>> reporter: police say a suspect is in custody but they don't know why david lewis was killed. investigators believe 58-year-old gregory elarms followed lewis to the hills dale shopping center, shot and killed him in a parking lot. police say words were exchanged but they don't know why lewis was targeted. lewis was a well-known community activist dedicated to helping people get sober. after his murder dozens of people canvassed the area, hoping someone would come forward with tips. his daughter says six months is a long time to wait for an arrest. >> it's kind of frustrating knowing that the killer was still out there and they hadn't found anyone yet. but now that they have somebody, it's more of a relief. >> reporter: police say elamrs voluntarily came to the police station for questioning and was arrested sunday. friends of lewis say the two grew up together in east palo alto but they don't know why

elarms would want to hurt him. he's in protective custody because heck be targeted by inmates who were close to lewis. elamrs is expected to answer to serious charges in court tomorrow. now to a developing story in oakland. one person is dead, a search continues for a man police say is armed and dangerous. the death is as a result of a police shooting and a police chase. at 13th and 33rd avenue, the suspect's car crashed into a home. it started in west oakland on i-580 and moved into parts of east oakland. four people were inside that car. police say they all ran. two officers shot one of the suspects. they say a handgun was found nearby. >> there was an assault weapon recovered from the vehicle also. and this is very early on and there's still a lot of information that's coming out. >> police say a special unit was investigating a shooting that

happened on friday before this chase began. two other people are being detained tonight. happening right now, after a wild weekend with record-breaking rainfall and gusty winds, another round of rain is preparing to pack a punch. we have team coverage tonight, including long delays at sfo, downed trees around the bay area. we begin with a look at conditions right now. >> we're tracking more rainfall here across the bay area. that next storm is still offshore and it could wreak havoc on youray hidol plans when idu get out and about to travel in this midweek storm system. the record weekend rain we had has all pushed south with that storm system that produced anywhere from 1 to 2 1/2 inches of rainfall at the oakland airport. record-setting rainfall there in oakland. let's get a look at the radar right now. this is scattered rainfall. it's s ewhat leftover remnants of the system we had this weekend. we are track something heavier rainfall right here just north 'sof san rafael. our computer's picking up

anywhere from .25 to .5 inches per hour. that's going to continue off here towards the east the next half hour or so. all right, let's go ahead and take a look here at this mid-week storm system. once again, this is shaping up to continue to pull in ts train of msture as we head throughout late tuesday night and also for wednesday. could mean around 1 inch of rainfall for the valleys, 1 to 2 inches for the coastal hills. winds 15 to 30 miles per hour. do i think this will delay flights wednesday morning? yes. if you're doing any traveling on the roadway, prepare to add in several extra hours if you are doing that in a car on wednesday. we'll have details on our second storm that could shape up for christmas coming up later on. >> all right, jeff. on the topic of travel wet weather is making travel difficult around the bay area. that was the case for people flying in and out of sfo today for sure. joe has the story of big lines

and long waits. they came with visions of family reunions. vacations, holiday homecomings. only to discover the first leg of the journey would be spent in an airport line. >> i came with high hopes of smooth travel. and all i get is this. >> reporter: at the time will la was due in los angeles on her way to a utah ski trip, she was still standing in a line at southwest airlines that stretched into the next terminal. >> so the flight is delayed about two hours and then it will be at least another two hours out of l.a. all day. it's an all-day affair. >> reporter: nearby her two sons sat playing video games. >> i would like to say they're waiting in peace but they're not. >> reporter: in the old days flights would read "delayed." this these days it just says "now" and the now time. the "nows" outnumbered the "on times." >> we started around the corner,

almost in the international terminal. >> reporter: alex alexander was among sfo travelers facing weather-related delays. luckily she prepared for a wait. >> cards, computer laptop, movies. games. >> things could have been worse. the international terminal, some london-bound travelers have been waiting days after snow closed heathrow airport. with more bad weather ahead, sfo officials are forecasting more delays. demanding along with those skis and presents pack a good book. nbc bay area news. oakland airport today was also reporting delays of 45 minutes on departures, 20 minutes on arrivals. san jose airport says its flights are for the most part on time. a tourist is missing in sonoma county and police fear that she may have driven into the rain-swollen russian river. phyllis bent left the river's

