road crews are already announcing school systems are taking steps to get ready for this afternoon's winter weather. we have the information you need to stay ahead of the storm. good morning, ever. i'm barbara harrison. >> and i'm keith russell. it's thursday, january 17th, 2013. right now parts of the deep south are getting hit with snow. look at pearl, mississippi. the town's slogan is the city creating its only future but right now the immediate future is snowy. the snowstorm is stretching from the gulf all the way up to our region. here in the washington area,

grey skies but it still looks dry. storm team4 meterologist tom kierein joins us with the first forecast. when's the snow coming, tom? >> it looks like later this afternoon. we've had rain persistly falling all morning long along i-95 and areas south and east of there and right in washington, points north and west and a few scattered sprinkles off and on throughout the morning hours. all of this coming from a developing area of low pressure, centered over atlanta, georgia, on the backside of that, western side, you can see all the white is snow. now pulling out of mississippi to alabama and snow farther north, eastern kentucky, southern west virginia and some snow in far eastern west virginia east of petersberg and on the virginia and west virginia line along the shenandoah valley. we may be getting to start seeing some snow. rape changing to snow right along the blue ridge west of leesburg near percentleville and then down to east of lor ray.

and the wet snowflakes showing up. elsewhere, scattered rain and moderate showers in southern maryland and holding steady in the low and mid 40s all morning long and as the afternoon progresses we'll likely see some developing snow. we have an advisory in the lavender area in the pink area. worm warning and that's where we'll get the heavier amounts. i'll show you my updated forecast for snow totals expected. we'll look at rest of the week and weekend and that's in a few minutes. >> tom, a lot of people have their shovels in hand ready to use them when it's time. thanks, tom. we're gerting word of early dismissals ahead of the winter weather. orange county schools closing two hours early. in maryland one charles and st. mary's school will close two hours early. road crews south of d.c. are preparing for what could be a nasty mix of snow and rain. the combination could be treacherous for drivers as we

get closer to the evening commute. megan mcgrath spent the morning on the roads in virginia pmt she's live at a v dot facility in fairfax county. >> reporter: can crews are here going over their trucks behind me making sure all their equipment works. they're still attaching some of the plows to the front of the dumptrucks and putting the spreaders in the back making sure they're ready to go once the weather starts to hit. it looks like the immediate d.c. area, won't be too bad. but points south. areas like fredericksburg. we could start to see the snow falling in time for evening rush. not great timing. but v vdot road crews say they're ready for whatever comes. it came down as rain early this morning but as the day wears on it's expected to turn to snow. >> i love it. >> i don't mind it. i like to get out there playing with the kids now and the wifs been on now for two or three

weeks, where's the snow? >> i'm excited for it so hopefully we'll get some. >> reporter: a big delivery of salt arrived at the vdot facility. it's a huge, brand new salt dome and can hold three times for salt. the first line of attack, though, will be the pretreating of roads. trucks loaded with brine solution are standing by. once the snow starts to pile up, that's when the plows will kick into action. crews spent the morning getting things ready. nearly 4 thourgs trucks and plows were available to clear snow in northern virginia. as for area drivers, they're bracing for an ugly evening rush hour. the weather is expected to hit around the same time many drivers hit the road. >> stay home time. stay home time. >> reporter: and you can see it's pretty quiet incite the salt dome. we're told the crews are going to start to come in numbers.

right around noon, a little bit after noon and then they'll be dispatched out there on the roadways. reporting live in alexandria, megan mcgrath, news4, back to you. >> you can check on road conditions and school closings early tomorrow. "news4 today" will begin at 4:00 a.m. here's your mid day traffic. danella, are people racing in the roads try to avoid the coming of the snow? a lot of our area looks better than earlier this morning but i have an accident on the beltway and have to show you because delays are still here past 450 annapolis road, exit 20, on the inner loop so delays start out of college park and the commute in greenbelt, they are jammed as they try to make their way toward the accident. the good news, the accident is out of the roadway. now let's shoot over and take a look at the 14th street bridge. no issues on 395 north and southbound. clear commute as you make your way into the district. >> keith back over to you.

