saturday morning. good morning. thanks for being with us. i'm marla taez. kris sanchez has the day off today. we do want to check the forecast. it is chilly outside. >> you said it was a stunning sunrise. you will be stunned as you go outside. 32, san jose. gilroy, 24, santa rosa. novato, 20s. 30, napa. oakland, 32 degrees. we have a freeze warning up. this will continue through 9:00 this morning. as we head through lunchtime, the numbers trying to get into the 50s. not a bad afternoon. the rare time of year of clear skies where we can go from 20s and 30s in the morning to 50s, low 60s for the afternoon. today, looks fine for travel plans. last-minute shopping, we will let you know about much-needed changes. finally brings a chance of showers and snow. we will have a look at that coming up. >> thanks, rob. we begin with elder abuse of the worst kind.

$1 million missing through a lifetime of savings. detectives say a local chase bank branch manager and her husband ripped off a customer and used the money to buy big ticket items including a brand new mer say december and a time share. >> reporter: $60,000 worth of cartier, and guchy. they are accusing these two, christina bray and her husband, jimmy, of buying the bling with money that was clearly not theirs to spend. >> if you can't trust your banker, who can you trust? >> christina bray worked at chase bank as a branch manager and became the personal bank manager of a 96-year-old man and convinced him to adopt her as a niece and asked him to be the godfather of her unborn child. so she developed a relationship with him. i would say she was preying upon him. >> reporter: detectives say the

elderly man had close to $1 million saved at more than five or six accounts. they say bray was about to transfer about $750,000 of that into a new account at comerica. >> her husband once he was on the account started withdrawing checks and spending money like crazy. the victim was completely unaware of this and had no idea until our investigator interviewed him. >> reporter: the bank notified authorities something strange was going on. the big break came when christina bray and her husband drove up to the man's home in a brand new mercedes not knowing the detectives were there interviewing him. >> these people are helping themselves to everything in the world. it is despicable when you look at the fact that this is a banker that is ripping off an elder customer. >> reporter: george kiriyama,

"today in the bay." san francisco firefighters trying to make the holidays brighter for dozens of people affected by a fire earlier this week. more than 40 people lost their apartments to this raging fire in the western addition neighborhood. now, firefighters are scrambling to replace lost toys. so far, they have sent about 120 items. the fire began at the bottom after a trash shoot. the flames caused an estimated $6 million in damage. the red cross is providing shelter for the displaced residents. what started out as a report of a car crash quickly became an investigation in villejo. they responded yesterday afternoon on monterrey street. the victim drove his truck through a fence. this happened in the middle of a residential neighborhood. the driver had been staped multiple times. he is now in the hospital while investigators try to determine how he was stabbed and why.

president obama is in honolulu this morning for his first full day of his hawaiian christmas vacation. air force one arrived in hon loo loo last night. they delayed the start of the vacation until the house and senate signed off on a deal to extend payroll tax cuts for two months. after his arrival, he took time to greet supporters. they will return after the first of the year. 7:04. the obama administration appears to have softened a ban on gambling. in a legal opinion, the justice department said online betting unrelated to sforting events falls outside the reach of federal law. the u.s. government had long considered such gambling illegal. all holiday gifts from the city of oakland, free parking. meter parking is free today

between 8:00 this morning and 6:00 tonight. now, it is an effort to get people to do their holiday shopping in oakland and help local merchants. people will still have to obey the time limits on how long they can park in those spaces. if you are depending on caltrain to get to your holiday party, you might have to wait a little bit longer today. trains will run on a modified schedule with fewer trains on this christmas eve. only 40 trains will be operating between san francisco and san jose, including one round trip to gilroy. caltrain, b.a.r.t. and sam trans will all be operating on a sunday schedule tomorrow. every available chp officer is on the road looking for people who have partied a little too much. the stepped-up enforcement is happening statewide. they are not only looking for drunk drivers but also speeders and those not wearing seatbelts

