♪ hi, i'm jim handly. we are going to show you the interesting local stories making news this week. among them -- >> what do you think of the views up here? >> awesome. they are impressive. >> a new point of view where some tourists are heading while the washington monument is closed. the scoop on serving sizes. even if you eat healthy foods you may be sabotaging your diet. if saying so long to summer is making you sad, we may have the key to putting you in a better mood. first, you might have to pack more cash next time you plan to hail a cab.

d.c. officials want to do away with the $19 cap on taxi fares. no matter how long the ride takes, the meter keeps running until you reach your destination. darcy spencer has details. >> reporter: if you catch a cab in the district, you could be paying more if you take a lengthy trip. the taxi cab commission plans to lift the cap on fares within d.c. borders. >> i'm going to split from now on. i can't afford to pay more than i am. >> if it's legal to make that much more by how much road they are traveling and how much time it is, then yeah. >> reporter: this is the third effort to scrap the cap. this time, it's going to happen. >> we lifted it. we didn't think it was a fair cap. >> certainly enough people felt by having the $19 cap, they were being shortchanged by people who

did take taxis for a long drive. >> reporter: they say most fares don't add up to $19 so lifting the cap really won't have a big impact. >> i have been driving 23 years and never had it. >> reporter: some say it's not fair to set a ceiling on rates and let customers off without paying for the full ride. >> it's ridiculous. it should have never been on. they are not doing us a favor. it should have never been on the books. >> reporter: it's unclear when exactly the changes are going to take effect, but it could happen later this month. darcy spencer, news 4. >> the cap could be lifted by october 20th. higher cab fares may give us an excuse to walk around a bit more. we are in a good place for that. three streets earned the distinction of best streets in america. king street made the list for historic buildings. the trolley line and beautiful views of the potomac. u street in northwest d.c. was ranked thanks to the culture in history.

and on the list, davis street in culpeper, virginia. the daredevil work on one of d.c.s most famous landmarks is wrapped up now. the washington monument remains closed for earthquake damage assessments. another landmark is giving tourists a breathtaking look at the city. >> reporter: there's been drama at the monument. the inspector wasn't injured. the high level pain staking urge for earthquake damage has the famous monument shut down to tourists. >> with the earthquake, there are small, tiny cracks in it. now, there's a bit more trouble. >> reporter: there's a tourist alternative at 12th and pennsylvania avenue. the old post office building clock tower and centennial bells. >> can't make it up to the other monument.

i was told this is the second highest point in town. >> reporter: at 270 feet high, half the height of the washington monument, there are better four-way views of iconic washington. most of all, it's free run by the same u.s. parks service and is open daily. >> a lot of people don't know this place exists. how did you hear about it? >> we ran into it. we saw the sign on the street. >> reporter: what do you think of the views up here? >> awesome. it's an impressive city. >> reporter: what do you like most? >> i think the washington monument. that's sweet, like you said. just the view is amazing. >> reporter: it's a great city. a glass enclosed elevator ride is a bonus for kids and adults alike. tom sherwood, news 4, washington. wow, i just learned something new, too. it's hardly fall, but plans for the cherry blossom festival is

in full swing. the celebration will run five weeks instead of the regular two. it's to mark the anniversary of japan giving us the cherry tree. it kicks off march 20th and runs through april 4th. michelle obama will serve as the honorary chair. before we see those blossoms we have a lot of cloudy, rainy days and probably snow ahead of us. last month was really dreary and can affect how we feel. it's seasonal affective did order or s.a.d. we have a way to beat the blues this winter. ♪ >> reporter: feeling down? is all of this gray making you blue? >> it makes me depressed and not want to go back to work.

>> brings you down. >> makes you feel like you can't get out of bed in the morning. >> reporter: in the month of september, we've had 16 cloudy days, 12 partly cloudy days and just one sunny day. >> makes me depressed. >> reporter: gets to you, doesn't it? >> yeah. >> reporter: you get angry, irritable? >> down. >> reporter: we have had more than 8.3 inches of rain. five inches more than normal. it's the equivalent of four gallons of water poured on top of your head. you didn't think i would actually do that, did you? >> it has been very, very dreary around here. >> reporter: what's it do to you? >> it gets me down. >> reporter: with this weather, how come the people here are smiling and so happy?

here, they make their own sunshine. hey, anybody got any block? it's called the sun box factory. it's right here in gaithersburg. they make a light that's ten times brighter than normal. it's designed to trick the brain and make you happy. >> if you are affected by the gloomy days, pat, it's going to make you feel better. >> reporter: well you heard what the man said, if you are down and depressed, go to the light. oh. i think we might need a bigger light. i'm pat collins, news 4, washington. just for the days when we lose. still ahead on ne"news4 this w " week," the class that lets you

stretch it out for a unique, total body work out. why the weather may have you whining if you are hoping to experience what the local vineyards have to offer. jennifer aniston [ female announcer ] these are the grands! biscuits you love with dinner. and these are the ones you'll love as dinner. grands! mini pizzas. grands! biscuit dough... plus 3 ingredients make an easy dinner everyone loves. grands! mini pizzas... from pillsbury. ♪ in the rhythm of my weekday flow ♪ ♪ something new -- ooo! ♪ just what i want ♪ prepared for me and ready to go ♪ ♪ taste...mmmm a brand new morning ♪ [ female announcer ] new pillsbury egg scrambles. ♪ a brand new morning

the doors to donald trump's latest business venture are open. he celebrated the trump vineyard

estates. he paid more than $6 million for the property last april. his son, eric, will run the business. trump estates may be one of the vineyards waiting for the rain. they resulted in a dramatic loss of the grape production. we have the story from leesburg. >> reporter: vineyard owners say this is the worst season they have seen in eight years. on a scale of one to ten how bad it is, they say an eight. >> as a grower, we need the sunshine on a regular basis. i'm kind of depressed. i'm challenged. >> reporter: he wishes the sun would shine for more than a few hours. news 4 meteorologist told them the depressing facts. >> watching doug on the news the other night, september 13th was the only sunny day of september. >> reporter: it's lousy in

louden county. vineyards rely on the sun to hit the leaves and convert the energy into sweet grapes. >> we take the sunshine and turn it into wine. >> reporter: he's had a bitter taste since hurricane irene and tropical storm lee drenched the vineyards in leesburg. he sells his wine in the d.c. metro area. he's lost $100,000 and could lose $250,000 more if the sun doesn't shine. >> we are going make good wine but we are going to come up short. >> reporter: i'm going to take my clipper and show you bad grapes. take a look at these here. they are absolutely rotting. last year, he didn't have grapes like this. these are worthless. >> reporter: this is the agricultural development officer. school visits are down 30% from last year. the rain also hurt the pumpkin production. >> because of the weather in september, we have seen a

downturn of visitors on louden county farms. >> reporter: they hope for brighter days ahead to toast to the sun with their employees. >> no more rainy days. >> reporter: doug told us he needs two weeks of sunshine for it to dry out and ripen the grapes. time is running out. october 31st is right around the corner. when we come back, sharing is caring especially when it comes to your waistline. we explain the food label fact that is can make you overweight. doctors told her she would that [ male announcer ]erweight. at the safeway pharmacy you can get a flu shot with no hassle at all. i don't even need an appointment. [ male announcer ] it's about as easy as flu shots get. get your groceries and a flu shot, all in one trip. at safeway. why did you buy my husband a falcon?

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and you'll get a bonus. you get 10% off your groceries. [ male announcer ] save 10% on your groceries when you get a flu shot. that should make you feel better already. safeway. ingredients for life. october is breast cancer awareness month. jennifer aniston joined jill biden in alexandria to mark the

month. they toured the state of the art nova breast care center. it offers diagnostic centers. well, some of us love a good spin class, others like to stretch out with yoga. what happens when you combine the two? you get a unique class called cycle yoga. it was started by a woman who used the combo to recover from a serious accident. we asked her, what's your work out? >> my tire blew out and i hit a tree going 60 miles per hour. the entire front part of the car basically crushed, like pushed my legs into the seat. my right leg, i broke every bone except the femur and hip. i was told i wouldn't run again. you are left with yoga. i poo-pooed the idea.

the more i did it, the more i learned there's a lot of physical benefits. through yoga, i was able to start running and biking again and acting like my old self. we're not going slow down. i would either run or bike and do yoga afterwards. you do a great work out and do yoga to calm it down and incorporate the strength and flexibility. get on the bike 45 minutes, go, go, go. the class changes daily. then same with the yoga portion. get off the bikes and try to stretch people out and incorporate strength. it's not just the stretchy part of yoga, the warrior and ab work. you leave hitting every muscle. inhale, breathe up. you push yourself. you can also go at your own pace. i think it's a good combination. you work up your body, get the

cardio and stretching aspect and leave in a peaceful space. you have done all your cardio and strength and flexibility in 75 minutes. >> it works. to get a firsthand account on what it's like to try out a class like this, check out www.nbcwashington.com. before you tear open the next bag of potato chips or slurp on the soup, it could be intended for sharing or saving the leftovers. liz crenshaw has what a serving size is. >> they pick up the package and assume they are getting only those calories. >> reporter: the director for nutrition says consumers are being misled. >> granola is a great example.

this is a quarter cup for a serving. 130 calories in the creerial. >> reporter: the food and drug administration defines a serving size. in some cases the data is outdated and doesn't represent a single serving. >> go back and see if the serving sizes are accurate and fix them if they are not. with this chunky soup, two out of three people eat the entire can. >> reporter: it's two servings. that means instead of 790 milligrams of sodium, it's 1840 milligrams of sodium. >> it's more than a days worth for most people. >> reporter: you have trouble with the nonstick spray. >> the serving size is a quarter of a second spray. that means all the numbers on the label, calories, everything

is zero. that would be -- >> reporter: you didn't cover that pan. >> not quite. >> reporter: we decided to see how many seconds it takes to cover the entire pan. >> that was four seconds. how many calories did you just spray? >> i can't tell you that. the label says there's no calories. four times zero is zero. >> that's not zero calories? >> no. >> reporter: this looks like a side serving. multiply the fat by three for a serving size. how about coffee creamer? the serving size is one teaspoon. >> the average person using more like two tablespoons. it's no longer fat free. instead of the ten calories,

it's 50 calories. >> reporter: bottom line, check the label and start multiplying. >> if it's only half of what you eat, double the numbers. >> reporter: liz crenshaw, news 4. >> here is a serving meant for sharing. the virginia slice. it's a place called benny's. he opened it because there weren't enough afterhours food joints in town. the entire pie is 28 inches wide. it's so big the box doesn't fit through a car door. the jumbo slice has them beat. it's 32 inches and too big to fit in a single box. fathers step up to build a better future for their kids and

grammy award winning artist shakira is one of the newest members of the obama administration. the president appointed her to the advisory commission for educational excellence for hispanics. she founded the barefoot foundation that helped feed and educate 6,000 kids in south africa and haiti. she's a coalition of artists who promote early childhood education in latin america. in education nation, we are featuring heroes in the hallway. dads are going back to school not just for their own kids but those who don't have a male role model in their life. >> there you go, buddy. have a good one. >> reporter: for some kids, 7:30 in the morning is too early. >> wake up a little bit. wake up.

>> reporter: a group of dads who volunteer at this elementary school make the students feel like superstars. >> good morning, guys. >> reporter: it's part of a new program called watchdogs. it stands for dads of great students. fathers take the day off to be part of the learning process. >> lots of our children don't have necessarily a man in their life full time. it's important for them to have that role model and to see what a professional man acts like and looks like and how to respond to them and work with them. >> reporter: the program started in 1988 after two students went on a shooting rampage in arkansas. it's noun grown to 2,000 schools participating in 40 states. virginia is the third largest state. >> with the parties and the pta, moms are involved all the time. this is a vehicle for the dads

to take a whole day off and make the same commitment as the moms do. >> it's fun. i like my dad here. usually he doesn't get to come here. >> reporter: the goal is to have at least one father come into the classroom for every day of the school year. it's 180 days. right now, the program has about 90 fathers signed up covering about half of the number. with the early success, the school is confident more fathers will sign up soon. ♪ sometimes i think about a miracle ♪ >> reporter: the close interaction has become an eye-opening experience for the fathers. >> my dad doesn't spend that much time with me, especially on school nights. i'm like wow, this is really, really, really an honor. >> reporter: was it tough hearing your son say he didn't think you spent too much time together? >> yes, it was, but it's a check

to make sure i am going to be spending enough time with him. i do pick him up after school, help him with homework and put him to bed. >> reporter: quality time to make sure all children feel loved. in louden county, john schriffen, news 4. >> what a great program. it's currently running in schools in virginia and maryland. that's all for "news4 this week." thanks for joining us. have a great week, everybody.