end restaurant in jenner 10:00 saturday night on her way back to santa rosa. friends at another car lost sight of her. the sheriff's department is searching the river for her car. tire tracks were seen leading up to the river's edge. she was vitting sonoma county from southern california. the storm led to problems around the bay area with power outages and downed trees. traci grant is live in san francisco with that part of the story for us. >> reporter: well, jessica, it seems that so far in terms of damage, this storm has brought more of a whimper than a wallop. try telling that to the thousands of people who have had problems with the power over the last few days in the bay area. pg&e says it has restored electricity to all but just a few homes. >> like a little whirlwind. then i saw the -- what i thought was just a, you know -- the tree

limb come down on the house over there. and just with a wild crack. >> reporter: she was watching yesterday when a huge tree keeled over on top of this house on marlowe drive in oakland. some neighbors say it felt like an earthquake. but looked outside to see tree limbs sticking through the roof. a pg&e spokesman is warning residents that with more rain comes more soil saturation which can lead to more downed trees. lightfoot's husband made sure no one was hurt. >> he came back and said, it's the whole tree. it took out the chimney. when i walked up i went, oh my gosh. yeah. it was really scary for them. >> reporter: from what we understand, the people in that home are doing just fine. we were told that there was actually someone sleeping on the couch and just narrowly missed by one of the branches when it fell in. for many people, this rain has been more of a nuisance than a problem. and oakland, alameda, and san

francisco counties, department of public works, all have told us there have been very few examples of actual damage. live in san francisco, traci grant, nbc bay area news. turns out that one of the best walking cities in america is also one of the most dangerous for pedestrians. san francisco mayor gavin newsom is taking action to make streets safer for people. the city released some startling statistics. pedestrians make up approximately half of deadly traffic accidents. to change that today the mayor signed a pedestrian safety executive directive. the goal, to coordinate traffic planning, public awareness, and infrastructure improvements with the help of a new safety task force. the directive has an ambitious target. a 25% reduction in serious and fatal pedestrian injuries by the year 2016. and a 50% reduction by 2021. san francisco police are searching for two men who robbed

a 14-year-old girl at gunpoint. police say the teen was standing at a bus stop near the corner of geary and laguna streets around 7:00 a.m. yesterday when two men approached her and demanded cash. one was holding a handgun. the men took off with the girl's purse, jewelry and cell phone. one of the suspects is believed to be in his late teens. the other in his 20s. with one in eight californians unemployed it's a tough holiday season for a lot of people and the layoffs aren't over yet. after 29 years as a city employee, a san jose man has learned christmas day is going to be his last day on the job. damian trujillo on what he'll get for three decades of hard work. >> reporter: there's a reason for the san jose show glitz and glamor. >> we dust mop the floor, scrub it, scrape gum -- >> reporter: greg and his custodial colleagues always ensure the convention center shined for its local and international visitors. he did it for more than 29

years. until the city told him he had to stop. to hang it up. >> it's not just happening to greg, it's actually cuts that were required because of the significant deficit we've been facing. the city had to cut $118 million out of our budget this year. >> reporter: letting greg and 24 other custodians go will save the city $500,000. greg says he was only eight months from retiring with full benefits. now he'll have to pay for his own personal insurance until he turns 55, in three years. >> i'll have to end up paying over $1,200 just to keep minute -- just to keep my insurance. >> reporter: it's more painful, he says, knowing he'll have to turn in his work badge on christmas day. >> oh, yeah, of course i'm upset. >> it's unfortunate. that happens to be the end of the last pay period in 2010. >> reporter: the city said the good news is the contract of the city hired to do the custodial

work, gca services, rehired greg and his laid-off colleagues. the current gca workers say, good luck with the benefits. and the salary won't be the same. >> welcome to the future. >> reporter: greg wycheck says, don't be surprised if the shine is also missing from the next auto show. greg transferred over the summer here to the san jose police department. that allowed him to qualify for the job with gts services, the contractor. he's still angry at the city. a city he served for almost 30 years. in san jose, damian trujillo. >> gcs services didn't return our messages inquiring about their benefit plan. allow to us take a moment, please, to explain this change of scenery around us. >> this is in fact our temporary home while our new state of the art new set is being assembled in the other studio just a few feet away. we'll be here for a little bit, a couple of weeks. then we're going to see something very beautiful and shiny and new. >> yes, we think you'll find it

worth it. still ahead, what's in the water? a startling discovery involving tap water across the country and the one bay area city that ranks among the worst. then one on one with governor schwarzenegger. his thoughts on the future of california and what his legacy will be. also, the announcement by at&t today that could be music to the ears of iphone lovers. and behind the scenes on the busiest mailing day of the year. what you need to know to get those packages delivered by christmas. a look at all the rain and how it's affecting the things in the sierra tonight. save $523! 16 minutes could save you 16%!

