the other skunk. [ female announcer ] safeway is the place to stock up on itunes gift cards. right now, save $6 on a $40 4-pack. keep 'em hand. only at safeway. ingredients for life. right now, some school students are just starring their school day after some early morng snow showers. today could be a record holiday breaker. fedex says today could be their busiest day ever. and just a few minutes ago, president obamsigned a bill at a d.c. elementary school that's aimed at improving children's tie ets. "news 4 midday" begins right now. good morning, everyone, and welcome to "news 4 midd." i'm barbara harrison. it's monday, december 13th, 2010. and we go to breaking ws now

from dulles airport. police are questioning the driver of a shuttle that is suspected of being involved in several accidents without stopping. news 4's megan mcgrath is standing by live at the airport and has more for us now. megan, what can you tell us? >> reporter: well, barbara, this began to unfold at around 9:30 this morning. state police got a call about a blue super shuttle that has been involved in fender-bender-type accidents in the area right around the time of 9:30 and that shuttle, the reported, did not stop. apparently there was one fender-bender near the roosevelt bridge, another on i-66 in falls church and the airport authority got a call from somne saying they had been hit on the dulles access road. now, an alert was put out. police in the area began to keep an eye out for this super shuttle. they saw it, they encountered it here at the dulles terminal. at that point, that's when police moved in. they apprehended the person who was behind the wheel. there were no passengers at the time in that shuttle bus, but

it's unclear whether there were passengers prior to its arrival at the terminal, whether there were passengers on board when the accidents occurred. what they're doing right now is they are talking to the driver of that shuttle trying to piece together exactly what happened, but, again, several reports from different drivers as far away as washington, d.c., the roosevelt bridge all the way here tohe dulles terminal complaining about a shuttle that was driving aggressively, running people off the road. there were some fender benders involved, and they have taken someoninto custody. our chopper actually caught some video there of police taking that shuttle bus out of the area. i should mention that there were no reported injuries with all of this and of course very early in the investigation police still trying to figure out exactly what happened. barbar back to you. >> all right. thank you, gan. well, many of you woke up to some beautiful scenery, as snow blanketed lawns and drivewa. the freezing roads that were expected never really materialized. still, some kids in virginia got to sleep in a little and enjoy their first school delay of the

seon. news 4's tracee wilkins has more on the wintry morning from spotsylvania county. >> reporter: down here in spotsylvania, they're dealing with colder temperatures, lots of wind and also heavier snowfall than what we saw in the washington area. the school system decided that conditions were bad enougto delay schools two hours. the decision to delay school in spotsylvania county got mid reviews from parents. >> i don't think that school should have been delayed. it's nothat bad. the roads actually look good. >> it's okay. you know, i think maybe the weatr delays a couple hours is fine. >> reporter: for the most part roads were wet but not icy. the snow cover pretty muchtuck to the grass, making this first major snowfall pretty easy on commuters. >> i'm fr minneapolis originally, so this is nothing. >> reporter: you guys got it really bad out there. yeah. my parents are holding tight, hunkered down in the house. >> reporter: waking up to snow-covered cars and grass was a shock for some who weren't

expecting it. >> i got up, and i didn't know that we had snow, so i was just surprised. >> reporter: the snowfall is expected to keep up until about noon. in spotting vain ya, i'm tracee wilkins, news 4. taking a look outside, some clouds out there. will they bring snow? we'll find out. here's tom. good morning. >> no. i think most of our snow event from this morning is over with. we have much colder air coming in. we talked about the possibility ofnow in the wake of the rain yesterday. we were talking about that last week. it did, indeed, materialize this morning. right now on radar, the snow is has pretty much ended except for southern maryland, st. mary's county and across the tidal potomac and eastern part of the northern neck ofvirginia. still a few scattered flurries there. elsewhere, a little bit of sunshine breaking up. and it is cold, still just in the upper 20s to low 30s throughout most of the region. ght now just 34 at national airport. it's only near the freezing mark, prince george's, arlington, fairfax, and

montgomery county, and wrihere they got the snow, too, fredericksburg, but the road temperatures were above freezing so when the snow fell it melted on the roads but stuckto the grassy areas. windchills in the teens due to the latest winds that have been gusting to 30 to 35 miles an hour out of the north and west. just had a gust of 33 at national airport. it is cold in the mountains of western maryland, west virginia only in the teens there now, around the bay, virginia tidewater region, temperatures there are just in the low to mid-30s. now over the last six hours we've seen the cloud cover breaking up west t east so, we'll have some sun around this afternoon with just a few clouds in and out. just a very small chance of a flurry flying through the air. cold winds, though, gusting to 30 to 35 mil an hour, highs only the mid-30s. much colder tonight into tomorrow. we'll take a look at the forecastor the rest of the week coming up. >> thank you. before hitting us, that same storm caused major headaches in the midwest. snow has shut down roadways and