police are investigating a deadly shooting investigators say a woman was killed inside a mobile home in the cedar knoll trailer pack on washington street. police believe the woman may have known the shooter. fire tears through a recently-opened restaurant on capitol hill. cell phone video shows flames coming out of the roof of hank's oyster bar known as "hank's on the hill." the 600 block of pennsylvania avenue and one person suffered minor injuries and the firefighters say the fire may have start on the roof. today, president obama starts his public push for tougher gun control. he has an opinion piece running in the connecticut post newspaper. one month now after the deadly shootings at sandy hook elementary school. the article reads in part, like most americans i believe the second amendment guarantees an individual right to bear armts but i believe most gun owners agree we can respect the second amendment while keeping an irresponsible law-breaking few from doing harm. >> the president's article comes

one day after he laid out a number of measures to curb gun violence. he signed 23 executive orders aimed at research, mental health and new data on background checks. the gunshot manufacturers worry it could affect their industry. >> it depends on what they ban and how offensive it is and how quickly the manufacturers can come up with new things to sell. >> reporter: and in response to the president's proposals the national rifle association calls it "the fight of the century." and the group says law-abiding gun owners have reason to worry. >> they have a good deal to fear. they have to fear the establishment of the national registry. you know in the last few days, senator from california and the governor of new york has suggested that one of their goals is called a forced buyback. if you get a record of who

observes firearms if government could force them to sell those guns back to the government. >> that's the nra president this morning on the "today" show. president obama's did not include a national registry or a forced buyback. keane said he's opposed to reviving the ban on military-style assault weapons and those high-capacity magazines because he said the ban was not effective the first time. gun control is expected to be a big discussion as mayors from across the country meet today in wug washington and the conference begins with a luncheon this afternoon. michael bloomberg is co-chair of the group "mayors against guns" and he plans to lobby lawmakers to the president's gun control package. and we have the luxurious view stand that the city leaders will watch the inaugural parade. the district spent more than $300,000 on the stand. he says he expected the federal government to reimburse the city for that construction and he says it draws attention for the

district's battle for a voice in congress. the front of the stand reads, a more important union must include full democracy in d.c. 11:09. coming up, a developing story out of algeria and a hostage situation that involves americans. and safety agencies around the world grounding boeing 787s. what prompted the drastic steps. and a new punishment

new developments in the hostage situation in algeria. forces have raided a remote sahara gas plant in an attempt to free does defenses of hostages held by militants. the situation is unfolding at a natural gas plant in the eastern part of the country. melissa mollet is live with the newscast. hey, melissa. were we're able to escape or if they have been killed. now, here's what we know at this point. islamist militants stormed the remote national gas plant wednesday taking dozens of

workers hostage. as much as eight americans were part of the group. there's some information from the militants that up to 35 poijs have been killed. that's what they're saying right now. rebels say the ambush came after algeria allowed france to use the airspace. the field is partially owned by bp and says the situation is unclear and sadly, there have been reports of casualties, but we're still lacking in any confirmed or reliable information. now, u.s. officials say they cannot confirm or deny these reports but american military forces are not involved. in the newsroom, melissa mollet, news4. new this morning, a u.s. navy ship is stuck on a coral reef in the philippines. the uss guardian ran agroud at the national mark 400 from the capitol of manila. the crew is safe and working how to break loose. it's unclear if damage was done to the sheef or to the reef.