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if you haven't gotten a lot of christmas cards and packages yet it could be because your friends and loved ones are just getting around to mailing them

today. today is the busiest day for post offices across the country. kris sanchez takes us behind the scenes in san jose. >> reporter: this is the busiest mailing day of the year. at this processing plant in san jose and at the one in oakland by days inn, they'll process 17 million letters, cards and packa packages. nationwide, 800 million. this is some of the mail that is being processed today. it's 40% more than usual. and it's still not too late to get your holiday cards in. some of the processing facilities will be open until 8:30 tonight to drop them off. the deadline suggested for packages is tomorrow. use priority mailing. you have until wednesday if you want to pony up the extra cash and ship express. in all, 3 billion pieces of holiday mail will be delivered throughout the holiday season. they have tips for us to get our packages there safe and sound by christmas. >> absolutely.

first of all, use a nice, dirty box. if it's a box that's been reused, make sure all the other addressing has been removed. make sure that you use strong filament tape. don't use string. cushion it very well. and also, very importantly, if you send anything that has a battery in it, remove the battery, keep it separate, because we don't want it to emit a noise in transit. >> we don't want to scare our letter carriers, because they are working very hard. they will be working delivering packages and letters all year long. they'll even make deliveries on christmas day. by the way, today is the busiest mailing day. the busiest delivery day is coming up on wednesday. kris sanchez, nbc bay area news. >> though most post offices are closed some processing centers will take your mail until 8:30 tonight. go to usps.com to find out whether that includes one near you. this season, holiday

shoppers are continuing their online spending frenzy. shoppers dropped $5.2 billion online last week, making it the heaviest week of online spending in u.s. history. according to marketing research company comscore, free shipping is fueling the online shopping spree. over 1,500 online merchants are shipping gifts free this holiday season. more than half of online transactions now come with a free shipping offer. california's high-speed rail line getting longer. the california high-speed rail authority board agreed today to nearly double the length of the first segment of the rail to alleviate those concerns that the initial route wouldn't reach major population centers in the central valley. earlier this month the federal government reallocated more than $1 billion in rail funding to california and other states after ohio and wisconsin decided not to proceed with their rail projects. the extra funds will go toward construction of 123 miles of railway from north of fresno to bakersfield.

no one going anywhere, high speed or otherwise, in the snowy sierra this weekend. our reporter from nbc station in sacramento tells us, from kingvale there's plenty of snow for skiers, way too much for drivers. >> reporter: the spinning spires. the spun-out cars. day after day digging out. >> yeah, it's been nonstop. >> reporter: these are the pictures you'd expect to see in the high sierra after four feet or more of weekend snow. i'm standing on the balcony at the 7,000 foot elevation level. you want to see how much snow has fall no one look at the balcony above me. that is all weekend snow. >> it's so big, it's like you can sink in it. >> reporter: it is this guy, and this guy, that has emergency crews warning you, don't be like them. he drove into the sierra in shorts, flip-flops, a t-shirt. he admitted he wasn't expecting sierra snow. so you were not prepared for this? >> not at all. >> reporter: and this is trucker don spooner. he too wasn't prepared.

his chains broke. his tires popped. and now listen to how long he's been stuck. >> since friday night. >> reporter: both of these guys are examples of what chp says is a growing number of people heading into the sierra unprepared. as we head into what is traditionally one of the busiest holiday times of the entire year. >> i'm a rookie driver. i just started. it's been one heck of a learning experience. >> that looks tough. so what does being prepared mean? have clothes, food, water in your car. along with at least one working flashlight. once you get there, when you get there, the skiing will be some of the best ever. in the meantime, be prepared. >> being prepared is knowing what the forecast is and that's where jeff comes into the picture. >> we have that winter storm warning up and we've been tracking all this extreme weather over the weekend. you know the layer that really made this kind of unusual here for the bay area is the subtropical moisture that was getting pumped up into san francisco all the way down to the south bay.