caed major delays and cancellations at several airports. more than 1,600 t flights were canceled yesterday in chicago as more snow continued to blanket that city. even passengers at reagan national faced delays as long as two hours, both because of the snow in other cities and our own rapy and cold weather. one man threw from d.c. to st. louis where he says conditions are pretty bad. >> very blustery in st. louis, and then apparently it started to ice because they had to pull us off on the tmac and it took a while to de-ice the plane. >> anyone flying today is reminded to call your airline ahead of time a make sure your flight is still on schedule. look at that. football fans in minnesota are feeling a little deflated. check that out. the big winter storm that hit us this morning proved to be too much for the metrodome in minneapolis. the stadium's teflon roof caved in under the weight of more than a foot and a half of snow. this happened early yesterday. no one was hurt.

the vikings/giants game has been moved to tonight and will be played in detroit. all tickets are going to be free. those who had seats at the metrodome can get a refund. checking to see if there are any weather-related or traffic problems this midday, let's eck in with steve hirschhorn in for jerry edwards. >> there's roadwork both inbound and outbound. they're also working southbound on i-95 south of newington in virginia right now, but so far you can see here, as traffic moves away from you southbound, no delays. over the beltway across the american legion bridge right now, and so far so good in both directions. barbara, back to you. >> all right, steve. thank you. it's going to be a bu day on the roads and in the air fo fedex with less than two weeks until christmas, today is the busiest shipping day of the year.

dex expects to process 16 million packages through its system today, making it the busiest day in the company's history. the shipping center was very busy in herndon today. the online boom has contribute to a 12% increase in shipping compared to just last year. they'll see about a 15% increase. so we are definitely seeing that in our volumes right now. >> fedex says customers can mail packages through its system as late as december 23rd for them to reach their destination by christmas day. new at midday, school lunches will soon be healthier and more students in need will be able to eat for free. just a few minutes ago, the president signed a school lunch bill into law at harriet tubman school district in the district. the school lobbied for the measure to help stop childhood obesity and feed more hungry children. some republicans say the new law is too expensexpensive.

the redskins are kicking themselves this morning. yet another game of missed opportunities, this time on special teams. the skins h a chance to take the game to overtime with 13 seconds left, down 17-10, donovan mcnabb hit santana moss on fourth down for the touchdown. all thiey needed was the extra point. but it was a high snap, the football slipped through the fingers of holder hunter smith. lindsay czarniak will have more reaction at 11:30 this morning. 11:09 right now. what's next for michael steele? coming up, the latest on whether the chairman of the republican national committee will run for re-election. a lot of holiday cheer planned for this evening, but it could cause problems for your commute. and we're waiting to hear from you. call 202-686-nbc-4 if you're able to help the oanization

friends of homess animals. we'll explain how the group is bringing people and pe 3q copd makes it hard for me to breathe. but with advair, i'm breathing better. so now, i can join the fun and games with my grandchildren.

great news! for people with copd, including chronic bronchitis, emphysema, or both, advair helps significantly improve lung function. while noing can reverse copd, advair is differt fromost other copd medications because it contains both an anti-inflammatory and a long-acting bronchodilator, rking together to help you breathe better. advair won't replace fast-acting inhalers for sudden symptoms and should not be used more than twice a day. people with pd taking advair may have a higher chance of pneumonia. advair may increase your risk of osteoporosis and some eye problems. tell youdoctor if you have a heart condition or high blood essure fore taking advair. i had fun today, grandpa. you and me both. if copd is sll making it hard to breathe, ask your dtor if including advair will help improve yourung function for better breathing. get your first full prescription free and save on refills.

we continue our 12 days of

giving, each day leadingp to christmas on "news 4 midday" and news 4 at 4:00, we'll speak to a local organization that needs donations and volunteers. pat is standing by. good morning. friends of homeless animals is a nonprofit no-kill shelter that rescues and places homeless dogs and cats in northern virginia and the washington metro area. volunteers are taking your calls this morning. 202-686-nbc-4. debby is director of marketing for friends of homeless animals. you run a no-kill shelter, but you elter abused and abandoned animals. tell us more about what you do. >> thanks for having us. we're ano-kill rescue located in loudoun county. our program is set up, the mission is we rehome homeless and abandoned animals. they come from all walks of life. basically, owners give us, the predominant is from local couy shelters.

