports his credit card to the credit card company, so in the short time it took him to get the pizza, the cops and the credit card company were on him like wet stuff. what does that even mean? so he gets busted for buying the pizza with a stolen -- >> now they're considering allegedly stolen. >> it turns out the dentist is a millionaire. he has between 3 and $4 million. >> in other words, he can afford his own pizza. sometimes i pick up a credit card and don't realize which one it is. maybe he had the intention of actually returning it to the owner, or maybe he did it on purpose, and in that case, we say, tase him! >> is that him?

>> i hope so. all right. for a guy like that and for the rest of you, there is a book you need. it's been out for a while. it's called "everything men know about women," but it's expanded and updated with brand new findings. you really will discover an awful lot in this book that you have -- that men know about us. since it's thirst day -- >> should we drink? >> this is an interesting little variation on the theme. this is from the copola viney d vineyar vineyards. it's called sophia after his daughter, who is also a fine director. >> it's a can of wine? >> a can of wine. >> they get on us for boxes. i don't know if we should be

drinking this. >> it's a little one. an adult sippy cup. don't let sari have one of these. no, no. >> it's exciting. >> i love it. >> it's fizzy. >> and it's good! thank you very much. >> very delicious. >> that's available somewhere, i guess. copola -- we'll find out and tell you. >> so there is a song that i have for you today. >> oh, my god, it's thirst day. >> here's the thing. i was in nashville and i went in this place called the bluebird cafe, and this woman was sitting there and she was singing. i said, who is this woman? her name was kim richie. she had such a beautiful voice and i had never heard of her. it turns out she writes songs for bonnie raitt and other people but never sang other own songs. so i was lucky to walk in and find her performing.

this is a song, like if you have a very, very, very good friend, and they're the kind of friend that if you say come, they come right then. they don't ask why, they just get in the car and go. it's called "straight as the crow flies." it's a little mellow, but it's called "straight as the crow flies." >> it's mellow? >> she's playing and singing. ♪ against the blue sky a black shadow firefly ♪ guess he's got someplace to go ♪ >> here comes the chorus. it's beautiful. hold on. here we go. here we go. this is it. here we go. you ready?

♪ you know you can always count on me ♪ i'm like the river to the sea ♪ ♪ wait for morning light to come ♪ straight as the crow flies >> beautiful. >> hoda woman is growing up. >> next week we're back in business. >> we'll get down and funky. is it okay or not okay to dress sexier than your daughter? >> you said both of you should dress your age. >> since i'm 26, i do. it is not okay. moms, leave the thongs to your daughters. we all know sexy is about attitude, not what you have on. >> i think that's ridiculous, because i wear thongs.

i don't know why i even said that. i was tired. good to know? i do, and people do, and grown women wear them because you don't want panty lines. so it's not bad to wear a thong. i don't know why i just said that. i'm sorry. >> if you had a daughter, though -- you don't, but if you had a daughter, if you had your little niece hannah, would you want her walking around like a little tart? >> no. >> that's the thing. should you be dressing sexier than your daughter? >> no. i'm just saying -- >> so why didn't you answer it? >> if you've got some hair sprouting from places you never could have imagined -- >> it's none of your business. >> -- or loud noises emanating from your body -- >> like the dentist? behind1: he's doingcc closed doors withon dald um don. >> maybe we can get her to sing a little bit.

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are on now to those embarrassing questions you want the answers to but were afraid to ask. >> we're talking about all those things we keep to ourselves like why we sweat or smell. the editor of global reader's digest. >> you brought your best forth for us today. >> yes, you did. we're going to talk about six of the most embarrassing questions. they're from your reedeaders so

they're not ours. >> you don't know anybody who smells or anything. >> the first question is about dry skin. i can't find any lotion or cream that stops the flaking and puckerring of my ultra-dry skin this time of year. is there something i can do? >> yes, there is. this is the bane of everybody's existence in the dry winter days and the heat comes on in your house. maybe we're getting to spring and it will be better soon. a lot of it is turning down the heat in your shower, maybe not taking as long of a shower, really patting yourself dry. put the moisturizer on when you're still wet and use stuff that's in a jar rather than a squeeze bottle. >> why? >> because it's thicker. when you're at the drugstore, the thicker, the better. and an oil base gives you more of a barrier. >> i would think exfoliating often would be helpful and get rid of all that nasty stuff. >> it will, but you need to have that barrier in your skin and really keep your natural juices

