good morning. high-stakes push. despite growing opposition from both republicans and democrats, president obama gets set to make his case for health care reform in a prime-time appearance. is this the issue that will make or break his presidency? more questions. investigators ask for another interview with the doctor who was with michael jackson when he died. this morning, the response from dr. conrad murray's attorney, amid new reports of the pop star's bizarre behavior and demands in the weeks before his death. and daring to dream. singing sensation susan boyle speaks for the first time about

her sudden rise to fame, and how it led to five days in a mental health clinic. >> some people are exhausted. >> meredith's exclusive interview today, wednesday, july >> meredith's exclusive interview today, wednesday, july 22nd, 2009. captions paid for by nbc-universal television and good morning. welcome to "today" on a wednesday morning. i'm matt lauer. >> you really are. how are you? >> good to see you. how was your weekend? >> very nice. very nice. nice to have you back. >> good to be back. >> when you left the preside was talking health care reform. he is still talking reform. it's becoming a real test for his administration. >> everywhere he goes this is the subject he's talking about. for the better part of a week now, of course he focused on this with your interview with him there at the white house earlier in the week. tonight he's going to address the nation again on this subject, as more and more people

are saying that his deadline, the one that he set for passing reform is probably unattainable. we'll have more on that in a moment and talk with the republican senator who suggests that defeat on health care could break this presidency. >> also ahead, the latest on the accident and rescue in milwaukee that has everyone talking. the drama captured on home video as a mother and her two children were pulled from a burning suv. we're going to hear the emotional thank you from the father of those children to the heroes of that day. >> plus, on a much, much lighter note we're going to talk about skinny jeans. they make a lot of people look good, but are they also raising health concerns? what every wearer or potential wearer needs to know. and then, meredith we've got your exclusive interview with susan boyle. >> yeah. i had a great time with her. we talked about everything to what made her audition for "britain's got talent" to her skyrocketing success in the new album she's been working on and also some of the problems she encountered along the way. >> is she in a good place, mentally?

>> she seems to me to be in a great place. >> a lot of people concerned about her. let's begin with president obama's push for health care reform. one that is proving to be kind of a tough sell. nbc's savannah guthrie is at the white house. savannah, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, matt. in the fight of his presidency, mr. obama is pulling out every tool in the presidential arsenal, inrviews, a town hall tomorrow, and tonight a prime-time news conference here at the white house. >> good afternoon, everybody. >> reporter: from the rose garden, the president accentuated the positive. >> make no mistake, we are closer than ever before to the reform that the american people need, and we're going to get the job done. >> reporter: but on capitol hill, a day of intense negotiations behind closed doors. congress consumed with the key questions. how to pay for reform. the president summoned house democrats to the white house tuesday, including conservative so-called blue dog members, who've been pushing back on their party's plans for new taxes on the wealthy. >> there's a number of potential

cost-cutting measures which i think the american people expect before we consider any kind of new revenue. >> reporter: the senate has reported some progress on a bipartisan health care deal. but key democrats see the president's august deadline to pass a bill slipping. >> i know you all are very eager to have a deadline. i think it's not useful way to proceed. >> reporter: with the president's poll numbers sliding, republicans sense an opportunity. >> we are at a crossroads. this administration, this president has no one else to blame. >> mr. president, it's time to scrap this bill. >> reporter: the president has been on a public relations blitz. tonight, a presidential news conference. his fifth since taking office. but the white house press secretary laughed off any concerns the president is overexposed. >> i think it's important that the president continues to remind the american people what's at stake, what's in it for them.

that the status quo is unacceptable. i don't think he can probably say that enough. >> thank you, everybody. >> reporter: white house aides acknowledge that congress probably won't meet the aug deadline, but the president says he wants to keep the pressure on. matt? >> all right, savannah, thanks very much. nbc news will have president obama's news conference tonight eight 8:00 p.m., 7:00 central time right here on nbc. republican senator jim demint of south carolina has been an outspoken critic of president obama's health care reform plans. he'd also the author of "saving freedom: we can stop america's slide into socialism." senator demint, good to have you with us. >> good to be with you. >> there are real differences of opinion in terms of how to achieve health care reform in this country and how to get insurance to the some 50 million people who don't have it. but over the past couple of days, i don't have to tell you, you've ignited a firestorm, and people are saying that are playing pure politics with this issue. how do you respond? >> well, it has nothing to do

with politics or certainly not personal. but the president's policies have not matched up to his promises so fa we saw that in this giant stimulus, his trillion dollar stimulus that has stimulated the government, but really cost american jobs, and loaded lots of debt on top of future generations. >> but sticking to health care reform, let me give you your own words here, you were addressing the group conservatives for patients rights about the health care debate and you said quote, if we're able to stop obama on this, it will be his waterloo, it will break him. now are you rallying conservatives to the cause of health care reform? or are you rallying conservatives to the cause of breaking a president? >> oh, we need to put the brakes on this president. he's been on a spending spree since he took office. and we need health care reform. unfortunately, when the president was in the senate, i probably offered more health care reform proposals than anyone in the senate. and the president voted against every proposal that would have

made health insurance more available and more affordable to people. his goal seems to be a government takeover, not making insurance more available. so i do think we need to stop the president on this. we need to stop his policy, because if we allow him to continue to ram things through congress before we again eat a chance to read them, matt, i just brought one of the bills this morning. i mean, if you look at this bill, it's one of the three bills that we're going to have to look at. it's a complicated issue. there are a lot of details in that bill. >> well why do we need to pass it in two weeks before we go home? >> that's a good question. and i'm going to get to that in a second. but the words you chose were very specific. it could be his waterloo, it could break this president. i guess the obvious question is, it wouldn't brk your heart if you break this president, would it? >> well, again, it's not personal. but we've got to stop his policies, matt. the policies are not matching up to the promises. they're loading trillions of dollars of debt onto the american people. and the thing is we need real health care reform. i've introduced proposals that would help individuals own their

own health insurance policiesf they don't get it at work. >> right. >> a lot of ways to do this without a government takeover. >> and i read some of your plan. you wrote it in an op-ed, and i did read that, and would encourage people to go see that. is the deadline dead, senator? >> it appears to be. and i hope it is. and that's what i mean, the senate is supposed toe the body that deliberates and debates and actually reads bills. you know, i hear that more than anything else, as i go aund the country. why don't you guys read the bills before you pass them? there are a lot of things in these bills that are going to alarm the american people. i'm affray the president knows that. he wants to push it through before we're able to take a look at what's really in it. and that shouldn't happen in congress. this doesn't take effect for four years, matt. we don't need to pass it in two weeks. it's 20% of the american economy. it's one of the most personal issues that we deal with as americans. the government shouldn take it over. and we shouldn't pass a bill in tw weeks. >> senator jim deminute, thanks for joining us this morning.

we appreciate your time. >> now let's get a check of the rest of the top stories from ann curry at the news desk. good morning, ann. >> good morning, meredith and matt. good morning, everybody. also in the news this morning, secretary of state hillary clinton is sending what she hopes is a clear message to iran. speaking in thailand this morning she said iran should think carefully about its nuclear ambitions, and she said, if iran develops a nuclear weapon, the u.s. has a plan to prevent iranian domination in the middle east. president obama meets with iraq's prime minister nuri al maliki today to talk about the road ahead for iraq. at the same time more violence rocked iraq on tuesday. at least three bombings there killed more than 20 people. prominent harvard scholar henry louis gates jr. says that he wants an apology from a white police officer who arrested him last week, after gates, an african-american, forced his way into his own home after having trouble with the lock in cambridge, massachusetts. police arrested him after they say gates yelled at an officer

and accused him of racial bias. prosecutors later dropped the charges against the professor and the city of cambridge calls the incident rrettable and unfortunate. today, fed chairman ben bernanke returns for more testimony on capitol hill after saying on tuesday that the u.s. economy is stabilizing, but that the recovery will be slow. he also said the fed needs to keep interest rates down. his comments helped send the dow higher on tuesday. cnbc's melissa lee is at the new york stock exchange meantime today. and melissa, what should investors be watching today? >> good morning to you, ann. all eyes are on apple computer today. apple posting quarterly earnings yesterday, topping analyst's expectations. posting its best non-holiday quarter ever, selling 5.2 million iphones. still investors are cautious because of all the earnings ahead. about a third of the s&p 500 will report this week. and that will really hold the key as to whether the markets can continue to go higher. the dow is on its longest winning streak in two years. the nasdaq on its longest streak in 12. ann? >> all right, melissa lee this morning, thanks. take a look at this, a rare,

total, solar eclipse turned the sky dark over parts of asia today. lasting more than six minutes, it is the longest solar eclipse that will occur in this century. the next one won't happen until 2132. it is now 7:10. let's go back to matt, meredith and al. >> cool stuff. >> all right. >> do you know what the weather is in africa today? >> i don't. >> lily is on her way. my daughter is on her way to tanzania. >> i thought maybe that was in your local forecast. >> last i checked -- it's about most of the people out there. not about you! >> sorry. >> she gets to talk to susan boyle and oh, look at me. edm m ith.oo anh,k at me. l ayywlet's take a lo, show you what's going on. we'll show you, a lot of wet weather working its way through the central mississippi river valley. rainfall amounts about generally one to two inches of rain. but the heavy stuff is back from

the northwest, parts of new mexico, on into texas. sun rise in washington, good morning. sun's been up about an hour. we have patchy dense fog. it's near 70 in washington. elsewhe, in the 60s in montgomery, fairfax and prince george's counties. highs could reach the upper 80s. a humid summer day with clouds building this afternoon. there is a slight chance of an isolated thundershower. a cool front tomorrow afternoon will trigger likely passing thundershowers. >> in the next half hour, forecast for meredith's other two children. >> i hate you. anyway. i'm going to proceed. now to the unprecedented deal in california to close the state's $26 billion budget gap. a plan that will cut billions

from education spending and health care, and give early release to thousands of prison inmates. could it be a sign of things to come in your own state? we're going to hr from california governor arnold schwarzenegger in a moment. first here's nbc's miguel almaguer. good morning to you. >> reporter: meredith, good morning. if the budget compromise holds, and many expect it to, we could have a vote here at the state capitol has early as tomorrow. it would end a stalemate that began months ago. a done deal. that's what california's top legislators say about the state budget. >> it's like a suspense movie. >> reporter: it played out more like a long drama, complete with midnight negotiations and an ending long overdue. facing a $26 billion budget deficit, california was so broke, it began issuing ious. there were also worries the state would go insolvent. massive cuts were needed to stop california's fiscal bleeding. on twitter the government used his own brand of humor to solicit ideas to raise money. >> just want to say thanksery

much for all the ideas you're giving me. why not just sign the cards, and sell it for more money. that's exactly what we're going to do. >> our governor has really been exhibiting a tin ear. there still is a difference, although very blurry, between show biz, and government. and he may have crossed it with that twitter video. >> reporter: the plan to pull california out of the red includes cut across the board. $1.3 billion from health care. more than half a billion from welfare. another $1.2 billion from corrections, which could allow inmates out early. the biggest cut comes from education. and it's not just the young, but also the old. san diego's hope adult day-care center will eliminate meals and health care service two days per week. the state will also withhold much-needed money earmarked for counties and cities whose

leaders vow to fight back. >> we will see if legally feasible. >> reporte and to generate more cash, plans call to expand oil drilling near santa barbara's coastline. a clear view of california's desperate economic times. as lawmakers meet behind closed doors today, an interesting footnote, some key republican leaders say they could torpedo this budget plan. they're unhappy with cuts that could release some 27,000 inmates out of prison early. expect some serious political wrangling over the next 24 hours. >> i bet. miguel almaguer, thank you very much. nbc's lester holt spoke with gornor schwarzenegger on tuesday. >> good morning to you. along with those big cuts, california is actually going to be borrowing money from cities and towns which critics say only drops the crisis squarely into the laps of local governments. the governor admits the choices were hard but says the new deal gives california a chance to move forward. >> well i think that everyone will recognize that it was a

very difficult budget, and a lot of decisions to be made in this budget we' not excited about, because whenever you have a shortfall of $26 blion you have to make some severe cuts, and no one wants to make cuts to some of the programs, especially when it comes to education. but at the same time, we've also got some great reforms because of the difficult times. so i think it is a great victory for everybody in california to really streamline government. >> but los angeles, among others, are contemplating legal action. because again they're say you're taking money that was going to go their way. so if we see cities eventually have to raise taxes, aren't we really in the same place? >> well, not really. braus i think that we have taken care of that. we believe very strongly that the city has been taken care of. yes, we are borrowing money from them and taking money from transportation and redevelopment money, but they can again borrow against that because they know

they're going to get the money back to them. this is an emergency. we are in a fiscal crisis, inn economic crisis. and we did things that needed to be done to be responsible. >> i want to ask you about quality of life in california. it's not just me asking, companies will be asking, do we want to move to a state that's just taken $6 billion from k through 12 education. $3 billion from universities. $1.2 billion from its corrections, its prisons. how do you make the case that california is a good place to do business when you have those kinds of cuts? >> there's no other state that people from around the world and also from around this country want to come to rather than california. i think that people know that it's not just california. you go to neighboring states, like arizona or oregon or you go up to washington state, or any other state, everyone is struggli right now. so we just have to go and be fiscally responsible rather than just kicking the can down the

road. >> you mention the devil's in the details. one of the details that's been talked about a lot over the last several weeks is what's going to happen to the present system? the proposed cuts, $1.billion in the prison system. it has not been explained how those cuts are going to be made. law enforcement groups think to reach that, as many as 19,000 convicted prisoners are going to have to be released. is that an accurate figure? >> well, it could be. we don't know exactly the number. but i mean, there will be some released. and we will have also other reforms. but let me tell you one thing, i think that the people of california know me well enough that public safety is our number one priority, and no matter what we do, we always will make sure that the neighborhoods are safe and that the kids are safe and that everyone is safe out there. because safety is a top priority for all of us. >> governor you've mentioned several times here that california is not alone. in fact other states are having their own bget crises right now. but what do you say to those who say what's happening in california is a harbinger to what the country, the federal

government may face at some point? >> well, you know, the bottom line is i think that we here in california will be addressing the situation. we reduced spending because there's revenues coming in. and i think that's very important, also, on the federal level. so many times we hear stories about, you know, the federal government maybe has to bail out california. but the fact of the matter is, maybe california has to bail out the federal government the way things are going. >> governor schwarzenegger, the real culprit in this is the economy. until it starts to turn around he says californians are still not out of the woods. much like the rest of the nation. >> lester, thank you very much. now to the latest on a story we first brought you on monday morning. a mother and two children trapped inside a burning suv. happened in milwaukee, wisconsin, as bystanders raced to save them, it was an intense, graphic scene that was caught on camera. nbc's kevin tibbles has more. >> reporter: the grateful father of young d.j. harper wanted to thank those who saved his son's

life. >> first, i want to take a minute to thank the firefighters and all the brave citizens that helped get my son out of the vehicle. >> reporter: it was an horrific inferno, the suv carrying 4-year-old d.j., his mother and 2-year-old sister flipped and burned on the streets of milwaukee sunday night. >> did someone call 911? >> reporter: neighbors and two offduty milwaukee firefighters who were brothers rushed to the scene. the mother and little girl were pulled free. 4-year-old d.j., strapped in his booster seat, was trapped. until the brothers, risking their own lives, cut him loose. >> five, ten seconds made a difference between this boy living and this boy dying. >> reporter: the brothers then doused the boy's flaming clothes with a neighbor's garden hose but d.j. suffered burns to 20% of his body and remains in serious condition in a milwaukee hospital. >> one of the main states of early burn resuscitation is to stop the byrning. and so they put him on the ground and smothered out the burns, which was very

appropriate. >> reporter: monday on "today," the brothers john and joel described the fiery scene that faced them. >> it was rrific. you know, he had the car was engulfed in flames. and the child was just, you know, inside there screaming. and all you could -- i mean all i could see was that child's face. >> and while each brother suffered burns, their bravery is now rewarded, with heartfelt thanks from d.j.'s family. >> there's no words, really, that can express how grateful i am. >> reporter: the boy's father told of his family's grief and gratitude. >> i tried to hold it together. it's my little boy. and i just want to thank everybody, everybody, the citizens of milwaukee, for helping us. it's just a wonderful -- angels all around us. >> reporter: angels who came together on a sunday evening in milwaukee to save a boy's life. for "today," kevin tibbles, nbc news, chicago. >> incredible, incredible story. still to come, meredith has an

exclusive interview with susan boe. she's speaking out for the first time about how overwhelming her sudden rise to fame has been. we'll hear from her. but first on a wednesday morning, this is "today" on nbcy

still ahead, the strange habits and demands from michael jackson in the weeks before he died. >> also ahead, are those skinny jeans putting your health at risk?