>> and you have a nice lab he with you whose name is easel. tell us about easel. how did you get him? >> easel came to us from the franklin county shelter about a week or two ago. he is 1 to 2 years old. his nickname came from the fact that he has three legs. we're not sure what happened to him in his prior life, but he is exceptionally special dog and has no idea that he is missing a third leg. >> not used to being on tv either. >> he's not. >> what you do is you take care of them. you don't kill them. you provide medical care and rehab services for the pets no matter what condition they're in. >> this is true. anybody coming into our rescue, we are no kill, is is -- so if they come in with medical issue, with treat them and take care of them to full ex-extent possible, rehab, and get them readopted out. all of our animals, again, that's why we rely soly on donations from private

individuals and business sponsors. >> the donations pay for the medical care? >> they go pretty much 100% to the care of animals. weave certain situations that are medical emergencies, as we had last weekend. we had a dog at the shelter who collapsed and had two depresscod disks and needed emergency surgy to t tune of $10,000. so we are constantly looking for donations coming in from the community. >> all right. we're going to take easel out and play with him a little so he can get used to being on tv. >> that's great. >> you can call our phone bank at 202-686-nbc-4. that's the number to call to help friends of homeless animals do the work they do, no-kill shelter taking care of a lot of pets that need a lot of care. barbara? >> thank you, pat. well, today we'll learn whether michael steele will run for re-election as chairman of the republican national committee. steele has faced heavy criticism for his leadership and inability to fund raise for the party. there are multiple reports

saying he won't seek re-election but nothing is confirmed yet. the former lieutenant governor of maryland was elected rnc chairman in january of 2009. he'll announce his intentions during a press conference at 7:30 tonight. the 168-member committee will elect a chairman in abo a month. ambassador richard holbrooke remains in critical condition this morning after undergoing heart surgery over the weekend. holbrooke underwent an additional procedure yesterday to improve his circulation. doctors worked for more than 20 hours friday and saturday to repair a torn aorta. the 69-year-old a u.s. special envoy to afghanistan and pakistan. holbrooke was meeting with secretary of state clinton on friday whe he collapsed. president obama says he and the first lady are praying for holbrooke's full recovery. a judge is expected to rule today on virginia's challenge to president obama's health care law. attorney general ken cuche nelly filed a lawsuit saying americans should .penalized if they don't

buy health insurance. a judge will decide if the federal government has the constitutional right to enforce that law. 20 other states filed similar lawsuits against the current health care law. tom is with us now to talk a little bit about what we can expect from the weather today. it is bone chilling out there. >> yeah. we had a respite over the weekend, saturday and sunday i the 40s and it felt like spring almost. but here comes another cold blast. it slammed in some of that moisture left from the rain yesterday and created snow. look at this beautiful scene, ke anna, spotsylvania county, and these are other scenes in prince george's county, upper marlbo marlboro, got a dusting to a half an inch there. another shot there of spotting va spotlvania county. laughing out loud. not sure if they're laughing about the skins or the snow. dumb fris, virginia. thank you, weather watcrs and viewers for sending your photos

in to our news 4 today facebook page. upper marlboro, a pretty good coating in prie george's county this morning. but this was friendly snow, thankfully. mostly melted on the roads. this is the kind of snow we like. it makes everything pretty and we didn't really have any travel problems with it. we have sunshine, live view from our skywatcher camera looking off to the west. 34 at national airport. very dry. need the skin lotion. just had a wind gust there, 33 miles an hour. radar now showing just a few lingering flurries in southern maryland, southern cal vert, st. mary's county and the eastern part of the northern neck. they're tending to dissipate as they head off to the eas look at the temperatures right now, very ld, just near 30 degrees throughout much of the region. right now reagan national is at 34 and in the suburbs we're just right near the freezing mark. these are latest windchills, windchill around upper teens with the latest wind gusts now and miles per hour around 30 to 35-mile-per-hour wind gusts. these are e peak gusts at the

airports around the region here. and that's going to continue into the afternoon, 30 to 35-me-per-hour gusts tapping this cold air to our west, only 18 in pittsburgh, only in the teens in western maryland and much of west virginia. and over the last six hours, there was that morning snow we had and it's moved off to the north and eat, pretty much dissipated as the much drier air has moved on in. cloud coffer s breaking up, the sunshine breaking out ande're still cloudy in southern maryland sl as wl as the northern neck, eastern shore, we'll get some sunshine, too, later today. we're not alone with the cold weather. look at chicago. only 10 degrees there. minneapolis/st. paul 3 below zero now, st. louis only 9 above zero, and it is subfreezing all the way down to the suth land. look at tlanta. only 24 degrees there now. going forward over the next 48 hours, maybe a few more snow showers in western maryland and highlands of west virginia. ey could get several more inches of snow there. we'll have some clouds in and out this afternoon and overnight tonight. during the day on tuesday, partly sunny, still very cd, strong, gusty winds coming from