that produced isolated thunderstorms on sunday that brought .5 to 1 inch of rainfall. i was in san francisco last night around 6:00 p.m., it was just coming down like you were in southern florida. it was quite wild. we've seen the latest activity continue to push to the south. still instability producing rainfall at this hour. our totals impressive from the weekend, in line with what we were expecting, 2 inches to over 7 inches throughout the santa cruz mountains and ben lomond. really about 8 inches at this point. now we take a look at the radar. you can see it's this moderate rainfall stretching from i-80 corridor in sacramento to san francisco. it's moving rather slowly. it's producing some decent rainfall rates. also some heavier rainfall now starting to exit novato. continuing right up here into the napa valley at this point. as we zoom out, what you'll find is this moderate rainfall is continuing to push to the south. right across the peninsula, from san francisco to san bruno. we could see this once again

transition massachusetts san jose tonight. that is just leftover activity from what we had this weekend. but as we've been mentioning, we have a much stronger storm system on the way. today temperatures were in the low 50s out there. it's a cold rain for those of you getting that rainfall right now with conditions in the upper 40s to near 50 from novato to sunnyvale. the next system is 423 miles away from the bay area at this point. the thing that's going to make this different from what we have this weekend is the storm's center looks to move directly over central california with this aggressive jet stream in place. so we will look at periods of heavy rainfall and also gusty winds that will most likely bring us holiday travel delays at the airports and on the roads as we head throughout wednesday. rainfall 1 to 2 inches with this latest round that we can expect. as for tomorrow morning we'll start off in the mid 40s here with once again that chance of scattered rainfall. we'll have more on the timing of this next storm system, also a

storm shaping up for christmas day. the rain brought accidents and mud slides to the los angeles area. los angeles workers set up barricades to prevent rock and mud slides from damaging homes in the hollywood hills. 2 to 4 inches of rain fell in the flatlands. mountain regions saw as much as 7 inches of rain. still ahead, how you can buy yourself a souvenir from the royal wedding that's still more than a year away. facebook's founder heads overseas and immediately touches off rumors. the latest on his trip. details of jerry brown's new pad in sacramento. s for itchy dry skin. try cortizone 10 intensive healing. the strongest itch relief medicine now has three vitamins and seven moisturizers. feel the heal. this holiday season, chevy's giving you more. like a 100,000 mile/5-year powertrain warranty. that's 40,000 miles more than ford.

and now we're giving you our best offer of the year. 0% apr financing... plus $1,500 holiday allowance... plus no monthly payments until spring. on most chevy models. but hurry, because your chance to get our best offer of the season ends soon. see your local chevy dealer now. is the perfect choice for holiday gatherings. martinelli's is non-alcoholic, festive like champagne, and tastes great! martinelli's: since 1868. it's not too well done? nope. but it is a job well done. what are you reading, sweetie? her diary. when you're done, i'd love some feedback. sure. your mom and i read that thing cover-to-cover. loved it. thanks. would you mind if i cut the lawn this weekend? only if you let me talk to your mother on the phone for hours on end. done. [ male announcer ] u-verse brings peace to the family. at&t u-verse lets you record four shows at once from any room and play them back on any tv. now get up to $300 back in promotion cards. at&t. rethink possible.

in business and tech news, wells fargo agreeing to modify almost 15,000 adjustable rate loans made by other banks that it acquired. the state attorney general said the loans were harmful to borrowers. they were marketed as pick a

payment loans, usually by wachov wachovia. borrowers found they planned to levels they couldn't afford. the bank's agreement will result in write-downs, interest reductions and other concessions. berkeley resident patrick lang said he loved the chevy volt. so today the 25-year-old is the first person in the bay area to drive the 2011 electric car off the lot this morning. he won the volt video contest for the chance to own one. he says despite the electric battery, that car is power. >> we took it actually to milford proving grounds, did a loop there. you stomp on the pedal, it goes. >> the car gets between 25 to 50 miles from a single charge from a wall socket. a gas-powered generator supplements the electric battery. it does come with a $40,000-plus price tag. the two weeks surrounding christmas are typically slow for

silicon valley tech companies. facebook and billionaire mark zuckerberg is off to china meeting with tech leaders there. "time's" person of the year visited the headquarters of china's top search engine. zuckerberg has said he'd like to expand facebook's footprint in china where it's been bought by the chinese government since last year. stanford doctors are under scrutiny. a nonprofit investigative group called republica found more than a dozen of its university's doctors were paid speakers for drug companies. stanford forbids its faculty from taking these jobs that sometimes come with six-figure salaries but doctors are on the honor system when it comes to following the policy. the dean of the medical school sent an e-mail to staff calling the conduct unacceptable. a warning about smurf berries. the vy real problem involving kiddies and the high price. also, a one on one with the

governor. the things he now wishes he had done differently. and a new concern over what's in your tap water.bay are which bay area city is under the microscope. way talks hostess gi. you know what i want for the holidays? do tell. true love. true love is a myth. [ gasps ] you're a myth! excuse me? [ female announcer ] it's the thought that counts. and the gift. safeway. ingredients for life.

