we'll bring you some live updates during the cutins. see you tomorrow. winter's wrath. powerful storms continue to drench california. while in colorado, a blizzard could touch as much as eight feet of snow. the king speaks after more than 50,000 interviews, the talk show giant answers questions and opens up to erica hill about the emotional good-bye. >> not ep ten feet away from us, your old set. it is already being dismantled. >> they are? >> yes. >> you walk out the door in this business. >> started thursday night. >> what's next for the broadcasting legend? he' he'll tell us. the free fall a. actor plunges more than 30 feet to the

ground. making it the fourth accident in less than a month. we'll tell you how he's doing and whether the show will go on early this tuesday morning, and whether the show will go on early this tuesday morning, december 21st, 2010. captioning funded by cbs good tuesday morning. this is a live west coast edition of "the early show." i'm russ mitchell. >> good morning. i'm rebecca jarvis. there's a holiday terror scare. the latest on that in a minute. as you know out west, the first day of winter bringing brutal weather from the west coast to the middle of the country. monster storms brought a foot of rain to southern california and in the midwest they're being battered by blizzard conditions. we have live coverage of the snows in colorado and rain in california. let's begin with ben tracy in

flintridge, california. ben, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, russ. still raining here in southern california and the folks in this neighborhood are understandably on edge. you can see behind me here, made a channel with the fence and sandbags with major hillsides back here and the fear is mud slides. hoping this will send that mud out into the street and keep it away from the homes because despite the rain we have already had, a whole lot more is headed our way. this is definitely not the image of sunny california. >> the water is up past my knees. >> reporter: for five days now, the rain just keeps coming and coming and coming. >> haven't seen this in a matter of years. >> reporter: already 12 inches fallen in parts of santa barbara county. they could get ten more inches by thursday. in the city of los angeles, five inches of rain so far, by tomorrow night, l.a. may have

gotten half its yearly rainfall in six days. furtherer north, creeks are eating the land, threatening several homes. >> wert's going to go inside the houses. we are so close to the canals. >> reporter: so far, the creeks have held and surprisingly so major flooding but rock slides closed several roads including pacific coast highway, shut down ten miles in both directions. the fear now is the monster storm lined up off the coast. >> anticipating a lot of work. >> reporter: in areas scorched by recent wildfires, won't take much more rain for the saturated ground to turn into rivers of mud. now the good news is no one has lost their lives in the storms yet but the search is set to resume for four missing hikers down in orange county believed to be trapped near a swollen river in a canyon. now, of course, the worse the rains set to arrive tonight

around 10:00 and stretching into early tomorrow morning. >> not even the rainy season. is that season expected to be particularly brutal this year? >> reporter: you're right. you know, this time of year normally we could be talking about wildfires and the rainy season starts in january, goes through february and march. we do have a la nina weather pattern set up for the winter and so some forecasters think we could be seeing more wet weather like this in the months ahead. russ? >> okay. cbs' ben tracy in california, thank you. now here's rebecca. >> a winter blizzard crippling parts of the midwest and forecasters say it could reach epic proportions. rick salinger is in colorado with the latest on the whiteout. good morning, rick. >> reporter: good morning, rebecca. snow continues to blanket parts of western colorado with forecasters predicting enormous depths. some areas of the mountains

could get up to eight feet of snow. a winter storm is bringing heavy and constant snow to colorado's high country, creating dangerous driving conditions. ice and slush made it difficult for vehicles without snow chains to stay on parts of interstate 70, too tough for the snowplow. >> too much slush. a lot of spin-outs. >> reporter: a new storm across the midwest dumped up to eight inches of snow in parts of minnesota. slow going for drivers in the twin cities as slippery conditions caused dozens of crashes, stalls and spin-outs like this one on i-94. >> what do you think it's going to do with six inches of snow on the ground? you can live your life at 10 miles per hour. you will be okay. >> reporter: the congestion got worse as thousands headed to minnesota for the vikings' first outdoor home game in 29 years. the vikings played the chicago bears at the university of minnesota. because the game had to be moved after heavy snow caused the

metrodome's roof to collapse earlier this month. fans and players alike braved the snow and frigid temperatures this felt like 0 with the windchill. here in colorado, the ski resorts have seen a huge uptick in the business with the series of snowstorms, snow pack is 130% over the 30-year history. >> thanks. and now here's russ. let's turn to politics. the lame duck session of congress could hand president obama yet another victory. they're set to rote this week on the s.t.a.r.t. treaty and supporters believe they have enough votes to pass it. earlier they passed a tax bill and overturned the military's don't ask, don't tell policy. joining us is dan bartlett and in washington democratic strategist jamal simmons. good morning to you both.

the president appears to be on a hot streak. >> it is a great streak he is on, on a hot streak. take the tax bill, the don't ask, don't tell, the s.t.a.r.t. treaty, this is a narrative that the president can stitch together going into the new year that a lot of people, quite frankly, just a couple of months, 60 days ago after the election, didn't think was really possible so they have a lot to crow about going into the new year. >> jamal, by his own admission, the president said he took a shellacking in the midterm elections. what did hedo to turn this around? tie white house is so much more disciplined. looking at presidential statements over the course of the last few weeks, he hasn't talked about anything but the jobs, economy, trade and national security. the review and then the new s.t.a.r.t. treaty and focused unlike earlier in the presidency and went out on every single issue and targeted right now and

people focused on him. >> jamal, what does he need to do to keep the momentum going? >> now i think where we need to go is the president yet to lay out a consistent sort of vision statement, where does he want to go with the country? what does the city on the hill look like for barack obama? we need that vision and also lay out the values. what are the things that the president's drawing lines in the sand in he is not going to compromise to the republicans over. that will help hold on to core democrats looking at the compromise but they don't see a lot of context so he's got to give a vision and value so people know what it is he's standing for. >> on a rl like this, easier to keep going or very easy to make a misstep at this point? >> a glimmer of hope if you're a skeptical and cynical person in the country worried nothing is getting done in washington. the issues he faces going into 2011 are very substantial so the reason why he's having success right now is he's shown an ability to compromise. he was able to compromise on

taxes. that was a signal i think a lot of independents across the country wanted to see in the aftermath of the shellacking so going into the new year, i think setting a tone of not where to fight but to reach across the aisle and work with the other party, that's what will get him political success going into 2011. >> very quickly to both of you, not too early to talk about the 2012 election. the first republican debate set for next october. jamal, what do you think? what's the president have to do? what's the one issue to do not to ensure re-election but a good position? >> well, again, people are focused on jobs and the economy. they want him to be focused on the jobs and the economy and once the republican primaries are started, hear people trying to go further and further right appealing to the tea party base and whether sarah palin's in the game or not, she's certainly going to be a factor and people trying to appeal to the sarah palin voter will make barack obama look better in comparison. >> dan, what do you think? >> the president can't control who he runs against. the two biggest issues going into the election is the economy

and the war. on those two measures, if he shows discipline and focusing on job creation, the meeting with the leaders in the business community was an important signal to send he gets it, understands job creation in the country. afghanistan. really tough slogging going on there. how he holds the base together on that issue, whether the troop withdrawals start next summer and demonstrating to independents to do what's right for the national security interests of his country and shaping the narrative of the re-election. >> who's going to be the republican nominee? >> i knew that was coming. oh, it's way too early to tell. i think somebody, maybe who we're not talking about. i bet it's not sarah palin. my guess is it's not her. >> yeah mall, do you agree with that? >> we'll see on the sarah palin question you will although doing a good living doing what she is doing. i'm not that good of picking