powerful low pressure spinning away over eastern canada. similar situations than what we had last week. for the afternoon, partly sunny, colder, those winds gusting to around 30 to 35 miles per hour even though temperatures in the mid-30s, windchills onl in the teens this afternoon. those winds will still be whipping through and howling through the trees tonight. we'll be down near 20 degrees by dawn tomorrow. sunset today, 4:47, sunrise, tuesday, 7:18 it's going to be windier tomorrow. we could have gusts over 40 miles an hour tomorrow, tomorrow night, into wednesday. so our windchills torrow will probably be even colder and high temperatures even colder, only near 30 defrees tomorrow and again on wednesday. windchills only in the single digits. and those winds will finally die down wednesday afternoon. and on thursdayorning near 20 degrees ain, still cold on thursday but thankfully lighter winds, highs mid-30s. but it's going to stay colder than average into the weekend. ere is some uncertainty on

sunday and whether or not we may get some snow, might be a developing snowstorm. 's too early to tell but there could be some snow on sunday and we'll keep you postednd know more as we get closer to the day. stay tuned. >> tom, thank you. let's head out to the roads for anotr look at traffic. here's steve hershorn. there was a utility pole that came out partially blocking the ramp from eastbound 66 to nutley street. one lane is blocked on the ramp. 66 is open, but watch out for that ramp. eastbound 66 to nutley street. over the beltway, silver spring and university boulevard, things moving ver nicely. all your lanes are open. no reports of accidents or incide incidents. springfield, southbound traffic to the right moving smoothly into the work zone. rbara? >> thank you, steve. it's 11:21. still ahead, the most fashionable washingtonian. and why christine o'donnell is being recognized by yale

university. and a week-long series on frugal finds for the holidays. each week we'll pick four affordable gifts from a different store. [ female announcer ] safeway talks holiday favorites. i think there are eggnog people and non-eggnog people. and which are you? i'm a fish. on a tree. [ female announcer ] if it tastes like the holidays, we've got it. safeway. ingredients for life.

wow. i love the way she plated that roast. yeah. i said "plated." he's been watching too many cooking shows. mm-hmm. [ female announcer ] serve a main course brimming with comfort and joy. safeway. ingredients for life. snapshots for a glimpse into

the relationship of the recently engained royal couple. prince lliam and kate middleton released two phot over the weekend, one more formal and the other casual, in both prince william holding his bride to be in the 16th century st. james palace. cebrated fashion and celebrity photographers took the pictures on november 25th. that was about a week after their engagement announcement. well, some of the most memorable quotes of 2010 came from two of the biggest news events of the year. here's the top of the list according to yale university. that is delaware tea party candidate or she was the candidate, christine o'donnell, her "i'm not a witch ad" aired during her u.s. senate campaign. o'donnell was responding to reports that she had dabbled i witchcraft years ago. she tied for top quotes with bp former ceo tony hayward. back in may, he said, "i'd like my life back." his wos came after the worst

offshore oil spill in u.s. history. 11:25 now. coming up in the next half hour ofnews 4 midday," bitter cold returns after the morning's light snow. tom kierein updates our forecast. plus spreading holiday cheer later today. it could slow down your commute. we're waiting to hear from you as partof our 12 days of giving series. call 202-686-nbc-4 if you can help the organization friends of holess animals. we'll explain how the group

right now on "news 4 midday," police are questioning the driver of a shuttle van after reports from several driver who is y the van hit them this morning. the van was towed away from dulles international airport just about an hour ago. the accidents a o cured on roosevelt bridge and i-66. no one was injured. many packages will have to be delivered in a little snow. most of our region got a light dusting with areas getng as much as a half inch this morning. the wintry weatr kept crews busy as they worked to keep roads clear for the morning commute. we're not the only one who is got hit with snow. the miest was slammed with snow, even causing major damage to a football stadium. the weather channel's mi seidel has that story for us. >> reporter: cameras inside the metrodome showed the first signs

of trouble. snow leaking through the teflon roof. but at 5:00 a.m., it was an avalanche of sno that collapsed into the unoccupied arena, leaving a gaping hole in the dome and the football field covered with snow. in the light of day, the metrodome looked like a crater. officials blamed the heavy snow and high winds which caused drifts on the dome ceiling, leading to the collapse. >> very high winds. that with the high snow accumulation really impacted us >> reporter: because of the roof collapse, sunday'scheduled game between the minnesota vikings and the new york giants was moved to tonight in detroit. >> i've never seen it this bad before, i don't think. >> reporter: from heavy snow to strong winds. wintry weather battered the midwest. >> there's a lot of snow on the ground. >> reporter: with more than 2 feet of snow falling i parts of minnesota, residents spent their sunday trying to free their cars and homes from the snowy mess. >> this one seems a lot more packed down i think from the wind blowing so the snow is really heavy. >> the storm also shut down