and the gift. so, we book a flight to hawaii using our points from chase sapphire. last minute... on christmas. and sitting next to us, chevy chase. and we really hit it off. we play golf, and then the luau. he's like da vinci with ice. and after, we help hang christmas decorations. wait, wait, wait. you flew last minute... on christmas... with points from chase sapphire? yeah. amazing. believe it. with points from chase sapphire, you can book airline tickets with no blackout dates or restrictions. that smells scrumptious. yummy! smells delightful.

awesome! i'm not smelling anything. [ female announcer ] everything for holiday baking. just add love. safeway. ingredients for life. if you have seen the movie "erin brockovich" you have heard of hexavalent chromium, a passty compound linked to a number of health problems. turns out hex-6, as it's known, is in our water here in the bay area. especially when it comes to san jose. nbc bay area's elise kirschner on the nationwide study and how you can make sure your water is safe. >> it doesn't taste bad, then it should be okay. >> reporter: from pouring it into kool-aid, to getting a cup of joe, susie says her tap water always tastes just fine. but what she isn't tasting may be high levels of cancer-causing

toxins supposedly found in san jose's municipal drinking water supp supply. >> we selected 35 different cities and san jose ended up being in the top five in terms of contamination level we recorded in its water. >> reporter: scientist rebecca sutton with the environmental working group says her watchdog found traces of hex-6. it's called the erin brockovich chemical after the 2000 movie telling one woman's real-life fight against pg&e after she found the chemical caused high rates of cancer and birth defects. the rates of contamination in the bay area are significantly lower than in the movie. but -- >> this is an emerging concern. we've known for a long time that it's a really bad carcinogen in the air, and now we see that it's also linked to gastro intestinal tumors when we drink it. >> reporter: sutton says there is a way to make your drinking water safe. >> you can install a reverse osmosis water mill tear.

these can be certified against hex-6 and also remove other contaminants. >> reporter: either way she says she's not that concerned. >> everything makes you die. everything makes you sick. the sun, everything. >> reporter: sutton says you should be concerned about your bottled water. because it doesn't face any stronger scrutiny than your tap water does. she claims your biggest defense, installing a reverse osmosis water filter. in san jose, nbc bay area news. scientists in the study believe that chromium 6 found its way into san jose's water supply through groundwater. that's because the chemical is naturally produced in minerals and rocks. so far, researchers say there is no indication that pollution is caused by local industries. in other health news, researchers say that breastfeeding may result in a boost in brain power. a new study found that boys who were breast-fed for six months or longer scored higher in math, reading and spelling than boys who were breast-fed for shorter periods of time.

girls who were breast-fed for six months or longer showed a small improvement in reading but the effects were most prominent for boys. tonight at 6:00, seven years after he was sworn in, governor schwarzenegger's time in office is nearly over. today he granted his only exit interview. to nbc news reporter kevin riggs from our sacramento station. >> thanks, i've been well. >> reporter: arnold schwarzenegger regrets above all failing to tame a stubborn deficit, an issue that led in large part to his election seven years ago. a budget deficit worse than the one you unherted from gray davis in 2003. the economy obviously is a major reason for that but not the only reason. how do you explain it? >> well, first of all, our deficit this fiscal year is they say $6 billion. when i came into office i inherited a $16.5 billion deficit. so i think it's a little bit

better than it was. but nevertheless, we are in a disastrous situation, you're absolutely correct. >> reporter: schwarzenegger says in hindsight, he knows what he would have done differently. >> if i would have known, for instance, in 2003, 2004, 2005, what i know now, the recession and all, this i think i would have been much tougher early on cutting back on the spending. >> your first act in office was to roll back the car tax which had been tripled. do you regret that now? >> it was the best decision i've ever made. because this state did not have a revenue problem at that time. >> reporter: schwarzenegger said he act the because worker pension benefits were too great, in his view. the budget problem now lands in the lap of the next governor. >> i think that he will look at his administration from the '70s and '80s and say, okay, i'm going to improve on that. >> reporter: the governor says he changed in several ways, including the ditching of inflammatory language like calling lawmakers girlie men. >> it went away simply because

