we'll have the latest on lindsay's drama. also in today's money, credit or debit cards. it's interesting. a lot of the credit card companies are offering rewards, programs, incentives for people to transition from the debit card. we'll tell you the pros and cons for both and the fees you need to watch out for to save money. there are a lot of fees these days and you can get the shortened of the deal. >> okay. >> speaking of money, it's kind of expensive sometimes if you're trying to help your family eat correctly, organic foods, healthy, things like that. joy bauer will be here to help us with healthy food ideas if you're on a tight budget. also, why adding protein to breakfast is better for long-term weight loss. >> okay. also this morning we'll look at some pretty creative designs because bobbie thomas has asked our viewers for their craftiest designs in the first ever diy style search. apparently there has been an overwhelming response, so she is going to reveal what her favorite designs are and announce a big winner. >> wasn't sure where that was going for a second. but we are happy to have that segment. let's go inside. natalie is standing by at the news desk with all the headlines. good morning to you all once again. a third woman is now accusing republican presidential candidate herman cain of inappropriate behavior. the woman says she considered filing a complaint against cain over sexually suggestive remarks and gestures when she worked with him back at the national restaurant association. cain calls the allegation baseless. similar accusations from two other women led to financial settlements in the late 1990s. police and protesters clashed again during the night in oakland, california. police in riot gear used tear gas and flash bang grenades after protesters started a large bonfire in the middle of a downtown street and threw rocks and bottles according to police. on wednesday, the occupy oakland demonstrators shut down one of the nation's busiest shipping ports. new figures today show first-time claims for unemployment fell by 9,000 last week to the lowest level in five weeks. meantime the labor department says unemployment rates fell in about 3/4 of large u.s. cities in october and fed chairman ben bernanke is predicting the economy will improve over time. the labor department released its october unemployment numbers tomorrow. the death toll has risen to at least 29 from the recent listeria outbreak linked to cantaloupes. at least 139 people in 29 states have been sickened in one of the deadliest food-borne illness outbreaks ever in the u.s. and today closing arguments begin in the involuntary manslaughter trial of michael jackson's doctor, conrad murray. if convicted he faces up to four years behind bars and the loss of his medical license. a california judge on wednesday sentenced lindsay lohan to 30 days in jail for violating her parole, but just how much time if any will she actually have to serve? nbc's george lewis is at the jail in lynwood, california. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, natalie. lindsay lohan won't have to spend much time in jail at all. why? because state prisons are overcrowded in california, so they've been shipping their serious felons back to the county jails meaning that misdemeanor offenders like lohan are quickly shuffled in and out of here. >> are you sober? >> reporter: conservatively atired in a polka dot dress, lohan waived her right to a court hearing on probation violations, accused of failing to show up for community service and court ordered psychological counseling. >> do you admit you violated probation by failing to obey all orders of the court with respect to both things that the city attorney represented? >> yes, your honor. >> reporter: and with that the judge pronounced sentence. >> you are to serve 30 days in the county jail now. you are to surrender within one week. >> reporter: but the sheriff's office tells nbc news that because of overcrowding lohan will likely spend at most one night in jail. >> the judge is going to give you whatever the judge is going to give you and the sheriff is going to release you because they don't have room for misdemeanors. >> reporter: she still will have to do community service at the county morgue closely monitored by the court each month until the end of march. the judge cautioned lohan, who has 2,615,000 twitter followers not to post items about the morgue. >> they seem to have an issue with your tweeting. i can't order you to stop tweeting. but if it's one of their rules, that you don't tweet about them, don't tweet about them. >> what is your comment, lindsay? talk to us please. >> reporter: one thing lohan has been tweeting about is her dental makeover. she's had her teeth whitened. here's the before and after. it could be because she's doing a big photo shoot for "playboy" magazine. >> we can't under estimate how important the teeth whitening is. let's face it. the only thing she's going to wear in that picture are her smiles. >> reporter: court observers say lindsay lohan appeared contrite in court, perhaps heeding her attorney's advice not to further anger the judge, who doesn't seem to be overwhelmed by that winning smile. natalie? >> i'll say. george lewis in lynwood, california, thank you, george. now to a poignant song making the rounds on the internet. the professional arts network made a music video to the white stripes we're going to be friends to highlight what is like to be deaf in america and in school. ♪ when silly thoughts come through my head about the bugs and alphabet when i wake tomorrow i'll bet that you and i we'll walk together again ♪ >> even though some people cannot hear the song the message as you see there comes through loud and clear. it's absolutely adorable. i encourage you to go watch it. it is now six minutes past the hour. let's go back outside to matt and ann. it's on youtube. >> very touching. >> thank you very much. mr. roker just across from us here with a check of the weather. >> we should throw that link onto our website. got some friends here. what are your names? >> we're the garret family. >> you're out of power in connecticut? >> out of power in connecticut. >>adventure? >> yes. >> hopefully you get it on this weekend. >> we're hoping. >> there you go. let's check your weather and see. we've got another storm system coming out of denver. this one now into the midwest. it's causing some showers and thunderstorms. we're basically looking at another system coming into the pacific northwest. that's going to bring some rain and mountain snows as well. we got some rain also making its way through the ohio river valley. showers in northern new england. we're looking at windy conditions. really the gulf coast and the southeast. windy down through central and southern florida. and we've got visitors from and that's your latest weather. tamron? >> al, thanks so much. this morning on "today's money" credit versus debit cards. just this week bank of america backed down from a controversial monthly debit card fee but banks are still looking for ways to bring in more money. one way is by offering credit cards. msnbc financial analyst vera gibbons is here to give me some advice on what to look out for. good to see you. it's kind of like we fought the law and the law won but in this case consumers won against the banks in that the banks backed down from this. however, we wonder if there are other ways for them to charge us. >> that's it. banks stand to lose over $6.5 billion