parts of iowa and wisconsin where officials warn so residents to stay off the roads. even major highways were closed acss the region and more than 1,600 flights were canceled in chago. in the days ahead, residents will be fang bitter cold while back at the metrodome, officials try to figure out what went wrong and when they'll be able to play football there again. wow. i was just asking tom, i mean, this could have happened with the full stadium. they knew it was going to happen. >> they knew that the structure was getting weak so, they made sure the ones that were up on the roof that were shoveling snow, they got them off the roof so noone was injured thankfully. but weather can fect a lot of things, even that franchise in minneapolis/st. ul. they don't have a stadium to play in. well, here, we are being affected by that same storm in the form of sme gusty winds that are now shaking our skywatcher camera. that's a live view of the skywatcher showing a sun -- sunshiny sky there off to our

west and the radar showing a few lingering flurries in southern maryland, a few snow showers showing upn carroll county far north of washington. there's a small chance of an additional snow shower in the afternoon, but it's cold. temperatures are only around 30 degrees. thesare the windchills just in the teens to near 20. that's how it feels when you step out. it's a cold, sharp, painful wind that's blowing. these are e latestind gusts. just had gusts 30 to 35 miles an hour throughout the region so it's going to be windy the rest of the afternoon and cold. we'll fall into the 20s tonight, bottom out near 20 tomorrow morning. winds tonight, tomorrow night into wednesday, peak gusts near 40, highs tomorrow and wednesday only near 30, windchills only in the single digits tomorrow and wednesday, and the winds die down thursday. but still cold and cold into the weekend, as well. there is some indication we could getome snow on sunday but it's too early to say for sure. stay tuned. we'll keep you posted on that. >> thanks, tom. we'll check in again shortly. another one got away, and this time the game literally

slipped through the redskins' fingers. news 4's lindsay czarniak has more on the game and player reaction from fedex field. >> reporter: an emotional roller coaster derailed in the final seconds of the game. santana moss gave the redskins new lif with his touchdown. the skins had a chance for overtime. despite missing two short field goal attempts earlier, the redskins believed there was no way graham gano would miss the extra point. an imperfect snap, an unsuccessful recovery, a missed opportunity that left players emotionally drained. >> it's frustrating, i mean, i could have been -- it could have been a different game and we just have to stay confident and move on next week. >> if anybody needs to lose their job, it's me. it's certainly not one of those guys. they're both young, promising people who have an opportunity to be the best at what they do. and i certainly accept blame and hope that i receive the blame for this one. >> i beenpart of some crap but not part of that. en you're just losing and you know that you had a chance to

win, i ain't talking about the last play. i'm talking about throughout the me, throughout the years, throughout the weeks, throughout this year, when you're losing and you don't have no say-so why, th's why it hurts. th's why i feel if the way i feel because i'm just getting tired of it. >> santana moss appeared on the verge of tears. veteran ndon fletcher mimicked the frustration. he feels the nfl also cost the redskins a game. a 41-yard touchdown to kellen winslow jr. gave tampa a seven-point lead. they thought officials should have called holding on brian orakpo. >> to say you're not looking at that, it's the biggest play of the game, what are you looking at? your job is to look at holding. they'll apologize and say they missed it. >> i want to keep doing my things, keep making plays for this team, but when you're positioned like that, you ow, you really can't do anything. you really can'to anything.

hopefully the refs will see it and make the correct call. >> he wasn't eld. he was -- he was mugged. yeah. >> reporter: the redskins have lost four games in a row at home. they will have one more opportunity to get a win at fedex in their final game of the season when they host the giants. from fedex field, linds czarniak. back to you. the redskins are stumbling. the capitals are struggling. but d.c. can brag about having at least one championship team. >> touchdown! >> a d.c. pop warner team is celebrating a national championship. the beacon house falcons won the 75-pound and under title coasting with a 19-0 win. the team celebrated yesterdayy gathering to watch the redskins game. beacon house is a nonprofit after-school tutoring and remember ration nal center for low-income, at-risk children in rd five. 'tis the season for the christmas spirit. there's an onlin push to sing

christmas carols at one metro station tonight. a group is organizing a flash m mob at the gallery place metro station tonight from 5:00 to 6:30. they're using facebook and twitter to get people to show up and sing. there have been several gnash m flash mobs in our area. youtube shows the live campaign back in 2008 at union station. the midday traffic with steve hershorn. hey, steve. >> all right, rbara. a live look in montgomery county, montrose road moving very slowly right now. looks like no roadwork or accidents, so that looks like a good ride moving toward springfield. southbound into the right, south of newington, in the right lan several work zones in the district, one on kenilworth avenue, another near south. back to you. investigators are inspecting

