Trending This Mornin'
 
How about one more springlike day in December?  Partly sunny. Hi 72.  Cloudy and breezy. Around 60.   Thursday,  Partly sunny.  Hi 52.  Friday 55.  Back to the low 60s for the weekend with a rain chance on Sunday and Monday.
Gov. McDonnell released a list of possible state cuts totaling $132 million.  He asked every state department to reduce their budget by 4%.  The report also includes a way the state could make money.  You may have to pay an extra 50 cents on motor vehicle registration fees. That increase would bring in $3.4 million for the state.
 
 
 
A 5.8 magnitude earthquake was felt across Anchorage, Alaska on Monday. There were no immediate reports of damage beyond items knocked off shelves.
 
 
NASA reported on the Mars Rover: Curiosity yesterday.  Apparently,  no surprises in the first soil test.
 

 
Folks came out to Roanoke's South County Library last night for its annual Tree Lighting ceremony. 
 
 
MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL:  Robert Griffin III threw for one touchdown and had a fumble turn into another score, and the Washington Redskins pulled within one game of the NFC East lead with a 17-16 win over the New York Giants on Monday night.
 


 
Lookin' Back
Today is Santa's List Day... time to send the list to the big guy!
 
1783 - Gen. George Washington said farewell to his officers at Fraunces Tavern in New York. 

1791 - Britain's Observer newspaper was first published. 

1812 - Peter Gaillard patented the power mower. 
 
1845 Manila paper is patented.

1965 The U.S. launches Gemini 7.

 


 
Cuttin' Cake Today
"America's Next Top Model" host Tyra Banks turns 39, rapper Jay-Z is 43, the always beautiful Marisa Tomei is 48, and Jeff "True Grit" Bridges is 63,  Jethro on Beverly Hillbillies, Max Bear Jr., is 75.  Game Show guru Wink Martindale 78.  Actress Chelsea Noble is 48 today... she played Kate McDonald on "Growing Pains."
 
 
Joke of the Day
What do you get when you cross a snowman and a vampire?  ans - Frostbite
 
Smarter Than Question
The average person spends about 6 minutes a day messing with this.  What is it?    Congrats to Sue and Jackie, they got it.  The answer is "gadgets"
 
 
Entertainment Buzz

(Photo: NBC)

On last night’s live performance of ‘The Voice,’ fellow coach Christina Aguilera suggested that Blake Shelton had the strongest team. He has the two strongest competitors left in Season 3, and he’s essentially fighting himself in the competition.  And did CeeLo (being under the weather) hurt his remaining team members or was Train frontman, Pat Monahan a huge help as mentoring coach? Is Melanie Martinez in trouble from Team Adam?  Blake called her performance of "The Show" different. 

 

 

 

Dancing With the Stars co-host, Brooke Burke-Charvet, is scheduled to undergo surgery for her thyroid cancer later this week.

Is it over for the Bieb and Selena?  Maybe not.   The two were seen holding hands at KIIS-FM's Jingle Ball concert in L.A. over the weekend.

In case you missed it yesterday,  Britain's Prince William and his wife, Kate, are expecting their first child,  Hey, Uncle Harry!

Howard Stern will return to “America’s Got Talent” next season. But we still don’t know who will join him on the judges’ panel.  Sharon Osbourne has confirmed that she will NOT be back and Howie Mandel’s return has not been finalized.
 

Many celebrities have declared they love Honey Boo Boo, but not Adam Levine.    In fact, he HATES the show. He completely trashed TLC’s show in an interview with GQ magazine saying quote: “Honey Boo Boo’ is the DECAY of Western civilization.”

Rod Stewart is planning a North American concert tour next spring, alongside singer Steve Winwood,  We've got tickets for the "Live the Life" tour go on sale Saturday in Greensboro for their date in April 2013. 
 
If you missed my "on-air" interview with Chicago trumpeter Lee Loughnane, here the extended version on my podcast.
 