and people texting or talking on their cell phone illegally. the maximum enforcement period will continue through midnight monday. santa clara county is giving some of its residents a present in the new year. those with unpaid traffic tickets get a break in the form of amnesty. beginning january 1st, residents who pay their outstanding tickets during the amnesty period may have their fine slashed by half. the balance due must be paid in one lump sum. to qualify for the 50% reduction, violators must have an outstanding traffic case that was supposed to be paid before january 1st of 2009. the amnesty program will run until june 30th. it is another spare the air day today. this means no stroking the fire on christmas eve. people living across the bay area are being asked to not use wood-burning fire places or wood stoves for the day. the air district says excess

smoke in the air is a big problem during wintertime. it can cause health problems for some people and, as rob mentioned, a freeze warning is in effect. 7:06, much more ahead on "today in the bay." coming up, risky breast implants, why thousands of women are being urged to get them removed. a sweet t was ath parent was a security threat as well. one woman's sticky situation at the airport. stay with us.

welcome back. live look over oakland. clear skies, chilly temps. rob will be along to give you the weekend forecast. it is 7:09. legalizing marijuana in california, says a new report u could bring in millions of dollars annually. it was issued about i the state's independent legislative analyst and focused on a proposed initiative that would

legal looiz it and regulate commercial sale. it would boost the state's agricultural and manufacturing industries and create jobs. the california hemp and health initiative will start collecting signatures. they will have about three months to collect more than 500,000 signatures needed to get the measure on the november ballot. a health warning for women with breast implants. the french government is recommended that women go under surgery to remove implants after a high rupture rate. 30,000 women in france and hundreds of thousands more around the world have breast implants made by the country. they closed last year after being accused of using a cheaper, industrial grade silicone instead of a medical silicone. none are known who have been used here in the u.s.

but there are concerns that women who travel to south america for a cheaper procedure may have received implants from this company. no guns, box cutters, lighter fluid, water bottles and frosting, a recent tsa takeaway at at security checkpoint really takes the cake. a woman flying from las vegas home to boston carrying cupcakes had them confiscated by security. rebecca haines snapped this photo when ray tsa agent snapped her baked goods and wouldn't let it through a security checkpoint in las vegas. >> frosting constitutes a gellike substance and part of how he arrived at this decision was that it was in a container in which it conformed to the container's shape. >> i offered to take it out and put it in a zip lock bag on the spot. he said, no, i can't let you touch t once he identified it is a security threat, it wa no longer mine. i couldn't have it back. >> tsa says it is reviewing the

case. passengers are allowed to take cakes and cupcakes through security check points. if you are unsure, check the tsa website before you bake and board. a salvation army bell ringer in menlo park got quite a surprise. when she opened her kettle, she found a check for $10,000 friday. the donation was left in the kettle in front of a safeway on el camino real. the bell ringer says she didn't see the generous donor. the donation comes days after another anonymous donor dropped a check for $5,000 into a salvation army kettle at a safe way in brentwood city. 7:12. much more ahead on "today in the bay." coming up, secret santa is yoan surprise one bay area woman never saw coming. >> i think it is fabulous. a lot of people can't afford, you know, to get christmas gifts and stuff. >> i love this story. dozens of layaway accounts paid

in full and we're there as one woman gets the news firsthand. a gorgeous view over the bay this morning. live look there from san francisco. you can see the clear skies. a chilly start. 20s and aroundhe bar area. look at that in your full forecast coming up in just a few minutes. [ child 2 ] i call first player. no. i already called it. [ dad ] nobody's playing anything until after we get our homework done. thank you. hello? test drive's not over yet. [ male announcer ] it's practically yours. [ louder ] hello? but we still need your signature. right now during sign then drive, it's never been easier to get the all-new passat, the 2012 motor trend car of the year, for practically just your signature. that's the power of german engineering. visit vwdealer.com.