a kennel in calvert county, maryland, toind out what sparked a fire there that killed four dogs. early yesterday morning flames destroyed a farm on neptune lane near pennsylvania avenue. rescuers were able to save more than 100 other dogs housed on a kennel on the property. it's known for its championship american staffordshire terriers. no people were hurt. more now on our 12 days of give, and the group friends of homeless animals, the organization is a nonprofit no-kill shelter that focuses on the rescue and placement of homeless dogs and cats in our area. and volunteers are taking your calls at our phone bank at 202-686-nbc-4. david chase of arlington, virginia, is with us now. david has brough a neighbor's dog. tell us about the dog. >> well, this is frost, and he was shot by his previous owner and didn't get medical attention r a month. and he was brought in by a neighbor to a shelter and then

friends for homeless animals came in and got him to their shelter and got him the medical attention that he eeded. $10,000 worth. he was shot in his left front leg, and since then he's been in a foster home, and my neighbor was the one who volunteered. and he's singing. >> he's do really well. >> yes. >> this happened, the shooting happened in the summer of 2009. >> that's correct. >> so he's gotten well really quickly. >> he has. and then he had to go through heartworm medications. so he is really on the recovery. he's a wonderful dog. but the volunteer ended up adopting him. >> that's your neighbor. >> yes. >> so adoption is one of the programs that friends of homeless animals sponsors, provides, and foster care. >> that's right.

and for $20 a month, you can sponsor an animal and it will take care of him for a month. >> that's an alternative holiday gift idea. >> i think so. >> the program does not allow animals to be killed, so animals like this dog can live out their lives there. >> that's correct. but they do need support. and, you know, it's an easy thing to do and your name will be -- you'll get a certificate and yoll be on their website and, you kw, it's just a good thing to do. >> so for the $20 donation, which will care of the animal for an entire month, they get their picture on the website, a picture of the animal. >> that's right. >> and a certificate. >> that's right. >> well, david chase, thanks so much. we can tell he misses his addy. >> yes. he's waiting for him. >>ll right. thank you so much. david chase, thank you for bringing your dog with us -- with you this morning. you can call and help friends of homeless animals by talking to our volunteers at 202-686-nbc-4.

barbara? all right. thank you, pat. and still ahead o "news 4 midday," investors are hoping for a positive start to the week on wall street. we'll have latest numbers for you. plus, finds for the holidays. [ male announcer ] are you watching cable? here's wt you should be watching: your cle bill. because you could be paying way too much. stop spending more for second best. upgrade to verizon fios and get tv, internet and phone fojust $99.99 a month for a year. call now for this special holiday bonus:

over 25 hbo and cinemax channels free for 3 months. plus hbo go and max go. watch your favorite movies and shows anytime anywhere. if you don't love fios, you can cancel anytime with no early termination fee. get the best channel lineup, superior picture quality, more hd, plus internet rated #1 in satisfaction, speed and reliability. why keep paying for cable? get fios for just $99.99 a month, plus hbo and cinemax, free for 3 months. call 1.877.717.fios. callhe verizon center for customers with disabilities that's 1.877.717.3467. at 800-974-6006 tty/v. it's time to get me this holiday season. it's time for fios.

this morning, svrl passengers aboard a royal cabbean uise ship are waking up with bruises. the ip called "brilliance of the seas" ran into a violent storm in the mediterranean sea

over the weekend. passengers took these pictures showing the damage. the ship was on its way to alexandria, egypt. about 1,600 americans were on that ship. a vote on tax cults today could mo stocks a lot higher. let's check in with cnbc's courtney reagan for if more on that and the rest of the business headlines. good morning, barbara. so far so good, the dow up about 36 points here. wall street is also coming off another positive week so it looks like we're continuing this tiny santa claus rally we've got going on. asian marks were higher overnight on some relief that china didn't move ahead with an interest rate hike after getting higher than excted inflation numbers. some feared they mht hike those interest ras. europe also higher today. there's no economic data here in the u.s., but there is a lot to come this week with rorts on producer and consumer prices, housing, manufacturing, and retail sales. the fed also holds its final meeting of the year tomorrow. well, today ishe busiest day of the year for fedex. the delivery giant expects to move about 16 million shipments