good morning. i'm eun yang. it's wednesday, july 22, 2009. metro has acknowledged problems with about half a dozen circuits that help track trains. metro's gm is denying a report from "the washington post" that the trains cannot be detected by the operation's control center. he says the problems are not the same as nor malties after last month's crash. the trial of marion barry's use of funds could go further. a group was accused of misusing

funds. barry is being investigated for using taxpayer money to employ his former girlfriend. we'll take a break and check weather and traffic

partly cloudy, mild and rather humid on this wednesday morning. patchy fog around the region. near 70 in washington. 60s in the rural areas, near 70 near the bay. highs reaching the upper 80s, a warm and humid summer day. small chance of an afternoon thundershower, greater chance tomorrow afternoon. now jerry, how's traffic this >> i-270, had police activity on the shoulder near falls road. so look for delays off and on out of montgomery village.

downtown along 395 northbound jammed, accident eastbound freeway at exit 4 of the third street tunnel. >> we'll have more news at 5:55. for now back to the 7:30 now

morning. 22nd of july, 2009. we've got a great group of folks up and out early in rockefeller plaza. going to hang out with our pals in just a few minutes. inside studio 1a, i'm meredith vieira, alongside matt lauer. and just ahead, the latest on the investigation into michael jackson's death. the coroner's office now wants to talk with jackson's personal doctor who was with him at the time of his death for a third time. we'll have more on that and reports of some unusual demands that the king of pop was reportedly making in his final days. >> also ahead, how to turn a

cl clunker into cash. this week the government begins offering money for your old car if you're willing to buy a new, more fuel-efficient vehicle. coming up, what it takes to qualify, how to profit from what they're calling the cash for clunkers program. and there are a lot of stipulations. we're going to run through a list of those. >> and later, are those skinny jeans that so many people love actually bad for your health? the concern being raised by some doctors. >> but first let's begin with the latest on the michael jackson case. nbc's jeff rossen is in los angeles where he's been covering that story. jeff, good morning to you. >> reporter: matt, good morning to you. this is a new turn in the case, and we have now confirmed it with his spokesperson. officials want to speak with dr. conrad murray again. this would be, as you mentioned, his third interview since michael jackson died. and that's not all. investigators also want more of his medical records. when michael jackson died inside his mansion, his cardiologist, dr. conrad murray, was with him. murray has already handed over medical records. but now his spokesperson

confirms investigators are asking for more records. and they want to interview him again, too. police detectives have already interviewed him twice. in a statement overnight, his lawyer said the coroner wants to clear up the cause of death. we share that goal. we don't have access to the most important information in this case, the toxicology report. we're still in the dark like everybody else. he should not be a target, he said, of crimina charges. dr. murray was the last doctor standing when michael jackson died, and it seems all the fury is directed toward him. there's continuing confusion over michael jackson's final resting place. by most media accounts, after the memorial service, his body was taken to forest lawn funeral home to be stored. but not buried. and there's a reason. several friends tell nbc news there's disagreement inside the family. jermaine just spoke about it on french television. >> i was against my brother being put in forest lawn is the

place. i'm not sure if he's in mr. gordy's crypt or whatever it is. but i was totally against that. i fought to get him at neverland. it's his work. it's his imagination. >> this is a really large family, and they all have their own agendas. some of them are superstars in their own right. and some of them really need the michael jackson name in order to be successful. and their financial success is what they're putting first. and that's why everything is taking so long to come out. >> reporter: we're also learning more about michael jackson's private moments. from a "rolling stone" cover story due out friday, we got an exclusive first look. the magazine reports jackson was excited about his comeback concert, but has bizarre demands. >> 50 shows, he had two requirements. the first one was that he would have an english manor in the countryside with horses and rolling hls where his kids could play. and the second one was that at the end of the tour, or the end of the show, he would be put in

the guinness book of world records for some sort of accomplishment. and there would be a big ceremony. >> reporter: unclear what the guinness record would have been, rolling stone reports during that time, jackson's insomnia turned into a nearly obsessive overnight shopping habit on ebay. >> he apparently had all these different accounts. and he would use his employees toelp him acquire stuff. and he was just buying stuff. >> reporter: and then there's michael jackson's ego, trying to one-up another music legend. prince, who performed 21 shows at london's o-2 arena in 2007. not to be outdone, jackson ultimately booked 50 shows, just to beat him. >> i feel like, you know, one of the misunderstandings about michael jackson is that he was this sort of like, you know, feeble, frail creature that didn't really engage with his people. but he was, you know, very interested in being powerful, and being manipulative, and you know, he had his enemies.

>> reporter: one other note about those overnight developments, doctor murray's lawyer now says his client's life has been turned upside down by these accusations. dr. murray, he says, has to walk around with a bodyguard 24/7 and he can't even go to work because he is harassed wherever he goes. >> all right, jeff rossen in los angeles. jeff, thank you very much. and now let's head outside for another check of the weather from al. >> thanks so much, meredith. and we've got these lovely folks, and beautiful babies. it's be a hero for babies day. what is that?? >> today is be a hero for babies day. where farmer's insurance is coupling with march of dimes in a one-day fund-raiser to raise $2 million so all babies will be born full-term and healthy. >> we love that. these are some beautiful babies here. >> speaking of babies. in the last half hour we knew meredith's daughter lily on her way to africa. we want to make sure we have a forecast for meredith for her other children. stanford 85 and sunny.

and northwestern, looking for showers and a temperature of 77. in the next half hour, we'll have a forecast for meredith's husband richard. so we'll take care of that. let's take a look at the rest of your weather. i'm a full-service weather guy for you, mereditheat teeratures, heat riorsorite iin n washington and oregon. nodes.gree degrees. palm rispngs,sp 115. he northeast, t northeast, and e mid-atlantic. also in the great lakes. but hot weather continues down in texas and on into midsummer will be buildinge will be building today. we've got summer haze in the air over capitol hill. live picture from city camera, patchy fog in rural areas. temperatures in the 60s to near 70. in washington now, 71. highs today should reach the upper 80s, and rather humid. there's a small chance of a passing afternoon thundershower. and then tomorrow cool front coming through, giving us a greater chance of passing mainly afternoon thundershowers, highs in the mid 80s.

less humid and hot by the weekend. and that's your test weather. meredith? >> yeah. thanks, al. now to our exclusive interview with susan boyle. just a few months ago she was an anonymous, simple woman who loved taking care of her cat pebbles and the elderly members of her church. but oh, how quickly thin can change. ♪ i dreamed a dream in time gone by ♪ >> reporter: susan boyle. ♪ i dreamed of love that never dies ♪ >> reporter: from anonymity to superstaom. ♪ >> reporter: thanks to the internet and youtube, susan boyle's voice was heard around the world. within days her 90-second clip of "i dreamed a dream" had been viewed 20 million times.

>> easily the hottest piece of video on the web, in the world. >> now susan boyle is one of the most recognizable faces in the world. >> there is no controversy when it comes to susan boyle and her golden voice. >> reporter: when susan boyle took the stage on the popular british talent show, the judges rolled their eyes. the audience laughed at her. but no one was laughing when she began to sing. ♪ i dreamed that love would never die ♪ >> reporter: this unexpected, unlikely star, quite simply brought the house down, becoming one of the most recognizable faces in the world. >> somebody very unlikely in the shape of susan, who by her own admission is, you know, never going to win aeauty pageant. she's not a size zero, age 19, singing some sweet pop song. she's a 48-year-old lady, from a tiny village in scotland. >> reporter: in an instant, the world fell in love with susan boyle. and her golden voice.

i caught up with susan boyle in london, where she's been recording her first album. i'm one of those millions of people that fell in love with you in mid-april when i heard you sing "i dreamed a dream." you look gorgeous. >> thank you very much. >> i'm loving the hair. it's a little bit different. a little bit of a slight makeover? >> a slight one. you know, i brush up quite well. >> you do brush up very, very well. the journey you have been on, everybody around the world suddenly saying who is this susan boyle? are you having a good time? >> it's just been unbelievable. it's indescribable. it's a bit like popping out of obscurity. >> reporter: obscurity is right. three months ago, susan boyle was living with her cat pebbles and performing in her church. but susan spent most of her adult life caring for her mother bridget who passed away two years ago. you spent a lot of your adult life taking care of mom.

>> i did, uh-huh. >>eporter: if she was here now, what do you think she would say to you? >> keep going. >> reporter: keep going? >> keep going, you're doing really well. >> reporter: why do you think she has so much confidence in you? >> i was her little girl. >> reporter: you were the baby of the family? >> the baby, yeah. forget that. but i have to get up there and prove to everybody that i could do it. so i applied for "britain's got talent." >> reporter: and the rest of the world knows, actually. so when you walked out on that stage and the audience responded the way that they did, it was, i guess, a little bit of snickering, is that fair to say? >> well, never judge a book by the cover. >> reporter: susan boyle has become somewhat of a pop culture phenomenon. with a book deal in the works and multiple movie offers and now there's even a susan boyle doll. you know how you know when you've really made it? when they have a doll in your likeness. i just so happened to have the susan boyle doll. here, take a look. >>♪ isn't she lovely

isn't she beautiful ♪ ♪ isn't she lovely isn't she wonderful ♪ >> reporter: for the first time, susan boyle describes just how overwhelming being thrust into the spotlight can be. >> it was like a demolition ball. >> reporter: it felt like a demolition ball? >> the impact. like a demolition ball. >> reporter: it's been some roller coaster ride for susan. from the highs of superstardom to the lows of brutal headlines and public outbursts, to talk that she was backing out of the talent show. >> she was completely and utterly exhausted. she wasn't having some crack-up as people said, she wasn't boiling over. >> it was very hard. you've got an audience to please. you go on. you have to. >> reporter: the fast track to celebrity and the media frenzy that goes along with it began taking its toll on susan. she spent five days at the priory mental health clinic where she was treated for exhaustion.

and though there was a little rough spot, a little bit draining obviously physically and emionally. spent a few days in a clinic. was that good to get away from the craziness? >> oh, i think it was necessary at the time. i needed to get away. >> reporter: i was there the night of the finale. it was very, very exciting. you looked beautiful. but you didn't win. diversity won that night, their night. was that a difficult experience for you, susan? >> not at all. because actually they're a very good act. a great bunch of guys. and the best people won. >> reporter: but it wasn't long before susan was back on track. doing the live tour of "britain's got talent." and now with the help of simon cowell, recording her first album, due out this fall. how's recording going? >> i don't think there are too many secrets. >> reporter: well i happen to know that it's not show tunes. >> something of a surprise.

>> reporter: you're not goi to tell me, are you? ♪ i dream >> she wouldn't let me know what's on that album. >> do you think she has the capacity to go long-term with this? i mean, because there are going to be ups and downs in this career and critics are going to jump in. >> i think the initial leap into this has been hard for her. because, she did go from obscurity. but she also points out that she's been wanting this and working on this for 20-some years. she's recorded before and hasn't been successful. she had a demo tape or whatever with two songs and it never really went anywhere. this is not like, for her, an overnight effort. >> yeah. still it's a tough, tough business. >> it is tough. it is tough. but i think she can. i really do. i have a lot of confidence in her. >> i'm not trying to make you her shrink or anything. we do enough of that around here. >> what is with you today? anyhow, i didn't see the instability of susan boyle. i didn't see that at all.

>> good. >> i think she's goi to do great. you can see more of my night inrvw tonight in "susan boyle: daring to dream" during a special edition of "america's got talent" 9:00 p.m., 8:00 central time. we will have more with susan boyle tomorrow on "today," as well. and up next, how to turn your clunker, not him, into cash. but is the new government program worth it? we'll ask an expert right after this.

"today's money" is brought to you by lendingtree.com. when banks compete, you win. >> and we're back now at 7:47. this morning on "today's money," cash for clunkers, the new program kicks into gear this week and gives consumers who are trading in old gas guzzlers a credit of up to $4,500 when they buy a new, more fuel-efficient vehicle. today's financial editor jean chatzky is here with more on this. good morning to up. >> hi, matt. >> it's called the cash allowance rebate system or

c.a.r.s. is this about moving cars or about the environment? >> it's a little bit of both. but actually advocates for both sides saying don't think it will accomplish all that much. >> so let's make sure we understand who qualifies, what qualifies, and what dealers are participating. what are the major stipulations? >> you have to have a car that's 25 years old or younger than that. it has to get 18 miles to the gallon or less combined fuel economy when it was new. you can go to a website called fueleconomy.gov, type in your name of your car, the age, the make, the model and you can figure it out. >> and you trade it in but you must buy or lease a new vehicle. >> a new vehicle worth $45,000 or less. that's the cap on the price of the new vehicle. and that new vehicle has to get, if you're trading in a car, if you get four miles more per gallon you get a $3500 credit, if you get ten miles more per gallon you get a $4500 credit. if you're trading in an suv or

light truck you only have to get two or five more miles per gallon. >> are all car dealerships involved in this? and how do you find out which ones are or aren't? >> they have to register. most are participating. you go to the website cars.gov which is the official website of the program. >> this is not without its critics. >> yeah. >> some critics are saying the program is a bad idea and the expected result, which is to move about 250,000 cars off lots is too limited. an editorial in "the washington post" said the following, those paltry results will merely represent the shifting of future demand for cars to the present. they will also come at the expense of sales of other goods that people might have chosen to buy. >> so what we're seeing right now is that people have been waiting for this program to kick into gear in order to make their purchases, and the 250,000 cars that this is expected to move is a very small amount. so, this program is only available until the money runs out. there's a billion dollars on the table. itould be gone by labor day. >> real, real quickly.

how do environmentalists feel about this? do they like it? >> they think it's a move in the right direction but it's not gointo do all that much. >> and is there a potential downside for the consumer here? >> i don't really see one. if you've got a car sitting on your lot that you nd to move, go ahead. >> all right, jean chatzky, thanks very much. the program isal cdc.a.r.s. still to come, more financial advice. a panel of experts will answer your pressing questions.

still ahead, what you can learn from one family's food makeover. >> plus, are you putting your

health at risk to look fashion forward in skinny jeans? meredith will talk about it after your local news and weather.