inside. >> all right, peggy. >> the second one has to do with sweaty armpits. >> we don't know anything about that at all around here. >> i sweat so much i don't dare wear a silk top or light colors. help! >> it's a big problem for some. >> under the hot lights of the tv station, i'm sure you experience that. >> i don't know what works. i've tried everything under the sun. >> botox is a last resort, but the surprising thing we found, don't confuse antiperspirants and doee owedeodorants. put it on the night before. i never knew that. >> number three, why am i suddenly playi suddenly plagued by hairy toes? >> this is all about hormones,

and when you hit your 40s, suddenly you have more male hormones in your body, and, therefore, you have more hair, including on your toes. you can wax it. there is a weird remedy that we found which was drinking mint tea. >> how does it help? it seems to do something to your testosterone. it brings the testosterone down and the estrogen up, but it cc to drink a you1: couple cups of mint tea for a so. orcc1: >> i'm embarrassed just asking other people's questions. >> my feet smelter ril terrible. i'm worried other people will notice. what do i do? >> don't stick them in their faces. >> wear breathable shoes, leather canvas, and the other home remedy we found besides spraying anti-perspirant on your feet, which works, is to soak them one day a week five days in

a row with two parts water and one part vinegar. it's kind of a natural an anti-bacterial for your feet. >> there is a new product they say has something in it that keeps that from happening. wouldn't that be nice?cc1: >> yes. number five. control my frequent belching? >> this is another reason not to chew with your mouth open. >> and gum. >> hard candy. >> hard candy? >> hard candy, too. any time we're sucking in air, we don't really know. >> before we know it, we're belching all over the place. >> if you have a choice between water and fizzy water, choose the regular water.

>> why are certain foods suddenly giving me gas? >> that's another one about hormones. your gut is extraordinarily hormones.cc1: you can develop things like when ble bowel syndromecc1: you hit 40. you can also become suddenly lactose in ttolerant. >> hoda and i want to do a commercial. got lactate? dionne warwick is going to be singing after this. you'll never ever pick up a cigarette." i had to quit. ♪ my doctor gave me a prescription for chantix, a medication i could take and still smoke, while it built up in my system. [ male announcer ] chantix is a non-nicotine pill proven to help people quit smoking.

it reduces the urge to smoke. some people had changes in behavior, thinking or mood, hostility, agitation, depressed mood and suicidal thoughts or actions while taking or after stopping chantix. if you notice any of these symptoms or behaviors, stop taking chantix and call your doctor right away. tell your doctor about any history of depression or other mental health problems, which could get worse while taking chantix. if you develop serious allergic or skin reactions, stop taking chantix and see your doctor right away as some of these can be life-threatening. don't take chantix if you've had a serious allergic or skin reaction to it. dosing may be different if you have kidney problems. until you know how chantix affects you, use caution when driving or operating machinery. common side effects include nausea, trouble sleeping and unusual dreams. ♪ my benjamin, he helped me with the countdown. "ben, how many days has it been?" "5 days, mom. 10 days, mom." i think after 30 days he got tired of counting. [ male announcer ] ask your doctor about chantix. and now through march 31st,

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ask your eyecare professional which transitions lenses are right for you. that sounds so happy, doesn't it? >> you can call dionne warwick an intergenerational star with songs like "do you know the way to san jose?" >> for the song "say a little prayer," people are going to follow along on celebrity apprentice here on nbc. take a look. >> i expect you all to behave and not go to this place. >> don't take me there. don't you dare take me there. i'm not two years old. >> would you just stop? >> no. >> oh, i love it!

>> i'm sorry! >> first of all, she was wagging her finger at you. >> she thought she had children in that room, and i just had to let her know, this one is not. show?1:ou like that cc >> it's interesting. >> we had star jones on the other day, and she was saying, you know, that when she was project manager it would be a good thing to find out what people thought their strengths you at the cashcc1: register because you're good with money. is that true? >> sort of. i'm good at spending it.cc1: >> has it been an enjoyable experience? obviously needcc1: to do that. >> you don't need a reality show. >> no,i don't. it was interesting. that's the only word i can come up with that keeps it in -- >> perspective? >> yes. thank you very much. that's a good word. >> it's a long process, isn't it? >> we're sequestered.