worlide today, up 13% fom last year. nearly $22 billion has been spen online this holiday season, up 12% from last year so, a lot of those packages are being shipped as well. for the entire holiday season, fedex expects to ship more tha 223 million items, both those ordered online and good old-fashioned gifts bought. hybrids may be popular, but they're just a small part of the total car market. j.d. power and associates says less than 100 million hybrids will bsold this year, about 2% of the market. half the growth will come fm japan where th've pushed hybrids with tax incentives. the u.s. is expected to sell about 8% more hybrids than last year. >> courtney, thank you. today we begin a week-long series to help those still searching for the perfect holiday gift. the best part is we're going to

help you stay on budget. our frugal findsegins with rodmans, and roy joins us with his favorite ideas from his store. your store happens to be one of my favorites becausehey have everything in it. i thought you could come and tell us about some of the things that are under $100 and the cheapest thing i think you've brought us is a little $2.99 -- some cookies. tell us about this. >> this is one of my favorites. i love cooking, which is traditional holiday cookies, gingerbread inside, and a rich, dark chocolate coating. >> how much are those? >> that's just $2.99. >> $2.99. so but you brought --irst of all, why don't you tell whauls's in the tore? you have a sample of many of the things there. it's not just gourmet things. it's actually appliances, as well. >> whave appliances, and did bring a couple items here. one of our best items, nonelectric, is the soda maker.

very popular. a lot of people are going green so you don't have any empty bottles from your selzer water. you make your own seltzer. rodman's, $74.99. this is $99.99 at bed, bath & beyond, so we have the lowest price around. >> you also brought us a coffeemaker that you see is one of your favorites. >> i enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning and this is a programmable unit, just $44.99. i have a whole array of coffeemakers. this is a midsurprised coffeemaker, very nice krups, engineered very welp we have from the two-cu coffeemaker to $129, the ones that take the k-cups, which are so popular. >> there are some wonderful things like this, ich a lot of people look forward to having. >> that's a great gift item. an excellent brand that people know and appreciate.

if you give this $9.99 to someone, they will really appreciate it. >> and one more. you get to tell us aut four. >> just $9.99. this is a front-page special for us. it became famous in harry's bar in venice where the bellini originated. you mix it with peach juice and have yourself a wonderful bellini. this is just $9.99 on sale. our front-page special available at all our store, all three stores, including maryland. >> so you can find some pretty good gifts for under $20 at rodman's. tell where you say. >> we have three locations in northwest washingtond.c., 5100 wisconsin avenue. 4301 randolph road in silver spring. and in kensington, 5148 white flint plaza. we hope you'll stop by for the holidays. >> all right. roy rodman, thanks for coming in and bringing all of theseweet

treats. ho we can get to test them. you have a popcorn popper that's reasonable, too. how much for that? >> this is 4.99. >> something that everybody can use. >> west bnd popcorn popper. a healthy alternative. >> okay. roy rodman, thank you so much for bringing your frugal finds. >> thanks for having me. our time right now 11:48. coming up, the most fashionable washingtonian, and meteorologist tom kierein.

who is the most fashionable washingtonian? fashion washington has their pick. the assistant editor sw, katherine boyle, joins us this morning with who takes the number-one spot. >> good morning. >> this is the third year you have awarded the most fashionable award to a washingtonian. >> yes. >> tell us who's the winner. >> this year we chose the pink line projects which supports local d.c. artists. what's very interesting about philipula, she wears a lot of color and geometric prints and really understands -- that's her on the right. she really stands out wherever she goes, no matter what she's wearing, she always kind of looks like a painting. >> we understand the winner gets a trip to paris. >> well, this is actually a picture from paris.

we awarded it an open skies flight, an all business class airline, and she and five friends spent four days just roaming the streets of paris, checking out the op, went to a lot of art museums tnd avs a wonderful time. >> did you go along? >> i did. i was very lucky to go along. >> tell us about paris and how is the fhion different from washington? >> paris is a very structured culture, whether the food, the fashion, the language. everything is very detail oriented. with their fashion, whether it's men or women's fashion, it's very made to measure, a precise fit and more about how the clothing actually fits rather th the colors or the brand. >> when i saw this in paris for men it's all about being fit. >> yes. >> and fit into the clothes. >> you have to fit into the clothes. you'll never see a man without his pocket square not being prise. the same with women. a lot of classic pieces they might dress up with a scarf or fur but neutral colors that will last them a lifetime. >> very interesting and very

different from us? how do we differ? >> in some ways washington is becoming more fashionable in that respect. but when you see the cold weatherin washington often makes wshingtonian bundle up and add a lot of kind of girth to their look. parisians only wear one coat and very hvy tights or boots and it makes them look a lot slimme for the cold. >> do they buy off the rack the way most of us do, or do they have their clothes made for them? obviously they must buy off the rack because there are those kind of stores there. >> some do, but then they might have it tailored to fit their body type. they make sur something fits before they leave the house. >> those are some nice-looking coats that you're showing us there. what can they -- we learn from them about how to dress for winter? i see they are dressed here. >> as you can see from the sidewalk cafes even in wintertime they're still going to be sitting outside so it's important to wear layers and colorful scarfs and things that can dress up a black coat or something not as interesting.