7:56 is your time now. 70 degrees, looks like hazy skies overhead. is rain in the forecast? tom will have answers after the news. good morning, it's wednesday, july 22, 2009. in the news, don't be surprised to see military planes in the skies above washington. there is no emergency but norad will conduct a training exercise that will include aircraft and coast guard helicopters. nearly a dozen high school students from the area are hospitalized in china after cases of swine flu. the quarantine teens come from a

program out of the university of maryland. the students will be able to extend their stay and finish their trip to china if they choose. ha're going to take a break and ve weath and traffic (announcer) it's time to raise the bar

with the full flavor of aft mayo with olive oil. with half the fat and calories of hellmann's real mayo, kraft mayo with olive oil is the new standard in mayo. good morning. sun is up. the fog i beginning to burn off but it's a bit hazy. there is the jefferson memorial. temperatures now are climbing into the low 70s, we'll hit the upper 80s later on today. it's going to be a humid day and a small chance of an afternoon thundershower, tomorrow it's going to be partly cloudy, humid, highs mid 80s, a greater chance of afternoon and evening thundershowers. friday and saturday less humid but hot days and cool mornings. we'll have quite a bit of

sunshine. then on sunday, looks lik a chance of showers and thundershowers, mainly in the afternoon. monday and tuesday remaining humid with highs in the upper 80s. how's the wednesday commute? >> a live look, it's not going well on 395, jammed beginning at shir lington. the accident on the eastbound freeway at the u.s. capitol exit. let you know if you're headed to the wilson bridge, no worries, lanes are open. southeast corridor seems to be doing well. outer loop pretty good from new hampshire to georgia but the travel lanes are open, no inner loop delays, no sunshine so looking good there. >> thank you. coming up, paying it forward. how a church is

we're back now, 8:00 on a wednesday morning. it's the 22nd day of july, 09. and we've got a great crowd outside on the plaza. on what's shaping up to be a real pretty day. out on the plaza i'm matt lauer, along with meredith vieira and al roker. and have you noticed, -- >> i did. oh, my gosh. >> we're wearing the exact same suit. >> did you know you were going to do that? >> yours is a little bigger. >> we called each other up last night. you picked today to wear that suit. >> that's very girl-like.

>> anyway coming up in this half hour, we're going to be talking about ways to feed your family better. mark bittman has been doing a family food makeover for the miller family. he told them to get some of the processed junk out of their cabinets, eat more fruits and vegetables. we're going to check in one last time with the millers and find out how they're doing, including connally, who is one of the miller's children. he loves to cook. he keeps his pots and pans under his bed. >> that's kind of like your son. >> i don't think he keeps pots and pans under the bed. i'm not sure what he keeps under there. we're also going to talk about skinny jeans. they're all the rage. but when you put them on they can cause some serious health problems. >> what is the definition of skinny jeans? skin tight? >> and also tight all the way down to the ankle. so they can cut off circulation. you can have real issues. >> i liked the jeans the president was wearing. >> those were nice,yeah. >> more normal. exactly. >> and "day" tes a vacation. that's right. st arting on monday, all week

we're go bg toe teaming up to visit and spreading out to visit some of our country's most spectacular sites. it all begins on monday. kicking off with meredith and ann. >> that's right. in the adirondacks. >> should be great. speaking of ann, she's standing by at the news desk with a look at the headlines. >> good morning. good morning once again, everybody. in the news, tonight, as president obama goes prime-time, he will make his case to the american people for health care rerm. his address will be broadcast nationwide. but even key members of his own party are saying there is not enough time to act on the measure before congress leaves for august recess, as the ent's newsonrenc le tonight at 8:00, at the white h. the talks will focus on how to bring together iraq's political factions to increase security there. there was a dramatic military plane crash in santiago, chile on tuesday. the pilot was practicing an aerial acrobatic routine when his plane suddenly turned and came crashing down. the pilot survived and is now

recovering in a hospital. some of the nation's largest airports are considering using a new technology that could help prevent dangerous bird strikes. nbc's tom costello is at reagan national airport with more on this story. >> reporter: good morning. airports around the country are trying to mitigate the bird threat. now some are turning to bird radar. >> the wisconsin 3743, 22. >> reporter: at boston's logan airport it's a constant balancing act. >> ground point nine. >> reporter: the 400,000 flight operation each year, and the birds who stage their own flight operations. >> all right 0-4 -- >> reporter: last year boston reported 61 bird strikes and many more close encounters. it was just six months ago that a flock of canada geese took out both engines on a us airways plane, forcing it into the hudson river. and two weeks ago, 40 birds forced an emergency landing in baltimore. now, boston is testing a new

technology. >> this is a standard system that we build for the military. >> reporter: sitting between runways 27 and 33 left, merlin is scanning the skies for birds. gary andrews is the ceo of detect technologies. >> we have a horizontal radar that's tracking four to six miles around the airport and a vertically scanning radar that's covering approach and departure corridor. >> reporter: the bird count has been superimposed over an airport layout. >> each of these green dots are birds moving on and around the air field. >> reporter: on this day the risk is low. but heavier bird patterns like this would trigger an alert in the tower where controllers could give pilots the warning they need. here at logan airport they've aided 50 species of birds and they're not onlyorried about canada geese, ducks and eagles, but also small european star links. a flk of them could inflict serious damage. sitting right on boston harbor, logan attracts large migratory

flocks each year. >> it's a major issue. and i think that that's why we want to test the technology here. so that we can help mitigate that in every instance. >> reporter: most bird strikes occur within 500 feet of the ground. when a plane is taking off. now, with the bird population soaring, the question is whether they deserve their own radar. boston isn't alone. several airports are testing this bird radar system. nasa and the air force ann, already use it. >> now here's brian williams with what's coming up tonight an "nbc nightly news." hey, brian. >> ann, thanks. when we join you tonight we're going to head back out across highway 50. we're going to stop in ohio, talk to the good folks there undergoing tough times. can they find strength, maybe even a silver lining in this economy? we'll see tonight. we'll look for you for "nbc nightly news." for now, ann, back to you. >> okay, brian, thanks. now let's go back outside with a check of the weather with al. >> thanks a lot, ann.

and this young lady wanted to be like matt so much, she flipped her bike and hurt her shoulder. what's your name? >> casey. >> and so did a deer come out at you? >> no. >> okay, well, if you want to be just like matt, that's what you need to do. let's check your weather. see what's happening. pick city of the day, fargo, north dakota. nbc 11, sunshine, mild, upper 70s for highs today. and as you look at the weekend ahead, we're looking at sizzling conditions out west. some rip currents along the northeast coast, showers in the ohio river valley. then sunday -- sunday!" more rain in the northeast on sunday. sizzling for the western two-thirds of the country. hot in the southeast, down on into the gulf coast. what's your name? >> nicole a summer haze i the air on this wednesday morning. live picture from our sky watcher camera showing a blue sky over the haze and fog that's dissipating a bit. it's now climbing into the low 70s in washington, mid 70s near the bay.

near 70 montgomery, fairfax, prince george's counties. highs mid to upper 80s, clouds building. slight chance of an isolated passing thundershower today. then a greater chance, a likelihood tomorrow afternoon and evening. and remaining humid. less humid on friday and saturday. near 90, saturday afternoon. and that's your latest weather. mr. lauer? >> al, the folks at teleflora celebrating make someone smile week. as this young lady flipped her bike, we're going to make you smile. you feel better, all right? take care of yourself. when we come back, how to spend a little time to make it look like you spent a lot of money on your home. and up next, they're fashionable, but are they risking your health? we're talking about skinny jeans. we'll have the details. dinner with the girls tonight. mmm... mexican, or italian? i really want dessert tonight. i better skip breakfast. yep, this is all i need. ( stomach growls )

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bad for you? some women will do almost anything to look slimmer, but who would have thought that wearing jeans might be harmful to your health? from '70s flares, to boot cut to boyfriends, jeans are an american original. and if you can find just the right pair, they can flatter any figure. >> you're a babe! >> reporter: even the president has his own favorite fit, which he got some slack for at the all-star game. >> those jeans, i'm sorry, i'm not the guy. >> no low riders? >> it just doesn't fit me. >> reporter: but for other folks at any age, skinny jeans have been one of the hottest cuts in denim, having hugged ankles for decades. >> skinny jeans started back in the '50s. marilyn monroe wore them. elvis wore them. then they had a moment in the '80s with heavy metal bands, we saw them on metallica. it was always a real rock 'n'

roll look. >> reporter: and just about every pair has their favorite pair. >> they have a great, fresh, young look. they're the antithesis of mom jeans. >> reporter: today's skinny jeans aren't your mom's or your grandmother's either. they've evolved and some are feeling the pinch. >> the thing that's changed about skinny jeans is that they've gotten skinnier. you see women now wearing things that are nine inches around the ankle. i mean that's a bracelet. >> reporter: and some doctors say clothing worn that tight does more than draw looks. it could be inviting nerve damage. >> what happens is the person starts to feel a nagging kind of burning or tingling sensation in their thigh that they can't really figure out. it's sometimes quite painful. >> reporter: and in extreme cases, the squeeze might cause g.i. issues, bladder and east infections and even serious blood clots in the legs. >> once you start having those symptoms, it's probably not a good idea for you to keep wearing the clothes. >> reporter: something to keep in mind the next time you wrestle on a pair. so, does beauty have no pain? a medical contributor to

consumer reports, and dr. raj is the medical editor of health magazine. good morning to you both. you wrote about this in consumer reports in a blog. why? what provoked that? >> as a neurologist i often see problems with pinched nerves. and this is one that comes from wearing tit garments that constric a ntrve in the thigh. >> where is the nerve? it's actually in the thigh?a >> it's in the upper pelvis and extends through the thigh. >> how frequent is that? >> the condition occurs about three to four in 10,000 people. but as we start to wear garments that are tighter and more constructive, we may be seeing more. >> so you're seeing that in three, four, out of 10,000 people? >> correct. >> but there are other conditions, as we pointed out in the piece, that probably are more prevalent like infection. >> yeast infections are definitely more prevalent in women who wear very tht jeans. it creates a warm, moist environment which we know bacteria love and yeast love. it also can cause g.i. issues

like abdominal pain. our intestines are made to expand and contract and when they're so tight in that area, they're not able to do that. it can be very painful. >> and also for men who are destroying to wear these jeans, they're popular with men, there can be other issues, as well. >> right. and it's actually a bit more common in men. and it's also common in people that are heavy and carry their weight up front. >> but can it cause infertility problems with men? >> that's a bit debatable. but there have been studies to show that it can. that the tight garments can contribute to that. >> so do you think that there are certain people who should never wear these jeans, should really stay away interest them >> >> well, we certainly recommend people who have irritable bowel syndrome or acid reflux, that's another condition that can be made worse by wearing tight garments around your waist. if you're prone to bladder or yeast infections, stay away. and if you feel very uncomfortable. if you're wearing any kind of garments, especially tight jeans, that's a sign your body is telling you this is not right, and you should not wear it at all or definitely do it in moderation. >> any other precautions with regard to jeans?

>> i think just be sure that they're comfortable and you're not sacrificing your health for the sake of fashion. >> and wearing breathable underwear, at least. at least give that area some room to breathe if you're going to wear the tight jeans. >> in moderation. >> right. >> thank you so much. always a pleasure to see you both. >> thanks. >> and up next, tips on creating a healthier diet the whole family is going to love. honestly, what thanks do we owe progress? we're up to our necks in landfill, and down to the wire in resources and climate change is out to get us. that's why progress plays no role inside post shredded wheat. here, we put the "no" in innovation. post original shredded wheat is still just the one simple, honest ingredient which naturally comes with vitamins, minerals and fiber. all we did was make it spoon size. did we go too far?

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this morning on "how to cook everything today," more of our special family food makeover. our very good friend mark bittman, "new york times" columnist and author of "food matters" is working with the miller family to transform their eati ining habits, which were o so-so. today he does some cocking with the millers' 14-year-old son connally who happens to be a big mark bittman fan ♪ >> so we're going to make guacamole. >> you don't need a recipe for that. you know how to make that. >> yeah, i actually kind of do. ♪ >> you have the pans, you got the ingredients? >> pans i keep under my bed. i don't keep my pans downstairs where they might be more convenient, because i fl protective of them. >> i've actually never met anyone who kept his pans under his bed.

>> connally has so many pans. >> unfortunately, i end up cleaning up the mess. >> let's go. >> is the pan on? >> no. >> is the oil in? >> no. >> let's go. >> i've never been cooking with somebody whose recipe book i just love. now, if we're doubling this recipe, should we double this one, too? >> yeah. >> now all of a sudden we're going to be cooking with hill. it's scary. >> don't be nervous. >> mark bittman's "how to cook everything" is con's quote/unquote bible when it comes to cookg. >> the tension in the room was beginning to mount. >> yeah. >> the secret about cooking which i should have told you before we started. when you walk in the kitchen, start some water. even if you don't know what it's for, because you'll wind up using it for something. >> if a recipe calls for canola oil. >> olive oil, usually.

heavy on the onions, this meal. >> yeah. >> it'll be good. charlie, what's up? you smell food? >> oh. >> and don't panic. i think it looks great. it's real cooking. that's all i care about. >> okay, let's eat. >> and we welcome back mark bittman and the miller family. scott, mark, connally, griffin and gilley. you know why he had such a good time with this segment? he finally found someone who read his book. you read the book! you're his biggest fan, which is great. >> my only fan. >> i like the fact that you keep the pans under the bed. i get protective because they get scratched otherwise, right? what do the rest ofou keep under your bed. >> oh, you don't want to know that. >> first of all, what was it like cooking with him? >> he was great. completely enthusiastic. he was nervous. but he was enthusiastic. he had some experience. the important thing is he loves

it. he loves to eat, but he gets that you need to cook well to eat well. >> how often do you cook for the whole family? >> like once a week. and i also bake a lot of like desserts. >> you are the luckiest parents in the world. you really are. >> yeah. >> all right, you gave -- here's basically the way we started with this. the miller family when you first met them, they had lots of food in the house. cupboards were full, refrigerator was full, it was basically trash, though, right? >> you know what? it's a little extreme. >> well, a lot of processed things. >> they had ten sweetened breakfast cereals. a pantry full of snacks, yes. >> so before we get to specifics, miller family, scale of one to ten, how much improvement has there been, ten being a complete makeover? >> about eight. >> eight. >> yeah, maybe seven. >> okay. >> all right, so some up, some down. are you eating more fruits and vegetables now? >> absolutely. >> are you happy with that? >> talking with them before this spot, they completely like -- they eat fruit. >> yes.