republican nominees. >> i wanted to give you a shot. jamal and dan, thank you both. happy holidays. >> thank you. let's go to 7-eleven to betty nguyen for the rest of the news. betty, good morning to you. >> good morning. a holiday terror scare in italy after an explosive device was found on an empty subway car. it was discovered stopped at a station on the outskirts of rome. it was reportedly left in a grocery bag under a seat and wires, pipes and explosive powder. but rome's mayor said the device could not have exploded. and in england, officials say that the terror suspects arrested yesterday planning a large-scale attack against public spaces. the men arrested part of the largest counterterrorism raid in nearly two years. intelligence officials tell cbs news the latest threat to this country comes from al qaeda using food as the target. the alleged plot calls for poisoning restaurant buffets and

salad bars with ricin and arsenic. government officials have already alerted some hotel and restaurant security officials to be aware of this possible threat. wikileaks founder julian assange complaining he's a victim of leaks. assange says he's the victim of leaks of prosecutors in sweden trying to extradite him. in an interview with the bbc he says that wikileaks had a significant impact. >> we have changed governments. we have certainly changed many political figures within governments. we have caused new law reform efforts. we have caused police investigations as we expose u.n. invests. >> said people have a duty to try to fix problems around the world. the fcc today expected to pass the so-called net

neutrality rules aimed at giving everyone equal access to the internet. it would prevent phone and cable companies from blocking access to sites and applications. but it gives more flexibility to wireless companies. critics say it would open the door to a two-tiered internet. congress would need to approve it. soon, the check will not be in the mail. checks for federal benefits like social security will switch to direct deposit or a debit card for new recipients starting may 1st. those already getting benefits will have to make the change by march 2013. and overnight a rare show in the night sky. there was a total lunar eclipse as the moon passed through the earth's shadow. look at that. first time in 372 years, the eclipse the same day as the winter solstice. the arrival of winter at 6:38 eastern time tonight. but for a lot of us, it feels like it is here. let's look at the weather outside. john marshall has a look at it.

welcome to you. >> thank you so much, betty. eclipse spectacular. a lot of the country saw the beautiful stellar skies. >> fantastic. >> it was. right now, dealing with temperatures that are below average and southern california

>> that's a latest weather. now back over to rebecca. >> thank you, john. a frightening on stage accident last night for the broadway musical "spiderman." in the show's final scene, an actor plummeted 30 feet to the ground. problems. cbs news correspondent elaine quijano in times square with the latest. >> reporter: good morning to you, this is the biggest, most expensive production in broadway history and also appears to be one of the most troubled. ♪ it's the show that has broadway buzzing but for all the wrong reasons. in the closing minutes of monday

night's performance, "spiderman: turn aft dark" once again stunned the audience. an actor took a terrible fall. it's believed one of the tethers broke and fell more than 30 feet to the pit below. it's just the latest in a string of accidents and injuries that have plagued the show in recent weeks, in a little over a month, one actress suffered a concussion while two actors were injured in a flying sequence, one breaking his wrist. the director says it's part of the creative process. >> i don't think anything that's creative can be done without danger and risk. ♪ >> reporter: after last night's accident, a blog was flooded by outraged fans. this is just getting silly. time to shut this down. and this show is doomed. i think theater goers should stay away. but director is unswayed. she admitted the lavish production scares her but says

-- >> if you don't have fear you are not taking a chance. >> reporter: the actor that fell was rushed from the theater to cheers. when show's producers say he suffered only minor injuries. now, last week the show's opening delayed for four weeks stated reason, creative changes. rebec rebecca? >> thank you. people i know that have seen this said when it works, it is fantastic. number of problems. >> thank goodness he wasn't hurt more last night. >> they have to sell out for three years to break even. $65 million price tag. coming up, mystery of the missing dancer in las vegas. we'll talk to her sister in the desperate search. erica hill's exclusive interview with larry king. may have just gone off the air but already got big plans for the future. and how to pro- vent a vacation nightmare. what to do if you or your family are sick and traveling for the

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we have a stunning story out of las vegas this morning. an aspiring young dancer, 31 years old, goes missing now for nine days. the police are investigating. they're looking for clues. they're looking for answers. ear going to bring you the latest on that case. >> also coming up, we'll have larry king, erica hill's exclusive interview with the king. he retired last week from cnn after 25 years on the air. he spent 53 years in the business. he's got some things he's going to tell us today. some surprising things, i believe, coming up from the king. altoona. stay with us, you're watching "the early show" on cbs. >> this portion of "the early show" sponsored by macy's.

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it appears the fir high speed rai it's 7:25. time for news headlines from cbs 5. i'm juliette goodrich. it appears the first stretch of the high-speed rail in california will reach south to bakers field. the board voted to extend the first segment to 120 miles between madera and outside bakersfield. the decision came after the authority got an extra $1.2 billion. $600million came from the federal government and the same amount in matching state bonds. the federal money became available when wisconsin and ohio shelved their rail plans. the oakland city council tonight will consider funding an environmental impact report for a proposed new ballpark for the as. oakland backers want the new stadium near jack london square. san jose is further along in its downtown ballpark plan but

has been waiting a long time for clearance from baseball official. we'll have traffic and weather in just a moment. ,,,,,,,,,,,,

let go out to san jose. westbound 237 right before zanker road an accident just cleared out of lanes. we are left with a big backup.

westbound 237 is pretty much not moving from the 880 interchange. and it's also backing up on southbound 880 from at least dixon landing road. so again they just cleared the accident. hopefully we'll start to see some recovery here quickly. at the bay bridge toll plaza, the metering lights are on but we are not seeing delays approaching the toll plaza. so it is definitely a holiday light commute at the bay bridge. we do still have that strong wind advisory in effect across the span. so watch out for that as well as this accident in san francisco. still blocking lanes southbound junipero serra at brotherhood way pretty major rescue effort happened earlier this morning. the driver of one of the vehicles involved had to be extricated from the car. traffic is jammed in the area from sloat. that's your traffic. here's tracy with your forecast. hey, thanks, elizabeth. forecast for the morning, still got a few scattered showers out there. hi-def doppler showing not a whole lot of activity but just enough to kind of get if the way this morning. forecast for the morning, through the afternoon, scattered showers with heavy rainfall possible late tonight, more rainfall wednesday, and

we're drying out thursday and friday. ,,,,,,,,

wow, look at all these folks who came out today on a cold morning in new york city. coming to 59th and fifth. we certainly appreciate that. we welcome you back to "the early show." i'm russ mitchell along with the legendary rebecca jarvis. >> thank you so. the legendary russ mitchell at my side. good to have you. >> we're going to talk about the legendary larry king. larry king's cnn show went dark last week. it was the end of an era for course. but king is not even thinking about retiring. in an exclusive interview with erica hill he talked about this plans for the future. his family, and erica even got larry to talk about his replacement at cnn. >> i love that moment when they're dancing together in the interview. it's really great. also with so many traveling for the holidays, have you thought about what you would do if you or your family got sick? maybe your family is sick right now. well, dr. jennifer ashton is

going to tell you the very most important things that you have to do before you even pack a bag. important stuff this time of year. >> good stuff. >> but first we want to turn to the mysterious disappearance of a las vegas dancer who vanished nine days ago. authorities and loved ones are desperately searching for clues and betty nguyen has the latest. good morning, betty. >> good morning, rebecca. las vegas almost two years ago with dreams of becoming a professional dancer. she got a job with a popular burlesque show on the vegas strip so when she missed a rehearsal last week and then didn't show up for work it quickly became a sin city mystery. it's been nine days since anyone has seen 31-year-old debra flores-narvaez, the former washington redskins cheerleader loved the big stage, and her sister says she was living her dream as a dancer on the vegas strip. >> she rehearsed for days and hours. out of the week. sometimes two, three times she would rehearse a day. so it was -- it became the career that she loved.