Tonight on TV
ABC: Shark Tank is new followed by new episodes of Happy Endings, Don't Trust the B--- in Apt 23, and Private Practice
CBS: Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer is followed by NCIS and The Victoria Secrets Fashion Show
NBC: The Voice is live followed by new episodes of Go On, The New Normal, and Parenthood
FOX: Raising Hope, Ben and Kate, New Girl, and The Mindy Project are all new
CW: Hart of Dixie and Emily Owens, M.D. are both new tonight 

 

 

News from Nashville
 

Forbes out with their annual list of highest earning musicians- Taylor Swift leads the country pack at #8 with $57 million, Toby Keith & Justin Bieber tied for 10th with $55 million and Kenny Chesney was 17th with $44 million.  Overall, Hip Hop Mogul Dr. Dre topped the list with $110 million.

Dustin Lynch will appear on the syndicated daytime program The Better Show today.  Not only will he perform an acoustic version of his new single "She Cranks My Tractor,"  he'll also talk about his upcoming tour with Keith Urban and Little Big Town. 
 
We're now learning a bit more why Little Big Town had two cancel some California dates and an appearance on Leno the other week.   Kimberly Schlapman of Little Big Town lost her brother-in-law Thomas Allen Schlapman in a roadway accident on Wednesday, November 21 in Nashville.  He was visiting Kimberly and her husband Stephen for Thanksgiving at the time.   The other driver, Gregory Powers, crossed the middle lane and hit Allen's motorcycle head-on according to The Tennessean.  He was charged with vehicular homicide and failure to maintain a lane.   Allen was 45 from Lynchburg, Va..  He leaves behind a wife and 9 year old daughter.   Funeral services were last Tuesday in Lynchburg.  **Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.
 
 
 
The Band Perry and Dierks Bentley will perform a special tribute to the late Johnny Cash during The Grammy Nominations Concert Live -- Countdown to Music's Biggest Night. CBS will broadcast the special live from Nashville's Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET.
 
Luke Bryan will help college football fans get ready for the 2013 Discover BCS National Championship Game with a pre-game concert outside Sun Life Stadium in Miami on January 7. Luke is headlining the annual Bud Light Championship Game Day Fan Zone event on January 7.  The performance comes just days before Luke launches his Dirt Road Diaries tour January 17.
(Photo: SplashNews)
 
Taylor Swift spotted in NYC over the weekend with Harry Styles of One Direction, visiting the Central Park Zoo.  An item or just buds?   (Splash News Photo)
Congrats to Florida Georgia Line's,  Brian Kelley and Tyler Hubbard, their single "Cruise" has hit #1 on the country singles chart.  Their new album is out today.
 
New Videos on CMT this week

The Band Perry leads off a week of big video premieres at CMT with the Tuesday launch of their new "Better Dig Two" clip all day today during music hours.  Check out Kimberly with her hair up.  Nice.

The video for Keith Urban's collaboration with Country Music Hall of Fame member Don Williams on "And So It Goes" premieres Wednesday on CMT.com and CMT Pure.

On Friday, Martina McBride's new holiday video for "Please Come Home for Christmas" debuts.


 
Lar's This & That
 

Cell phones!

62% of U.S. households have at least one cell phone not in use. That's enough to create a phone path stretching from San Francisco to the North Pole and back!

Why are we holding onto them? The #1 reason is because we don't know how to erase our personal data! We're afraid of it getting out.

(Source: Mashable)

 

Speaking of...

Is this your ring tone? I hope not. Rob Duameyer from the Business Courier says there's a good chance your cell phone ringtone is making you look stupid.

Here are three things you need to think about before uploading a ringtone...

#1... if the ringtone would make a teenage boy laugh, or teenage girl cry, delete it.

#2... If you have to explain your ringtone, delete it.

#3... When you try and mix your true personality into your professional persona, be prepared to live with the consequences. You don't really want me to LMFAO, do you?