>> so one assignment he gave you early on, which i thought might be a little difficult for you to follow is he told you he wanted you to cook beans and grains, a pot of them every week. right? are you doing that? >> yep. >> we -- we made a pot of beans, and they kind of just stayed on the stove. we weren't really sure -- we said these look really pretty. but we didn't know what to do with them. so we deced we did start making bean salad after. but the beans were the hardest. >> so have you given them enough creative recipes so that when they go about doing thi it's desirable for them? >> no. i may need to give them a few more. some more books for them. >> thumbs up or thumbs down, you putting salad on the table every day? >> more often. >> more often. not every day. >> almost every night. almost every night. some kind of vegetable. not always salad. >> here was a big problem. we had these processed food snacks in your cupboards. okay. mark challenged you to eat one

less processed food item every single day. are you doing it? >> yeah. >> yeah. >> you are? >> dad? >> yeah. >> you're doing it? >> yes. >> mom? >>connally? >> all of us, every one. that was easy. >> so what did you give up? >> my pop tarts every day. >> you don't have to give them up for good. mark has a little treat for you doing so well. >> he's going to be in the corner in about five seconds. and finally you asked them to switch to whole grain bread, brown rice and whole wheat pasta. thumbs up or thumbs down on that one? >> thumbs down? >> talk about the bulgur first. >> we thought for us we really want the white sta. that was really difficult. but we introduced bulgur wheat and polenta. so we added. and that was great. that was, we actually enjoyed that. >> so final question.

thumbs up or thumbs down on actually working with mark bittman. >> oh, thumbs up. >> you did it again. >> and you? >> miller family. congratulations. stick with it. >> thank you. thank you very much. >> connally, keep cookin mark, you keep cooking, as well. when we come back, cheap ways to add style to your home.

8:26 is t time. 73 degrees, a hazy day here in washington, d.c. good day, though, to be running along the potomac river. it is the 22nd of july. i'm joe krebs. we'll get the forecast in the news for today. metro has acknowledged problems about a half dozen circuits that track trains. however, metro's gm denies a report in "the washington post" that the trains cannot be det t detected by the control center. he says the problems are not the same discovered after last month's crash. we'll take a break and look at weather.

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good morning. the air is filled with a summer haze. it's turned more humid. it's going to be rather humid today, tonight and tomorrow. afternoon highs in the upper 80s. hazy sunshine. there is a small chance of an afternoon thundershower. then a cool front tomorrow afternoon will trigger likely passing thundershowers. highs in the mid 80s. then less humid on friday and saturday but still warm mid 80s friday, near 90 saturday. for the rest of the weekend, we may have a front coming through sunday that could trigger afternoon thundershowers. dry all the way into next tuesday. how's traffic? >> not a good morning to be on 395. delays begin at the beltway. this is from duke street trying to get on 395 northbound. an accident on the eastbound freeway at the third street tunnel. wilson bridge, moderate. not bad on 66. >> thanks, jerry. coming up on "news 4 midday" paying it forward.

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8:30 now on this wednesday morning, july 22nd, 2009.d iowe jatog inhe tus t mic of katy perry. the pop star will be here live in concert this friday. if you're in the area, please stop by. we would love to see you. meanwhile, ahead in this half hour, diagnosis of breast cancer is pretty devastating. but in this climate you're also worried about how you're going to pay for the surgery and the

drugs. you have a lot of financial fears. up ahead we're going to talk to one woman who's doing a lot to ease those fears for women all around the country. >> on a much, much lighter night. you walk into someone's house, you see a beautiful picture frame or candelabra and say i'd love to have that. then you find out the price, you can't afford it. we've got three projects that we're going to cover inside that you can do yourself at home, they're stylish, and incredibly inexpensive. >> cool. >> absolutely. and then a little bit later on, some of the best beats on broadway are literally on broadway. we're going to tell you about that coming up in just a little bit. >> also susan boyle. it was so great to hear your interview this morning. we're going to rerun it in just a few minutes. very, very strong. she looks beautiful, and it was great to hear that she's now moving forward with a record, and a book even. right, meredith? >> i believe so, yes. >> and in the states come the

fall, maybe here. >> anymore. more of her interview. >> let's not say rerun, because if you haven't seen it, it's new to you. >> speaking of new to you. how about a new forecast? >> brand-spanking new. still has that new barometer smell. we've got rip currents along the mid-atlantic coast today. fog in the pacificnorthwest. some air quality alerts down in central and parts of eastern texas. tomorrow rain in the northeast with rip currents along the northeast coast. the southern -- make that the western half of the country, going to be sizzling hot. we're talking about;;;;;;ç there's the summer haze that's in washington this morning. live picture from our city camera. we have the haze around the region. we had patchy dense fog. now 73 in washington and in the low 70s for the most part around the region except shenandoah valley. in the mountains in the 60s. afternoon in the mid to upper 80s. humid today and a small chance of an isolated thundershower but

a greater chance tomorrow. less humid on friday and saturday. and that's your latest weather. now let's head down to d.c. and say hello to my willie scott. how are you, uncle willie? >> oh, you're fantastic. whenever i see you, i think of fashion place. you're just -- let's go to joseph a. banks and buy 100 suits for $1.40. i'd like to have the advertising budget. hi, there. it's time for our birthday salute. let's check them out. m as the old jamowly spinst.owlys ou ndar . re is gadi fmanmro gadi fm 11 0. gogo n in thi c se museum ofriennateans. likes to play the piano and have he family, you know, give s ow's ofc htihee s do'sing.g. she's nsnaatsel.

nd a violet lkerwef weerf roseburg onegor.lk 75 years therriema d. married. he's 98, she's 93. they attribute their marriage longevity to communication, a giving in ait necessary. g ,evngghoiri ent? play y ro dorothy davis. ty dpretic wusn m iil the ground. ckbandouksclar tokskson, michksarn, ancl michigan. 100 years old. avid reader who has lived in over 15 states during her happy happy ma'am.ma'am. d ane w w he sadie .ialary. known for being a life long artist. hand without g ing ananyin machines and that's terric. elizabeth du jersey. 100 years jers. 100 years old. attributes longevity to having a fngm people to her 0 lovingro i

fwes.ie ae 'v'vgot another one? od. we haveohn j jbachmae, idaho. isbo o. ah 100 years old. world war ii vet. exercises at the "y" all the time. beeves singing with the barber shop quartet has kept him alive. that's it, that's all from washington, d.c. now here's meredith in little old new york. yeah, willard, i've got kyle her, he's 116. well, not the 100 part. he's 16. up next, adding stylish touches to your home while saving time and money. ññyhlññññññññññññ xxxxxóxoñg  wú "to>

da "today's home" is broughto you by bank of america. get the most out of your everyday purchases today. and this morning on "today's home" we're talking about luxury for less. with a little know-how you can add upscale touches to your home

without the upscale price tag. the editors at "country living" magazine have come up with three sy projects. sarah gray miller is the magazine's editor in chief. good morning. nice to see you. >> good to see you, matt. >> tough economy. who doesn't want to save money, especially when it comes to decorating a home? >> of course. we're seeking comfort at home. we're entertaining at home. so the desire to feather the nest is there. but the money might not be. >> you say if you have extra money go out and buy things but if you have extra time try to make those things. the one thing you haven't mentioned, talent. how much talent do you need to create projects like these? >> these don't require much. i can do them myself which means just about anyone can. >> let's get to some of the projects. the first one is a wreath. first we have the store-bought version. >> exactly. >> this one would cost how much in a store? >> $125. i think it's worth it if you've got the money. it's not going to wilt. but you can also make one yourself. >> how easy is it? >> pretty easy.

cut a ring out of foam core. >> which you've got to have lying around the house or you can use any kind of heavy cardboard. >> exactly. and make yourself a leaf template out of cardboard. both of these are on countryliving.com but they're pretty straightford. you're going to trace the leafs onto craft paper or just a paper bag. >> if you have rolled craft paper you have to be careful as to which way you actually cut it? >> no. it's actually a little bit easier because you can roll it out straight. where these you've got two layers. but this is probably free. >> how many leaves do you have to cut? >> about 80. so this is going to take you some time. what you're going to do, you're going to take a leaf, fold it in half, use a bone folder, about three bucks in any craft store. >> if you don't have one of those you can also use something else. >> you can use your fingernail. and then you literally staple the leaves on so that each leaf covers the staple of the one above in a crisscross fashion. >> total time and money?

>> it might take you two, might take you three, less than $15. >> let's move on to our next project. we're talking about picture holders. these are the storbought version here. what would they cost? >> not a fortune. they're $30 for about five of them. >> basically it's a piece of wood with a groove cut in the top. >> exactly. >> which brings the light bulb on and says you could make that at home. >> of course you could find a branch in your backyard. on a local hike. we used birch. saw that branch into segments. you can use a hand saw or a power tool. if you're scared to cut, and i do want to make this point, go to your lumber yard. a dollar a cut is all they'll charge. >> and how are you creating the top groove where the picture is going to go? >> score a line. take this hand saw. saw in there about a quarter inch and then you just take your picture, and you stick it right in there. >> okay. and you can actually add a little gloss if you want or smooth out the rough spots? >> yeah. if you're using a hand saw you're probably going to have some rough spots. use some sandpaper to sand it.

if you want to paint it a color you could also do that. >> the next one is a little more unusual. this is the store-bought version, right? >> exactly. it cost $400. it's by umbra. >> that's a lot of money. not that it's not pretty but that's a lot of money. >> it's a lot of money. >> the easier way to do this yourself at home? >> collect a bunch of mismatched candlesticks. you can find them at flea markets, thrift shops. a vintage tray, $7 to $8 tops and then you want to just arrange them on the tray. >> it's almost the less they match and the more haphazard the arrangement the better it looks. >> the better it's going to look. you don't even want like ones next to each other. the more different shapes you have the better. they're also cheaper because they're not matched sets. >> right, exactly. what would you expect to pay for some of these in a thrift store or some kind of boutique? >> anywhere from $1 to $5 or $6. and then you just glue them in place using epoxy. check the package to make sure

it adheres metal to metal. hold it in place for five minutes. definitely work outside with this stuff. >> it does have some fumes. >> and gloves. you don't want your hands sticking together. >> and buying some inexpensive candles to place in this. >> exactly. total time and cost for me? >> total time, even for you, i think you're looking at once you found the candlesticks, 30 minutes. total cost about 50 bucks. >> again in a tough economy we can all use ways to save money around the house. great, thank you very much. up next, one woman's fight to take the financial fear out of breast cancer. and the diagnosis of breast cancer. and the diagnosis of breast cancer. but first, this is "to announcer: during the autobahn for all event, you can get great lease deals. i love it! i just want to know it's the right move. me? thirteen days in the future. you get a deal on the car you always wanted. scheduled maintenance is included, it's all good. what's the future like? you love your new jetta. and the suit? you like it? no...i love it!

( feedback ) ( burger clears throat ) ♪ till now - ♪ i always got by on my own - ( audience cheering ) ♪ i never really cared ♪ until i met you... announcer: a1 makes the burger king steakhouse burger sing. this year more than 192,000 women in the u.s. will be diagnosed with breast cancer. most will survive. but for many, the financial impact can be devastating. nbc's ann thompson is here with the story of one woman tryg to

help. ann, good morning. >> good morning, meredith. three years ago when i was diagnosed with breast cancer, my first reaction was the reaction of many. cancer patients, first of all, will i survive. and then the second is, how will i pay for it? i found out that we have great health insurance, but all throughout my treatment i kept thinking about what choices i would have if i didn't have the insurance, and i couldn't afford treatment. it turns out, there's a doctor in raleigh, north carolina, who has done more than just think about it. she's helping women heal physically and financially. this is bucky's little slice of heaven. put it over the roast, nice and juicy. life with sons dustin and kyle, and husband steve. >> there you go, partner. >> reporter: but she endured hell to get it. >> you can't put a price on your family. you can't put a price on being able to survive for them. >> reporter: cancer would try. mist 34, becky had a blocked lk duct removed from her breast. doct hs ldtoer not told worry,

even though she continued to have pain. a mammogram at 36 revealed what becky feared, a highly aggressive form of cancer. >> i cried. because it was like, how -- how can you tell me i've got two small kids? what am i going to tell them? what am i going to tell my husband? and it was hard. it was like being sucker punched. >> reporter: with a mass of five inches in one breast and a more than 50% chance of the cancer spreading to the other becky had a double mastectomy. even though she had health insurance there were $3500 in costs it didn't cover. and becky and steve couldn't pay. >> i'm like, how are we going to pay this and still make the rent payment? i knew i needed help at that point. >> reporter: becky turned to her surgeon dr. lisa, the founder of pretty in pink, a foundation that helps women who can't afford breast cancer treatment get it at reducedr no cost.

>> i've seen women choose to have a mastectomy in order to avoid radiation. i've seen them choose not to have construction. we've had many patients flip to a less expensive drug. >> reporter: and a less effective drug? >> in some cases. >> reporter: it is a choice she says no woman should have to make. but at a price of more than $200,000 for surgery, chemotherapy and radiation, some women are forced to. >> i was just trying to fix it one little piece at a time. >> reporter: and there's no shortage of need. here in north carolina, 14% of women live below the federal poverty level. 20% have no health insurance. and nearly one-third of households are headed by single or divorced women with limited resources. when she started pretty in pink in 2004, the doctor wanted to help ten women in her county. today, pretty in pink is in 15 counties helping more than 300 women. with everything from getting wigs to financing a complete course of treatment. >> they're not on welfare.

almost all of them are mothers. and almost all of them have some work, but not enough to have insurance. >> reporter: she relies on local fund-raisers like this golf outing. and a network of doctors and clinics in the raleigh area that donate services. now, with the recession, pretty in pink has seen more women like nancy moody. >> i don't want my energy to be spent worrying. >> reporter: nancy lost her job last year and needed help with her monthly payment for c.o.b.r.a., the federal health insurance program. >> this right here is the financial assistance form. >> reporter: after reviewing nancy's financial history and treatment plan, pretty in pink stretched her limited resources so she can now pay her mortgage as she fights breast cancer that has spread to her bones. >> i can tell you when i wake up, that i feel grateful that i have a roof over me, that i'm laying on a bed, a real bed, and that i'm breathing.

that i am opening my eyes. >> reporter: such comfort is what capital bank's ceo envisioned when his bank donated $100,000 to pretty in pink. >> can you imagine your mother or your sister or your daughter having this disease, and not have being the financial ability to get the treatment that they need to live? report beck poole can remember the day pretty in pink agreed to pay what she and steve could not. >> i cried. i laughed and i cried and i laughed. so, it was a good day. >> reporter: becky is now healthy and back at work. she and steve can once again provide for their sons, and each other. counting on many more good days to come. the doctor hopes that pretty in pink can be duplicated across the country. her goal is to have chapters in every state in the next decade. meredith? >> i think it's realistic, too. it seems like it would be effective everywhere. >> she thinks it can be

duplicated across the country without any trouble. >> thank you so much. and to learn more about pretty in pink, logon to our website, todayshow.com. up next, how to get the best seats on broadway. we'll explain.

this morning on "leonard's look" our mike leonard, usually one to stop and smell the

flowers, has stopped in midtown manhattan for a completely different reason. >> reporter: in new york city's times square, a surprise summertime hit. has mesmerized people up and down broadway. >> it's inspiring. >> reporter: causing some to search in vain for words to describe why this summertime sensation, the act of sitting in a chintzy lawn chair on a blocked-off city street is so, so -- >> i'm trying to come up with something really wise to say and i can't. >> reporter: nor can i. other than to say that this pilot project of diverting automobile traffic to create pedestrian plazas in certain sections of times square was a bold move. stronger, more durable furniture was ordered but couldn't be delivered until august. so just six days before the memorialay opening of the plaza's tim tom kins president of the times square alliance went into code one scramble mode. rummaging through a couple of local hardware stores for a quick fix order of cheapy lawn chairs. nearly 400 of them. >> they're all rag eddie.