>> reporter: so when flores-narvaez didn't show up for rehearsal, her family and friends immediately knew something was wrong. >> this was going to be her first opening act. she had a solo skit in this particular show. so it was a step up towards her dancing professional career. she didn't show up for that, so that kind of flew red flags. >> reporter: according to police she was last seen leaving her home when she said good-bye to her roommate and headed out to visit her ex-boyfriend jason griffith. reportedly he is the last person to have seen her. griffith says she claimed to be depressed and was missing her family over the holidays. police discovered her car a few days later in an abandoned lot, stripped of its license plate. >> the fact that her car was abandoned is concerning. and the fact that the license plates are missing is also concerning because it may be possible someone did not want her car to are recognized. >> reporter: flores-narvaez and griffith recently ended their stormy relationship. in october, griffith was charged with assaulting her, and according to the police report, she was pregnant. >> it was a bad breakup.

i'm hearing different stories that they were good, it was bad, there were times she was upset about it. >> reporter: police have not made any arrests in connection with the case and griffith has since spoken to police. in a statement to cbs news, an official said it is uncharacteristic of her not to show up at home and work, but there has been no evidence of foul play. >> i just can't fathom the thought that somebody would bring any type of harm to her. i can't even think of who would do that. >> reporter: and nine days after her disappearance, all her family can do is hope for her safe return. >> come home. we love you. we miss you. we love you. please come home. >> jason griffith is expected to appear in a las vegas courtroom today to be arraigned on charges of domestic violence. police say he has cooperated with investigators, and at this time, is not considered a person of interest. rebecca? >> hopefully they can find some

up next, larry king on the other side of the microphone. he's talking exclusively with erica hill about his family, and his replacement. this is the "early" show on cbs. lucy, i missed you.

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of nfl training camp to put our 24-hour frequent heartburn protection to the test for two weeks. [ diehl ] people think that we're indestructible, but if you're out there and you're feeling burning it's gonna affect the way that you play. [ herrera ] in my world either you get it done, or they're gonna find someone to get it done for you. [ diehl ] prilosec otc is the one thing i can count on to block my heartburn. prilosec otc is protecting me. [ male announcer ] take your own 14-day challenge. prilosec otc. heartburn gone, power on. ♪ a blender for aunt sue ♪ head phones for uncle wayne ♪ pillow pets and hot wheels for my sister's kids in maine ♪ ♪ oh, walgreens has perfect gifts ♪ ♪ for all those on your list

♪ like a walgreens gift card ♪ for your daughter's teacher miss gilchrest ♪ [ female announcer ] find all your last minute gifts at walgreens like a sony ipod clock radio, axe bath set... hershey's chocolates and more. and we're open late. stay jolly with walgreens. larry king's career came to a close last thursday. he sat down with his friends and former colleague erica hill for this "early show" exclusive interview.

>> some day when i'm awfully low of-which for the first time in 53 year, larry king is without a radio or tv program to host, ending his long running cnn show thursday night with an emotional farewell. >> instead of good-bye, how about so long. >> when we caught up with him, gone were the big stars and that famous background, a map of tiny lights. >> not even ten feet away from us, your old set. >> they're dismantling it? >> yeah. no one told you, did they? >> in this business, you wukt t walk out the door -- washington set, which is a duplicate of this set is going with the smithsonian. i'm very proud of that. >> and he has plenty to be proud of. some 50,000 interviews. the king of talk announced his cnn exit back in june and the

timing was rough coming just weeks of a her he filed for divorce from his wife. the two later rec ck reconciled. you were headed to divorce. clearly the four of you were in good place thursday. >> we went through a rough patch, but we ironed it out pretty well. there was a big difference in our ages, that might have had something to do with it. but i'm not an expert on marriage. >> no. >> why do you say no so quickly? >> i'm kidding. there have been a few marriages. >> yeah. i think in my life i have loved three people. the other marriages i wasn't in love, it was the thing to do. i used to say what if your wife called, urgent cnn, there are two lines over there, which one do you pick up. >> what was your answer? >> i used to say cnn. now it would be my wife.

this business is not a normal business. inside how crazy are you? >> probably about as crazy as everybody else. >> do you think things that you think no one else thinks? >> like how your tie is reminding me of your old background. >> that's what's going on? i was thinking of you have beautiful brown eyes. >> thank you. >> beautiful, beautiful brown eyes, i'll never love blue eyes again. welcome to cnn. >> answering cnn's call to take over his time slot, piers morgan, best known as a judge on america's got talent. more ggan made his own headline when he banned madonna from his talk show. >> is there anyone that you ever didn't want on your show? >> i'd never dismiss someone. i'll never have madonna on the show and thoma do that in a creat crea madonna creates a sensation.

you don't want her? so you never say you don't. he might be sorry he said that, but it's a good gimmick. >> at age 77, king is far from done. >> we're talking to several people about doing several things. >> tell me what you can. >> we're talking with some people about doing a major internet thing, another network thing. >> a broadcast network ? >> no, a cable network. and in major talks with ryan seacrest who runs now pretty much clear channel radio. >> his long time executive producer wendy walker who wrote about their time together in her new book believes king could find a new calling. >> he has these two children who are both sports fanatics. he won't miss a game, which is so cool. >> not long ago, king took his son paback to brooklyn where th do you thi dodgers once played. >> the old team doesn't play here and the new team hardly

tries. and the sky has got so cloudy when it used to be so clear. and the summer went so quickly this year. yes, there used to be a ballpark right here. that's me. >> did the summer go too quickly this year? >> the older you get, the more they do. >> larry king, a true legend. up next in this busy travel holiday season, we'll tell you what you need to know if you or your family get sick. this is "the early show" on cbs. on cbs. inside that truck is something familiar--

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♪ ♪ in this morning's "healthwatch," how to keep from getting sick when you travel. with millions of us on the move during the holiday season, there are lots of things we should know to keep from getting sick. and our medical correspondent dr. jennifer ashton is here with

potentially life-saving information. great to have you with us. >> good morning, rebecca. >> and there's just so much busyness this time of year, and there's so many people taking to the road. and you say there are tips people can take, and use, before they even start packing, that they should be considering. >> exactly. an advance notice is key. like so many things, if you know in advance you can prepare. so the first thing you do, ideally, is see your doctor. >> okay. >> and discuss with him or her that you're actually -- excuse me -- >> you're already getting sick for the holidays. >> exactly. going away. and then he or she can kind of tailor what their advice to you is to where you're going. sometimes vaccinations are needed, they'll suggest those four to six weeks in advance. learning about your destination, very important, and lastly, you want to check with your medical insurance to find out if you have an emergency, will it cover you. >> oh, that's important. to make sure that you check and cross all of your "ts" and dot all your "is" before you take to the road. >> exactly. >> in terms of what you ultimately should pack and bring