it's the wrong way to go. >> reporter: and that is our outgoing governor. now let's talk about governor-elect jerry brown. brown and his wife decided to rent a loft within walking distance of the capitol. the 1,500 square foot, one bedroom loft is in a converted building that was once a car dealership. rents there start at $1,700 a month. brown, famously lived in a small apartment instead of the governor's mansion when he was governor in the late '70s. the governor-elect and his wife plan to keep their home in the oakland hills. the white house says president obama will sign the repeal of don't ask, don't tell on wednesday. the senate's weekend vote struck down the 17-year-old rule, which allowed gays and lesbians to serve in the military only if they kept their sexual orientation secret. no one knows when the new rules will be fully in place. lawyers are considering what to

do about cases currently under review, and about people who were discharged under the old rules. before republicans assume more control in congress democrats are trying to force votes on controversial issues. chief among them is the so-call so-called "new start nuclear treaty." more from capitol hill, steve h -- it seems we're having a problem with that story. a massive search is under way for the men who killed an american woman in israel over the weekend. christine liukin worked with an organization that promotes christianity to jews. she was hiking near jerusalem with a friend when they were viciously attacked. survivor kay susan wilson said two men speaking arabicing asked them for water, then attacked the women, tying them up, stabbing liukin to death. she escaped after pretending to

be dead. the fbi says violent crime is on the decline across the country. the fbi's semi-annual crime report found that reports of violent crime dropped 6.2% in the first half of 2010. property crime reports were down 2.8%. fbi crime reports have shown a steady decrease in crime rates since 2008. the bureau of alcohol, tobacco and firearms trying to crack down on mexico's drug cartels. the atf wants drug dealers to file a report whenever someone dies one or two high-powered rifles in a short period. drug cartels smuggle them into mexico from the united states. the atf has been criticized for not doing enough to stop the flow of weapons into mexico. if approved the new requirements about affect about 8,000 gun shops all along the border. the man whose book on how to be a pedophile created nationwide controversy is under arrest tonight. officers in pueblo, colorado,

arrested philip grieves ii this morning at his house. grieves, facing obscenity charges in florida, where authorities say he sold and mailed books, his book b. pedophiles to an undercover deputy. an e-book version had been available on amazon.com but the website removed it after hundreds of angry complaints. earlier we had been telling you that before the democrats lose control of the house, they are trying to force certain votes. one of them being on the new s.t.a.r.t. nuclear treaty. let's go to steve handelsman who has the report from capitol hill. >> reporter: in the senate debate, some republicans backed the nuclear arms deal with russia. >> progress on the new s.t.a.r.t. treaty is extremely important for the national security of our country. >> reporter: the deal would reduce both sides' missiles, and long-range bombers, and nuclear warheads, and allow inspections. president obama, who signed the treaty in april with russian president medvedev, needs 66

senate votes to get it ratified. he wants the vote now before he loses democratic senate seats next month. most republicans call that a rush. >> no senator should be forced to make decisions like this so we can tick off another item on someone's political checklist before the enof the year. >> reporter: democrats say there have been 21 hearings and meetings. >> we have been on this treaty for a year and a half. not just for six days. >> reporter: there's a new controversy. r ur sha claiming the treaty could ban u.s. missile defense. designed as a shield against iran. >> they would have a delivery system with a nuclear warhead by 2015. so there's where we -- the issue of missile defense comes in. >> reporter: meanwhile, flush from their repeal of don't ask, don't tell, democrats hope to pass a $725 billion defense bill. and a health bill to aid 9/11 first responders. >> what's important that is we ought to take care of those who

took care of us. >> reporter: democrats pushing their agenda hard. i'm steve handelsman, nbc news, capitol hill. still ahead, how you can own a royal souvenir from the most-hyped wedding around. at&t customers have long complainted about their cell phone service. coming up, the announcement that could have them singing a different tune. the weather in the coming days singing a much stronger tune when it comes to the rain and also the wind. of a break today. right now it is cold out there. los gatos, my coldest temperature with 42 degrees right now and as we head throughout tonight we'll look for that lingering chance of showers in the south bay. and we're not tracking only one storm but two. we'll have details on our christmas day storm coming up. b