>> reporter: but at the same time, oddly cool in a strange, kitschy kind of way. >> who would have thought. >> reporter: that so many people could sit so deep in thought on an urban canyon floor, surrounded high and low by every kind of distraction. under the sun. >> just taking it all in. >> reporter: it's funny how the mind blocks out extraneous thought, when focused on things of great significance. like the phenomenon of blending contrasting ingredients to come up with something incredibly tasteful. often by accident. as for this strange concoction, well, on paper this seems like a pretty stupid idea. but it works. because it taps into a powerful human need. >> people watching. yeah. >> it's like oh, my god you're sitting here people watching and you've got times square like righin front of you. it's like, you know, surreal. >> reporter: grab a chair and see for yourself. >> it's a beautiful lifetime. >> new york city and any big city is about rushing. you know, it's aut looking at your blackberry, about doing ten things at once.

and so it is radical to simply sit still and look. >> reporter: and when he says still, he means still. statue-like still. >> it's very peaceful. >> reporter: a welcome bit of calm for the city that never sleeps. >> i just think this is the best idea ever. >> reporter: this theater of the absurd, where looking at people, looking at people, is a show in itself. for "today," mike leonard, nbc news, new york city. >> hmm. >> i like the idea. >> i love it. >> have you done it, gone over there and sat? >> no. that's what i was thinking, i think most of the people in those chairs are tourists. i don't really know that there are that many new yorkers, who won't stop looking at their blackberry. >> as a new yorker i do go to central park and just sit on a bench sometimes. and watch people go by. it's cool. >> in a raincoat you do that, don't you? >> no. >> and a baseball cap. >> why would you do that? >> oh, why would i pick on you? >> maybe put a tv studio.

that wouldn't be bad. >> kind of forward thinking. >> hmm. >> they may have one over there. >> look at those seats out there. nobody's ever attempted to steal them. the cynic says people will grab them. but they don't. >> they're raggedy. >> well, they take shopping carts. people are nice. iv they're nice. don't g >> deon give them the idea, meredith. >> i'm not giving them ideas. t our time now is 8:55. 73 degrees, bright sunshine, kind of hazy sunshine. humidity is back here in the nation's capital. on this wednesday, the 22nd day of july, good morning, i'm joe krebs. we'll get the forecast coming

up. virginia's governor is expected to call a special session responding to a recent supreme court ruling that will affect drunk driving and dna cases. the decision states a defendant's sixth amendment right to confront witnesses also applies to breathalyzer cases and a lab sheet does not pass that test. states are trying to figure out how to get a relatively small number of forensic examiners ou rt ctonrtn o o those cases. nearly a dozen high school students are hospitalized in china after several contracted cases of swine flu t. quarantine teens come from several schools as part of the cultural exchange program at the university of maryland. the students will be able to finish a trip to china if they re aak cnd> wel take areak and back and look at weather and traffic. =d? ak

good morning. a typical midsummer haze around the region. there is a live picture, dew points in the mid to upper 60s now. temperatures around the region in the 70s, we'll hit the upper 80s this afternoon, rather humid today, tonight and tomorrow. a small chance of an afternoon thunderstorm today. tomorrow a greater chance of afternoon and evening thundershowers. less humid friday and saturday. how's traffic now? >> a live look along i-270. the commute we'll call it heavy

but the lanes are open. doing better than northern virginia. it's a tough morning along 395 northbound. look at that. delays begin at the beltway. the problem was downtown, eastbound at the u.s. capitol exit. several vehicles in an accident. we're looking at massive delays at this hour. >> looks rough. coming up at 11:00 a.m. paying it forward.

back now with more of "today" on a wednesday morning, the 22nd day of july, 2009. great people lining our plaza this morning, as we are now just a little bit more than a month into summer. june here, basically didn't -- >> it was like seattle. >> and half of july, too. >> not so great, either. but the weather has turned nice, as you can see. and we've got a couple of months ahead so we're looking forward to that. out on the plaza, i'm matt lauer along with al roker and amy robach who is filling in. natalie is on assignment. and coming up, more with susan boyle. do you remember when she first was on the scene? >> oh, yeah. >> everybody was talking about her as part of that "britain's got talent" show. unfortunately, as is often the

case, she was judged by her appearance when she took the stage. and then she opened her mouth and started to sing, and wow, did she change the world. well, meredith sat down with her for a worldwide exclusive interview to find out how she's cong after a little bit of a misstep there. how she's coping with all this newfound fame. we'll hear more about that. >> and then a little bit later on, if it's wednesday, it must be time for our money 911. we're going to be helping you, if you find out your credit card got canceled. what you should do. taking advantage of new tax deductions. our experts have it all. >> also we're going to tell you what you can learn from the budgeting skills of a family with 12 children. >> wow. >> a lot, i would imagine. >> yes. a lot of hand me downs. >> a lot to get to. ann is standing by with all the headlines. good morning again, ann. >> good morning once again, matt. good morning, everybody. also in the news this morning, lawmakers are saying president obama may not get the n health care legislation that he wants passed before congress in august, as he wants. earlier on this broadcast, republican senator john demint

said that it would be a mistake to rush to meet the president's deadline, and he accused the president of going on aspending spree. at the white house on tuesday, key house democrats also expressed concern about the pace of the plan, and the cost to taayers. and for his part, the president remained hopeful, saying quote, we are going to get the job done. the president makes his case for health care reform in a news conference that will be broadcast nationwide tonight. nbc news will carry it live at 8:00 eastern, 7:00 central. the world's first human testing of swine flu vaccine started today in australia. two different companies are injecting hundreds of healthy adult volunteers. if the vaccines work, they could be ready for distribution this fall. secretary of state hillary clinton warned today that north korea's only real option is to demilitarize completely and irreversibly. she said chinese and russian delegates at a security conference in thailand also support that positi. earlier, she also put iran on notice saying that its pursuit

of nuclear weapons is unacceptable and could forced u. to arm its persian gulf allies. harvard professor henry louis gates jr. said that he wants an apology from the police officer who arrested him on his own doorstep. the renowned african-american scholar was arrested last week by a white police officer answering a burglary call at gates' cambridge, massachusetts, home. police say gates yelled at the officer and accused him of racial bias. prosecutors have now dropped a disorderly conduct charge tuesday and called gates' arrest regrettable and unfortunate. chaos this morning in south korea's parliament where hundreds of lawmakers screamed and scuffled as they argued over a media reform bill. at least one lawmaker had to be hospitalized. and a rare spectacle in the sky over parts of asia this morning. a total solar eclipse turned daylight into darkness. for more than six minutes, the longest one of this century. and there will be not another

total eclipse lasting that long for another 123 years. beautiful. it is now four minutes past the hour. let's go back outside to matt and amy. >> makes people do crazy things, ann. like the politicians in south korea. >> all right, let's get a check of the weather. al roker is on the plaza. al, good morning. >> thank you very much, amy and matt. we've got some folks here. where are you guys from? your mom's getting in your way? >> we're from little rock, arkansas. >> what's your name? >> lylely. >> nice to see you. you having a good time. yeyer. si >> oh, how polite. very nice. siles check your leweather, see what's goingon.r show you for today, got a lot of wet weather, a lot of wet -- wee looking at from new orleans all the way up into the great lakes. rainfall, rainfall amount generally about one to two inches. then as we move to the west, even heavier rain working its way in. el paso, lubbock, odessa, in between, some areas

it is a mild and rather muggy morning, temperatures in the mid 70s, 75 in washington, and it's near 80 in southern maryland. we'll see it soar into the upper 80s. it will be humid and clouds building during the afternoon. may produce an isolated thundershower, then a weak cool ont will bring an end to the humid for a while the high humidity. and maybe a likelihood of afternoon thundershowers. less humid friday and saturday. got some folks from perry, georgia. what's your name? >> donna in >> debbie. >> joy. >> connie. >> sheryl. >> all right, nice to see you all. georgia peaches. and that's what's going on. now let's head back inside to ann. >> al, thanks. now to meredith's exclusive interview with susan boyle, a middle-aged woman living with her cats in the house she grew up in. no one would have ever guessed that her name and her life would

one day steal the spotlight. ♪ i dreamed a dream inime gone boy. ♪ i dreamed that love would never die ♪ >> reporter: from anonymity to superstardom. >> reporter: thanks to the internet and youtube, susan boyle's voice was heard around the world. within days her 90-second clip of "i dreamed a dream" had been viewed 20 million times. >> easily the hoest piece of video on the web, in the world. >> now susan boyle is one of the most recognizable faces in the world. >> there is no controversy when it comes to susan boyle and her golden voice. >> reporter: when susan boyle took the stage on the popular british talent show, the judges rolled their eyes. the audience laughed at her. but no one was laughing when she began to sing. ♪ i dreamed that love would

never die ♪ >> reporter: this unexpected, unlikely star, quite simply brought the house down, becoming one of the most recognizable faces in the world. >> somebody very unlikely in the shape of susan, who by her own admission is, you know, never ing to win a beauty pageant. she's not a size zero, age 19, singing some sweet pop song. she's a 48-year-old lady, from a tiny village in scotland. >> reporter: in an instant, the world fell in love with susan boyle. and her golden voice. i caught up with susan boyle in london, where she's been recording her first album. i'm one of those millions of people that fell in love with you in mid-april when i heard you sing "i dreamed a dream." you look gorgeous. >> thank you very much. >> i'm loving the hair. it's a little bit different. a little bit of a slight makeover? >> a slight one. you know, i brush up quite well.

>> you do brush up very, very well. the journey you have been on, everybody around the world suddenly saying who is this susan boyle? are you having a good time? >> it's just been unbelievable. it's indescribable. it's a bit like popping out of obscurity. >> reporte obscurity is right. three months ago, susan boyle was living with her cat pebbles and performing in her church. but susan spent most of her adult life caring for her mother bridt who passed away two years ago. you spent a lot of your adult life taking care of mom. >> i did, uh-huh. >> reporter: if she was here now, what do you think she would say to you? >> keep going. >> reporter: keep going? >> keep going, you're doing really well. >> reporter: why do you think she has so much confidence in you? >> i was her little girl. >> reporter: you were the baby of the family? >> the baby, yeah. forget that. but i have to get up there and prove to everybody that i could do it. so i applied for "britain's got talent." and the rest you know. >> reporter: and the rest of the

world knows, actually. so when you walked out on that stage and the audience responded the way that they did, it was, i guess, a little bit of snickering, is that fair to say? >> well, never judge a book by the cover. >> reporter: susan boyle has become somewhat of a pop culture phenomenon. with a book deal in the works and multiple movie offers and now there's even a susan boyle doll. you know how you know when you've really made it? when they have a doll in your likeness. i just so happened to have the susan boyle doll. here, take a look. >> ♪ isn't she lovely isn't she beautiful ♪ ♪ isn't she lovely isn't she wonderful ♪ >> reporter: for the first time, susan boyle describes just how overwhelming being thrust into the spotlight can be. >> it was like a demolition ball. >> reporter: it felt like a demolition ball? >> the impact. like a demolition ball. >> reporter: it's been some

roller coaster ride for susan. from the highs of superstardom to the lows of brutal headlines and public outbursts, to talk that she was backing out of the talent show. >> she was completely and utterly exhausted. she wasn't having some crack-up as people said, she wasn't boiling over. >> it was very hard. you put on a front. you've got an audience to please. you get on with it. you have to. >> reporter: the fast track to celebrity and the media frenzy that goes along with it began taking its toll on susan. she spent five days at the priory mental health clinic where she was treated for exhaustion. and though there was a little rough spot, a little bit draining obviously physically and emotionally. spent a few days in a clinic. was that good to get away from the craziness? >> oh, i think it was necessary at the time. i needed a rest. i needed to get away. >> reporter: i was there the night of the finale. it was very, very exciting. you looked beautiful. but you didn't win. versity won that night, their night.

s that a difficult experience for you, susan? >> not at all. because actually they're a very good act. i nice bunch of guys. and the best people won. >> reporter: but it wasn't long before susan was back on track. doing the live tour of "britain's got talent." and now with t help of simon cowell, recording her first album, due out this fall. how's recording going? >> i'm not going to tell too many secrets. >> reporter: well i happen to know that it's not show tunes. >> something of a surprise. >> reporter: you're not going to tell me, are you? ♪ i dream >> meredith with susan boyle. and you can see more of that interview tonight on "susan boyle: daring to dream" as part of a special edition of "america's got talent." it begins at 9:00, 8:00 central time. and we'll have more of "today" tomorrow on "today," meantime

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the special k® breakfast, now in blueberry. so why skip? when you can eat all this... and still weigh less. victory is... sweet. time now for "today's money 911." answers to your most critical financial questions from a team of experts from dealing with debt owed to the irs to what to do if your credit card is canceled. "today's" financial editor jean chatzky. finish rich dotcom founder david bach and carmen wong ulrich, the host of cnbc's "on the money". amy is at dean & deluca with some members of our crowd. how you guys doing? >> great. >> we're going to go to the phones first. we have melissa on the phone from hampton, virginia. melissa, good morning. what's your question? >> good morning. my husband and i owe $38,000 in taxes due to 401(k) liquidation.

can we or a third party negotiate with the irs to reduce this debt? >> and is that one of the reasons why we say don't liquidate your 401(k)? >> don't borrow from your 401(k) plan, don't do liquidations. you need to go to the irs directly. go to the irs website, irs.gov. there's a form there. write this form number down 9465. that is the irs installment form that you fill out, to ask the irs -- you've got to tell the irs, look, i'm late. i haven't paid the taxes because they will find you. when you don't pay taxes to the irs, they can come in, they can force you to sell your home. they can force you to liquidate the rest of your retirement account. they can come in and te your paycheck. you cannot avoid the irs. but they have an installment form, 9465, fill it out. ask to receive the option to pay over time. because your debt is so high, it's over $25,000. they're going to require you to fill out a whole big form that will tell them where your money currently is so they can decide

if you qualify for the installment program. on a worst-case basis, the last thing you can do with the irs is you can actually ask for a compromise. they have a form where you can go in to the irs and ask if you can actually get a reduction, but that's a last alternative. the irs does not like to do that. get those organizations to tell you they can negotiate with the irs. you should be negotiating directly with them. >> all right. good luck, melissa. we wish you well. now let's head across the street to dean & deluca. amy, what's your question? >> we're with debbie from tuskegee, alabama. >> how will the health care reform provide hope and help to the citizens of tuskegee and surrounding areas with 24-hour urgent health care? >> that's a tough one. >> this is a tough one. in your area is considered rural, right? so there are specific guidelines, and moneys that are going to be dedicated to building up rural communities. the problems with rural communities and health care tend

to be no access to doctors. doctors also don't want to move there. the medicare coverage in terms of the reimbursement is not so good. a lot of doctors don't want to go into rural areas. so there's not enough access to health care and not enough access to good insurance choices. insurance premiums tend to be very, very high. the usda has ear marked billions of dollars to go directly to building community health centers and putting a little more money into medicare so that you have better reimbursement. you can attract better doctors and also have better insurance options and coverage. >> okay. it's going to take some time, though. >> absolutely. >> all right. now let's go, we've got an e-mail question for you from jean. my 85-year-old mother took out credit cards lured by the low interest rates and then they went sky high. she's making minimum payments but is about $12,000 in debt. she'll need to go into a nursing home soon and 50% of her income goes to paying off credit cards. what can we do. jean? >> stop worrying is the first

thing. that you can do. because, in this situation, your mother is quite likely going to be okay. when your mother needs to go into that nursing home, the nursing home is going to take a look at whether she has the assets to pay for it or whether she'll qualify for medicaid. she'll fill out a bunch of forms, as david saidbout the taxes, go through the process. there are always fors. you can't get away from them, and then essentially they'll look at what she's got and they'll make a decision about how much money is going to come to th, how much money is going to be allowed to her to pay for her personal expenses, and they may or may not decide that she has the money to pay that debt back. if they say no, money for debt t paenymin general the debt is going to be forgiven. so stop worrying. we'll be fine. >> that's the first stop worrying. back to amy with i believe a "today" money 911 first. identical twins. >> that's right. doublemint question here. they have a question about student loans. who's going to do the talking? >> both of us.