with you. a medical kit. what should be included there? >> well, you could personalize it, really, to any medical condition that you might have. especially if you're on prescription medication, you want to bring those vials with you. ask your doctor for the generic name of the medication, not just the brand name. and then anything that you want to put in it. tylenol, ibuprofen, an antihistamine can be really important. >> and it really strikes me that you say know the generic name. because that will give you the opportunity, if you're in a place that doesn't have the brand name, you can take the generic. >> exactly. especially in foreign countries they might not have the exact medication but something very similar to it. >> this is a question i've faced before, if you are sick, whether or not to get on that flight, whether or not to take to the road. how do you determine an answer? >> well, you know what, this is really about the consideration of the people around you. you're already sick. you can potentially make yourself sicker if you get on a plane. but really it's the people around you. obviously if you have a fever over 100 degrees, if you have a rash, if you're coughing or having difficulty breathing, vomiting, diarrhea, you should

not get on a plane. and remember, rebecca, if people at the airline gates see that you're visibly ill, they do have the right to keep you off the plane. >> i've actually seen that happen, before, in an airport. when you're traveling overseas this can be a really big fear for people, if you are overseas and you happen to fall ill. what should you do in those medical emergencies? >> first thing in possible, contact your doctor at home because he or she can really guide you. do you need to go to a hospital? can you work with a hotel doctor, for example? the u.s. consulate can be another good resource. and also check with your hotel. a lot of them will have doctors on call and they can help you, too. >> lastly, a couple things to keep in mind if you're planning a long trip. >> when my patients tell me they're traveling, either long plane flight or a long car trip the first thing that i think of is a potentially life-threatening blood clot called a deep vein thrombosis that can happen. young people are at risk, women on hormones are at risk. easy things you can do to reduce this risk, if you're traveling, long car trips, long plane

trips. stay well hydrated, link water. move around frequently. wear loose fitting clothing and ask your doctor about getting some compression stockings, either knee-highs or full length stockings can help reduce the risk. but you need to know about it. >> thank you for informing us about it. dr. jennifer ashton, we appreciate it. we'll be right back. this is "the early show" on cbs. >> "cbs healthwatch" sponsored by campbell's. >> "cbs healthwatch" sponsored by campbell's. it's amazing what soup can do. you want to try lifting one of these. a unique sea salt added to over 40 campbell's condensed soups. it helps us reduce sodium, but not flavor. so do a few lifts. campbell's.® it's amazing what soup can do.™

you've probably heard by now all about the big royal wedding coming up in april. >> is there one coming up? >> yes, read all about it. kate/william. but what you haven't heard is what we are going to be sharing with you, the author christopher andersen has a book about all the background, the things you haven't yet heard. >> hmm. >> it's all coming up right here on "the early show." ♪

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it's 7:55. time for news headlines from cbs 5. i'm sydnie kohara. a judge in contra costa county will decide today which defendants will face trial in an alleged gang-rape in richmond. the judge is weighing evidence against 7 defendants. some of them could face life in prison if convicted. san jose's among cities around the nation found to have a cancer-causing chemical in its tap water. a new analysis by the environmental working group finds hexavalent chromium in 31 out of 35 cities tested and san jose is the fifth worst with levels well above those considered safe. 9/11 first responders are pushing congress to provide money for their healthcare needs. a revise product post al that would cost about 6 billion may be voted on this week but there

may be a filibuster as the lame duck session runs out. traffic and weather around the bay area coming right up. stay with us. ,, ,,,,,,,,,,

all right, sir. let's go back out to milpitas. westbound 237 right before zanker road. an earlier accident is cleared now for a good half hour or so. unfortunately, we are still left with this backup jammed

from at least 880. southbound 880 itself also backed up from at least dixon landing road. so we're still waiting for traffic to recover. overall we are holiday light across the bay area, no backup out of downtown san jose, northbound traffic looks great all the way towards cupertino. nice ride along the peninsula at 101 and 280. at the bay bridge the metering lights are on but check this out. no delay at all in cash or fastrak lanes. high wind advisory is still in effect. that's your traffic. here's tracy with your forecast. hey, thanks, elizabeth. we do have some scattered showers still out there but they are definitely scattered. very little activity going on now and most of the activity we have is in the north bay. forecast for the morning through the afternoon, scattered showers still possible. but a better chance of widespread heavy rainfall moving in tonight. more rain expected wednesday, thursday and friday we're drying out with a mix of sun and clouds, and more rainfall back in the bay area, saturday christmas day, as well as sunday and monday. winter storm watch in effect

for the sierra late tonight through wednesday afternoon. ,,,,,,

welcome back to "the early show" on this first day of winter. >> ay, caramba. it's windy out here, too, russ. >> we've got a nice couple back here. they just got married. >> congratulations, guys. >> in orlando, florida. for some reason they came to new york. >> i don't know what they were thinking. at least they got the beautiful lights here. >> by the way, i'm russ mitchell along with rebecca jarvis. coming up, if you got sticker shock in your last trip to the grocery store, you are not alone. inflation is causing food bills to skyrocket. rebecca is freezing out here. we're going to show you how to save. >> i actually did get sticker shock at the grocery store

recently. also they're the picture of fairy tale happiness now. but did you know that prince william once broke up with kate middleton, and he did it by cell phone? that's just one of the revelations in a new book by best-selling author christopher andersen and we're going to speak with him about this epic love story in just a moment. but first, we're going to turn to betty nguyen at the news desk with a check of the headlines. hey, betty. >> good morning. and good morning to you. there is breaking news from rome where a primitive bomb has been found. the device was left in a grocery bag underneath a seat in an empty train. the mayor says the device could not have exploded. forecasters in california predict today could be the wettest day yet in this pre-christmas rainstorm that just won't quit. los angeles has gotten nearly half a year's rainfall in just a few days. central valley is already seeing significant flooding. >> we're going to get sandbags, put them in front of my doors. >> as part of this storm moves

into the rocky mountains it's bringing huge amounts of snow to western colorado. as much as six to eight feet in the highest mountains. an american envoy says north korea will agree to new u.n. inspections of its nuclear program to make sure it's not making nuclear bomb material. former u.n. ambassador bill richardson spoke in beijing after four days of talks in north korea. senate democrats now say they have enough republican votes to approve the new s.t.a.r.t. arms control treaty with russia. yesterday, democrats fought off efforts to change the treaty. the senate could vote today to cut off debate, leading to a final vote later in the week. first responders who became sick after exposure to dust at ground zero in new york will be on capitol hill to call on congress to pass the 9/11 health bill. a vote could come as early as today. the u.s. census bureau releases 2010 state population totals today. those new census figures will be

used to reapportion the 435 seats in the house. republicans may gain seats because of population shifts in the south and west. and there's a war over dessert. yes, a food fight has broken out between the first lady and former alaska governor sarah palin. cbs news senior white house correspondent bill plante has the latest. good morning, bill. >> reporter: good morning, betty. well, former alaska governor sarah palin seems to love a good shot. whether it's fired from a gun or launched verbally. and now, she has a regular platform from which to launch them. her alaska tv reality show. on last sunday's show she took this shot at a pretty prominent target. >> where's the radio? this is michelle obama who said the other day we should not have dessert. >> reporter: palin was apparently referring to this statement from first lady michelle obama talking about her anti-obesity campaign called let's move. >> the problem is when things

get out of balance. when dessert is practically a food group. >> reporter: the first lady didn't fire back. but a perfectly good return volley would have been, was palin saying let them eat cake? >> i shattered it again! >> reporter: palin has never been at a loss for an opinion on anything, including taking a pot shot at the first lady's campaign to eat healthy. >> take her anti-obesity thing that she's on. she's on this kick, right? what she's telling us is she cannot trust parents to make decisions for their own children, for their own families and what we should eat. just leave us alone. get off our back. >> well, this is so far one-sided and don't hold your breath for any response from the first lady. but think of the possibilities. if there were an on-air shoot-out between a possible contender for her husband's job, and the first lady, that would be reality tv. betty? >> all right. no doubt. cbs' bill plante in washington. thank you, bill.

and we are learning this morning of another british royal wedding in the works. the palace announced that zara phillips, queen elizabeth's granddaughter, is engaged to her longtime boyfriend. daughter of princess anne is 12th in line to the throne. katie couric has a preview of tonight's cbs news "cbs evening news." >> the billionaire's giving pledge. we'll talk with two billionaires who have signed up to give away the majority of their wealth to charity. so that story and more tonight, only on the "cbs evening news." now back to "the early show." >> we want to take you outside now. john marshall is here with another check of the weather from the cold plaza outside. >> betty, we are all bopping up and down here trying to keep warm.