back in 2005, greenpeace was fined nearly $7,000 of one of its ships hit a reef in the same area. this morning, more problems for boeing. qatar airways based in the middle east has grounded the boeing 787 dreamliner. last night, europe and end yeah joined the u.s. of grounding the jets because of a risk of battery fires after a week-long full of incidents including fuel leaks, battery fires and brake problems. boeing still maintains its plane is safe. >> someone at the white house has a birthday today. i guess you know who it is. michelle obama's birthday. the first lady turns 49. no word on the celebration plans at the white house but we do know the first family is in town today. and will she have a nice day to celebrate? probably want to stay inside on a day like this? >> i think the presidential limo has four-wheel drive anyway no matter what happens but they're not going to need it. eds going to be a very

low-impact type of snow locally around the metro area. and in much of the region in northern virginia or nearby suburbs in maryland, most of any snow is going to be just accumulated a little bit on grassy areas melting on roads. there's the grey, sort of wintry looking sky over capitol hill. reagan national, 45 and cloudy. holding steady in the low and mid 40s all morning long and the wind coming out of the north and west at about 10 miles an hour. and an advisory in effect. winter weather advisory, the counties in fuschia and to our south this is where the winter storm warning is in effect. winter storm warning for all those counties in southern maryland, calvert, on the eastern shore from over to near salisbury and south in the northern neck of virginia and west of there, from fredericksburg to near charlottesville, central shenandoah. that's where the heaviest

snowfall is likely coming and it's all coming from the center spinning from alabama and georgia. that's coming up our way today. we've had rain moving through and just getting sprinkles of light rain. prince george's county and into southern maryland. more moderate rain showers are coming down now in the eastern shore. farther to our west a few sprinkles of light rain and along the blue ridge and areas in pink, a little wet snow coming in with the rain and the higher elevations out in west virginia where it's still well above freezing. above freezing temperatures across virginia, maryland and on the eastern shore. now, where is the cold air? we need cold air. we have the moisture and it's way out here in western pennsylvania. and in northern west virginia. and out into the ohio valley. as the storm develops and gets closer to us, the cold air will get drawn into it and that's when we'll likely get a changeover from rain to snow. the this is as of 6:00 p.m.

all this areas in lavender is in the snow zone. it's near washington and likely beginning earlier than that and maybe a mixture of some rain and snow, but that's all south and east of washington up until about 10:00 p.m. and then it will quickly head out of southern maryland and the northern neck of the eastern shore after midnight and over the atlantic ocean and by dawn tomorrow will clear out. here's the what to expect between now and 2:00 p.m., maybe rainy and chilly and between 2:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m., that's when we can have the rain changing over to snow and light accumulations of snow on grassy areas only. not on roadways, around the metro area. and then between 6:00 and 10:00 p.m. that the moderate to heavy snow false south of washington. how much? as much as an hour to six inches in far southern maryland and from areas west of there and lighter areas farther north. here's how things look after that. sunshine back tomorrow. windy and cold and highs in the 30s.

cold weekend coming up, too. 20s in the mornings and afternoon highs in the 40s and it looks like a could inauguration day as well, cloudy and a small chance of a snow shower or flurries. cold into next week, too. feeling like winter. that's the way it looks. >> and out to the roads, let's see if there are problems right now. >> danella, what's the latest. checking on delays on the beltway, exit 20, annapolis road in maryland, out of the roadway. a bit slow out of college park and i'm showing you what gene belt road looks like. a bit sluggish because of that earlier crash. now continuing on the inner loop of the beltway as you make your way toward the wilson bridge in both directions across the wilson bridge, light volume and no incidents to report. barbara and keith, back over to you. >> thank you. it's 18 minutes after 11:00. still ahead on "news4 midday", going to the first lady ice birthday party? table manners. we have an etiquette expert here and some helpful do do's and

don't's at a fancy party. advice on how to avoid back pain with that shoveling. >> here's what i trending. [ male announcer ] when your business is powered by verizon,