>> where can we find cheaper student loans? >> and when should we start paying them off? >> all right, david? >> first of all, do you have student loans right now? >> yes. >> okay. so your student loans actually tell you when you need to pay them off. so assuming that they're government student loans, most student loans you don't have to start paying until you actually get out of school. if you go back to school to get a graduate degree you can defer. if you've got a government student loan you've got very cheap student loans. if you've got a private student loan, you're out of luck, because it's the government student loans you really want. eventually you'll see the prices of these coming down. right now it's very difficult to prefinan student loans. >> carmen -- you were like twins. >> you're going to find lots of lots of resources in terms of applying for loans. make sure like david said you've got to go for the government loans first. stay away from private loans. >> also with the government loans, don't rush to pay those loans off, in many cases you've got 10, 15, 20 years. the rate is so low.

it's like free money. i always tell people don't stress about them. >> do you always dress alike or did you just do that for us? >> do you always dress alike? >> no. >> but they always answer alike. very nice. >> thanks a lot. we're going to take a break. but you guys are going to be back in our next half hour with a lesson everyone can learn from a family of 14. all of that coming up. why "american idol" champ jordin sparks has packed her bags to be why "american idol" champ jordin sparks has packed her bags to be with the jonas brothers. female announcer ] sometimes, you can get so much out of so little. the same is true wiwl bath tissue too. introducing new charmin ultra soft. its new ultra soft design is softer than before. and it has so much absorbency, you can use 7 sheets vs. 28 of the leading value brand. so your family can get more mileage out of less. [ horn honks ] new charmin ultra soft. america's softest bath tissue. but i've got a warm, fresh baked strawberry toaster strudel.

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school students from our area are still hospitalized in china after several contracted stwin flu t. teens come from several schools as part of a cultural exchange program at the university of maryland. the students will be able to extend their stay and finish their trip in china if they choose. 1x

temperatures in the mid 70s. it's more humid, dew points in the mid and upper 60s, highs reaching the upper 80s this afternoon. there is a small chance of an isolated thundershower. a greater chance tomorrow. less humid friday and saturday. sunday into next week, remaining rather humid. could get thundershowers sunday afternoon. how's traffic? >> it's a tough one for folks trying to get into town. 395 northbound to the 14th street bridge jammed. a long standing accident eastbound on the freeway at the entrance for the third street tunnel. >> thank you.

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♪ put your money where your mouth is ♪ ♪ that's what you get for waking up in vegas ♪ ♪ get up and that's what you get for waking up in vegas ♪ >> katy perry, ladies and gentlemen. she's a party all by herself. she sang a song cal d"a kissed a gi"a." she'll be performing live on our plaza this friday right outside our window. so come on down and join our party here on "today." meantime, inside studio 1a, we've got lots going on, i'm airk, al roker, amy robach. we should introduce ourselves. >> i'm trying. for example, how do you budget

with a family thaki ds kids? we're going to continue our conversation with our expert panel on how you can learn things from these folks for handling your finances. >> learn to juggle? >> one of the things, really, juggling your books. >> you don't juggle? >> i don't. >> also ahead we're going to tell you if you're looking for something new to wear, how about putting the old scarves stuffed in a drawer to good use. we're going to show you how to put them into some very funky pieces of fashion. >> that's a good idea. because if you learn thank you tie them, we can wear them as tops under our jackets. >> make aecure knot. >> i can make a brooch or a hat or a pterodactyl. >> you don't want a pterodactyl in your kitchen. >> you do want to learn how to make a great plate of fish. guess what? you might need some interesting salt to do that in an exceptional way. there are some salt tea food dishes. that may not be attractive to look at raw. but you should take a look.

let's get to the salts. because the salts are unbelievable. >> ann curry, director. >> and even a little further, what you'll see is all those are salts. isn't that surprising? >> oh, wow. >> mixed with different kindof spices so that you can really flavor your meats and your seafoods. to be delectable. now let's take a check of the weather. >> okay. what video source should we go to? >> i think we should go to the map. >> okay, joe. >> thank you. for the weekend, sizzling conditions for the western half of the country. rain through the ohio river valley. rip currents along the northeast. then sunday -- sunday! -- more rain in the northeast. sizzling in the west. and hot weather from oklahoma, as far west as portland, and seattle. good morning. we've got summer haze in the air this morning and it has turned more humid. temperatures now in the mid 70s, there's a view from the sky

watcher camera. it's going to be climbing into the 80s, upper 80s so uncomfortable, humid midsummer day. small chance of an isolated thundershower today. greater chance tomorrow mainly in the afternoon. highs mid 80s. then less humid on friday and saturday. highs in the 80s, near 90 by saturday. and that's your latest weather. >> all right, al, thanks so much. coming up next, lessons on keeping your family on a budget for a family with 12 kids. what do you see? what do you feel? sadness. loss of interest. what do they see? what do they feel? depression hurts. cymbalta can help. cymbalta is a prescription medication that treats anys symptoms of depression. tell your doctor right away if your depression worsens, you have unusual changes in behavior

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we're back with more of "today's money 911." we're going to get back to our expert panel in just a moment. first for one missouri family making ends meet is just a way of life. having 12 kids, that just means a little more fun. >> my name is matthew. this is my wife jamie. >> we've been married 27 years and we have 12 children. our old child is mike ka. he's 26. our second child is jo elle. she's 23. virginia is 20. mathias is 18. lydia is 16. gloria is 14. cora is 13. eliza is 11.

levi is 9. sadie is 7. hope is 5. and junior is 4. >> having a large family has definitely taught us many lessons. we've had to learn the hard way to stretch our dollars and be content with less when it comes to things. but more when it comes to relationships. >> we've always been able to put food on the table. >> every car we've ever had has been a used car. jamie is really the one who has given her girls a real passion for buying good clothes but buying them cheaply or making them themselves. >> they've learned that money is not what's going to buy their style, creativity is. >> setting the right precedent with a large family is very important. >> got my first job when i was 16. >> i worked for the ymca. i taught tumbling. i'm 15, i'll be 16 on june 29th. i can hopefully get a job as soon as i can so i can save money to buy my own car. >> they can begin to have more

money to take care of their own needs. >> we never run out of things to be thankful for. and that's made us feel very rich. >> so no matter how large or small your family, chances are you need to figure out a better way to budget. our ka-ching team has stuck around. jean chatzky, finish rich dotcom founder david bach and carmen wong ulrich. good to see you this morning. the takeaway from this, david, seems to be you have to be a little bit creative. you have a budget but you have to have a certain attitude. >> they're living rich. it's not just the money. when you look at 12 people in the family, by giving serious, as you say, they have to follow where the money was going. and they had to have a plan. and i think you don't have to wait to have 12 kids to have a plan. if you can do it with 12 people you can do it with two people. >> jean, what are the key components to a budget breaker?

>> essentially it's a pie chart and you've got 35% of your money that goes for housing. 25% for daily living, 15% for transportation, 15 to repay your other debts like your student loans and your credit cards, and 10% for long-term savings. and my rule is that that 10% is set in stone. you can borrow from any other category to feed any of the others. >> carm, in the housing, what's included in that? >> what's really important to know about the housing, this is your mos important expense in the sense that it takes the biggest part of your budget. the decision you make regarding your housing is going to affect the rest of your budget. jean said 35%. this includes not just your mortgage payment but your home insurance and your property taxes, and in some states like new jersey for example, your property taxes can be as big as your mortgage. so you've got to make sure these are all wrapped up together and fall below or around that 35. >> transportation. >> again, it's not just your car loan. it's the money to put gas in your car. to pay the insurance on the car. to maintain the car, and if you

live in a very expensive place, housing-wise, you may find you don't need a car and you take some of that money and shove it over. >> and student loans? >> student loans, because of debt. most people don't have a category in their budget for credit card debt and student loans. and that's the extra 10% to 15% where people blow the budget up. you have to have in that budget a 10% to 15% factor for all the extra debt. >> jean chatzky, david bach, and carmen wong ulrich. you can catch more from carmen on saturday on "on the money." if you have questions, check out todayshow.com and we'll address as many of them as we can. coming up next, how to wrap yourself in style. introducing listerine® total care. everything you need to strengthen teeth, help prevent cavities, and killerms. introducing 6 in 1 listene® total care. e thmo complete mouthwash. and to complete your oral care routine

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[sluuurrrrpppp!] irresistible. now try new watermelon and cantaloupe flavors. this morning on "today's style," how to tie the perfect scarf. that's right, go grab one from the back of your closet. we're going to show you how it

will take you from day to night in a flash. "us weekly" contributor jill martin is here with a lesson for all of us. you're wearing a scarf in an unusual way. this is very fashionable. >> this is a type of belt. but this is what i'm talking about. a square scarf. these are vera scarves. but you can take any scarf in the back of your closet, needs to be a square. this is 36 inches. if you need more coverage you go bigger. but this will take you from day to night in a flash. this is the classic way. i want to show you some groovy ways. >> this is the way we see it typically done. we've got models to demonstrate some of the more interesting ways. the first one is a little scary to me because i think it's all about the knot. we've got dana who is wearing the scarf as a halter top. again you've got to know how to tie this knot. >> turn around, just so you can see the back. this is a really sexy look. you can also wear it under a suit if you don't want to show such a sexy look. it's really easy to today and on todayshow.com we have all the

instructions. you take the middle with the bull side facing up and just tie a knot. so you tie a knot in the middle. i'm going to do this on you, amy. >> all right. so you tie the knot right here. and then you just put each corner around, you take this with the knot in the middle. you take one side here. >> and this is knotted right here. >> and the other side goes around your waist over here and that mes a halter top. >> but the knot in the middle gives you the little gather. >> the knot in the middle is key. right on the bull side make it right in the center. >> all right, janice, thanks so much. the next we're using the scarf as a belt. you have a couple different ways. you tied it one way. alice has a second look with the belt. very cute. >> this is another great way people are always asking how do you tie it? >> because it looks like there's so much material and yet it looks so streamlined there. >> you take a triangle right here and then you just coil it

up. so here's the triangle and you just go like this and make a coil. it's very quick. >> and the length works for just about everybody? >> right. and if you need bigger and more coverage. you st tie it around like this. >> very cute. i love that look. goes perfect with your outfit. >> i love it. >> perfect. thank you so, alice. our next look is kimiko and she is sporting this scarf as a purse. okay you've got to see this one. >> look at that! >> wow. >> isn't that great? >> how cute is that? >> year one loves this one. this is actually really easy to do. you take bull size facing up, two corners. tie a knot here. >> see this? >> yes. and then you take the top. >> no, you make it look so easy. >> and then it's a purse. >> that is such a great idea. you could pack it pretty full, i see. >> we packed it here just to

show. >> that is so nice. and you can use the se scarf for all of these different looks. >>nd finally we have, i've seen this before. i don't know if you have to be maybe a little younger to pull this off, we have megan wearing the scarf as a headband. >> that's right. >> let's see what that looks like. very cute. i like it. >> this is great for the beach, too. a bikini underneath. and this is pretty much the same concept as the belt. you just tie the triangle. >> it' little wider. >> and then you just fold it. depending on the width that you want and wrap it around your head. >> do you love the extra material there at the back? >> you can either have it, or you can have it hanging if you like that look. >> that is so great. >> can we have everybody come in and see all the different looks? these are great ideas and things that really take you about two minutes to do, right? >> you don't have to spend a lot of money to do it. >> i love it. jill martin, thanks very much. inspiring everybody. all right coming up next on "today," into "today's kitchen" for all of you who need to know

about salt and why, looking at different cameras. oú

this morning in "today's kitchen," cooking with salt, with hot new chef govin armstrong of restaurant table eight at the coopers square hotel in new york city. and he's talking about salt. >> good morning. >> i want everybody to look at this salt because it's so incredibly beautiful. people may not know that this is salt. but why is it salt. what are causing these colors? >> basically this is a smoked lt. so that's why it's got that dark color. i'm sure you can smell it. it's really, really fragrant. it's a beautiful salt. we use this to finish plates. there's salts that are a little more coarse like the himalayan, the pink one. it's better for curing or making gravlax, things like that. they all have different

textures, different meltability. so some are good for finishing, as well. >> i recently called something like a truffle salt. >> right. >> it was amazing what it did to a pasta. a little bit of that. this morning we're making fish. >> we sure are. >> you've got a beautiful piece of fish. >> yeah. we're going to make a salt mixture with whipped egg whites and you fold that in. >> what did you put in there? >> that was a little bit of water. using a little bit of standard kosher salt and a bunch of different aromatics. we have fennel pollen, a little bit of lemon zest, bay leaves, crushed red pepper, fennel seeds and a little bit of black pepper. >> you're saying you can mix it -- this is a lot of salt. >> it's quite a bit. but the great thing is it's not going to take up any of the saltiness of that salt. it's going to infuse the me. >> with all these flavors. because fish can be sometimes a little not bland but it can need a little something. >> it always needs a little bit of salt. we're going to give it that and then some today. >> okay. >> let's put a little bit in the base here.