>> narrator: this this weather report sponsored by daisy brand sour cream. a dollop of daisy is the natural way to make good food taste better. >> now here's rebecca. >> thank you, john. coming up next, it is a storybook romance. but some real-life chapters in the tale of william and kate were a bit rocky. and they might even surprise you. the inside scoop on the royal love story when we return. ♪ daisy, do-do a dollop our family-owned company makes daisy... with 100% natural farm-fresh cream. no artificial ingredients. no preservatives. and no added hormones. ♪ better with a dollop here ♪ fresher with a dollop there ♪ ♪ wholesome in every way ♪ daisy, do a dollop ♪ daisy, do-do a dollop

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you may think you've heard everything about the romance of prince william and kate middleton by now, but as always best-selling author christopher andersen has the real inside story. he tells all in his new book "william and kate: a royal love story." great to have you with us. >> great to be here. >> such a good book. >> thank you. >> with so many new details. one of the interesting things is this whole breakup that took place between will and kate in 2007. >> right.

>> explain to the viewer what prompted the breakup. >> i think it will surprise a lot of people who was behind the breakup. william was off to the army in 2007. and he'd been with kate for a number of years, and she was expecting him on valentine's day 2007 to propose. he didn't, because he felt he was 25 years old and perhaps a little too young. but she needed a commitment. >> mm-hmm. >> and so he said, well, he went to his father, prince charles and said, i don't know what to do. what should i do? and prince charles who is very, very fond of kate, said look, it's not fair to keep stringing her along like this. if you're not going to ask her to marry you now, break it off. so kate is working as an accessories buyer at a chain called jigsaw, clothing chain in london and all of a sudden she gets a cell phone call. and it's william, on april 11th 2007, calling to say it was over. she went into a back room, her coworkers heard her very emotional call. so he basically broke off with her over the cell phone. now her reaction, i think, is

the way she handled it really says a lot about the kind of woman she is. she set out, really, to win him back. she lost weight, she worked out, she joined an all-women's rowing team called the sisterhood to race across the english channel. and she dated a lot of really eligible young guys. >> she was out and about, photographed around london. >> with her sister. and they were this kind of glamorous sisters out on the town. and the thing was, william knew a lot of the young men she was now dating, and so he went on sort of a drinking binge for a while. but he got jealous very quickly and within a few weeks, actually, they were back together. >> a few weeks later they're back together. >> yes. >> from the picture you paint, kate middleton's mom has sort of an idea about making this relationship happen. >> look, if you're going to, you know, set your sights on some guy he might as well be the future king of england. i think a lot of mothers felt that way. >> set the bar low. >> yeah. so she, you know, again, carol middleton, kate's mom, is a

remarkable woman. she comes from a family of coal miners. she was a stewardess for british airways. and she took this talent of making children's goodie bags for children's parties and built that into an empire. she made millions basically. sort of the martha stewart of kiddie parties in england and she saw that her daughter was going to go to edinburgh university. but when william decided he was going to go to st. andrews university in scotland, kate's mother, carol, said, well, why don't you go to st. andrews. so she enrolled and they met right away. kate and william, and within a very short period of time they were friends. and it grew from there. >> there's also, in your book, a lot about how princess di's death has sort of plagued prince william. and how he has this recurring nightmare about kate. >> william and harry have always blamed the press for their mother's death. a drunk driver behind the wheel but the paparazzi was chasing diana through the streets of paris. so he's always had this

recurring nightmare that the same fate would befall kate. there are a number of instances that i recount in the book, really harrowing car chases where the british press and the foreign press are pursuing kate through the streets of london. so that was another factor that he was always worried that she would, you know, die in a car crash or be injured in a car crash. now that she's a member of the royal family, or will be very shortly, she's entitled to royal protection. so that problem is not solved but it's a little less. >> yes, and you make that point, that for years, while they've been in this dating relationship, she's had to endure essentially her own lifestyle without the security of the royal family. but now she will be entitled to it. >> exactly. what really makes it remarkable is that she has never -- you won't even find her scowling at the cameras. you know, she has handled it with grace and poise. she's so remarkable, kind of resilient in terms of the press. that's why i think that as they progress and she eventually becomes the queen of england, i think she'll be okay. >> she'll be okay.

and as you also point out, in terms of the uk, and how people perceive her, she's never put a wrong foot forward. >> exactly. and she's done everything that's been asked of her. she let prince philip teach her how to shoot. she charmed charles and camilla, which was very important. even though she's very allergic to horses, seriously allergic, she's gone to all of william's polo matches and stood there on the sidelines. she's made the effort. >> christopher andersen, thank you so much. fantastic book. >> thank you. >> and to read an excerpt from "william and kate" go to our website, earlyshow.cbsnews.com. coming up next, will and kate probably don't spend too much time clipping coupons, but if you're not a royal, we have some great money saving tips for your ever-growing grocery bill. this is the "early show" on cbs. [ yoshioka ] people with sensitive teeth also want white teeth...

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,, the moment you feel run down or achy nip flu-like symptoms in the bud, with oscillococcinum. get oscillo and feel like yourself again. oscillococcinum, nip it in the bud. you may have noticed a trip to the gresry store is taking more out of your wallet. for the first time in two years the cost of food outpaced the cost of transportation and medical care. and experts say next year prices are going to get even worse. so here with some tips to help cut your food bill is sue perry, deputy editor for "shop smart" magazine. the average family of four spent $6,000 this year on groceries? >> yeah. >> how much can we expect it to go up in 2011. >> 4%. get ready for some sticker shock. >> okay. we've got some tips here to help folks out. >> we do. >> you've got some themed products that we see in the grocery stores.

if you buy these you can save money, how? >> not now if you buy these. but after december 25th, you know, when we get into january, the santas and the elves and the snowmen, all that stuff, the stores want that stuff out. you're going to be seeing a savings of 75% to 90% off the same stuff. there's nothing wrong with it. it's not old. if you don't mind drinking your cranberry juice with a santa slapped on it, its fine. >> and you've got hot chocolate, peanuts, tissue paper. >> all kinds of stuff. cookies, all kind of stuff with the santa theme. >> let's talk about meat and how you can save on that? >> what we're going to do is skip the deli. skip the deli case at the supermarket because you can save 20% by heading over to the meat counter, buying a fully cooked ham or chicken breast or turkey breast and make friends with the butcher. because he can slice that nice and thin for you just like cold cuts. >> okay. >> and the other thing, make friends with your butcher because skip the chops, individual chops. buy a whole roast on sale and you can also cut that into chops

for you. >> wow. the butcher is your pal. >> and you can save 60% doing that. >> that's the tip to take away from that one. fish here. >> skip the fresh fish counter at the supermarket. because did you know that all fish, even the fresh fish has probably been frozen? >> i did not know that. so even when they tell you it's fresh fish. >> it has been frozen. go to the frozen case, and you'll save 40% to 50%. it's been flash frozen in freshness. it's perfectly fine. you're going to save yourself a lot of money. >> eggs. people say, what does this have to do with the price of eggs? >> everything's going up. and eggs are a really good, cheap source of protein. but they're still going up. but can you make them cheaper. don't buy the jumbo. you'll spend 30 cents more per 12 ounce carton by buying the numb bow. and did you know that most recipes actually call for large eggs. you don't need the jumbo. and if you got leftover eggs you can freeze them. >> freeze them? >> scramble them a little bit. about three months can you put them in the freezer. pop them out when you want to

make a brownie mix. thaw them, pop it in. >> got some dairy prikts over here. >> you save money on these, as well, and you'll save by buying it in bulk. grate your own cheese. in fact you can great it, and you can save 60% than buying the bagged stuff that's already grated or cubed or whatever for you. and you can freeze it in recipe-size portions so it's good to go for your mac and cheese, or your chili. also, buy your yogurt in bulk. those little cartons of six ounce cartons cost 89 cents. and you can save 20% to 50% by buying the big tub. >> oh, okay. another good tip. my kids eat a lot of this cereal. and the price of this stuff is going up. >> oh, my gosh, i did some checking last night. $6. cereal is up to $4 to $6 a box. >> crazy. >> one way to save is to go to the store brands. all the store brands with a comparable cereal to your favorite is cereal and you're going to save up to 60%. we've done tests at consumer reports. these store brands are every bit as good as the name brands.

>> really? >> but if you can't give up your cheerios or your froot loops, what you can do is wait for the sale cycles. every 12 weeks they go on sale. you'll figure it out at your store. >> very quickly. always hear about coupons. you believe in that? >> i believe in it and here's why. $678 you can save by using your coupons, pulling them out for every shop. can you save that in a year. $678. that's what we figure. >> and online you can find them as well. >> go to coupons.com, couponmom.com, koubencabin.com, costs you nothing to sign up and you can download coupons for your favorite republicans. always use them. keep them in your purse so you always have them. >> i'll keep them in my purse. sue perry. happy holidays to you. >> happy holidays. >> still ahead you may think giving christmas gifts to the animals is for the birds. you'll change your mind after you see the cool presents we have for your pet. this is "the early show" on cbs. [ female announcer ] why watch regular tv when you can experience

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it's 8:25. time for news headlines from cbs 5. i'm juliette goodrich. some oakland police officers are on paid leave after shooting and killing a suspect after a high-speed chase yesterday. a gun was found near the suspect. one of the three surviving passengers in the car is still at large. today a judge in contra costa county will make a key decision in the richmond high school gang-rape case. the assault happened in of course, the 2009 on campus. the judge is expected to decide which of the seven defendants will go on trial and on what charges. a san jose woman is recovering after two pit bulls attacked her outside her home. it happened last night on white sand drive. a neighbor threw rocks at the dogs and they eventually ran off. the woman's injuries are not life-threatening and it's not clear where the dogs went or who owns them. traffic and weather around the bay area in just a moment. stay with us.

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all right. it is looking good across the bay area right now. not as many cars on the road. it is the holiday week. right now westbound 237 we always see slowing coming out of the altamont pass but not the case today. a 13-minute drive time towards

dublin interchange. milpitas a few areas where we are seeing slowing in the bay area. westbound 237 jammed from 880 towards zanker road. that was the scene of an earlier crash. it's cleared for a good hour or so. unfortunately, we are still left with a backup there. but at the bay bridge toll plaza, like i said, no big problems here at all heading into san francisco. that's your traffic. here's tracy with your forecast. hey, thanks, elizabeth. here's a look at our pinpoint doppler. we have very little activity if any and it is mainly in the north bay for now. forecast for today, just because the doppler is not active now does not mean we are out of the woods. we'll keep a chance of showers in the forecast today and a better chance of heavy rainfall later on tonight. more rainfall wednesday, we're drying out thursday and friday. but christmas, more rainfall expected as well as sunday and monday.

♪electronic santa song

we're talking cold in new york city. >> they're cheering to stay warm. >> john says the windchill is like 12 degrees. >> oh, is that all? >> you're from texas, so i see why you're freezing. miss minnesota here. >> yeah. >> what's your secret? >> i think it's great. >> that's not what she said before she walked out. >> i said we figured out how to light a fire for a reason. cold isn't fun for anyone. >> we welcome you back to "the early show." i'm russ mitchell along with rebecca jarvis and betty nguyen. as smartphones get increasingly

complicated. there's another trend in the making. low-tech, inexpensive cell phones for senior citizens. we'll look at some of the best ones out there. >> also you think you're almost done with your holiday shopping, don't you? but did you remember the furry members of your household? adorable. dr. tdebbye turner bell is her with the best presents for your pets. gifts that will surely make some tails wag. >> plus you probably plan to take some perfect pictures around the christmas tree. you know, christmas morning with the family and all that. but if you're worried your pajamas just aren't ready to seen by family and friends, katrina szish is here with some stylish suggestions. >> it's something i really worry about. >> that's my biggest fear, too. >> i stay up at night worrying about it. >> are my pjs up to par first the aforementioned john marshall is here with a final check of the weather. >> i just took my ear muffs off because i couldn't hear but it is freezing cold out here. you know what? we've got people from -- >> hawaii! >> no gloves. no hat. why would you come to new york?

well, i know why, it's the holiday season. but how are you guys dealing with the cold? >> oh, we're fabulous. >> and when are you leaving? that's the question. >> we leave today. >> what part of hawaii?

>> now here's rebecca. we continue our perfect presents this morning with something a bit different. holiday gifts for your pets. and cbs news correspondent and resident veterinarian dr. debbye turner bell is here with some very clear ideas for your furry friends. great to see you. >> good to see you. and it's not that unusual. because almost 90% of pet owners get a gift for their pet at some time. so i've got some great examples. >> let's see if we can make it 100%. you have some technology. >> technology around the collar. right over here on our little pug mannequin, the pink someone called the puppy tweet collar. what it is. it has a motion ee dekz little

bit of technology in it, and every time the puppy moves or barks it sends a tweet to you. so if you want to have communication with your puppy during the day, at least you'll know when they're moving or barking because every time you get a tweet you know that the up. i -- >> that could be a lot of tweets for some people. >> we have a labrador retriever puppy. that could be a lot of tweets. right next to it is the supercollar. check this out. it aa combination collar, and leash. for dog owners, how many times have you had to run around and look for the leash or look for the collar. now it's all right in one. that's from supercollar.com. really convenient thing. and then right here we have the rescue me pet i.d. what you can do, rebecca, you load the information up on that, that's basically a thumb drive with a usb chip, put all that information on it. if your dog gets lost, whoever finds the dog can plug that into their computer and all your name, your address, the veterinarian, if your dog has an allergy or sickness, you can put

that on there and whoever finds the dog will know immediately all the information. >> it is amazing what technology can do these days. >> that's the cool thing. also as a veterinarian recommend the microcrip, because if that falls off you're kind of lost. but right here behind us, i don't want to leave the kitties out. in front we have the desktop cat bed. any cat owner can tell you cats somehow magically know exactly the word you're reading on a page and i have the ability to go sit on your book. so now you can put a little bed right on your desk, give them a place to be near you but not under foot or not under your line of sight. >> right, right. love that. and then also right back here, this is the kook myung ga cat bed, it's just shaped like a tuna can. >> no food in there? >> you can put some in there. >> what i love about it is they can go in and sort of hide. it's a little bit dark and quiet in there. if it's noisy around the house this is a nice little respite. i forgot about one other thing.

under all the pet collars is another thing for our cat. see this cabinet? it's actually a litter box. >> really? so finally a litter box that works in with the home decor. it's the cat bathroom cabinet. you close this door, there's a hole for the cat to go through. but if you have, particularly new yorkers, small apartments, it's a way to camouflage the cat litter box and for it not to look quite so much like what it really is. >> i can see that. especially in a lot of the studio and one bedroom apartments. really handy. in any apartment it looks a little nicer. >> exactly. yes. >> what else do we have? >> clothes. what pet owner doesn't like to put clothes on their dog? this is sean and this is bob. 8-month-old golden lab, of course, who's wearing the resort hooded towel. so typically this seems a little period but this winter when you take your dog out and they get snow and water on them, you really do need to dry them off. this can be personalized, and then you can put their little name on it. >> i love that. >> keeps them warm and dry.

thank you, sean. we'll have you come out. now we're going to bring in emily who is walking with rebecca. i just love these because they're cute. for everybody who likes to dress their dog up. these are thermal jammies for your dog. for older dogs or dogs that don't have much hair, actually a bit of clothing is appropriate for them. >> especially when it's this cold out. >> thank you very much, emily. and then finally we have peter who is bringing in redmond. redmond is wearing the seattle slicker yellow raincoat. there are pet owners out there that will tell you, particularly smaller dogs, redmond probably loves the water. smaller dogs don't like to get wet, therefore they won't go outside when it's raining. they'll go out and do their business outside. >> in london, with that slicker. >> thank you very much, peter. now we've got toys. >> toys. >> got to have toys. this is called the big mouth wild one. i've never seen anything like this. they're just tennis balls to play with your dog and this is

just a cute little holder with a big mouth. just a place to store them. love it. >> that is really cute. also, got a little squeak toy dog meat here. shaped like a t-bone steak. i thought it was really cute. and very quickly this is the bone ball combination, looks like a bone but you can twist it in and it looks like a ball. >> and we didn't forget the birds. >> didn't forget the birds. we have a back pack over here. >> i'll move out of the way. >> this is the pak-o-bird back pack. we do have a bird in here. can you see him? something for the birds? do i have time to mention one more? >> one more. >> one more, okay good because this is -- >> oh, we're out of time? >> okay. this is the pet-glo. you can send in a picture of your pet, and this company will make this beautiful, very colorful customized painting. pet-glo portraits. >> that is beautiful.

dr. debbye turner bell, thank you so much. to find out how to adopt the dogs that you just saw here, for more information on these gifts go to our website, earlyshow.cbsnews.com. now here's russ. ♪ >> we continue our senior moments series this morning in conjunction with our print partners at "usa today." as the oldest baby boomers get ready to turn 65 years old next month, technology may be getting ahead of them. many seniors are searching for easy-to-use, affordable cell phones, and cnet technology contributor katie linendoll is here with her top choices. >> good to see you. >> in general, what do you like about these? >> i think it can be really overwhelming, especially for older individuals who don't want to make that leap for a cell phone. now we're seeing a bombardment of high tech phones and features and apps and it can be very overwhelming. i like these options that are geared more towards older individuals that are easy and simple to use. i want to start off with the jitterbug because this is a very

popular one in the marketplace. what's great about it is, has big, easy-to-use buttons and as soon as you purchase this you can choose a la carte the features that you want right down to text messaging. you don't even have to have the calendar. they make it very easy for you. also no contract. no commitment, no cancellation fees. so if you want to work this month-to-month, no problem. another really great feature is the medication alerts. if you have pills that you have to take daily you can get up to 16 messages and it will call you and say have you taken your medication? press one, press two, press three and then can you print out a report for your caregiver. and one last feature, there's a zero, operator. if at any point the senior gets stuck on a phone and they don't know how to make a phone call or they're a little confused, you hit zero and within five seconds, i tested this 100 times, they probably hate me at customer service, 24 hour support, they will help you out. it's a really nice little add-on. >> and no contract involved. >> i think that's huge. when you make that two-year commitment, maybe they don't even want a cell phone. maybe it's something you want to

try out. i think that's a nice little add-on >> 99 bucks? >> it's like a $35 activation fee. and really nice little option to have, you know, again no commitment. >> let's move on. this has big numbers on it. >> this is the just-5. this one is really cool because, again, geared toward older individuals because it has numbers. us also has voice confirm. so when you're dealing. >> 5, 5, 5. it will speak it out for you. if you have visual cues it makes it very easy to map out the numbers. there's no thrills involved here. it is what it is which is a great phone. on the back, this s.o.s. feature. you can pre-program in up to five numbers. what's really cool about that, in case of an imagine or if you're in panic mode you can actually hit this button, it will send off a siren, and then it automatically starts texting those five contact individuals until it reaches somebody. so if you have somebody that you are a little worried about and is looking for a great new first cell phone this is a nice option. >> again, this is called the

just five. >> it works on at&t and t-mobile. so pop in a sim card. prices vary and they have individual plans, as well. >> somebody's calling you there. >> i know. somebody got me number. which is kind of awesome. kid doughs to you. >> talk about these two over here. this is a little more advanced, correct? >> a little more advanced. sometimes we have people that are in between. oh, my gosh, i don't want these big buttons. it's kind of obvious this is made for a senior citizen. the ones that are good is the pantech ease and the samsung haven. if you want a camera in there, if you want different features that you can't get on ones that are geared specifically toward older individuals. but it's so funny, russ, i have to tell you, i talked to so many individuals who are like droids, iphones, you'd be surprised how many older individuals really can get by with these. they think they're easy. >> that my next question to you. let's say somebody gets grandma or grandpa an iphone or droid.

they can be complicated. is there a way to turn off any of these features you don't use or buy one that's less expensive? >> we go back to something like the jitterbug. these a la carte features that you can choose from the beginning is a huge point, and the plans, too. we talk about the basic plans. when you're purchasing a phone ask if there's a senior plan. ask if you can cheese those features a la carte. most of the plans start about $29.99. but if you want to get something month sto month with no commitment, make sure to note that up front. >> katie linendoll, thanks very much. the stomach growling there would be the animals making noise. i want the folks to know that. >> the halls are decorated with boughs of holly and you've hung your stockings by the chip think with care. but what about your pajamas? here with some stylish choices to wear while waiting for santa is "early" show style contributor katrina szish. >> good morning, rebecca. >> good morning. christmas morning, great time for the family. and people come out in their pajamas and they often take

photos and you brought along some really fun photos. >> these are fun photos. there's so many options out there. but people just love to take those pictures and they're all wearing matching pajamas. they can make for memorable or perhaps awkward photos. we thought this would be a little inspiration for perhaps what not to do. >> like for example wear clothing to the photo ceremony. >> that's always a good thing to do. we've got great options if you don't want to be matchy matchy. and our first look is our family look. and our family is anything but matchy matchy. instead we've tried to coordinate colors. so first we have obsessle yeah, an amazing and adorable, janie and jack velour onesie. it has gingerbread embroidered on it. the santa hat from gymboree and a teddy bear is definitely important. an maggie we have lauren by ralph lauren holiday party pajama set. it's made of thermal so it's cozy. sort of a feminine twist on the classic long john. then we added a cozy sweater.

to kind of keep her warm while she's opening christmas presents. on brant we went for the classic plaid pajama bottoms but we mixed it up a little bit and added a t-shirt and layered a henley on top and finished with great shearling slippers from zappos.com. >> that is really, really cute. >> i love it. i notice cecilia will look good no matter what she's wearing. >> if plaid and thermal isn't your thing, there are plenty kind of silky and satiny options out there but are still festive and holiday appropriate. jacqui is wearing one of them. an oscar de la renta sleep shirt and what she has in her hand is the perfect accessory and perfect christmas gift. this is muffin, a 6-week-old german shepherd mix. she's looking for a home for the holidays and she's available for adongs at the new york ac shelter. >> she's adorable. i love that little ribbon on her neck. >> what a sweetheart. >> that's a beautiful silk -- >> exactly.

the oscar de la renta gown $64. and we've got cute little slippers, too. >> thank you, jacqui and puppy, as well. >> okay. now also, for kids, it's pretty much impossible for them not to look cute during the holidays. but we have some options that will make them look even cuter if you can believe it. now first of all, we have on meg our teen all about mixing and matching. so we added some cute shorts here from target. and they're only $8. and then we took the top from one pajama set, mixed it in, added a hoodie and cute little slipper socks. now on brady, he's got the classic footed onesie pajama. i love this one. >> i love it, too. >> and of course the long stocking cap is always a hit. >> yes. >> and it keeps him cozy and warm. >> and then on amy, we've got a great carter's little sleep shirt and of course the bow to match and the festive fuzzy slippers. >> the kids are all so precious. >> thank you, guys. we really appreciate it. >> you guys look great.

okay. now not every christmas morning is about the kids if you can believe it or not. it's kind of grown-ups only beneath the mistletoe, choose something that's a little more grown-up. >> and here we have it. >> we have our romantic couple. on blair, she's looking very elegant in her brulee chem he's. you can go for more elegant colors like the black and cream. and we kept it fun with the fuzzy slippers. got to keep some holiday spirit. and then on charles he proves that flannel can still be dashing and dapper. and we have -- we chose shades of gray for this. because it's a little more subdued and a little more elegant. this flannel robe is from target, it's $20. and we kept the entire thing really sleek with black underpinnings. so you can see that whether they're alone or they're together come on back together romantic couple, they look incredibly elegant. and i think one of the most important things about christmas morning is that you have fun. >> yes. >> but you still will be photos taken and you will see them again. they will resurface.

they might even be sent out in your christmas card so you want to keep everybody looking festive and happy. >> and they all look festive. >> oh, look. >> oh, it's sicilia. >> everyone, thank you so much to all of our models. everyone's adorable. cecilia, adorable little you. thank you for being with us. katrina, thanks very much. and for more on these holiday looks go to our website, earlyshow.cbsnews.com. we,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

♪ folks out shopping already. >> the last-minute rush. >> we'll be joining very shortly. all this week we're looking at some of the impressive holiday light displays our affiliates and facebook friends have been telling us about. let's begin out west with this amazing light snow in reno, nevada, sent to us by our

affiliate ktvn, jeff kendell's house. it has 20,000 lights choreographed to the trans-siberian's "wizards in winter." let's take a listen. ♪ yeah. >> how do they do that? >> i don't know. but he won't say how much it costs, but five figures to set this up. 400 hours to set up this impressive display. >> that's a sensation there. >> they doubled it since 2007. in '07 it was 10,000 lights. now 20,000 lights. >> hard core. big time. >> we're going to move east now to broken arrow, oklahoma. this is the house of kevin and roberta johnson, courtesy of our friends at tulsa affiliate kotv. the couple begins working on the display the day after thanksgiving. it takes them 175 hours, and it features 60,000 lights, a candy cane lane, and a train. and the home is so popular it's the first residential toys or tots drop-off site in oklahoma, and they've already collected,

get this you guys, this is a great number 1,700 toys. >> that's terrific. >> really. i love how these houses, they're not only a wonderful thing to see, but they're also in so many cases, doing good for the community, too. >> i always wonder, it looks so great outside. is it really that decorated on the inside? did they forget about -- >> i wonder. >> the train, that's it. >> if you think your house or home is worthy of national recognition, tell us about it on our facebook page and on friday we're going to be live at the scene of our final fantastic light display. there was always a guy on my block growing up, mr. jones, who had the coolest light display every year. and the rest of us were put to shame. >> i love those memories of visiting the houses in the neighborhood that have the most lights. every year we did that as a family. it was always so fun. >> we'd take our kids out. and i would enjoy it, too, with my wife. that time of the year, and the energy consumption was up. >> it's a fun time. springtime rolls around, the lights are still up. you notice that? >> that is true.

>> you have to find a warm day in january to take them off. >> we'll do this again tomorrow. hope you have a wonderful day. >> we'll do this again tomorrow. hope you have a wonderful day. [ steve ] i was registering my citi card for the holiday sweepstakes, when i got this toy from my colleague in japan. turns out robosan was the hottest toy of the year. [ news tv ] robosan 4000 is sold out across the country. [ steve ] i was going to sell it online and make a fortune. but then, i won a $1,000 prepaid card just because i used my citi card. so i made a decision, if citi could surprise me, why not do the same for someone else? [ male announcer ] register and use your card for a chance to win a prepaid card worth up to $10,000. what's your story? citi can help you write it. this holiday season, chevy's giving you more. like a 100,000 mile/5-year powertrain warranty. that's 40,000 miles more than ford.

and now we're giving you our best offer of the year. 0% apr financing... plus $1,500 holiday allowance... plus no monthly payments until spring. on most chevy models. but hurry, because your chance to get our best offer of the season ends soon. see your local chevy dealer now.

it's 7:25. time for news headlines from cbs -- it is 8:55. i'm sydnie kohara with your cbs 5 headlines. the future of the potrero power plant will be decided today. san francisco official will announce that it will be shut down january 1. it's the last fossil fuel power plant in san francisco, aand for this 45 years. california's next governor is already taking steps to slash the budget. jerry brown has eliminated the office that oversaw how federal stimulus money is spent in california. the position was created less than a year ago. brown says the move will save more than $700,000. and the countdown to christmas is on and for the first time ever you will be able to shop at toys 'r us around the clock.

stores will stay open for three days. they will open at 6 a.m. today closing at 10:00 christmas receive. traffic and weather around the bay area coming right up. stay with us. it's not too well done? nope. but it is a job well done. what are you reading, sweetie? her diary. when you're done, i'd love some feedback. sure. your mom and i read that thing cover-to-cover. loved it. thanks. would you mind if i cut the lawn this weekend? only if you let me talk to your mother on the phone for hours on end. done. [ male announcer ] u-verse brings peace to the family. at&t u-verse lets you record four shows at once from any room and play them back on any tv. now get up to $300 back in promotion cards. at&t. rethink possible.

all right. let's go out to the bay bridge

toll plaza. delays are minimal. metering lights are on but it's a nice drive into san francisco right now. holiday light has been so far -- it was like this yesterday, as well. we still have a high wind advisory in effect. are you heading into san francisco, this is where there is a problem, southbound junipero serra, brotherhood way, a bad accident involving someone who had to be removed from the vehicle. emergency crews are temporarily blocking all lanes actually of southbound junipero serra so they can clear the scene but traffic is stacked up on 19th avenue and westbound 4 better than usual but a little sluggish past a street. that's your traffic. here's tracy with your forecast. hey, thanks, elizabeth. ocean beach, how's it looking on the coast? well, full of gray. plenty of gray skies out there because we have a whole lot of clouds, showers will remain in the forecast for the morning and the afternoon. but a better chance of rainfall, heavy rainfall, later on tonight. more rain likely wednesday, drying out thursday and friday, and christmas another round of showers as well as sunday and monday.