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over the next couple of days a lot of important event going on. do you know the proper etiquette? we have when ree yes tahir with "what you want to know before dinner." >> thank you for coming on. >> thanks for having me. >> when do i sit down at the dinner. >> the main key to know when to sit down is depending on the event you're attending. if you're attending a formal, fine-dining event where there's been an invitation, you'll have

a place card and you'll watch your hole host or hostess. they'll guide you. if it's only four people, when the host hostess sits down then you sit down. you don't run in and sit down and eat. >> i believe you would. >> with that said, let's get to your do's. you have do's and don't. let's get to the do's. the first do you and i talked about. proper hand placement at the table. where should my hands be. >> keith, number one, not on the table. the furtherest your hands should be on the table if it's not in your lap it's wrist level. those elbows, absolutely not. >> as a lefty, i'm holding my fork. we'll get to the sicivil silver way in a minute. >> where does it go? >> to your wrist. >> does it slide over?

>> absolutely not. >> okay, let's move on to the number two point. talk at the normal level of the room. i'm a loud talker naturally. what do you mean by that? >> think about it. if you're at an event usually there's background music and a lot of talking. >> and always one person that wants their story, their life story to be known by everyone. >> yes. and you need to talk to the room. the way what's going on in a room. if there's a lot of loud music, you know that somebody way across the table is not going to hear you, keith and you're not going to yell to them so talk in a tone that's appropriate. everybody, if you want anyone to hear your story when the time comes you go talk to them but don't yell it. i mean, we're not interested. we're going to move kwkly to the last don't. and that's, be a gentlemen. so if i stand up i stand up when the woman that i'm withstands up to leave the table? >> absolutely, when the lady goes to start to stand, keith, being the gentlemen that you are, you're going to get up and

come around to her and you're going to pull her chair and when she comes back i also stand up? >> you're going to get up and pull her chair out and when she sits down you'll help her. >> it's not old fashioned, fellas. >> absolutely not. >> let's move to the don't's. sloppy eating. this is the big one. people eat like they've never had a meal before. >> so true, so true. >> so what we want to do. we want to remember that, you have other guests. you're not there by yourself. so what he wants to do is remember, the -- don't overstuff your mouth, keith. you're going to get more. it's going to be there. put only small bite-sized pieces in your mouth so you can talk. one of the main things in having dinner is to enjoe joy your companions. >> and don't pick your teeth. none of this. don't put business cards in your teeth. let's move to the next one. napkin not as a bibb. you put it on your lab.

>> it is not a bib. it's a napkin and it belongs in your lap. >> and the last one, lady's purses. >> ladies, yes. we get these gorgeous purses and evening bags. >> and you want to show off your bag. >> yes, you do, but it does not belong on the table. you put it in your lap, i put it in my husband's lap because his legs are longer. >> and quickly, when show us where we use the utensils and when. >> you start from the outside and you're going to use the fork or spoon that's furthest from the plate. >> salad? >> yes, sir. >> soup? >> yes. >> okay. and this is the main course. >> yes, it is. your entree'. >> bread plate? >> bread and butter plate. >> yes. >> desert? yes. >> your fork and your spoon for decertase dedesserts and your water glass is always to the left? >> yes. >> and that's your wine glass

in. >> absolutely. >> so with that said, we say good-bye but not before i turn myself into a gentleman. please, have a seat that thank you so much. >> and thank you for coming on. >> it's been a pleasure. >> i have etiquette. that's what i'm talking about. it's 11:27. coming up in the next half hour, lance armstrong takes another hit today. what's being taken away from the cyclist now? and storm team4 meterologist tom kierein back with another look at who will see the most snow today. and how soon liquor stores and how soon liquor stores in d.c

