so petersburg resident patrick metz figured he scored a pretty good gift when he brought home an appleom walmart. >> i've got working two jobs, getting extra for christmas. i have three kids. so i wanted to make sure my kids and my wife had a good christmas. >> reporter: but metz says when his wife opened the i pat god, they got a shock. inside was a stack of yellow notebooks and no ipad. >> it was astounding. it was like, really? i don't know, it was just mind-blowing. >> reporter: metz said the box had been sealed, but someone had gotten in. it's glued to the bottom. >> reporter: it may sound like a crazy story. >> it was like a sick joke. >> reporter: when i contacted walmart, a spokesperson says they have heard it before. it's happened to other customers, and it's a problem they already know about. they say, it's happening all over and it's happening to all retailers said sarah spencer. she wouldn't say how many reports they have gotten, or where it's happening, just that, quote, it's been all over. until we called, though, walmart didn't say any of that to patrick metz. >> the man

hundreds of volunteers have been working to rebuild this house for retired grandparents, jean and burt metz, who were told only the floors and walls were being rebuilt. 72 days ago, 4 feet of floodwater rushed in, leaving behind dangerous mold. how much work did you do on the house? >> we did this house from stud to completion. here is a couple, gives back to their community, two-time cancer survivor. then on top of it, their home was flooded. >> reporter: operation blessing has helped 400 homeowners in breezy point, recruiting volunteers from near and far. >> brooklyn. >> queens, new york. >> queens! >> reporter: matt chung is lending a hand, even though his own home in queens is undergoing repairs from storm damage too. >> there's no point in sulking at home, sitting there doing nothing, so, you know, the contractors were working over there, these guys don't have anybody, so come out here and do what we can do. >> reporter: then there's linda woodside, who traveled 1,600 miles from san antonio. >> we wanted to give them a new start on life, because they've had a hard time. >> i think that

bert and jeanne metz.ted for you all morning. >>> i think the academy award for the absolute cutest couple in the history in america goes to bert and jeanne metz. will you come hang out with me sometime? you're the cutest couple ever. >> that's fantastic. i am so glad they got the help they need. that is so nice to hear. >>> today's best advice straight from the u.s. senate is coming up. >>> later on "starting point" we're going big on the academy award nominations. soledad is joined by a.j. hammer and we'll have the announce maen mentes live from hollywood. it's all right here on cnn. what are you doing? nothing. are you stealing our daughter's school supplies and taking them to work? no, i was just looking for my stapler and my... this thing. i save money by using fedex ground and buy my own supplies. that's a great idea. i'm going to go... we got clients in today. [ male announcer ] save on ground shipping at fedex office. but with advair, i'm breathing better. so now i can be in the scene. advair is cl

burt and jean metz had just invested their life savings into upgrading their house in sandy point. then, sandy struck and four feet of water poured in. they lost everything. a volunteer group stepped in to help and showed off their work yesterday. look at that. >> bet they're feeling good. always good to be back home. so, congrats to them. >>> time, now, for a look at weather across the country this morning. severe storms are a threat in memphis, mobile and new orleans. there could even be an isolated tornado, as well. meanwhile, raining in chicago, st. louis and kansas city. wintry west of the rockies, with snow in the mountains. and rain from seattle to l.a. >> it's another day of spring-like temperatures along the east coast. much of florida will be in the 80s. warmer, too, in the midwest. fargo will be 37, instead of the usual 18. much cooler in l.a., with a high in the mid-50s. >>> when we come back this morning, why half the houses in america could be getting a huge break on their winter heating bills. good news. >> yes. >>> then, a new token of our affection. you get to vote

burt and jean metz has just invested their life savings into upgrading their house in breezy point. of water rushed in. they lost everything. a volunteer group stepped in to help and showed off their work just yesterday. >> to have this kind of blessing, i only wish that young people could know all the things that we've gone through. >> jeannie is a two-time cancer survivor and her husband has also faced his own health issues. but i bet they both felt pretty good walking into that refurbished home. >> you see, through tragedy, sometimes you just see the best of humanity. >> you do. remember, that was the neighborhood where all those fires broke out, dozens of homes besides the flooding. just incredible scenes. i remember that from october. so glad to see folks coming back. >> yes. >>> here's a look at your weather. rainy day in chicago. st. louis and kansas city. rain-snow mix in minneapolis. west of the rockies, it's a wintry day with snow by this afternoon in salt lake city and billings. >> the center of the nation sees another day of spring-like weather. fargo will be 37 when the

richardson says metz is going as a private citizen and is interested in north korea's economic issuese delegates also plans to acquire about a korean american u.s. citizen detained there. the hope is to lay the groundwork for the detainee to return home. the state >> is not very happy about this visit which comes a month after north korea launched ballistic missile in violation of u.n. ban. >> a senior white house officials as president obama will nominate john britton to be the next director of the cia. the announcement is expected this morning at 10:00 our time. >> down brennan is the white house's point man for targeting terrorists. >> going to the cia you are further away from the white house and access to the president. >> at the way britain would be coming home. he joined the cia after route reading a want ad in the newspaper. he learned arabic. he was a candidate for cia director four years ago but he pulled out of contention when critics slammed his involvement ambushed their interrogations. the former general had a culture clash with a career cia analyst. following outsiders