>> in the pan. >> exactly. >> okay. and we're going to put the fish on top. >> and then pan -- i see, make a little bed. >> exactly. >> and you put the fish. >> you put herbs inside the fish. >> inside we have a little bit of fennel and some more lemon to just -- >> holy cow. >> i know. >> this is a salt-like hmm castle. tower. >> it's beautiful. it's something great. it's something that we do at the restaurant, as well, can a really beautiful porterhouse steak. >> holy cow. i think it's -- you need more? >> oh, dump it all. >> okay, theree go. you're kind of like burying it. >> exactly. >> this is going to make a really nice crust. when we put it in the oven. >> like that? >> yes, just like that. >> and then what have you cooked this at? >> maybe 400 degrees. >> how long do you cook a fish like that? >> takes about 17 minutes. and obviously depending on size.

we'll put that right there. >> mm-hmm. >> what you want to do. >> smells amazing. >> you can smell all the rare matics, the fennel comes through, the lemon. you want to lift off the salt. >> wow. >> and look at how beautiful that is. >> it kept all the moisture in. the flavor has gone in. the arehema is amazing. you put that at the tablet's going to just smell so good. >> and the beautiful thing is that you need absolutely no sauce to go with this. >> but it's not salty? >> not at all. >> it's not salty. can you believe this? >> that's amazing. >> here. >> what else do we have? >> you have the salt-roasted porterhouse over there that you're familiar with. a little watermelon salad there with spinach. and a little bit of succotash, as well. in the corner we have the duck prosciutto. >> govin armstrong. a new idea. i thought nothing more would surprise me and there you go. >> all right. >> fantastic. ???o?cqq ña>cy

our time now is 9:56, 75 degrees, hazy sunshine, a lot of humidity already this morning. we'll get the forecast from tom kierein coming up. i'm joe krebs. it's wneay the2 f july. in the news today, nearly a dozen high school students from the area are hospitalized in china after several caught swine flu. they come from several high schools as part of a cultural exchange program through the university of maryland. the students will be able to extend their stay in china and finish the trip if they choose. metro acknowledged problems with a half dozen circuits that monitor its trains. however, metro's gm denies a report that the trains cannot be detected by the operation's control center. john cato says the problems are not the same as discovered after last month's deadly crash. governor tim kaine is expected to call a special

session responding to a ruling that will affect drunk driving and dna cases. the opinion stated that the defendant's sixth amendment right to confront witnesses applies to breathalyzer cases and the simple lab sheet does not pass the test. states are trying to figure out how to get a small number of examiners in to court for all of the cases every year. let's take a break and look at our weather and traffic. we won't. we'll go toom ll w we'omom gookiereiei >> we'llo out o tohe y. live picture from the sky e dew pntsoiav showing the p pv climbe this smornin right now in damascus 69, theemperature 70. it will continue, the temperatures will climb into the upper 80s, humid and into tonight and tomorrow. a small chance of an afternoon thundershower today, a greater chance maybe tomorrow morning but a greater chance in the afternoon of passing thundershowers tomorrow. then less humid on friday and saturday. highs in the 80s. to near 90 degrees by saturday

afternoon. jerry, how's traffic now? >> problem with the serious crash involving a motorcycle near the exit for john parkway. authorities have closed it. helicopter is on the scene. to the american legion bridge, there is the closure, some road work going on, outer loop left lane is closed. look for delays because of the closure of the clara barten exit and the work zone. >> more in 25 minutes and news at 11:00. óy

captions paid for by nbc-universal television well, it is wednesday, july 22nd. we're so glad you're with us. it's midweek and the world has not come to an end, because you -- >> it's hump day. >> what day? >> hump day. middle of the week. the things you learn. >> you've never heard that? >> i've heard of hump day. but never meaning that it was the middle of the week. itives me new -- you know, because for us it's this, all right. but i never knew it was middle of the week. >> yeah. >> and welcome to the show. >> welcome to the happy hour as it's known of the "today" shosh.

hoda is having a ball in dubai. you've been here now -- you have done it? >> you didn't hear? >> according to the reaction it's been good. you know? hoda better like get her rear end home soon. she's having a good time and she said thank you for sitting in for her. >> my pleasure. >> have you had a good time. it seems like it's just getting rolling. >> now i'm leaving. that makes me sad. just getting into my stride. having fun with you. see you later. >> you'll be back. thursday night, tomorrow night there's something big for you in l.a. >> i have to go back to l.a. i'm doing a party with oxygen. so i have to be back in l.a. and i want to see my kids. >> remember them. >> get to see them tonight. >> they're not just props on her show. they are real children. and she actually does love them, regardless of what you read. now last night i said so what did you do? you're in the big apple. what fantastic thing did you do? and you said. >> i was in bed. >> alone? >> yeah. >> and watching your own show. >> i did. but i had a reason to watch my own show last night because i

wanted to see my kids. >> you're allowed to watch your own show. >> most people are away from their ki and lucky me i can turn on the television and they're right there. >> is it weird for you? some people like to watch themselves, they know who they are. and those of us who don't, i would never -- i don't like to watch it at all. >> i'm on a reality show, so here we have pretty makeup and lighting. and on there i was pregnant. i had double chins. i had everything. you've got to get it go at some point. >> but i think that's why people have discovered a brand-new you. the same person, just a dimension of you they'd never seen before. >> there you go, yeah. >> speaking of that, and somebody we have never seen before, meredith has a fabulous interview with susan boyle. exclusive interview, with the "britain's got talent" runner-up. i guess it's the first time she's sat down and had a real interview with her not winning the prize and also the little breakdown. she surprisedher with a phone call from donny osmond and on on-set visit with elaine page. so i don't know what our sound

on tape is. anybody want to tell me? we going to go to a little bit of that interview f >> yes. >> this would probably be like a good time. >> i felt like a demolition ball. >> it felt like a demolition ball? >> the impact. anyone who had that kind of impact, they find it really hard to get their head around it. >> well, yeah. i think she's what, 47 or 48 years old. >> all of a sudden now, to have -- i've ner heard anyone describe it as a demolition ball in your face though. >> for her, i can imagine. you grew up in a famous home, surrounded by famous people, it was absolutely natural for you. i had been in the business for 15 years before i ever had my big break. so i mean, you get used to it. along the way. but imagine being plucked from obscurity. she looks good now though. >> she looks great. >> i thought i was going to miss the old susan boyle. because i loved the diamond in the rough part of her. >> right.

>> the real woman. >> it's not that different that you're like -- it's not shocking. >> she doesn't look like victoria principle yet. right? but you know what, she's well on her way. she's a beautiful, beautiful woman. i actually do. i love her spirit. >> and that shows. really. >> yeah. >> people that think they would, you know, die for fame and fortune, we talk about this a lot, don't realize that you can die from it. i was talking to rabbi shmuley just a couple of weeks ago about michael jackson. who he became very, very close to over a two-year period years ago and he said, whatever the -- they find out in terms of the toxicology, no matter what was in his system, he said the biggest addiction was fame. and that is the -- that is so sad. you've got to have that, because that's the only place you felt totally loved was from his fans. >> absolutely. you did that with a lot of young celebrities. they come into very quick -- i feel like they have a lot of question people around them. they don't really know what's real. >> you have dana, whom i love. she needs to get a little rest.

i don't know what she was doing last night. >> she got scared yesterday that the camera was going to pan to her. >> she's a beautiful girl girl. you know what i'm concerned today? we went over all the undergarment stuff yesterday, so i'm using one of those things that -- now i have something that christine calls bra goo. >> bra goo? >> yeah, i have bra goo today. >> may i feel your goo? >> yes, that's it right there. >> where is it? >> are you talking about your skin? >> yes. but when it flops over, that's bra goo. and i have it today. but before you write in and tell me i have it, okay. i know. and i like my bra goo. >> can we look at your bra goo one more time? i can go he a happy woman now. i can pop that one. i showed up today, i got so comfortable here in my role, i showed up without a bra today. >> you can do that? >> well, these things aren't going anywhere. but i showed up inappropriate. >> you're like a stiff wind.

>> for all that money, they're not going anywhere. literally, now we have the strap tamers. >> yes. >> so they gave me a bra here, which is really nice. >> they had one in that size? trust me it's not hoda's. >> whoa! go ahead. >> i actually have the old-fashioned safety pin in to hold my bra back. i didn't know i could have used the tamers. >> there's something for everybody. what is this bling stuff here? >> oh, i love flings. flings are 85 calories. so if you ever feel like you need that chocolate hit and i need something sweet but i don't want all the calories. the first time i saw these, i thought 85 calories, it's not going to taste good. it's amazing. >> while i try that let's talk about what you've got to the right of you. because we have to get in a plug. >> did you just snort? >> yes. >> that's fantastic. >> i always snort when we plug. it just goes way back. this is your adorable ttle line for kids. >> this is my children's line of

clothing called little maven. >> available where? >> bloomingdale's, nordstrom's, boutiques everywhere across the country. out this fall. >> good for you. >> i created it for my kids. >> you're like this little mini mogul yourself. >> i love it. if you have the opportunity to be able to create, do it. >> and you love it? >> just go through life thinking i wish i could do this. i wish i could do that. just go for it. you have to make your dreams come true. >> if you sit around and wait for your life to come through it ain't going to happen. >> my fling just broke. >> oxygen media just released a study which said that more than 1,000 women -- about their desire for beauty or perfection. 44% of women ages 18 to 34 say they consider botox to be routine maintenance. >> that is shocking to me. that an 1-year-old would even get bow tax. >> they're trying to get it before they develop them. would you let your -- >> no! >> you've got a daughter. she doesn't need it yet. when would you let her start doing stuff like that? >> she's 1.

imagine by the time she's 18, what will they have then? maybe for her 10th birthday. >> yeah. >> is that what you -- >> you write in your book a lot about how that affected you as a child. being told when you get this done you'll be beautiful. >> definitely. and because of that, i tell her all the time, i mean she's 1 now and i just tell her every day, you're so beautiful. inside and out. >> of course she doesn't have any bra goo yet. >> she doesn't. >> what's up, sweetie? >> penny would like to know how do we get rid of bra goo? >> don't wear outfits like this. >> so it's a quick fix. >> it's spillage. it happens. >> all right. i thought bra goo was funny. anyway,ordin sparks is here. she has no bra goo at all. she's not going to sing for us, but telling us about her new record. >> and she's taking a break there hanging out with the jonas brothers. here she comes next.

jordin sparks turned into a household name when at 17 she

became the youngest contestant eve ever, to win "american idol." >> now two years later, jordin's star is on the rise with her second album titled "battlefield." a mixture of songs by having strength in life, love and staying true to yourself. >> and she happens to be spending the summer tring with those obnoxious guys, jonas brothers. not so shabby. good for you, jordin. >> thank you. >> how's your summer going? >> it's been going really good. it's been a lot of fun. very, very busy. since the album came out yesterday it's just been mayhem. lots of press but it's so worth it. >> you've got to let everybody know it's out there, right. >> it's out there. >> these days there's a lot of noise. >> there's a lot of competition. >> you're so beautiful. i watched you on "american idol." i loved you. big fan. >> thank you. >> it's funny. i still get star struck. we met backstage and your dog maggie with you. does she go everywhere with you? >> i've had her for about two years. and this is the fir time i've gotten to bring her on tour because she's now finally adjusted to, you know, being a dog on the road. and different things like that.

>> that's really good. >> she's a bit of a diva. >> she doesn't listen to me sometimes. >> does your family go with you, as well? somebody told me your mom and dad is here with you. >> my mom is here. my dad was out in new york so it worked out really well that i was here this time. my dad and my mom are both here. my brother came out about two weeks ago. it's really nice to be traveling with people who are also as family oriented as i am. >> what do you do to stay in shape? because it is grueling. grueling. >> you don't have to do anything, though. >> well, it's just so crazy just with all of the pressure and always constantly running around. but at the same time, the stage that i'm on this summer is humongous. it's massive. it's in the round, so i'm constantly having to move so that i don't have my back to people, which is kind of hard when they're sitting right behind you. but it's great. and i brought my trainer out i think a week and a half ago. so, haven't had time to work out with him quite yet. >> he's hanging around having a good time. >> he's working out with some other people on the tour. >> but also your voice, too.

which is, that's the magic. you know. how do you take care of your voice? because that's also, if you don't get enough rest it affects your voice. >> exactly. and these past couple of days i can feel it already. it's starting to get a little bit tighter just from all of the singing and all the talking. which is great. but at the same time i've been overly cautious since that thing that happened last year, which is very scary. >> oh, yeah. remind us again, i'm so sorry. >> i had a vocal chord hemorrhage last year in april. and i was knocked out for three weeks, literally couldn't talk. and so after that i was like, okay, this is not happen again because my voice is who i am. i don't know what i would do without it. and drinking lots of tea, making sure that i don't do extra talking. but you can tell i love to talk so that's definitely hard. just lots of tea, resting. i know when i don't get sleep like you said. >> so you were at the ripe old age, are you 19 or 20? >> ripe old age of 19. >> unbelievable. you've accomplished so much. >> thank you. >> what's been the hardest part of the mole thing? >> i think the hardest part is

just being away from my family. i'm very, very close to my family. very close to my brother. and being away from him, it's like, i don't know what to do, so when i see him every time i see my brother, i cry. i'm just like, i miss you so much. >> does he get to be with you on tour? >> yes, he came out two weeks ago and i think he'll get to come back. >> meantime you've got three other brothers, the jonas brothers. >> i do. >> any crushes happening there? >> no. oh, my goodness, no. they're great people, but no. >> they're not your type, huh? >> no, i'm talking to somebody else, thanks. >> all righty. okay she is on tour with the jonas brothers. you can check them out and her new album is called, listen to me, album, cd is called "battlefield." >> that's so old school of you. >> i know. i could have said record. we're going to get the skinny on skinny jeans, aren't we? >> yes. i'm devastated. they could be bad for your health. what? i'm screwed after all these years. >> will are children watching.

they may be all the rage but who would have thought that squeeze nothing sinny jeans could be literally harmful to your health. from '70s flares, to boot cut to boyfriends, jeans are an american original. and if you can find just the right pair, they can flatter any figure. >> you're a babe! >> reporter: even the president has a frumpy but favorite fit, which he got some slack for at

the all-star game. meredith vieira brought up when she spoke with him. >> for those who want their president to look great in his tight jeans, i'm sorry, i'm not the guy. >> no low riders? >> it just doesn't fit me. i'm not 20. >> reporter: but for other folks at any age, skinny jeans have been one of the hottest cuts in denim, having hugged ankles for decades. >> skinny jeans started back in the '50s. marilyn monroe wore them. el wvthoriseme . then they had a moment in the '80s with heavy metal bands, we saw them on metallica. it was always a real rock 'n' roll look. >> reporr: and just about every star has their favorite pair. >> they have a great, fresh, young look. they're the antithesis of mom jeans. >> reporter: today's skinny jeans aren't your mom's or your grandmother's either. they've evolved and some are feeling the pinch. >> the thing that's changed about skinny jeans is that they've gotten skinnier. you see women now wearing things that are nine inches around the ankle. i mean that's a bracelet.

>> reporter: and some doctors say clothing worn that tight does more than draw looks. it could be inviting nerve damage. >> what happens is the person starts to feel a nagging kind of burning or tingling sensation in their thigh that they can't really figure out. it's sometimes quite painful. >> reporter: and in extreme cases, the squeeze might cause g.i. issues, bladder and east infections and even serious blood clots in the legs. >> once you start having those symptoms, it's probably not a good idea for you to keep wearing the clothes. >> reporter: something to keep in mind the next time you wrestle on a pair. so exactly what are we sacrificing for the love of fashion? >> here with some answers are dr. nisa goldberg from nyu medical center and dr. orly avitzer. >> i understand hoda and i were inspiration for that blog? >> you were, indeed. >> because we did have a segment on it a couple of months ago. you were watching that? >> i was. and it's also everywhere. it seems like everyone is wearing skinny jeans.