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welcome back. here is another gorgeous shot of the sunrise. this is over san jose. don't be fooled. it looks pretty but it is chilly out there. 7: 7:14. let's check the forecast. very chilly. if we could bring the sun up faster, we would try to do that. sunrise, 7:23. look at the coldest part of the day. you are waking up to 20s and low 30s for most of the bay area. san jose slightly below freezing at 31 degrees. 21, gilroy. santa cruz, 42, san francisco.

north of the golden gate bridge, nothing but 20s waiting for you. 23, fairfield. these numbers really tough to believe. again, this time of year, normally, we have more moisture in the air, which keeps our temperatures up in the 40s and 50s to are the morning. not the case this morning with that dry air. no sign of any clouds. one of the problems we have with high pressure that sets up over the bay area and you get these morning inversions of the cold air. most of our inland areas seeing unhealthy for sensitive groups or smoke pollution. spare the air day today. no wood-burning appliances and very likely tomorrow. we are not going to have much wind picking up for christmas day. freeze warning through 9:00 this morning. it is still going to be cold until lunchtime. later on, thanks to the sunshine, upper 50s to low 60s. dry for christmas day. maybe some rain. take a look at the monthly rainfall totals here in red. very bone dry for the bay areas. anything we can get would be some good news. they are running well behind

where we should be for this month. high pressure off to the west, still acting like a wall. no systems can crash through this to see up towards oregon and seattle. up towards portland in seattle, that's where the showers are right now. there is finally a sign, we could see changes coming up maybe by tuesday and wednesday. notice here, the jetstream is starting to drift a little bit further south as we get into wednesday and maybe thursday. so that's going to be the window of opportunity for maybe seeing some showers. notice, this, as we jump towards new year's eve, the storm track is going to steer back to the north. despite the chilly start, a pretty pleasant finish with upper 50s, maybe mid-50s around gilroy. 62 for morgan hill. no trouble heading up to lake tahoe or the high country for your holiday plans. it is just going to be cold and dry. you will notice here as our temperatures slowly start to cool the middle part of the week. with that extra cloud cover, the nights won't be as cold.

tuesday and wednesday, middle part of the week, best chance of showers. things should be drying out as we approach new year's eve. >> it is hard to get out of bed when it is so cold. >> it is. especially this morning. >> thank you, rob. an inspiring movement is spreading across the nation. anonymous ben factors paying off items on lay ayway at some of te retailers. "today in the bay's" cheryl herd talked to someone right here in the bay area. >> reporter: last-minute shopping is normal days before christmas. a new phenomenon happening this year. you can call it holiday giving with a twist. >> we just had to show them the contracts on the customers that had kids and they selected who they wanted and who they paid off. >> that's right. secret santas are paying off layaway balances for strangers at k-mart stores across the nation. now, they are being called layaway angels.

>> a lady had come and paid a customer's layaway. she took off. the customer behind her happened to be the one that paid it off. she broke out in tears. >> since last week, dozens of layaway angels have come to k-mart stores nationwise paying off more than 1,000 accounts to the tune of 11 $2,000. last friday, a man walked in with $10,000 cash to pay down 63 accounts. it happened tonight for zarina wilson of richmond. she was shocked. >> i was like, who is this? the voice didn't sound familiar to me. so i asked her who she was and she told me. i couldn't believe it. >> a $177 balance paid in full by a layaway angel. now, her five children will have clothes and toys for christmas. >> it makes a big difference. i don't even know if i was going to get it or not. >> i think it is fabulous. i really do. i think it is great.

a lot of people can't afford to get christmas gifts and stuff. >> thank you very much. i don't know what i would have did without her. >> that was our cheryl herd reporting. >> we here about celebrities and athletes helping others. one of the 49ers giving away almost his entire salary. braylon edwards, the 49ers wide receiver is handing over almost all of his $1 million salary to a group of teenagers in cleveland. back in 2005, the former cleveland brown promised $10,000 scholarships to 100 eighth graders if they could graduate with a 2.5 gpa and complete 15 hours of community service and then also get into college. well, 79 out of the 100 met the requirement. so edwards will pay almost $800,000 for these kids to go to school. the students are spread out

across 22 college campuses including cornell and harvard. very impressive. 7:20 now. very impressive. e-hed on "toda t e-mail scam targeting customers of a major airline. what you should know.