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i can still see you. [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup. some schools plan to dismiss classes early. orange county schools in skrachlt close two hours early. page county schools close as 1:00. spots vain yeah schools and in

maryland, charles and st. mary's will close two hours early today. with snow on the way, ever is preparing their own way of dealing with things. we're going to be talking about that throughout the day, keith? >> we'll check in again with storm team4 meterologist tom kierein. tom, what was that radar showing us? >> it's showing a lot of moisture streaming in from the south and west of the metro area. all coming from an area of low pressure way down to our south and overhead i'm seeing the clouds beginning to move in from the north. that's bringing in some of the colder air and storm team 4 radar showing the area in white that you see there in southwestern virginia and south and southern parts of west virginia. now just beginning to move into the season tral shenandoah valley and a little patch of white to your left. that's snow. it looks like the rain changing over to snow. there's a little line of white along the blue ridge. skyline drive in the shenandoah national park. it looks like it's changing over to snow. we have colder air aloft beginning to in.

south and east. those areas in orange and yellow, southeast of fredericksburg into the northern neck of virginia and on the eastern shore and we're all in the 40s now. where's the cold air? it's beginning to move in coming in from the north and west and that moves in by mid to late afternoon into the evening and maybe a light dusting of grassy areas only around the metro area. the couple inches far in the suburbs and again mainly on grassy areas melting on roadways, those heavier amounts four to six inches far southern maryland and so central virginia. rain to snow, frequent updates throughout the amp. stay with news4. barbara? >> some of us could be shoveling snow tomorrow and there's important things to keep in mind before heading out to do that. dr. ray solano is here with tips on how to avid hurting your back. a lot of people think it's easy but they end up not feeling too well after. >> exactly. a lot of times people underestimate how rigorous

shoveling snow can be. it can raise your heart rate and blood pressure at an astounding rate and cause things like unfortunate, heart attacks. >> and when people don't realize that's about to happen. we've reported on that many times over the years. what are you saying. adding to the problem is when you have a heavy wet snow that we could be having this time around. it makes it even worse. >> right. give yourself extra time before you get out there to shovel snow and treat it as a form of exercise. stretch before you get out there and hydrate, dress in layers and prepare yourself for that task. it is a strenuous task and doing it the right way helps, too. >> first of all you brought a couple of different types of shovels. should we talk about those first? >> sure. a standard shovel. a lot of us have seen this. very straight. i recommend you do why a shovel to purchase a shovel that's not very big. >> this is a straight one. this is what it looks likes when it's straight up and down. you have another one with you that has a curved shaft. >> right. >> now, this one is here bent for a reason. this is ergonomically correct

and this bend here is it puts the shovel down closer to the ground so it'ses the stress on the back when you have to lean over and pick that snow up. >> so this is the one you would recommend. >> absolutely. it's easier on the back, less likely to strain your back when you use it. >> is there a proper way to shovel snow? >> there really is. >> there really is and i'm going to use this shovel here. what you want to do is have one foot in front of you and the other one in the back and you want to take staggered steps as you're pushing the snow. remember, you don't want to lift the snow. you want to avoid lifting if possible and you want to put a slight bend in the nees and slight bend in the hips and take staggered steps and push the snow out of your way, trying not to year extend yourself. this will strain your back if you do this. and -- >> in other words, you're suggesting pushing it out of the way. not the whole thing of this and throwing it over like we've always done in the past. >> two things to avoid is throwing it over your shoulder

or you want to lift it and carry it and put it in another area because that strains your lower back. those muscles aren't designed for that. >> the main thing is to get it off the sidewalk to the side of the roadway or whatever. >> put it in front of you. always in front of you and never to the side and never over your shoulder. >> thank you very much for showing us how to do this. >> it will avoid a lot of back problems for folks. keith? with. >> with snow on the way everybody is preparing. tony is live at the salt dome in upper marlboro. how are they preparing there? >> conditions aren't that bad. >> reporter: earlier this morning, a few hours ago we had some rain and it turned to sleet but since then it has stopped. look behind at the salt dome in upper marlboro. we're at the maryland highway administration. you can see these dump trucks are abeing filled up with salt and that's about 20 of them so far. the line of dumptrucks goes around the troern and these guys are on standby for the storm