but they do dress for waing and do dress to be outside. >> i have noticed that often the women will have on their very fancy clothes with tennis shoes as they're walking to work. is that how they keep in such great shape? >> not in paris, no. women wear lower shoes or -- if they wear heels they're not wearing five-inch heels but definitely not wearing tennis shoes. >> never. >> unless you're working out, you don't see it very often, not like you do in d.c. >> great to hear about this contest. who were the runners-up? do we know? >> we didn't have any. i think she stood out among the group. >> great to hear. congratulate her for us. sounds like a wonder. prize to win. >> it was. >> a trip to paris and take your friends with you. >> absolutely. it was a great trip. >> thanks so much for coming in. >> thank you, barbara. >> will she be featured in the next issue? >> she's featured in our cuent issue. >> thanks so much. >> thank you. >> vy nice to have you. we'll take a look at some of the stories we're following on news 4 this afternoon. t lawson muse joins was a

preview. pat? coming up on news 4, we'll tell you about a federal judge's ruling on the konls tugs nconst of the national health care law. plus another disappointing loss on the football field on sunday. we'll hear from coach shanahan as the team looks forward now. then tonight on news 4 at 5:00, a new warning today about the dangers of second hand smoke. researchers say wre you live could put your children at rsk even if no one in the family smokes. a very important story. you'll want to hear aboutthat. those stories are newat news 4 at 4:00. barbara? >> thanks very much. a final check on our forecast. here's tom kierein. tom? windy and cold. good morning. there's a live view from our skywatcher camera, which is bouncing around, and a blustery northwest wind we are getting some sun through the clouds. it's partly sunny now. and those clouds are producing a few flurries to our north as well as in southern maryland right now on the radar where you see a little area of light color

there, a few lingering flurries in st. mary's county as well as passing snow shower just northeast of frederick and frederick, maryland, into carrolcounty. those are drifting off to the south and east out of the northwest. and as the afternoon progresses, we are eel have our temperares gradual lay make it maybe to the mid-30s if we're lucky. most areas, though, are going to stay in the low 30s and upper 20s here for the rest of e afternoon. right now, 34 in washington. and these are the latest windchills. they are right around the upper teens to near 20 because of that gust northwest wind. it is a painful wind. right now these are the peak gusts we've had over the last hour, generally around 30 to 35-mile-per-hour peak gusts. and temperatures will fall out of the 30s into the 20s tonight, maybe a passing snow shower this afternoon, just a smalr chance of that now. and windy tonight, tomorrow, tomorrow night and wenesday. tomorrow's gusts could be near 40 miles an hour out of the north and west, highs only reaching near 30. windchills, single digits

tomorrow, ve cold day, very cold, again tuesday night, down into the upper teens. by dawn on wednesday, those winds wl still be whipping around wednesday, although they should diminish a bit, highs again only reaching around freezing. then thursday, mercifully, the wind should die down, but it's still going to be cold, near 20 in the morning, afternoon highs only in the mid-30s. cold into the weekend as well. there are there's some indication we could get some snow on sunday, still too early to tell. stay tuned. we'll know as we get closer to the day. see you tomorrow morning. >> all right, tom. thank you. that's mariah carey joining ellen degeneres and the first mily at the national building museum for the annual charity event christmas in washington. before the performances, the obamas were at the white house welcoming some childrewho were dressed like little elves. look at them. aren't they cute. proceeds from the holiday event are goingo the children's national medical center.

just adorable. that have at the the white house underbeneath the white house tree. that's "news 4 midday." we thank you for being with us and invite y to tune in for more news at 4:00, 5:00, 6:00, and tonight at 11:00. we'll have more frugal finds for holidays tomorrow. tomorrow we have a storm that i've never heard of. they'll got great things for under $10. that's tomorrow on "news 4 midday." see you tomorrowt 11:00 a.m. hope you'll have a terrific day. stay warm. see you in the morning. ben usually has red curly hair, just like me.

and we both love boarding. unfornately, ben has a rare tumor. he was referred to st. jude children's research hospital where our ground-breaking research helps save kids across america, just like ben. i'm cancer free, now. dude, how can you beat that. give thanks for the healthy kids in your life. and give to those who are not. go to stjude.org or shop wherever you see our magnifying glass. wait a minute... wait a minute. hold on... ld on.