Monday, Dec 5, 2011

WHO OFFERS THE FASTEST CELL SERVICE IN NASHVILLE?
An independent company tested phone services to find out which one has the fastest uploading and downloading, and other things callers look for ... and RootMetrics says it found that Verizon provides the fastest downloading and uploading service among mobile carriers in the Nashville area, followed by AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint. RootMetrics says Sprint was the least reliable carrier for transferring data, and that all four carriers delivered statistically equal performances in dropped and blocked calls. T-Mobile was first in the text performance category, while AT&T recorded the lowest percentage of texts delivered in more than one minute.  Read MORE 

CORPS OF ENGINEERS WORKING TO PREVENT FLOODING 
The Army Corp of Engineers is working to prevent flooding problems in the Nashville area. With rain expected to continue throughout the day, they say they're monitoring conditions closely and have stockpiled sand bags in key locations, just in case, but don't anticipate any problems containing the Cumberland River if the rainfall stays consistent with the current forecast.

GAS PRICES STILL FALLING
You may have just tried not to look at the gas pump when you filled up the car lately, but you can open your eyes now. Gas prices are going down. It's dropped nine cents in the past two weeks, to a national average of $3.29 for a gallon of regular.

JOHNSON LEADS TITANS TO 23-17 WIN OVER BILLS
Chris Johnson rushed for 153 yards and two touchdowns, and the Tennessee Titans beat the Buffalo Bills 23-17 yesterday. The Titans are now 7 and 5 for the season, and they're back at LP Field against the Saints on Sunday at noon. You can see it on Fox stations.

SHERIFF: MCCREADY DIDN'T BELONG AT ARKANSAS HOME
Mindy McCready and her five year old son were found over the weekend, hiding in the closet in someone's summer home in Arkansas. The sheriff there says McCready did not have permission to be in the home where she was found Friday night with the child and another man, David Wilson. The little boy was taken into custody by the Arkansas Department of Human Services... because the child's grandmother, in Florida, has legal custody.

SALVATION ARMY ISSUES URGENT PLEA FOR VOLUNTEERS TO SORT AND WRAP GIFTS
The Salvation Army is issuing an urgent plea for help this holiday season. Now that the Angels have been adopted from the Trees at the malls, they need help collecting, sorting and wrapping the gifts at the Angel Tree Warehouse in time to distribute them before Christmas. See how to help www.Salarmy-Nashville.com
(Help is needed through Dec 15th as they sort through all the gifts as they come back into the warehouse. They're serving 17,000 people this year, which translates to a LOT of gifts. If you have any time this week.. through Friday, between 9am and 4:30pm, or any weekday through Dec 15 or Saturday the 10th or 17th... from 9am to 4:30pm they'll put you to work!)

EXPECT MORE HOLIDAY TRAFFIC IN GREEN HILLS
Just in time for the holidays, and busy holiday shopping traffic in Green Hills, Metro Public Works is finally putting in those sidewalks along Abbott-Martin Road. Some are asking, "Why now?", but Metro Public Works says stopping would just cause more delays down the road.

KROGER FOOD ANGELS STILL AVAILABLE
www.salarmy-nashville.com
The Salvation Army reminds you that there's still time to adopt a Kroger Food Angel, where you pick a Food Angel from the trees at the stores, and a $25 dollar tax deductible contribution will be added to your grocery bill. That'll feed a family this Christmas. You can get details at www.salarmy-nashville.com (Food Angels runs until December 16th. There are 4,000 Food Angels still up for adoption.)

AMERICANS' TOP HOLIDAY DREADS—BEING NICE MAKES THE LIST
A survey asked people what (if anything) they dread most about the holidays. 90 percent found at least one thing. The most common one: crowds and long lines. Gaining weight" and "getting into debt" both tied for second-place, then gift shopping and traveling. Way down on the list, in 9th and tenth place, 16% of us say we dread having to attend holiday parties, and 15% of people dread having to be nice during the holidays.

TSA DENIES ELDERLY WOMAN WAS STRIP-SEARCHED
An 85 year-old, wheelchair-bound Long Island woman is blasting TSA officials at New York's John F. Kennedy Airport, claiming she was forced to undergo a strip search before she could make her flight. TSA officials deny the woman's claim but say they're investigating the complaint.

MUSIC CITY BOWL SET; VANDY PLAYS 
The matchup is set for the Music City Bowl. It'll be Mississippi State against Wake Forest on December 30th, and the Vanderbilt Commodores are taking on Cincinnati in the Liberty Bowl on New Year's Eve.

CAIN SUPPORTS GINGRICH
Herman Cain is reportedly gearing up to throw his weight behind Newt Gingrich for the GOP presidential nomination. The former pizza executive announced over the weekend that he's suspending his campaign... amid allegations of sexual harassment and infidelity.

MICHAEL BUBLE' CHRISTMAS ALBUM TOPS CHART 
Michael Buble's "Christmas" album is number one on the Billboard Charts... and with lots of TV appearances coming up, he's expected to stay there. Buble's Christmas special airs tomorrow night on NBC, he guest hosts on "Live" with Kelly Ripa on December 15th and 16th, and he's the musical guest on Saturday Night Live December 17th.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP PLAYERS SET
It'll be undefeated LSU against Alabama, again, for college football's national championship. Number-one will face number-two in New Orleans on January 9th.

BURNING DECEASED BABY BOOMERS COULD GENERATE ELECTRICITY
In Durham, England, they've come up with a new way to generate electricity... they're hooking up turbines in the crematorium, so when they cremate bodies, it'll generate electricity. One body can generate enough elctricity to power 1,500 televisions for an hour. (The facility plans to sell the electricity to local power companies.)

"BREAKING DAWN" CAN TRIGGER SEIZURES
The Epilepsy Foundation is warning fans of the Twilight Saga, "Breaking Dawn" that a scene from the film could pose a health threat. At least nine people who have epilepsy, and are light sensitive, have reported the flashing lights in one scene have caused seizures. The movie was number one at the box office for a third straight week.

DIAMOND, STREEP RECEIVE KENNEDY CENTER HONORS
Neil Diamond and Meryl Streep are among this year's Kennedy Center Honors recipients. The Honorees were recognized over the weekend with a two-day event in Washington. President Obama spoke at the event.

IRS MAY HAVE MONEY FOR YOU
www.irs.gov
The IRS says you may have money waiting for you. There's two-point-one-million dollars in unclaimed tax refunds for Tennessee tax filers. Almost 18-hundred filers didn't get their refund checks because of mailing address mistakes. You can find out whether you have unclaimed cash at www.IRS.GOV  Click the "Where's My Refund" icon.