welcome back at 7:23. the christmas spirit is back alive and well at lefty owe dual's at union square. they have been hard at work since 4:30 this morning. a last-minute holiday toy drive is kicking in drive. joining us live from lefty o' doole's is the owner. >> there are 2500 kids that may go without toys. we are asking you to help us drop them off at lefty

o'doole's. >> anybody that can help out, come and bring some toys to the kids. you have to bring something down here. we will be here all day long. >> i know. it started at 4:30 this morning and lasts until midnight. nick, this is not the first time you have done this. you are a seasoned giver, i should say. this is the 11th year of this toy drive. you team up with firefighters and police officers. tell us about that. >> yes. this year, we always supported the firefighters toy drive. it is our 11th year. this year, we are also including the police department. they are coming to help us distribute the toys on the 25th. actually, tomorrow. they are going to go out on the streets and find kids that need a toy. they are going to deliver it to them. we are really excited this year. everybody is getting involved. >> now, last year, if i'm not

mistaken, you collected more than 10,000 toys and you are hoping to beat that this year. >> they really appreciate it. >> we are really trying this year to beat the 10,000. like i said before, we heard there is a lot of kids out there. they call them the forgotten kids, living on coaches or homeless. we want to get the toys to them this year. we are trying to beat last year's toy expectations of 10,000. this year, we warnt nt to try t a little more. >> i will give out the address. it is 333 geary street. >> make the kids happy all over the world. >> 333 geary street. we will have santa's helper-outer. even santa might come out. >> i will be there, ho-ho-ho. >> okay, santa. i didn't mean to step on you earlier. you can't disrespect santa

in other news, an alert about a travel fishing scam. american airlines is warning its customers not to open any suspicious e-mails from the company, fake and hoping to trick unsuspecting passengers to give up their personal information. kevin cokely from our nbc station in dallas has more. ♪ >> reporter: in the middle of a busy holiday travel season, anglers are trying to hook customers at american airlines. >> we have several examples that have been sent to us. >> the fishing scheme uses phoney e-mails and messages meant to look like the real thing from the company. >> here is one asking from information from your advantage and promising you a $50 bonus. >> reporter: they are really trying to get sensitive personal information including financial account numbers and passwords. >> this is the classic phishing

with a p-h. they are out to get any kind of information they can. we don't do business this way. we don't send people e-mails that have something other than their actual trip confirmation if they booked one. >> reporter: the company's website includes a new page warning about the scheme offering examples of what to look for and tips on how to avoid becoming a victim. best advice is, don't open anything. don't open their links. you have to be very suspicious. there are a lot of unscrupulous folks out there trying to phish for personal information any way they can get it. >> that was kevin cokely reporting. still ahead, the shoes that set off a shopping mob across the country. plus, controversy decastro. why a san francisco church uninvited a gay friendly clergy

expected to speak at a pre-christmas service.

s. it is just about 7:30 on your saturday morning. we will give you a live look over 680. where is everybody? no one is on the roads. good morning. i'm marla tellas. in for kris sanchez. 680, as i drove in, about 25 degrees as i made my way into san jose. 29, livermore. gilroy, 21 degrees. nothing but 20s as you head north of the golden gate into the north bay. 42. san francisco, 34. oakland, now that the sun has come up, we are going to see some warning. the freeze warning is going to start to expire around 9:00 or 10:00 this morning. then, by noon, we should see some 50s around the bay area.

we should still see 50s and 60s for highs today. a real chilly start. nice rebound for the afternoon. coming up, we will let you no he what you can expect for christmas day. changes finally coming back. have a look at that coming up in a few minutes. >> thank you, rob. >> 7:30 now. gunshots, smashed windows and unruly crowds, thoses of people in the bay area and around the country are trying to get their hands an feet on a pair of shoes, not just any shoes, though. we are talking air jordans. michael jordan hasn't played basketball in almost nine years. his footwear is right on. scott budman. a huge line early in the morning. not for an iphone but for a pair of shoes. specifically the new nike air jordans. >> they gave us a number and it is going to be a raffle. that's bull. i know i'm on tv. i still didn't get no shoes. so i don't know what people are going crazy. all these people are crazy. >> the last-minute christmas