they're beautiful suites. >> he owns a few nice hotels. >> yes, he does. >> you have some new music. >> some great, classic songs. >> wonderful songs. we had the best time recording this. i haven't done a project like this since the cole porter project. >> there is one burt bacharach song on it. >> that surprised me, too. >> you're actually hitting the road. you're going to japan and you'll be touring. do you still enjoy that, dionne? >> the best part is when i'm on stage doing what i do best. getting to it is -- it was.ling isn't whatcc1: >> it's become so taxing.cc1: >> it must be unbelievable sitting in japan or anywhere in the world having all these people that, you know, are

singing every word along with you and just enjoying it so much. it's got to be an incredible feeling. >> it's so wonderful being part of smile times in people's lives. and going into 50 years now, it's like -- >> amazing. >> we saw you sing with whitney at the clive davis party right before the grammys. how was that? >> it was amazing. it was like being with my family. >> you've got good dna. >> absolutely, i sure do. >> we wish you great luck with the cd. >> have fun in japan. come see you us again. >> i will do that. >> "the apprentice" is going on now. check it out. we're going to tell you ten habits you need to pick up. >> is it more important to be a happy mother or a good mother? everyone hays story. and shine. with pantene nature fusion shampoo. experience cassia essence fused with pantene pro v science.

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by fresh, wonderfully light, creamy light & fit. with 80 calories versus 100 in the other leading brand. live light & fit. o. good morning to you. it's 10:26 right now. i'm laura garcia-cannon. a mystery solved this morning. we now know why seagulls have been dying in the port of san francisco. wildlife experts think it's because of an overdose of mold. the state department of fish and game says the birds are dying at pier 94 because they inhale unusually high amounts of a type commonly found in the plants. for over a decade, more than 20 seagulls a month have been found dead in the port of san francisco. "chronicle" readers may have noticed the surprising for sale sign this week.

the notice of public sale is for the westin san francisco on third street. the hotel is about to be foreclosed and sold off or creditors are trying to restructure their payment plan. "the wall street journal" reports a hotel is jointly owned by a goldman sachs real estate firm and a dallas investment right> it 12 rig now. a quick break. weather and traffic after this.

good morning to you.cc1: welcome back. 1:t before 10:30 and thecc frontal system that's going to rain us a little bit ofcc1: today has arrived in the north

bay. showers extending from santa rosa through san francisco now, and that will be the case for the next couple of hours. 1:re not expecting a lot ofcc rain and we're not expecting this system to last very long. in fact, we've got a core of low pressure that's going to drag it up to the north as we head throughout the day today. futurecast.your cc1:p.m., we're expecting just a little bit of rain. this will be leftover from that frontal system, dragging in a trough here all the way from fairfield through livermore. after that, though, a lot of clearing, a really nice second half of the day. and tomorrow looks good. more rain on the way for the weekend. today, though, temperatures in : the 60s. 60 in redwood city, 58 in san francisco. drive.heck yourcc1: maybe you're leaving for work right now. >> the south bay, looks like we're going to escape that rain we were talking about. an accident right around 237. your peninsula drive, still slow from the earlier motorcycle accident here. northbound side hasn't been a problem over the last few hours. the southbound side still has a slowing, and we'll jump to the

bay bridge toll plaza. the backup and an accident right around the toll gates. laura? >> thank you very much. thank you for joining us this morning. "today" show continues next. i'll see you bright and early rrtoorowmo sni mt a 5:00 a.m. have a great afternoon. ♪ >> we're back on this thirst day with today's moms who are happy. if you have kids, we don't have to tell you, probably, that you come all but last on the list. >> but putting happiness on the back burner does not make for a fulfilling life. dr. meeker is the author of "the habits of ten happy mothers." >> not to be confused with the happy hooker book. >> there are good moms and happy moms. what is it more important, do you think, to be, maybe? >> to be a happy mom means you will be a better mom. it's interesting, there are so many books out there about how to parent better and how to be a better mother, and this is the

first book about how to reclaim our joy in parenting. because as you've probably seen over the past 20 years, mothers are on this train that says do more, be more, raise better kids, get them in these things and exercise. >> the stress alone makes you miserable. >> right, and it's not sustainable. so, really, i wanted to write a book -- it's sort of a professional listener of mothers -- to have mothers take a deep breath, step back and say, what really is important in life at the end of the day? what really makes me happy? because if mom is happy, guess what? you have happy kids. true.very cc1: >> you talk about the 10 habits. what do you think ranks in the top? i guess this is where women make their mistakes. >> i think where we make our mistakes is not testing our instincts. many of us do a lot of things for our kids and sign our kids up and we do a lot of things really know we don'tcc1: want to do but we do it because