if you have an iphone, at&t is spending nearly $2 billion to upgrade its wireless spectrum. the exclusive carrier apple's mobile device is buying the air

waves owned by the failed qualcomm to add bandwidth. at&t recently earned the dubious distinction of being the worst wireless carrier from "consumer reports." things could change though after the first of the year when it's expected that verizon will start offering iphone service as well. this could take some of the pressure off at&t but it could add pressure to verizon's network. smurfs village is the number one iphone game but there is a warning about the cost of the game that appears to be free. smurfs village is a free download. users create a blue empire, building houses, growing crops, creating businesses. apple is warning the village currency, smurf berries, can cost you real money. parents take note. a few clicks and kids own bushels of smurf berries and they're not cheap. two taps can equal $100 worth. that's real currency out of your pocket. >> and papa smurf will not be happy with that.

sanford's getting ready for the orange bowl. head coach harbaugh won't be getting much sleep. not just staying up all night studying film, getting ready for virginia tech. also the raiders are holding on to hope the chiefs and chargers will trip up, because wild cards are no longer a ticket to the playoffs. tim lincecum in seattle perhaps helping the 49ers in

just in time for christmas, prince william and kate middleton's official royal wedding china went on sale today. >> the three china pieces were personally approved by the prince and his fiance. take a look at the collection. >> reporter: william and kate made their first public appearance together since the engagement at a fund-raiser for cancer patients. while preparings for the wedding continue at a fevered pitch. today the official royal china commemorating the event goes on sale. >> this is the official range that has been commissioned by the royal collection which is part of the royal household. and it has been approved by the royal couple themselves. >> reporter: three pieces of handmade english fine bone china, trimmed with 22 karat gold and embossed with the initials "w" for william, "c" for catherine. every piece is manufactured in stoke on trent, where they have been using the same methods to make pottery for 250 years.

the china is on sale on the royal collection website. as well as tourist locations. and it isn't cheap. a pillbox for $38. something the designers call a tankard for $55. the plate for $62. the proceeds go to maintaining the queen's vast art collection. nbc news, london. >> oh, well. >> very elegant. >> indeed it is. the weather outside is frightful. we're in the singing christmas carols, we're introducing jeff. >> if the weather is frightful today it's going to be scary as we head into wednesday. especially the holiday travelers trying to get out of there. we did have thatted. -setting weekend when it came to rainfall. also winds gusted 40 to 50 miles per hour. what we have this weekend has pushed to the south. it's unfortunately los angeles's problem. if you're traveling that way, do expect delays. this did put quite a dent in our rain bucket since july 1st.

over 7 inches in san francisco for the water year. oakland over 8. san jose over 3 1/2. it puts san francisco and oakland well above average at 128 to 129% respectively. san jose below average at 87% of normal. but we'll be catching up in the days to come. what we have on the radar is some residual activity from the system yesterday. still keeping us breezy. there's enough instability to still produce some isolated heavier rainfall just north and to the west of novato. that's heading into napa valley the next 45 minutes. over here to the south in oakland, also for walnut creek and danville starting to get in on some showers. also winds 10 to 15 miles per hour. continuing to pond on the roadways for anyone traveling. across the peninsula we're finding rainfall entering san mateo. also breezy conditions for those of you in half moon bay. heading to the sierra, another winter storm warning is up for 6 to 9 inches of snowfall with this next round. it's a cold rain out there for those in the north bay right now

with mid to upper 40s and also 49 in livermore right now. what are we looking at? another storm system here starting to move in as we head through tuesday night. it primarily looks like a wednesday event for us. then also a christmas day storm at this point. there is the latest storm system. it's continuing to tap into plenty of moisture. and the jet stream, which really kind of amplifies things and brings us this chance of isolated thunderstorms is going to stay across northern california. with that said for wednesday we are looking at the rain, wind and also that chance of isolated thunderstorms in the mix. tonight we've got scattered rainfall with us. tomorrow morning still scattered rainfall. nothing widespread or too heavy at this point. it's not going to be until late tuesday evening that we'll start to see this next round of heavier rain arrive here from the north bay down into the south bay. look at totals 1 to 2 inches here from santa rosa down to san francisco, and also for san jose at this point. 6:00 a.m. east bay, scattered showers.