shopping was interrupted at several bay area shopping spots. gunfire at richmond hilltop mall briefly shutting the entire mall down and leading to one arrest. smashed windows at san leandro's bayfarrah lots of pushing and shoving and in san bruno, after some police drama, success. >> i got the last 12s. >> it was crazy, like a mob, at least 400 people here. everybody was lined up. once they started opening the doors, everybody bum rushed. they broke one of the doors. they just let us in. we have been here since 2:00, 3:00 in the morning. i got my three pairs. so i'm happy. >> originally released in 1985, air jordans are making a comeback but not without problems. at malls all over the country, chaos as people lined up to be among the first to get the shoes, which are, as one local shopper pointed out, just shoes.

>> ridiculous for some shoes. you sh you not put people in harm's way for some shoes. it is shoes. they don't even look that good. it is really just a name brand. it is because of what jordan did. >> what jordan did and what fans are willing to do to get their fans on his footwear. scott budman, "today in the bay." scary moment for shoppers at another mall. this time a popular south bay shopping center. a chemical scare forced the evacuation of shoppers at oak ridge mall in san jose just yesterday. dozens of firefighters and hazmat crews responded to an area after a man complained his eyes and throat were irritated. the theater lobby was evacuated for two hours. turns out the problems stem from a bathroom where someone washing the floors used too much cleaner. the man was treated at a hospital for his symptoms and then later released. in san francisco, in the middle of the castro district, there is a controversy about a

church and the gay community. a catholic parrish is turning away gay-friendly clergy scheduled to speak. they rescinded invitations to three clergy members 67. he served as grand marshal of this year's gay pride parade. the reverend jan spar was also scheduled. they felt the archbishop were inappropriate for the season of advent. a majority of parishioners at most holy redeemer are gay. >> hold your own iv bag and flush your fat down of the toilet. some of the tradeoffs at getting liposuction at a discount. turns out he is not a doctor at all. his specialty is scamming, not

surgery. jessica aguirre has this story. >> reporter: maria was approached by a physician offering to perform a cosmetic procedure on her eyes. after agreeing to the work, she says, the experience left her a little uneasy. >> when he tried to put the anesthesia for me, i feel dizzy. then, i don't feel really comfortable. i said, oh, my gosh, how come i can go away and nobody is going to be here with me. >> reporter: another red flag. she said the treatment left her eyes purple and swollen for weeks. >> he get really mad with me, because he said, instead, it looks beautiful, i got worse. >> reporter: she was surprised to see a photograph of the man she said treated her. it was the mugshot of 49-year-old carlos guzman garza. >> i thought he had license. >> reporter: they arrested him for allegedly practicing medicine without a license. investigators say he performed

liposuction and facelifts out of this mission office. >> no indication of any training in this country. >> reporter: investigators became aware of him after an unnamed woman came forward and said he performed unusual liposuction on her. >> when he started, she said, do you have an assistant with you? he said, no, you are my assistant today. she was holding her own iv. he smoked a cigar during the procedure. >> reporter: another strange claim. the woman told investigators guzman garza showed up at her house with six pounds of her own fat which she flushed down the toilet. she started suffering pain and it was determined that the liposuction was not done properly. >> reporter: he was arraigned on 11 criminal counts including identity theft and using the name of another medical practitioner. prosecutors still aren't sure how many other victims he may have treated. as for anya, she says she has

learned a lesson. >> i am lucky nothing happened to me. >> that was jessica aguirre reporting. nurses that went on a 24-hour strike at nine bay area hospitals managed by sutter hospital will be back on work today. they would not allow them to return to work until this morning. according to a union rep, thursdays strike saw about 90% participation among the nurses represented by the california nurse's association. it was to protest demands. before you venture out to check the mail, you may be wondering if there is mail service on this christmas eve. the postal holiday will be celebrated on monday, december 26th. postal workers will be working on christmas eve. as for post offices, most will be open today. some will have shortened retail

lobby hours. still to come on "today in the bay," coming up, they are not just pets, they are part of the family. we'll have a list of this year's tois cif gifts for your four-legged friends. [ female announcer ] holiday plus cookies plus memories