 
 
When It Comes To Cellphones, What's Your Friends Biggest Complaint?
 
A new survey finds, the biggest complaint is that people's friends and family get MAD AT THEM for not checking their phones enough. 
By the way, the second biggest complaint is that having a cell phone makes you TOO available to other people at all times.  (Mashable)


Changing Times in the Kitchen
 
(Photo: Hasbro)
A New Jersey teen started a petition asking toy company Hasbro to make its Easy-Bake Oven more boy-friendly after her brother asked for one for Christmas. Thirteen-year-old McKenna Pope started a Change.org petition over her 4-year-old brother's love of cooking.
 
McKenna says, "My little brother has always loved cooking. Being in the kitchen is his favorite out-of-school activity, and he yearns for the opportunity to cook on his own." But the toy oven has long been marketed to girls and made in gender specific colors like pink and purple. Pope's petition calls on Hasbro to drop its all-girl advertising so boys like her brother feel comfortable asking for the toy.

 
 
 

Just So You Know...

According to IKEA, what are the top five items women look for in their homes?  Their favorite pair of shoes, child’s toy, wallet, Lipstick and the remote control. 

Are You Living Up To Your Childhood Dream
TWO out of FIVE people say their life has NOT MET their childhood dreams and expectations.  The new survey finds it is especially true for people under 34, HALF of whom were disappointed with how things are going so far.  Only 26% of people over 65 say their life didn't meet expectations.  (Daily Mail / Today)

 
This Close To Winning Powerball
Want an edge the next time the Powerball or Mega Millions lottery jackpots get to big numbers? Software developer Mark McCracken says his program, The Lottery Picker, can increase your chances. The software also helps streamline the labor of buying, filling out, and checking multiple tickets. But it'll set you back $140. 
 
15 Tree Decorating Ideas
See some beautiful trees and get some great ideas from HGTV!

 

 
Surviving The Holidays
 

 
Use Hukkster.com to track the products on sites you love, and get notified when those products go on sale. No having to constantly check back, and you can pick how big of discount you want before getting notified.

 

 
All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over Tonight

Baseball may be called America’s pastime, but the United States is clearly a football nation.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of sports fans finds that 53% say football is their favorite sport to follow.   Baseball was a distant second with 16% support, while basketball is the favorite of 11%. Six percent (6%) of Americans prefer hockey, with no other sport including soccer, auto racing, golf and tennis reaching five percent (5%).

One More Thing
 

First dog Bo inspects the White House decorations.
 

 
Weird, But True News
San Diego detectives are looking for two men who were caught on surveillance video stealing about 300 pairs of panties from a Victoria's Secret store.  **These two shouldn't be hard to catch.  How many guys wear Victoria's Secret underwear?  
 

 
 
Staying Healthy Today
The 2012 flu season got off to a slow start until the number of cases spiked last week, prompting officials at the Centers for Disease to say this could be a bad one.   So get that flu shot if you haven't. The shot won't prevent you from getting the flu,  but it won't be as hard on you if you do get it.   Cases were especially strong across the South and in the Southeast.
Health officials are urging people to get their flu shots now, including babies older than six months, and all adults and children.
 
 
Good News Story 
Lots of bikers in the Star City over the weekend.   Organizers say some 2,000 bikers took part in the Toys for Tots Bike Run.  

It's a tradition the U.S. Marines are proud of.  They brought out two trucks to handle the toys for the event, including a 7-ton military truck.  The Marines collected over 3000 toys.

It's not too late to donate.   You can still do so through the 14th of December at the following locations:

Lowes in Salem at 840 West Main Street

Roanoke Valley Harley-Davidson at 1925 Peters Creek Road Northwest

Rick Woodson Honda at 3311 Peters Creek Road Northwest.

 

Lar's Thought of the Day 
“You must learn a new way to think before you can master a new way to be.”    Marianne Williamson