the other mothers are doing it. you know what's best for you, you know what's best for your kids. trust your instincts. if you don't want to be running 7:00 in s around from cc1: the morning to 10:00 at night, don't. so simplifying. and it's not that hard. >> you have to learn to say no. >> you have to learn to say no to your kids and to yourself. we feel a lot of peer pressure just like our kids do. and we end up doing a whole lot of things and chasing after things because that's what we feel we should do as mothers. >> but, i mean, there's too much of, i have to bake those cookies myself because other mothers do. no, you don't. you can buy them at a -- >> sara lee is wonderful. >> they're wonderful. exactly. >> 600 women were polled. 57% said they are happy, but 43% said they're not happy. >> they're not happy. i'm surprised. i would think it would be actually higher than that because mothers are so stressed. think about it. we're very competitive with other mothers.

i write a whole book on stop come peepeting with other mothe. stop that competition. when we stop doing that and figure out how do we want to live our lives, how do we want to raise our kids and let other mothers do their own thing, then we're in a position to have better friendships with other women. i write a whole chapter on that. >> friendships are very important, but some of those women who are raising the children alone, that would tend to make a woman far more stressed, and so many are single parent homes now. >> so many moms feel they need to do double duty. i talk about that. no, you don't. you can't be a mom and a dad. being a mom is good enough. recruit some good men you know, a father, brother, anybody. >> what are the other ten habits we can take away? >> i have a strong faith in god, and i think that that really anchors me and something that we share with our kids.

but studies show that kids and moms who have a faith in god and believe that he is alive, that he loves them, they tend to feel more secure in life. and so actually studies show that, believe it or not, god is good for mothers -- >> good for mental health. >> i talk about, we really need to nurture our faith. really, the book is a call to live on a deeper level. stop doing all the superficial things and live on a deeper level. >> and enjoy the moment. your four are now gone? >> they're gone. >> she's been a pediatrician for 25 years and so is her husband. they work together. now it's just the two of you. >> how are you dealing with that? >> it was harder for me before they left because i grieved ahead of time. >> that's what i'm doing. >> i think when you grieve ahead of time, it makes it a whole lot easier. you can have fun, kathie lee, with your husband alone. >> first of all, you're beautiful. i can't believe she has these four kids. >> the oldest is how old now?

>> 27. he dresses me. >> you're still sexy. thank you. >> debbie in texas are writing what makes them happy. she wrote, it is so important to be constantly mindful of the kind of relationships i invest my time in to know my own social weaknesses. i keep that one simple question in the back of my head, does this really matter? it helps so much with co-parchting with my husband, friendships, comparisons to all the other moms. >> ask yourself, why do i do what i do? if you're doing it because it's healthy, fine. if you're doing it because you think you should do it, drop it. life is too short. it's far too short. >> and you could have problems as a result because they have an unhappy mother. >> cannotexactly. i realized early on the best

thing i could do for my patients was help them just how to enjoy living life next to their kids, want. what kids reallycc1: >> you're terrific. >> kids want to get outside of the house if they don't have a happy mother. >> she looks like donna reed or something. up next, it's time for "everyone has a story." we're going to meet a wonderful young woman right after this. ziploc presents ziplogic.

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it's time to meet our newes: "everyone has a story" contest woman. marianne striker wrote us about her 24-year-old's daughter continuous struggle. >> before we meet everybody, let's listen to marilyn's letter. >> when my daughter amy was 18 years old, her life was abruptly interrupted and she suffered a major blood clot and her stomach exploded. as a result, she was in a coma, she couldn't eat or drink for over two and a half years. 20 surgeries later, she finds respite from all these emotional and medical traumas. in six years she is working to make every day special using her

creativity to express all her pain and her joy and her gratefulness. throughout the medical setbacks and disappointments she's had, she's refused to let her medical situation define her. a year ago, amy, who is always looking for a way to share her story and express herself, picked up a paintbrush. since then our house is overflowing with canvases and material. she asked me if i would help her do an art exhibit for the community to let people know she was still alive and vital. i wanted her to be recovered medically 100%. but true to amy's nature, she said, no way, and she was raring to go. ♪ >> a performance she always wants to share and give back. you can't wait in life, she said. you have to be here now with whatever you're dealt.