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rise and shine, everybody. are you awake? hazy skies over oakland. rob will be along to give you your full forecast. it is 7:40. thousands of pilgrims, tourists and local christians have kicked off christmas eve celebrations in the holyland. some 90,000 people are expected. the centerpiece of the holiday festivities is in bethlehem, the traditional place of jesus' birth. the church is built on the spot where christians believe jesus

was born. well, they are more like your child than your best friend. what do you get your four-legged friends for christmas? a new a.p. poll says more than half of all pet owners buy something special for their dogs during the holidays. the poll shows toys, treats, leashes and collars are big sellers. most dog owners we spoke to agree squeaky toys make the best gifts. >> he is going to get a gingerbread man toy that has five squeakers in it because greyhounds love squeaky toys. >> i got her a stocking with some toys and squeak toys and she got some chicken and beef treats from trader joe's. >> the poll also says many pets will have more than one present waiting for them under the christmas tree. all i know is i hope my mom got -- didn't get lucy more presents than i got. she loves her little lucy dog.

7:41. still ahead on "today in the bay." we are going to the north pole to see what's up with santa and his elves and don't forget the reindeers. we have 20s and 30s around the bayareats pare atty nice afternoon in store. a full look at your forecast when we come back. .

good christmas eve morning. you are looking live across the bay area bridge. no clouds. plenty cold. 20s still in our east bay and north bay valley. 29, livermore. 34, hayward. oakland, 34 degrees. 42, san francisco. look at that, 31, san jose. only 21 in gilroy. needless to say, that freeze warning is up through about 9:00, maybe 10:00 this morning. you saw the haze there looking east of the bay bridge. this happens when you get these overnight inversions, the coldest air that drops down to the valley floor.

with high pressure on top, with a lot of wind, we have a spare the air today. worst of the air quality for inland valleys. we will see another one tomorrow without a lot of wind or any rain around the bay area. freeze barng warning up for the morning. temperatures in the 50s to low 60s tomorrow, about the same. we may see temperatures again close to those frosty number force the morning. then, by wednesday, we could finally see some rain, which is good news when you take into account december typically is one of our wetter months. you can see so far, it continues to be quite dry. wednesday perhaps a chance of showers and some much-needed snow. nothing showing upstatewide. a little breezy across the mountains north of los angeles. you could see some showers up towards seattle and portland. high pressure which has been holding its ground over the last few days may show weakness now

heading on into wednesday and thursday. this will be the opportunity to finally see some showers heading back to the bay area and things will finally dry out. looks like that storm track just off to the norm as we head towards new year's eve. temperatures around the bay area, despite the chilly start, pretty nice finish. mostly sunny, cool, winter sunshine. close to 60 in san jose. upper 50s around the north bay where it is very cold. around santa rosa, mid-20's. upper 50s for the afternoon. seven-day forecast looks just fine for the holiday weekend. wednesday we'll see a chance of some showers. a lot of family members coming to town probably expected to see warmer weather. perhaps some of your relatives. >> i do have cousins watching. good morning, sophia and annabelle. they are here in arizona. >> they were expecting sunny skies and 40s and 50s. >> bundle up, you guys. >> thank you, rob. you are probably just waking

up. up in the north, all 20 of santa's helpers were hard at workloading up the slay. our jolliest elf, possible riddell joins us from the north pole where santa was hard at work. >> reporter: north pole, population, 2,226, 25 of whom don't even come close to minimum height requirements. >> who you calling short? >> reporter: then, there is the not-so-tiny reindeer in one very large bowl of jelly. that happened to belong to the town's most famous resident. santa claus was gracious enough to take time out of his extremely busy scheduled to give us an extended one-on-one interview. santa, are you ready for christmas eve? >> yes, i am. >> reporter: thanks. merry christmas. >> you do. >> reporter: you can see why he is so busy 150,000 wish lists