>> i'm a skinny jean abuser. >> but do skinny jeans even come in your size? >> oh, gosh. >> she's got the skinniest little rear and everything in the world. >> but -- >> you wear very small jeans but they're not very tight. >> but i've got to tell you, skinny jeans that's all i was living for when i was losing my pregnancy weight was to get back into skinny jeans and now i hear that it might do some damage. is that true? >> you know something, skinny jeans are like high heels. you should enjoy them but maybe not weathem every day. what happens is, is they're so tight, they don't allow your body to breathe. and so they make you more prone to yeast infections, and chafing and burning in the inner thigh. >> let me ask you why there's any difference with a pair of skinny jeanss there is spanks which does the same thing to you. >> there isn't. neurologists have been saying this for decades. any type of tight garment is used it can cause that nerve damage in the thigh. >> maybe that's what's wrong with me. i sleep in my spanks, you know? that's what women do, just wear

them like mons, wednesdays and fridays? every other day? >> like everything in life, you should do it in moderation. i spend a lot of time telling people to eat right and to exerci. i'm not about to tell them to take off their jeans. but, if you get numbness and tingling down your legs, it's a sign something's wrong. what about if you take your jeans off and you see your skin is all indented. that can be permanent if you abuse the skinny jeans. >> the muffin top. >> you know what happens, is you can damage the underlayer of the skin that keeps us nice and padded, and wrinkle free. so if you put too much pressure on the skin, you get indented. >> the irony is you get disfigured from something that you think is actually flattering. but the bottom line is really to listen to your body. if you experience any of these symptoms, then by all means the jeans are too tight, take them off. >> you've not only just ruined

my day, you've ruined my life. >> skinny jeans are kind of a fad. >> every woman wants to be pulled in a little bit. wants to be more controlled. >> you know, that's okay. but we shouldn't become fashion victims. >> it's okay to do once in awhile. but not every day. if you don't feel well, you know, in terms of getting burning and chairing in your legs, you're more prone to yeast infections or you're getting the tingling down your legs, take off your pants, wear something looser. if the symptoms don't go away after a few days or so, then mae you should check it out with your doctor. >> even men wear them now. now it's in for men. >> men spanks. >> we're getting numb and tingling, they have a lot more stuff going on. >> men actually have more of a problem because they carry their weight anteriorly in the front and we see this condition of the pinched nerve more in people who do carry their weight. >> and they also carry everything else in the front, as well. if that gets pinched i would think there would be a couple of problems involved. >> there have been some arguments that it could reduce

fertility. >> th country singers. they all wear the tightest jeans in the world. >> you didn't say that. >> yes, i did. >> you both think that 18-year-old kids having botox is ridiculous, right? >> i think it's ridiculous. it's too young. >> and we're sending the wrong message to our young people >> >> we are sending the wrong, wrong message. mostly you. all tori spelling's fault. thank you very much, ladies. >> thanks so much. >> don't make me say fecal again. >> you don't have to say fecal. still to come, if you know whatd showtart itarted in the 1990s y might have a chance of acing today's "who kne quiz? actually that's about you.

is there cause for alarm on the metro system? officials respond to reports that circuit failures are a widespread problem that could put riders in danger. also ahead, new information on the last days of michael jackson's life. were there warning signs he could be in trouble. and they are sleek, stylish but your jeans could be putting you at risk for a health condition.

don't change that channel. it's wednesday, and we're back with more of "today" and it's time to play "who knee?" . today's topic appropriately, tv shows of the '90s. kathie lee is across the street at dean & deluca. and here with me, staff writer from "newsweek" magazine. are you ready? >> i'm ready. >> kathie lee, who's our fist contestant. >> lovely lady who knows everything from canada. who recorded the song "i'll be there for you" which is played during the ohming credits of friends? ace of base, rem, the rembrandts or savage garden? >> i believe the correct answer is "c," the rembrandts. >> yes!

>> the cd is available. klgandhoda.com. >> it is the rembrandts. >> it is the remrandts. that was right. we know that song so well now from "friends" but they actually picked that song at the very last minute. they'd been thinking about using an rem song. they filmed the scene by the found in los angeles, and jennifer aniston was the only one who knew the words. >> the rest of them are going like this. >> and spitting out water and dancing and stuff. >> awesome. okay are we on to our next question? >> i'm with a very cute guy from chicago. he's cheating already. the fictitious county general in ""e" "r"" is set in what city? boston, new york, chicago or seattle? >> chicago. >> that's right. >> your hometown. way to go, cutie. tori? >> i knew everything from the '90s. >> that's right. the questions are going to get harder. but it's right. in 1994 there were actually two

chicago hospital dramas. the other one was "chicago hope." >> i remember that. >> you rememberthat one? >> they were in the same time slot. and "er" ended up beating "chicago hope." it ran for 15 seasons and became the second longest running drama in history after "law & e.m e "aring me. you know too much. >> i love tv. >> kathie lee? >> this lady from seattle knows a lot, too. jerry seinfeld pitched his '90s nbc sitcom as a show about what? single people? new york? stand up comedy or d, nothing? >> i'm going to say b, new york. >> oh. >> hey, stop it she gets that fabulous kathie lee cd. thank you. here you go. >> and if you hate the cd it's a good gum holder in your car. i'm kidding! >> get on a plane and go home! >> i can't even sing. thank you. so it wit really a show about --

show about nothing. >> nothing. jerry seinfeld, larry david pitched a show about nothing and if you miss the infeld cast they're coming back. they're doing a reunion show. >> shut up? >> in the fall. >> i'm so excited. >> tivo it. >> elaine doesn't have big hair anymore. >> maybe she can wear a big. >> this lovely lady named georgia is from montreal. never mind. the law firm which ally mcbeal worked was unusual for having which of the following? a day-care center, video cam, or unisex bathrooms? >> "d." >> there you go, donna. >> love you. >> love you, who. >> unisex bathrooms. that's a big deal. >> it was. because david e. kelley which created the showsaid it was such a creative idea. he did it because it saved money. they didn't have to build an extra set. just one set for the bathrooms. >> there's a lot of scenes in

those bathrooms. >> yeah. >> all right, who's next? >> another beautiful blonde from canada. you're from toronto, right? which beautiful blonde wore glasses and pig tails to transform into screech's dorky girlfriend? violet bickerstaff on savedy the bell. julia stiles, kate hudson, michelle williams or was it miss tori spelling? >> tori splling. >> you got that right. >> easy, easy, easy. give away. >> my low 90s hoemt. >> it was not. i remember watching that. you were great as violet. >> thank you. >> you met screech when he came over to your place and broke your parents album? >> i have no idea. i have no idea. i snort. and i wore glasses. that's all i know. >> and you still have that. >> kathie lee? >> nice young girl from illinois, doogie howser became the youngest doctor in the country at what age? 9, 11, 14 or 17? >> 14. >> wow, you guys are hot today. yes.

>> i loved doogie howser. >> neil patrick harris was 16 when he got that role. and you know what? doogie howser had a perfect score on his s.a.t.s. patrick harris had a 3.8 gpa. so he was a little off from perfect. >> thank you so much for being here. >> thanks so much for having me. >> is that the end? >> that's it. >> oh, that's it. >> we're done. >> bye. >> kathie lee, come on back. >> we thought we had another one. anyway, here's an album for you. >> oh! w >>

"today's" kscbatage diet is brouto ttaou yy cheerios. logon toou cheerios10in1.com fo exciting news that is sure to wow you. >> we're back with "today's" backstage diet, our special series that follows some of our crew members through eight weeks of "today" nutrition. joy bauer's life diet and fitness regimen. >> by memorial day weekend they were all headed in the right direction. two months later it's time to check in and see how they're doing now that summer's in full swing. >> welcome to you, joy. >> thanks.

>> i'm so glad that we're doing this check-in segment. because so many people were convinced that as soon as the program was done on may the 20th they were going to be off and eating again and start gaining back the wait. but on may 20th they were down collectively 121 pounds. today, they've lost an additional 33, and the collective group total is 154 pounds. >> that's just amazing. >> whoo! >> let's find out how they did individually. mark, our stage manager, also one of our directors many, many times. how did he do? >> he did incredible. >> we weighed them this morning. they don't know what the numbers are, so they're going to be surprised like you are. >> okay. >> his weight before 198. new weight. 195. >> thanks. thanks. >> for a total of -- >> now we want to look at the collective. 22. >> you have huge, huge issues in tms of health that this affected, right? >> right. right. i feel so much younger.

i feel healthier. i able to fly up and down the stairs now, where i was kind of trudging every day. >> he's lost about 30 inches from head to toe and his blood pressure is normal. >> all right. awesome. >> that's hard to do in summer. sometimes in the summer you feel like you can get away with more. you can get more. >> and mexican food, right? >> no, no. chinese. >> chinese. >> and a birthday thrown in there. >> yeah. >> it's called life. and it happens. way to go. >> all right walter. >> walter. . walter did very, ver well last time. >> another success story. let's see the numbers. go did 254. new weight. >> great! >> right direction, baby. >> now let's take a look at his total. 27 pounds. >> and it's so noticeable. way to go, walter. >> again, 30 inches off from head to toe. >> what is the hardest thing to maintain about your new diet?

>> the summer here is hard now. to go on the beach and barbecuing. but i do as joy said. one good thing with a bad thing. if i have a salad, i'll have a burger. >> compromise and it's working. >> very proud of you, walter. all right leslie. leslie, our female. >> she looks nice. >> what i notice most about not just your beautifulness, your attitude is complete changed. you're much happier lady now. >> i'm very happy. >> you were miserable before. just kidding! >> no, i was miserable. >> let's get h stats. >> you're always smiling. >> very healthy. we never -- >> we never show her weight. she lost seven pounds since her last segment. are you ready for this? 20 pounds total. >> awesome. >> i'm so happy. >> and you're the only one that hadn't cheated. >> i still haven't. it's coming off slower now. >> but it's consistent. >> probably because i have a little less to lose. >> hello. >> but i'm still going.

>> i'm so proud. >> i've got to hug you. >> thank you all. >> all right eddie. edd eddie. >> check him out. >> eddie i think was leading in the most amount of pounds that you had lost when we last saw everybody, right? >> i think so. i think i also had the most amount. >> okay, let's see. we're at 210. and this morning. wour seven pounds. >> that's amazing. >> so eddie's total -- >> 41 pounds. >> unbelievable! >> how many sizes have you lost in your pants? >> i'm down -- well in the pants, not much. but my waist was about four or five inches. >> four or five inches. so the size now. what are you around the waist is what i mean? >> 35-36. >> so you wear a 35-36. how long has it been since you wore a 35-36? when you were 35 or 36? >> they didn't make them that size then.

>> he lost 31 inches from head to toe. >> everyone had to get new clothes? >> yeah, yeah. >> i'm not until i lose my weight. >> great, great. way to go. >> his blood pressure is down, tribli triglycerides are down. >> and then there's carlo. >> may be the one guy that can beat eddie. >> are you kidding? >> 219. >> this morning. >> oh, my gosh! >> carlo. >> for a total of 44 pounds. >> you're the winner. >>! >> that is just spectacular. >> so great. >> i was a little worried about you, honestly, i've got to admit. you were a chunk. >> because there were other issues going on in your life. some difficult things with your dog that you adored. >> yeah. >> that girl you were with. and -- >> yeah. >> yeah. >> all right. >> and he's really learning how

to maintain this look. what he does is he for the most part follows the plan and all the healthy eating and one meal a week he allows himself to just go off and eat what he wants. and right back together again. >> and then you started to go to the gym, too, a lot. >> i live there now. >> you're a gym rat now. >> yeah, pretty much. >> so total of how many again joy? >> 154 pounds. >> awesome. >> congratulations. >> isn't that amazing? >> unbelievable. >> that's three tori spellings. we're going to take a break. when we come back, what to say yes to when you need to say no to a greasy burger and a cocktail at your next gathering around that grill.

joy, we left off with our fabulous crew members who started the summer weighing less than they did in the spring. but let's face it, it's easy to socialize without packing on the unds. >> summer barbecues. >> she's going to show us now, you already know, but for

everybody else, the different kinds of choices you can make that will add up during the summer. >> when you show up at somebody else's barbecue and you don't have control. let's start with burgers. the best thing that you can do to maintain your diet is stick with half a begun, regular burger, pile on the lettuce, the tato, the onions, pickles, mustard and ketchup is perfectly fine. then only choose one what i call a burger bonus. it's either going to be the mayo or the second half of the bun, or a slice of cheese. >> what about no bread at all, right? you could just wrap it in lettuce? >> you totally can. but i don't know if these guys would go for that so i'm trying to be realistic. clearly if you're the server, it's your grill, you stick with is your loin, ground is your loin and then you save so many significant calories. you have the opportunity to load on both. the other half of the bun, and -- >> with turkey burgers. >> option of mayonnaise,

ketchup, mustard. ketchup and mustard is a freebie. >> i thought it has a lot of sugar in it. >> it does. but you're not going to use so much that it's going to make a difference. every tablespoon of mayonnaise is about 100 calories. at your house -- >> we've got to keep going now. >> here we are at the sides. you can either have coleslaw, potato salad. >> it's cabbage so it's better for you. >> or baked beans. >> guess what? choose the one that you like, because they are all over the top. >> even the beans? >> because baked beans are loaded with brown sugar and either pork or bacon. so take one generous scoop. just one of them, and enjoy every mouthful. >> and eat slowly and savor it. >> yes. >> and tori and i are trying to get along. >> so i'm going to show you how over the top a frozen mixed drink can be. this is a frozen margarita that you get at a restaurant. about 800 calories. the same equivalent to six glasses of wine. >> right. >> six.

>> so i'll just have the wine instead. >> you know what? i asked for that. >> all right. >> so when it comes to alcohol -- >> eat the lime and move on. >> exactly. >> so the point being, when you're trying to trim calories and enjoy alcohol, you stick with a mixed drink, which is a shot of hard liquor with either a diet soda, a club soda or a diet tonic or one of the light beers for only 100 calories. or a glass of wine, and these mixers are terrific. it's the naturally flavored seltzers, the zero calorie beverages. the club soda. >> and finally desserts, which has always been leslie's downfall. she hasn't had it now in four months? >> yeah. >> and we all need a little dessert. this is about portion control. when it comes to cookies just two. when it comes to a brownie, make sure the brownie is about the same size as the palm of your hand and you eat one. if it's an extra one, split it in half. when it comes -- >> what if you have a te of

each. >> that's perfectly fine. >> that's a very, very good suggestion. >> the brownie bite, toss it in the bushes at the barbecue. >> perfect. >> love it. >> and animals might get it and chocolate is so bad for dogs. >> or you might hit someone that's swimming. >> okay. >> when it comes to ice cream a generous scoop and then you only want one topping. maybe it's a little bit of hot fudge and here's a great little tip for pie. enjoy your pie, cut off the outer lice and guess what you just saved yourself 100 calories, and everything here is under 400 calories if you just portion it out. >> gotta go,. usual. fabulous, joy. thank you you guys. congratulations again. if you need joy's help you can find it in her latest book wúgggc

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miss sara, what's in the spotlight?

>> we've had a lot about tori. and molly, i love, love tori. she's so funny and looks great. amy, i'm so excited to see tori. she's been great at this show. melissa, i love tori, she's so real and down-to-earth and does a great job with her kids. >> that's just a sampling. >> i'm telling you, you're not going to get rid of me. >> you've been awesome. thank you, so, so much. you can still watch your show on oxygen every tuesday night. >> 10:00. >> and tomorrow, steve is going to be here with me. can't wait to see him. >> do you think he's going to talk about peep? >> if i'm lucky. >> ambush makeover thursday. remember that everybody. have an awesome day. do have a great flight home. fios guy! where ya headed?

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