upper 40s. then as we head throughout tonight, for those in los gatos, one of our coldest spots, 39 expected. san francisco also expecting upper 40s. let's take a look at tomorrow's numbers for tuesday. we'll see breaks of sunshine. increasing cloud cover with this latest storm system starting to get closer. 55 in san jose. 53 in fremont. also mid 50s here throughout the peninsula. with this little respite here that we had for part of the bay area for today, also into tuesday, this has helped to keep those river flooding concerns at bay at this point. so that's the good news. however, we may get in on isolated urban flooding for wednesday with that rain returning. then we get in on a breck here for thursday and friday. much-needed sunshine coming back. take a look at this, a christmas day storm coming our way for saturday. so looks like a good day to spend insighed by the family at this point. >> sounds like a good idea. >> great idea actually. lawrence scott once more

joins us with sports and a sweet story from stanford, it's a girl. >> it as girl. a special day for stanford head coach jim harbaugh. his wife gives birth to a baby girl. today celebrating in an afternoon practice with his team. the circle of life just part of the leadup to the orange bowl. they welcome their second daughter kathleen harbaugh to the world during bowl season. the cardinal getting ready for virginia tech january 3rd. last year kathleen's grandfather jack joined the team on the sideline for the sun bowl as an honorary coach. with two games left for the raiders and 49ers, if each got two wins to wrap up the season it would be a tale of two cities. one who played rope a dope and became the forrest guch of the postseason, the niners. the other in oakland seeing a legitimate resurgence but playing against -- well, facing more competitive competition in their division, and a much tougher conference.

the scene at the coliseum yesterday was inspiring for raider nation. think about it, they didn't let a bad broncos team look too good. the raiders, very strong. and they finish strong. that's the important thing. winning by 16. improving to 7-7. the wild cards though are out of reach in the afc. so oakland could beat indy at home next sunday, then beat the chiefs on the road, but still not make the playoffs if kc wins next sunday, hosting tennessee. san diego's still in the mix. raiders quarterback was in studio with raj mathai for our "sports sunday" show after the win last night. >> it's great to get a win. we're 5-0 in our division. we still have a shot. we're still alive for the playoffs. so everybody's happy. >> it's huge. we're back to .500, 7-7. it's another win for us that hasn't been done around here in a number of years. but the whole goal is to try and somehow get a chance at this thing. >> they will hopefully get that

chance. keep in mind, and we know it's absurd, two 49ers wins coupled with one seattle loss would put the niners in the playoffs. they'd actually host the first game at candlestick. let's leave it at that for now. giants have given guillermo mote that a minor league contract. a's have a crowded outfield with all their offseason moves. and thus travis buck, who was nontendered by oakland, looks to soon be taking on a minor league deal with the cleveland indians. that's what we're hearing. though he's coming off a tough season last year. batting just .167 with a single home run. giants ace tim lincecum back home in seattle, and yesterday leading the 12th man. that's the seahawks faithful. in the pregame festivities. good thing he didn't fire them up too much. the seahawks lost to the falcons which keeps the niners in the hunt. pitchers and catchers, believe it or not, they report to giants spring training in about two months

wee still basking in that world series glory, and thursday night at 7:30 p.m. on comcast sports net bay area, it's the giants world series run the way it was meant to be seen and heard. yes, dave fleming, you can hear them as you watch the baumganer masterpiece. that's thursday at 7:30. game four of the world series against the rangers. relive the complete schedule of all the games on csnbayarea.com. i love that game four. after the game, talked with madison baumgartner, the next night talked with his mom and dad. really funny. he was like in that north carolina draw, he says, "hey, if madison ever gives you any trouble, you just call me and let me know. >> i hope you got his number. >> there you go. the runs next night, that was the clicher. >> that was basically the game four really set the whole thing in motion. >> lawrence, thank you. um

tonight at 11:00 on nbc bay area news, extreme science. helping cops catch criminals like never before. >> there's a lot of potential forensic evidence that hasn't been used in the past because there hasn't been the science behind it. >> you're not going to believe it. we're talking about cat fur helping put bad guys behind bars.

see how it's done tonight at 11:00 after "the office." the family tonight, no matter how hard you tried to have the best light display in your neighborhood, and perhaps you do, but you'll feel inferior when you see this. every year, about 100,000 people travel to san rafael in france to see the spectacular light show there. isn't that something. buildings and monuments across town colorfully illuminated for the light festival. they certainly go all-out for the cathedral with a beautiful light show projected onto the facade. that's neat. >> tres magnifique.