have poured in. most kids want a bicycle. >> reporter: that's on top of the 2 to 3,000 live requests from kids that sit on his lap each and every day. >> what do you want for christmas? >> an alarm clock. >> wow. a justin bieber watch, that's nice. what would you like, sweetheart? >> a type writer. >> my first type write. wow. i didn't know kids knew what they were. bob riddell, "today in the bay." so many kids are asking for the ipad, the itouch, the kindle, barbies and legos. they have been around for years. the kids are still asking for them. those are the classics. santa has gun his trip around the world. this morning, you can see he can actually where he is going. every year, the north american aerospace defense command or norad, tracks santa's journey around the world using radar,

satellite, fighter aircraft and, of course, a santa cam. this is a live look or rather a look at their website right now. you can see here, hard to make out but we are told santa is in albany, australia right now. there is a lot more you can find on that website, including tips on how to track santa on google maps and google earth. just logon to norad santa.org. still ahead on "today in the bay," we will head back out to san francisco's lefty o'doole aechlt for a check on the toy drive. i'm mike inouye. i also consider parking. consider this an early christmas present as oakland continues with its free parking saturday today. now, this is the last of them for the season. even though it is free for all, it is not a free for all.

meters are free for the stated time period and some restrictions are still enforced. you will fine details at oakland.com. today is christmas eve in particular but in the bay area we say happy holidays in general. in palo alto, they continue to celebrate the holiday season at the museum of american heritage. folks from the bay area lay go have decked the halls with bricks of plastic and for $2. you can check out this year's display. get it. go to moh.org for details. one holiday that will not be represented is festivals for the rest of us with great strength as a key part of this, made famous and made up on the nbc hit comedy seinfeld is on the marquee at a comedy lounge in dublin. you do have to be a little older to remember when nbc had what we

called must-see tv. remember the coffee show. family ties. what would we do, baby? you are going to get out ere. you are going to have a great "today in the bay." that's what.

good morning to you. a live look over the sin knoll grade. some drivers out there on this early saturday morning. your time now is 7:53. while you were sleeping this morning, volunteers began working hard at lefty o'dooles, they are collecting toys for children. santa is at the landmark union lake restaurant and bar collecting until 2:00 in the morning christmas day. tomorrow at 2:00 a.m. the restaurant is hoping to collect 10,000 toys. elves are on the sidewalk on

geary street to collect the donations. you don't need to park. you can just pull right up curbside and the elves will take away your donation. this is in union square. if you are unable to make it to 333 geary street. call luxor cab and a taxi will come to you. this morning, peet's coffee is pony up for a good cause. miniature horses will visit danville's peet's coffee. they are dwg to match donations $1 for $1 up to $1,000. they help raise money for children in hospice care and those at special needs schools and camps. this event runs from 11:00 this morning until twhun afternoon. this is at the peet's coffee in danville. much more ahead on "today in the bay." we're going to introduce you to an adorable little puppy.

her name is ellen. ellen needs a new home. will it be your home? stay with us. [ female announcer ] holiday plus cookies plus memories

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special guests from pets in need. lisa is here with ellen. she needs a hope this holiday season. >> she is four months old, one of a litter of five little terrier mix puppies. she is the runt. some are much larger than she is. she is the smallest of the group. >> she is shaking. we think that's the chihuahua in her. it is rather chilly outsigh. >> it is. she is four months old. what's her story? where does she come from? >> we rescued her from a public facility and brought her back to our shelter. the very next day, the whole

litter came in. we got them through that. they are healthy, spayed and neutered, microchipped, current on their vaccines and ready to go. what kind of a home would be good for ellen? >> because of her size, probably not one with toddlers. she would be wonderful in just about any family. >> how much does she weigh? >> right now, she weighs just a little over three pounds. >> she is precious. >> you can find out more about pets in need on their website. you need to logon to pets in need.org if you would like to take ellen home, she would be happy to join your home this holiday, this christmas. lisa simmons, thanks so much. >> thank you, marla. thanks so much for making us a part of your morning. we will have more local news tonight at 5:00, 6:00, and 11:00, all day long on nbc bay area.com. we want to leave you at a look at a sparkling holiday light

display in sunny veivale. this video was shot by one of our viewers. chad born. from everyone here at nbc bay area, have a safe and merry christmas, everybody!