as a result, amy had almost 60 art creations on display. people always remarked to my husband and myself how amazingly positive she could stay through all the uncertainty. but she never stopped seeing the blessings and beauty in her world and captured it in her art and her music and her whole experience. >> wow. marilyn is here with her daughter amy and her husband mark. so nice to see you all. >> thank you for having me. >> how are you feeling, first of all? >> i'm feeling fine. i'm feeling great, you know. i want to start living after all this and put myself out there. >> it was a tough two years. finding out about the blood clot, how did you react? >> i mean, i was sedated. >> you don't even remember. >> i remember that night, april 25, 2005, being in really

intense pain and screaming in the hospital, being immediately wheeled into the emergency room. and then a few months later, i remember like foggy memories, you know, thinking i was underwater and that my brothers were pieces of fruit, and then when i was like more conscious -- >> you should use that in your art. >> when i was more conscious, the doctor tried to explain what happened. i didn't have a stomach anymore, i couldn't eat or drink, and he didn't know how long or if i would ever be able to, and, you know, it was a hard day. young, too.e socc1: it's never fun to go through anything like that, but when you're right on the verge of becoming an adult. you're a doctor as well, right, mark? >> yes. >> so as a doctor, you knew the danger she was in? >> it's been a long process. 20 surgeries, you always

interpret what's going to happen down the road. throughout it all, it was hard for amy to get down. she always had a smile on her face, always saw the good in people, in a situation, and she down.1:et cc she's like the energizer bunny. she is always painting or singing or writing. for all the things we've been through, we still have a happy house. >> marilyn, i like what you said in the piece. you said she taught you about living now. like you can't wait. what lessons has your daughter taught you? >> oh, god, so many. just about not letting anything get to you, like the small things, justcc1: about loving life in spite of pain, in spite of uncertainty, you know, finding something to live for. that's what she really taught me, that you can't -- that if you love life, you're going to find a way to live it. has.she cc1: >> every morning you wake up now, you're able to eat, right? >> yes. >> and then you go on to

captivated ject hascc1: your inspiration. >> one thing i said, i would never take food or anything like you know.cc1:ed, it's a wonderful gift. >> great. we have another wonderful gift for you. we have a special performance we're going to play for amy cc1: right after this. [ female announcer ] when allergies make your eyes itch,

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we're back with our special eries "everyone hays story"cc1: with marilamy striker and her parents, marilyn and mark. >> please meet heidi blinkenstaff. the song is called "still alive." ♪ ♪ my life was full of promise at

18 ♪ with my best days ahead ♪ when i found myself in a coma ♪ barely a heartbeat, practically dead. ♪ but i had so much to live for, i did ♪ i just couldn't give up so i found the strength tocc1: keep living ♪ and drink from a half-filled upcc1: ♪ guess what? i'm still alive, i'm still here by my will ♪ for i knew i just had to survive ♪ now there's not a day when my heart doesn't sing i cancc1: do alive, anything ♪ and i will for i'm still alive ♪ my life is full of danger, it

was ♪ there seemed no hope for me ♪ when i found myself at a crossroad ♪ but in my agony, i still could see ♪ i was here still alive ♪ and by god's will ♪ there was still hope that i could survive ♪ now there's not a day when my heart doesn't sing ♪ if i'm still alive, i can do anything ♪ and i will, i surely will, because i'm still, i'm still alive still alive ♪ i'm still alive

[ applause ] >> wow. we'll be back with more on "today" on cc1:

we're back to "everyone has a story" honoring a very special young woman. >> heidi blinkenstaff performed for amy and her parents, marilyn and mark. >> did you guys like? >> oh, my god. >> it was gorgeous. it was amazing. >> it captured her perfectly. >> really beautiful. >> you live near us, and david is going to help you put together a little cabaret ad. we'll follow your career. >> david is doing this for you.

>> we have one of those little free things for you. it's our favorite part we get to give away some things. we know how much you love music and modern art. the museum of modern art has given you a membership, you can go wherevnever you like. and you have a limo whenever you need one until you get your driver's license. david will give you those free lessons and you're in like flynn. >> god bless the family and the community who came around, fairfield and also westport. it's a hard way to find out how loved you are. >> heidi is a 10. >> heidi is a 10. >> she kicks it.

thanks so much. >> we'll see everybody tomorrow. thanks, everybody. >> we've got ambush makeovers. you know the drill. it's friday. >> have a wonderful, wonderful day. ♪ -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com cc1:cc1: