back now with more of "today" on this tuesday morning. it's the 21st day of february 2012. it is fat tuesday, by the way, for all of you revellers out there. it's clear our nice big crowd this morning is in a party mood. we're glad they have extended the weekend a little bit to be here on our plaza blowing kisses to us all. i'm ann curry along with david gregory in for matt, al roker and savannah guthrie this morning. coming up, consumers are feeling the pinch when it comes to gas prices. >> if you will be planning a summer road trip expect to pay

more at the pump. that's the headline. gas prices predicted to soar in the coming months. they are up 25 cents in less than two months. not only bad for drivers. of course it could affect the fragile economy if you think about the movement of goods. it could drive up prices. this is something they are looking at at the white house in terms of economic recovery. >> you may be paying for more gas but there are ways to save this february. everything from the popular electronic tablets to home furnishings, ski vacations, even ch chocolate! >> chocolate. >> we'll show you how to get sweet deals in "today's money". >> we have health news ahead. we'll look at how hormones affect a woman's health. there are a range of hormones in the body to regulate sleep to weight to mood. we'll regulate the ones that work and the roles they play. how to keep them in balance.

>> i'll take it. >> they like it. >> lots to learn. meantime let's go inside for a check of the top stories from natalie morales. >> good morning, ann and everyone. rising gas prices are hurting more than motorists. economists are warning they threaten the recent improvements in the economy. miguel almaguer is in los angeles for us this morning. good morning. >> reporter: natalie, good morning. the price for premium has already topped $5 a gallon. while this gas station isn't necessarily the norm, the prices could be come summer. across california, sticker shot at the pump. >> $96.92. >> reporter: the golden state putting drivers in the red. the statewide average here, $4.03 a gallon a bargain compared to this gas station where premium tops $5. >> it's going to hurt. it's going to be painful. >> reporter: this is a record. gas prices have never been so high so early in the year.

>> it impacts everything. it impacts how much cheerios costs, how much you pay for the 7-11 hot dog. >> reporter: california isn't the only state being drained at the pump. new york is closing in on $4 a gallon. the midwest hovering near $3.50. washington state, $3.64. wyoming is the cheapest at $3.03 while hawaii is the most expensive at $4.23. by april, experts say the national average could top $4.25. by summer some cities will see $5 a gallon. analysts say three reasons are driving the skyrocketing price for gas. >> the perfect storm, the juggernaut we are facing in rising gas prices is, one, the geopolitical issues in iran and elsewhere. the second would be investors and speculators who are clearly trying to buy oil and own it. third would be a number of refinery closings. >> reporter: adding to the problems, a fire at a washington

state refinery friday. a key west coast supplier that drove up prices overnight. fed ex driver jermaine stevenson rethinking how to get to work. >> i'll probably ride my bike to work. >> reporter: meantime in san diego, gas station attendants have been assaulted verbally and physically because of the pinch at the pump. >> somebody was throwing cans of soda at the person, you know, changing the sign. >> reporter: gas prices taking a toll now and predicted to soar to record highs come summer. rising gas prices translate well beyond the pump. you will pay more for food because of shipping costs and an airline ticket's cost will spike. it is estimated americans spend 8.4% of their budgets on gas alone. >> thank you, miguel. greece has been thrown a life preserver as european union

officials reached an agreement to give greece more than $170 billion in bailout loans in an effort to lower the country's debt by 2020. details are still being hammered out this morning following marathon overnight negotiations. about 2,500 pastors are joining roman catholic leaders who oppose the president's birth control rule. under a compromise, insurers rather than religious institutions would provide birth control coverage to employees. opponents say it still infringes on religious freedom. mark kelly is writing a children's book about a little mouse that goes to space. "mousetronaut" will be published this school and is inspire bid mice taken to space on kelly's first shuttle mission. he collaborated with his wife on a memoir with his wife about the shooting. it's a bird, a plane. no, it's super man. he's apparently lost in costa

rica. good thing he gets this nice lady to tell him the way to san jose. the video has spawned dozens of copy cats trying it from the back seat as well. we don't recommend you try it at home. it's funny to watch. six minutes past the hour. let's go out to ann and david. >> it's safer to make a funny face and get that on the internet. >> don't try that at home. do try this weather though. it will be nice, al. >> o yh, yes. it inspires singing. where are you from? >> rochester, michigan. let's check it out right now, show you what we've got. a big plume of moisture taking dead aim on the pacific north west. a lot of heavy rain in the next 24 hours. they have flood watches from bellingham to olympia. we are looking at avalanche

warnings from the olympics into the cascades because of the heavy rain and snow. rainfall amounts, next 24 hours, we are talking anywhere from two to seven inches of rain locally. >> good morning. the temperatures will be a little above average this afternoon. it will be around 50 and we have a slight chance for rain shower this afternoon. and that's your latest weather. savannah? al, thanks. this morning on today's health how hormones affect your body. they regulate your libido to your sleep cycle so how do you

keep them in balance? dr. keri peterson joins us. good morning. >> good morning. >> we have a lot to cover here. >> let's do it. >> what are hormones? >> hormones are chemical messengers made in one part of the body. they send a signal to another part of the body to perform a function. >> let's start with the brain. four different areas of the body. the first one is oxytocin, the love hormone. >> it's the feel-good hormone. goes up when you touch a friend or a partner. it lowers stress, heightens sex drive, allows you to create a bond and plays a role in reproduction during childbirth, facilitates labor and helps with breastfeeding. >> another hormone in the brain is cortisol. too much is not good. >> it's released on a 24-hour cycle. goes down in the night, up in the morning.

what it serves to do is when we feel a threat, like we are in danger we get a burst of cortisol for a burst of energy to help us survive and it should go back to normal. psychological stress causes it to go up. if you are chronically under stress your cortisol is elevated. that causes problems over time. it hurts us. elevates blood pressure, blood sugar and depresses the immune system. manage your stress. >> if you can. mel t melatoni. >> it regulates the sleep cycle. it helps your circadian rhythm. it starts when the sun goes down and the peak performance is when it's dark out. at night we watch tv, we're on the computer. these are light-emitting devices which impact optimal melatonin

production. we recommend you turn these devices off a few hours before bedtime. dim the lights in the living room. get ready for bed and in the bedroom keep it dark. >> should you wear a silky mask? >> yes. >> in the stomach there are two hunger hormones. >> leptin and grelin which is produced in the pancreas and the stomach. this increases hunger. le leptin comes from the fat cells and suppresses appetite. they are both being studied for obesity. >> i heard sugars affect leptin which make you hungrier. >> right. sucrose can cause resistance to leptin. sleep deprivation lowers leptin levels. if you didn't get a good night's

sleep you're hungrier the next day. >> and sleep deprivation can lead to weight gain. serotonin. >> it contributes to mood and sexual behavior. researchers believe that a glitch in the serotonin can lead to depression. >> the next area is thyroid. this can really affect a woman's health. >> it controls temperature regulation and metabolism. if it's too low it is hypothyroidism causing weight gain. these are auto immune conditions. if you have the symptoms you should bring it to your doctor's attention. if you have a family history, get it checked. >> lastly, a woman's ovaries. estrogen and progesterone.

>> this controls the menstrual cycle and ovulation. you may be familiar with birth control which prevents ovulation and pregnancy. but estrogen can be impacted by weight gain as well and also chronic stress. they can lead to problems with fertility. >> and the last one is testosterone. women have it, too. >> we make 10% of what men make. it controls the same functions -- libido, muscle mass and bone density. if it's too high you get excessive facial hair growth and acne. if you have those symptoms call your doctor. >> thank you so much. up next from home furnishings and coats to ski vacations, february is the best time to do some smart shopping. later, if you're shopping for a new car, we have tips to avoid buyer's remorse. first, these messages. -my toes know. -my shoulders know. [ female announcer ] do you know what a difference dove nourishment can make? my hips, they know. my shins, they get it.

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personal finance expert and host of financially fit on yahoo, farnoosh, good to see you. >> good to see you, al. >> what does it take to figure out the deals you will be looking for? >> you want to look at seasonality, the temperatures have been warm for february. and this is the type of -- for some industries february is a slow month. you may see them desperate to sell items, push inventory out of the stores. >> the hottest thing right now is the ipad. tablets are big. are we looking at price breaks? >> in some cases we are. the reason is because apple is rumored to announce the ipad 3 in march. if that's true retailers will reduce prices of the ipad 2 between now and march. we are already seeing it in stores in the midwest. many stores slashed the ipad 2

price $70 bucks to $429. it will be good until february 25. if you are looking for this, you may want to make a trip to the midwest and buy this at a meijer store. >> the announcement coming in early march? >> march 7 is the earliest i have heard. you never know. >> talk about a mild winter throughout much of the country. >> yeah. >> we can expect winter clothes to be on sale. >> winter clothes, parkas, ski clothes. i bought a winter coat in november and now the same coat in my size, my color is 50% off. february is a good time always to stock up on seasonal items. this month you are seeing better inventory because of the weather. >> for example, nordstrom's. >> eddie bauer for men's coats. >> buy a size up for the kids and put it away. >> why not? if this is a need for the future, stock up now.

>> ski vacations. i was surprised to see it. >> this is typical ski season. why reduce prices? again because of the temperature, slopes are seeing low foot traffic. so places like utah and colorado, reducing prices. i like to go to jetsetter.com, sneakaway.com for a last-minute deal. and snowbird utah. if you want to travel and ski during the earlier part of the week, you will see reduced prices. about $99 per ski package. if you really want to get a better deal on ski packages, shop online before you go to the ski resort or go to area ski shops around the mountain area because a lot of times they have discounts of so% to 20% off. >> this is a good time to make over your home and get new furniture. >> two reasons. february is typically when the home furnishing stores see the new inventory come in.

the old inventory has to go. also, february is the slowest month for home sales in the entire year. people are staying home thinking, i could use a new couch or carpeting. you see pottery barn and macy's slash prices on home furniture, bedroom furniture and things like that. >> and this is a good time for a deal on chocolate. >> chocolate! >> oh, how nice. >> if you can get over the heart-shaped packaging this is the time to buy chocolate. this was 50% off at a local drugstore. this is for you. >> oh, thank you. >> you can buy it, freeze it or use it as ingredients for baked goods. ghirardelli.com and godiva, 50 to 60% off online. >> february is a good time to work out the arms. farnoosh bringing the gun show. bang, boom, yeah! that's what i'm talking about. >> thank you. >> still ahead, foie gras for

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like many chefs today, i feel the best approach to food is to keep it whole for better nutrition. and that's what they do with great grains cereal. see the seam on the wheat grain? same as on the flake. because great grains steams and bakes the actual whole grain. now check out the other guy's flake. hello, no seam. because it's more processed. now, which do you suppose has better nutrition for you? mmm. great grains. the whole whole grain cereal. your doctor will say get smart about your weight. that's why there's new glucerna hunger smart shakes. they have carb steady, with carbs that digest slowly to help minimize blood sugar spikes. [ male announcer ] new glucerna hunger smart. a smart way to help manage hunger and diabetes.

speaking of "the biggest loser" we want to say hello to the latest contestant to have the scales tip against him on "the biggest loser." roy, good morning. >> good morning. >> you started off your journey at 306 pounds. you lost 52 pounds there. how much have you lost since then? >> another 25. >> terrific. >> that's fantastic. >> tell us about your at-home regimen? as you told us before the commercial you said you ran a 5-k and won. >> the first one in 27 years. i came in first place. >> congratulations. >> i have to be honest. think i was the only entry in my age group. >> doesn't matter. >> first place is first place. >> but i finished and that's important. >> you say there is a whole thing about kids and obesity. >> it's an epidemic.

because i relate well to kids, for some reason. >> a red suit on you may look good this time of year. >> yeah. so i really have tried to appeal to the younger people and i led for years kids into high adventure programs. ones that the parents would be interested in, too. i try to get them together in a way and really extreme high adventure so they can earn bragging rights for life. >> and you recently snow boarded? >> yes. my behind is still sore. >> do you think you will do it again? >> no doubt about it. i want to get better. >> i bet the ranger got a laugh out of that. >> yes. the trainers say you don't learn from a relative or a friend or they won't be a relative or friend for long. >> that's true. good for you, roy. keep up the good work. >> one more message if i may. >> real quick. >> you know, i am watching and

if you're not good, i will know it. i'll see it. >> oh! >> better be good. >> ho, ho, ho! >> there you go. coming to a mall near you. >> "the biggest loser" airs at 8:00/7:00 central on nbc. >> and still ahead, your local news and weather. to walk in your house and flip on your lights. [ brad ] at ge we build turbines that power the world. they go into power plants which take some form of energy, harness it, and turn it into more efficient electricity. [ ron ] when i was a kid i wanted to work with my hands, that was my thing. i really enjoy building turbines. it's nice to know that what you're building is gonna do something for the world. when people think of ge, they typically don't think about beer. a lot of people may not realize that the power needed to keep their budweiser cold and even to make their beer comes from turbines made right here. wait, so you guys make the beer? no, we make the power that makes the beer. so without you there'd be no bud? that's right. well, we like you. [ laughter ] ♪ [ laughter ] honestly, i'm having a little

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>> live, local, latebreaking. this is a wbal-tv 11 news update. >> as you head through the rest of the morning into the afternoon, there is a raid in the mountains that will work its way towards baltimore. high temperatures in the upper 40's and low 50s. slight chance for

my feeling is your job is to get somebody -- >> i can't lie to you. that's 10% -- >> you never want to do something to keep me from taking proper medicine or things like that. but if you say, i think you have the fortitude to beat this but you know clinically it's impossible that's okay. that's a lie. >> uh you may recognize today's professionals, donny deutsch, dr. nancy snyderman and star jones deciding whether it's okay for a doctor to sugar coat the truth. star looks out of it. if the prognosis could help a patient feel better. they are back for another round of hot topics tomorrow on "today." >> all right. meanwhile coming up in this half

hour, getting a deal on your wheels. buying a car can be one of life's biggest purchases few but you could be taken for a ride. we have tips to help you avoid buyer's remorse which a lot of people feel when they purchase a car. >> exactly. we can't complain about the winter we are having in the u.s. in europe it's a different story. eastern europe had brutal weather that's literally cut off entire towns. why is it happening and is it expected to end any time soon? we'll have the latest on the story. and today is fat tuesday, the last hurrah before lent begins tomorrow on ash wednesday. to mark the occasion we are preparing a feast with french flair in "today's kitchen." >> looks good, too. >> delicious. looks like cassoulet. first, al roker has a check of the weather. >> i love it when you speak

french. let's take a look and see what's happening for the afternoon. we are looking for temperatures in the 20s and 30s in new england. also around the great lakes. we've got 20s in the central rockies. plenty of sunshine in new england. heavy rain and wind in the pacific northwest with heavy mountain snows. plenty of sunshine through the southern california area into texas. look for sunshine tomorrow into the southeast. showers and thunderstorms along the gulf. sunny and mild through the southwest. showers through the upper ohio river >> good morning. we're off to a chilly start. the clouds will be thickening up. we have a chance for a rain shower t

and that's your latest weather. >> al, thanks. up next, putting you in the driver's seat when you do some car shopping coming up right after this. ♪ my heart skips a beat ♪ my heart skips a beat ♪ my heart is playing tricks on me ♪ [ female announcer ] introducing new special k granola bars. ♪ i can't break through with 4 grams of protein. and 4 grams of fiber. finally, a granola bar that makes your heart skip a beat. a snack that loves you back. what will you gain when you lose? ♪ ...skips a beat look at me: one. we're a salty sweet snack. two. salty sweet snacks get eaten. and three. i'd prefer her versus "hungry eyes" over here... ♪ i've got hungry eyes

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this morning on "today's consumer," buying a car with no regrets. it is a big investment and very often people drive off the lot with buyer's remorse. here with us is lisa lee freeman. >> good morning. >> we know buying a car is a huge investment. people walk off the lot with buyer's remorse often. you did a survey. >> we surveyed thousands of readers and also asked experts at the test track. consumer reports tests cars every year and they buy them. they have learned pretty much all the lessons, experienced the regrets. we asked our readers to share their mistakes so you can learn from their mistakes. >> let's get to them. one of the biggest mistakes people make is neglecting to do a thorough test drive. they may take a quickie around the block. really important to know what you are buying. >> go to the dealership.

take you for a ride locally on the streepts and you don't get a feel for the car. you have to go on the highway. see if the car has pick up and go. you want to do hard braking. feel if the car is lurching, feels secure and feel whether the seats are comfortable. you probably want to be out there for 30 minutes if you can do it. bring the kids along. if you have car seats, bring those. not all car seats fit all cars. you want to see if you can get it in, is it easy, does it take up too much room? make sure the kids can look out from the back seat. they will get bored, nauseous. it will be terrible. bring your kids. >> test every little feature. i learned that the hard way. you never know. also people tend to skip options to save money and they often regret it. they want the little bells and whistles. >> not only do people want to save money, they're in a rush. maybe you crashed your car and you need a new one or you want

instant gratification so you buy whatever they have on the lot without the options. figure out what are the options you must have. for me, heated seats. >> cup holders. lots of them. >> make sure you get them. $1,000 for an extra isn't necessarily that much money when you look at it over the course of the loan. it bhmay be less than a dollar day. don't be stingy with the features. if you want a feature, get it! >> go for it. >> people are also having cars much longer. they are hanging on to them. don't have a car you will hang onto with a feature you really want that you don't have. >> another thing is dealerships push extended warrantees and consumers are overwhelmed, buying a car and they sign up for it and regret it. when is it a good idea and when is it not? >> it seems like a logical thing

to do. it's a big investment. this is an insurance policy. the dealers push hard and a lot of people regret buying them because they never use them or the warrantee costs more than the repairs they have done. you're better off putting the money aside you would use to pay for the warrantee and set it aside for a fund in case you get a problem down the road. that's really important to do that. number one, buy a reliable car to begin with. >> very important. in order to do that one of the things is to make sure you do your homework first. that's important. you say to make sure you shop online. really know everything that comes with the car and what it's going for online. >> find out the options. also when you do your homework one thing you need to find out about is not just going online but also going to a bank. find out what loan you qualify for. a lot of times you get to the dealer and they may bump up the rate beyond what you qualify

for. do your homework before you step into the dealership and make sure you are getting the best deal possible. >> make sure you do your research. when you have the research in hand one of the things you say is don't show all your cards. don't show your hand all at once to the dealer. >> right. one of the other things is to find out if you have a trade-in, find out the value before you go to the dealer and don't mention it. negotiate the price of the car, not the price of the car with the trade-in, loan, all that. negotiate one thing at a time. that's really important. >> all right. lisa lee freeman, great advice. thank you so much. >> you're welcome. >> learned a lot. up next, much of europe is in a dangerous deep freeze with some towns cut off. we'll have the latest on condition there is after these messages. achoo! [ male announcer ] but when she used tissues, she went crazy wild. tissue after tissue, she always took a ton.

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♪ would you like 50% more cash? no! but it's more money. [ male announcer ] the new capital one cash rewards card. the card for people who want 50% more cash. what's in your wallet? woah! [ giggles ] across the u.s. it's been one of the mildest winters in decades but it is a much different story in europe where huge snowstorms and sub zero temperatures have claimed more than 600 lives. nbc's michelle kosinski is in switzerland this morning with more on this deep freeze. good morning to you.

>> reporter: hey, savannah. the beginning of the season the alps were saying what are we going to do, where is the snow? that was soon followed by 18 feet in some areas, cutting off entire towns. now that the temperature is going up a little bit it's making the avalanche and flooding risk higher. this is the second brutal winter for europe in a row. this winter blasted europe like a blow torch of cold. just as swaths of the continent were brought to an icy stillness the images captured seem other worldly. waves on the black sea frozen in motion. reverse. seas walkable. streets skatable. eastern europe has endured record-breaking cold, more snow than anyone can remember. up to the rooftops. hundreds of people have died. tens of thousands cut off by impassable roads. in kosovo an avalanche killed

all but a 5-year-old girl in a family of nine. she was beneath snow for more than ten hours. >> europe is the victim of a high latitude block where if the weather system in the upper levels of the atmosphere is set up over the northern latitudes somebody has to pay for what would be normally cold weather there farther south. >> reporter: the deep freeze extends east to china where the waterfalls stopped falling. in colorful tibet, whiteout. and west, rome saw its first snowfall in 26 years. the colosseum coated. babbling fountains of milan stunned silent. germany and the ski towns of austria, switzerland, france relish snow, just not upwards of a dozen feet all of a sudden where avalanches claimed the lives of more than a dozen people. on friday, the prince of the netherlands, son of the queen, was trapped in an avalanche skiing in austria. the father of two is in stable but life-threatening condition.

now finally, temperatures are breaking, but so is ice. not a good thing in belgrade this week. on the danube, giant chunks broke apart, crushing and sinking boats. people beaten by the season tried to save their spring past time, but the force of winter won again. the u.s. military has just stepped in to help montenegro move people out and critical supplies in to some of their towns. meteorologists say it looks like warm temperatures are headed to europe for maybe an early spring. the problem is with all the snow much of the heat will be reflected instead of absorbed. savannah? >> michelle kosinski, it looks so pretty. causing a lot of havoc there. thank you. up next, we are going to put the fat in fat tuesday in "today's kitchen." first, this is "today" on nbc.

this morning in "today's kitchen" what's on the menu? a fat tuesday feast with a french flair. tate, chef, good to see you. >> happy fat tuesday to you. >> you're going to start off by putting some fat in there. pbj and foie gras sandwich? >> that's phat with a p-h. this is a pecan butter. little bit sweeter with more toast to it and a fig jelly. the foie gras here and a little bit of brioche. you can also use texas toast. a little bit of a sear and we have the sandwiches here with the foie and a great way to finish it is with maldron sea salt. gives it a little bit of crunch,

salt. delicious. >> that's really good. >> it's not just for breakfast anymore. >> no, it's not. >> fantastic. >> now a sausage and duck cassoulet. >> this is our most popular item. we are at 11,000 feet up on the mountain. we bring it up and cook it at that altitude. we cook it low and slow because of where we are. we have beautiful white beans you soak in water first. >> right. >> we have them hot in the pan. we need to add the veal stock to this. >> all right. >> a little bit of our tomato paste. >> why tomato paste? >> you need a little bit of acid in it. the fruitiness that really makes the beans pop, the veal stock pop, everything else. for the sausage, up in telluride we use elk sausage that we make there or buy from some of the local guys. because it's fat tuesday we are using andouille sausage.

lamb sausage works just as well, like a megrgues is. go ahead and grab that. >> is that duck? >> it's a confit of duck leg which we cooked low and slow at 200 degrees. a lot of herbs in it. confit, as you know, means "with fat" or "low calorie" in french. the confit is a way to preserve the meat. >> okay. >> as part of of the cassoulet and the beans we have a mirepoix, the holy trinity of cooking. celery, onions and carrots. actually a little bit of garlic in this as well. we'll get a nice brown on these veggies here. then we'll add a little bit of red wine and let it deglaze. >> nice. >> this is the finished beans.

this is what you end up with. the way we build this is add the confit into there. if you can spoon that in and then i will add -- >> cover it up. >> we'll also add the sausage right in there. and to finish it, we'll bake it in the oven. it doesn't need much time. >> you have bread crumbs. this is panko. the japanese bread crumbs. we have thyme, rosemary, parsley and butter to make it crisp up golden. >> and you put it in for how long? >> pop it in the oven for 15 minutes maybe. we end up with a beautiful stew, the cassoulet. and this is a stick to your bones item. >> all right. >> what do you think? >> wow. >> the duck bone pulls right out of there. >> wow. that's amazing. >> to finish it off we decided because it's fat tuesday to do

beignets which are perfect. >> hey! >> you came in time for the beignets. >> they come for the show, they stay for the beignet. between the foie gras, pbj and cassoulet, have a defibrillator. >> happy fat tuesday. >> thank you so much. >> great to be here. >> all right. still ahead from nbc's hit show "parenthood, we have actor sam yager. >> and sara hanes goes to work as a butcher, believe it or not. >> after your local news and weather. [ male announcer ] at pepperidge farm,

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