this afternoon. >> i plan to go 301 inside and make sure all the traffic gets through real good. and we have to remove the snow, put the salt down. >> with the likelihood of snow falling snow plows gas up and hit the roads. these trucks are on standby assigned to the beltway. the salt dome here in upper marlboro is in full gear filling the beds of dumptrucks with salt, plow drivers attaching equipment. with over two inches of snow expected south of the district some schools are preparing now. charles county schools decide to close two hours early and with many folks still at work it leaves little time to gather the necessary storm items but people we talked with had other plans. >> i'm coming to look for a grill part. i'm going to grill dinner tonight. >> here at the home depot in waldorf, maryland. they have pallets of bucks of salt untouched and the shovels well stocked. >> i'm not prepping. i'll cross the bridge when it comes.

>> reporter: the manager says they didn't sell anything much of snow-related this morning but we caught up with one guy eyeing a snow blower but he went home empty-handed. even in the grocery stores, water barely touched and bread filled. and i talked to some of the plow drivers a couple of minutes ago and asked them if they were going to be on 12-hour shifts and he looked at me and laughed and he said they're on indefinite stand-by so they're expecting a very long night. in upper marlboro, news4. >> everyone is ready, tony. let's see if folks are having problems on the roads, already, danella. accident as you make your way to exit 20, out of the roadway on inner and outer loop and clear on the beltway at this time. i-95 north and southbound, a live look as you continue southbound, the headlights are coming toward us. nice and clear as you make your

commute. and shooting over to i-66. no issues there and here's a live look at 50 traveling east and westbound, keith, nice and clear. over to you. >> that's what we like to hear. >> happening today, the colorado movie theater where 12 people were killed and dozens more injured last summer, krin mark is opening with the planned for the community event. some of the victims' families are protesting tonight's event. the suspect, james holmes, is awaiting trial. for the first time d.c. will allow sunday liquor sales. they can apply to sell and deliver liquor on sunday. the d.c. says it will bring new tax revenue to the district but some people are concerned that sunday sales could bring more crime to parts of the district we found customers that are pretty happy with this change. >> i think it's great. it definitely opens up the option. you don't have to rush in on saturday night to buy liquor if

you want to, so, yeah. >> i think that selling alcohol monday through saturday is good must have. you know, we have a lot of youth in our ward, in particular ward seven, have that problems with alcohol. >> d.c. regulators will approve the of applications in the next few waex. maryland and virginia already allow sunday liquor sales. the end of an era for a local grocery store chain, mcgruders. the owners say the location on connecticut avenue in chevy chase has been sold. they're looking for a byer for the store's other locations including this one in alexandria. innen aeffort to clear shelves, the items, they are 50% off. it was purchased by a group of local families back in the 1960s. it originally opened its doors in 1875. new this morning, another setback for lance armstrong. this morning the international olympic committee moved to take

away his 2000 olympic bronze medal, the same day as his sit-down interview with oprah hits the air, a person with direct knowledge of the interview said the normer cyclist teared up and cried while taping the sper view with oprah on monday. it started tonight on the oprah winfrey network. this next story has everyone buzzing and confuse. we expect to hear sometime today from notre dame football star, manti te'o who is at the center of a bizarre hoax. the school says the story of his girlfriend dying of leukemia isn't true. the website deadspin.com reported that it could find no record that la nay can could you what existed. and he said he melt her online and came to care about her deeply, despite not meeting her in person. notre dame says they they you.

the' 0. >> he was runner up for the heisman trophy and he would have been the first defensive player to win the award. his grand nor died during the season and he said the strategy dishe dealt with inspired him to play better and i called you and we degrees kuds this story and it's just that, bizarre. >> it is interesting. but he -- his parents said that they had met her via teleconference or something. >> once he laid eyes on her he fell in love with her but laid eyes on her, where? on the computer? >> it sounds like you don't believe the story. >> i don't believe the story. i don't know what the real story is but maybe we'll find out what it is later today. >> everyone is interested. >> the time, 11:41. why many are volunteering in their communities on inauguration day. and the hidden feature in jeans promising to make a di

here's a pair of jeans that make your legs look great even when you're done wearing them. wrangler is launching a line of moistizing jeans. they include skin care greeds to keep your legs from getting dehydrated. weekly u.s. unemployment applications fall to a five-year low. let's check in with cnbc hampton pearson. he joins us live with more on that and the rest of the day's business headlines. >> maybe we need to buy stock in that company making those lubricating jeans. and, we've actually got stocks, by the way, all stocks in positive territory, from the opening bell. good news on unemployment and housing and a look at the averages. the dow is up at and -- benefit

claims are down $37,000 so a seasonally-adjusted rate of $ 35,000. the largest weekly drop since 2010. at the same time, ground-breaking to build new homes accelerated last month to the fastest pace in over four years. the commerce department says starts at building sites surged 12.1% to an annual rate of 954,000 units. more bad news for boeing as international regulators are following the lead of the faa in suspending flights of the boeing 787 dreamliner while the risk of fire in those lithium ion batteries is investigated. the 787 is the first commercial jet to use the powerful by lightweight batteries.

boeing said it is confident the 787 is safe but is reviewing the plane's design and safety features along with the faa. the stock is down about 1% in trading so far. back to you. >> thanks, hampton have a good day. in this week's wednesday child 'we met brandon there's year ago when they was 12. back then he was hoping to find a loving family to adopt him. while it hasn't happened yet he hadn't given up hope. this is brandon. at 15, he's shown some pretty amazing talent on the drums. he makes those drums speak. even when he's being a little too shy to share his thoughts and feelings in words. what grade are you in now? >> i'm in tenth. >> you like school? >> a little bit. >> how are you doing in school? >> fine. >> actually, his social worker tells us brandon is doing very well in school. >> he's a regular honor role

participant. he loves basketball, the drums, of course, as you guys have seen, and also ping-pong. and he'ses are an avid reader. he averages maybe two new books a month. >> do you want to go to college. >> yeah, yes. >> what would you like to study in college? >> music. >> brandon also showed talent at the piano. when asked why at 15 he still would like to have parents he said, because everyone needs parents. >> would you like a mom, a dad or just a dad or a mom. >> a mom and dad, i guess, yeah. >> and has he had to move around a lot? >> yes, he's had multiple placements. nine, i believe nine foster homes and now he's currently living in a residential facility here in baltimore. >> here at blue room productions studios. the president told brandon he shows real promise with his music. and he showed him how the music heat been playing had been

recorded. >> that's you, can you believe it? >> perhaps some day brandon will play this back when he's become a famous musician. >> you'll standing. you got some great chops on the drum kit, brandon. i'll give you a couple of things to take home if that's okay. >> brandon took home some special drum sticks and a gold copy of the recording of his music. >> once again, great to have you today. i'm glad you came by. i'll see you again soon. >> congratulations we'll expect to come and hear him play on the stage some day. >> absolutely. >> right now, what brandon needs is a family to make him feel wanted. and as special as he is. and if you have room in your home and your heart for brandon, another child is waiting, please call our special adoption hotline, the number 1-88-2-adopt me or logon nbcwashington.com and search wednesday's child. and hopefully that segment

can drum up interest in brandon. >> i hope so. he's a great kid and he's really ready for a family. best of luck to brandon. the time, 11:50 right here on "news4 midday." ideas for inauguration day that will not break your budget. >> plus, meteorologist, tom kierein will be back with another check of your rain and [ male announcer ] when your business is powered by verizon,

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looking to make this inauguration the vacation of a lifetime, you could do it for a hefty price. several local hotels are offering extravagant packages in honor of the inauguration. if ritz-carlton is one of them and its all access package is still available for $100,000. our own jim handly saw what the deal included. he'll show you what the pricey package includes tonight on "news4 at 6." and today's weekend scene, we have the exact opposite.

lavonia of "the washington post", tells us how to celebrate the inauguration on a budget. >> so many get upset to pay $250 for ball tickets but there's lots of cheap ways to enjoy the inauguration. >> so if you don't have tickets are you allowed on the mall? i've wondered that. >> that's right. it seems so confusing but there's a whole area on the mall. beginning from about 4th street to 12th street, that is opened to the public. it doesn't have tickets. the tickets of coursely went out through this week and everyone's who got one has got one now but you can go. the mall will open at 4:00 a.m. for folks. you can find checkpoints on independence avenue and on constitution avenue. >> will that get you any sort of view? >> there will be jumbotrons so you can see the performance. beyonce is going to be performing so there's a lot of reasons to go down there and to be part of this event. they're expecting half as many people as last time so you might enjoy it this time, no log jams.

it may be fun. >> james taylor performing as well. moving on to the exit exhibit at the national portrait gallery. >> it has brought in a couple of pieces of art that are a big deal and they brought in images of obama that were created by chuck close. the artist created two major tapestries, nearly 8 feet tall and they'll be on display, only through march but if you're here, they're brand new and this is the time to see them. they're really amazing. chuck is a quad plnd this is on favorite ways to participate. the official kickoff events on saturday. this is endorsed by the president. he's really telling people to get out there and participate. the big event is hosted by points of light. and you can find out more of points of light.org. that will be at the d.c. armory. and you're packing boxes for the

troops. that's on saturday. >> that's always a worthwhile deal? >> you're celebrating by work something. >> i'm sure a lot of us in the newsroom room are going to be doing the same. but it doesn't feel like work because lots of party, folks at balls. lots of people from around the country to talk to. it will be so much fun. >> a way for all of us to take it in. >> livan yoo, thanks so much. for more ideas on your weekend, logon to nbcwashington.com or the going out guide on "washington post".com. barb? >> we'll look now at some of the stories we're following for you for news4 this afternoon. the latest on the notre dame football scandal we were talking about. the university is scheduled to speak on the hoax involving a star player. and a warning. look for help on your computer. what looks like tech support may actually be a scam. how you can tell the real from the fake. and coming up on news4 at 5:00. president obama takes the oath of office using president lincoln's bible. tonight, find out how to get an

up close look at this rare, historic artifact that will be going on disply. and a final check on our forecast. >> right now a latest look at the storm team 4 reerd showing rain changing over to snow. in eastern kentucky, southwestern virginia and southern west virginia and right along skyline drive. a swat of rain changing over to snow. south and east of washington, that's all rain. some moderate rain moving through southern maryland and temperatures are beginning to drop a little bit down to the low 40s after it was in the mid 40s and we might get a dusting around the metro area and maybe a couple of inches and southern suburbs and maybe four inches or so way south of washington. only some of the higher spots and blue ridge might get up to six inches or so. that would be by late this afternoon and into tonight when the calm lating snow will take place but anything around washington is going to be melting on roadways. only a light dusting with, i

think at the most if any. and stay with us. we'll be giving you frequent updates throughout the afternoon. veronica and doug will keep you posted. it looks like a low-impact storm for us around the metro area. >> tom, thanks. >> and i know you had your work cut out for you but we want our quiz to resume tomorrow. >> it will. >> i'm ready. i got to get on the board. that's it for mid day. tube in to news4 at 4:00, 5:00 and 6:00 later today for the all the news. and we'll be back tomorrow morning at 11:00 a.m. join us. join us. until then have a are you flo? yes. is this the thing you gave my husband? well, yeah, yes. the "name your price" tool. you tell us the price you want to pay, and we give you a range of options to choose from. careful, though -- that kind of power can go to your head. that explains a lot. yo, buddy! i got this.

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