because of these new regulations that limit what they can charge merchants every time a consumer uses their debit card to make a purchase. right? so got to make up for the lost revenue somehow. they had originally planned on making up some of it with the debit card charge. that didn't go over so well. we're not having that now. so you're going to see sort of sneakier ways, more subtle ways, and the consumer will ultimately pay the price somehow some way over time. >> what is the likely route they will go? i know you say sneaky and subtle but what should we specifically look out for? >> they could do any number of things. they could raise minimum balance requirements, raise interest rates on credit cards, bundle services and sell them. one trend we're really seeing is a push toward the credit cards. trying to make more people sign up for credit cards. right? so credit card offers have risen nearly 100% since 2009. >> that would be the next strategy you think, try to get a consumer to switch over from debit card to credit card, which would mean i guess more interest that the bank can charge? >> they can make money any number of ways because they can make them at the point of purchase, the swipe fees as far as credit goes. that hasn't been tampered with as it has with debit. and they can make money also just by the fact that so many consumers do carry a balance, the average household has about $15,000 in credit card debt right now. we're paying interest on that. that is incremental income for the banks which is why you're seeing 59% of households getting at least one offer a month from the credit card companies trying to get them to sign up. >> so if 59% are getting one offer, are people signing up? are credit cards more popular these days than debit cards? >> they used to be. in 2008 debit card usage really ticked up because people were trying to conserve their cash. they didn't want to go over. they were really trying to work on the budget. so now we see about 188 million debit card users versus 183 million credit card users. >> that's close though. >> the banks would like to sort of turn that around. what they're doing is offering these enticing offers and scaling back on the debit card rewards or eliminating programs all together and offering better cash back programs, mileage rewards for signing up and even bonus points for signing up for a credit card. this is the trend we've been seeing for sometime definitely over the course of a year. >> those are the things they're using to hook the consumer in to at least make the credit cards more enticing during the financial times. >> to try to get them to sign on. not everybody should have course. the best offers are going to be reserved for those with the best credit in the 747, 50 range. people like the perks and protections credit cards offer. it is the easiest way to build and establish credit. certain people might want to consider a credit card offer and other people forget it. >> we were looking at some of the advantages of having a credit card but what are the obvious disadvantages? >> interest rates. right? >> yes. >> this is high. >> are they still 20 plus percent? >> they can be. the low end might be 10%, 15%, 29%. so that's the primary disadvantage. i think also if you're not disciplined, you run into late fees. you run into penalties, over your limit penalties. it can really snowball. you'll pay fees on all of that stuff and then in the process your credit score will take hits. these are not for everybody. >> so much of this obviously is you doing your home work. i know there are a lot of websites out these days that can help you figure out credit versus debit. >> you really have to take a look at your situation and find a card that is going to fit your lifestyle. obviously you want to find a card that is going to give you the maximum number of points based on what your primary purchases are. >> right. >> so it does take time to figure it out. you'll look at sites like low cards, card ratings, credit land. you can do a side by side comparison and find out which is the card that is best for you and your spending habits. >> if you don't want to dive into the credit card necessarily a lot of people are talking about changing your bank, moving from the so-called big bank to a credit union or community bank that might be more inclined to give you a loan if you so need. >> a kinder, gentler experience all around. if you look at a credit union they've become much more accessible lately, much less restrictive. they're out there. you can find one by going -- >> they have to compete for your money and time. >> they're offering higher rates on deposits, lower rates on loans, they don't nickel and dime you the way the big banks do. the average consumer saves about $70 a year. >> really. wow. >> just overall they offer like i said the kinder, gentler experience. people are switching to these types of institutions as well as sort of the direct banks, online banks, as you mentioned small community banks, regional banks as well. >> what about the big bank transfer day? i know a lot of folks of the occupy wall street movement are promoting this where do you think this will happen? it's supposed to be on saturday. >> something like 40,000 people like this on facebook so there's definitely a lot of hype. i don't think as many people will transfer over as we initially expected because the banks have removed that very controversial monthly debit card fee. you'll still see people take action and move their money elsewhere. it is just a process. people are loathe to do it. >> a lot of good information. thank you very much. up next feeding your family on a budget. joy bauer has healthy and affordable food options in her diet sos. later, do it yourself fashion submitted by you, the viewer. bobbie thomas shows us the best of the best. first these messages. 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[ chef ] ♪ fresh tasting restaurant style ♪ there's only one place that has the new kardashian kollection, apostrophe, uk style by french connection, structure, and bongo... all under one roof. sears has all the styles they love, at prices you'll love. and all the money you save... well, that can be your little secret. right now, get an extra 15% off with your savings pass. that's real gifts. real joy. sears. . this morning on "joy's diet sos" answers to your daily diet dilemmas. joy bauer is here with tips for saving money while eating healthy and long-term weight loss. good to see you. >> good morning, al. >> we like the matching purple. very nice. first question is from kelly in richmond, massachusetts. she is joining us live via skype. good morning, kelly. >> hi. >> what is your question? >> joy, i'm a fellow registered dietician and i'm finding that a lot of people who i counsel have great intentions but they have trouble keeping up with the high cost of healthy foods. what are some suggestions that you offer? >> kelly, i love that you asked this question because so many people are struggling with this issue. it's totally unfair. but, fortunately, there are a lot of healthy, low cost items people can take advantage of. first, canned and dried beans and lentils are terrific high quality proteins. when it comes to produce i always encourage people to buy what is in season and look for promotional sales and think things like apples, oranges, bananas, sweet and white potatos, cabbage and squash. year round they're typically at a great cost that work within every budget. take advantage of frozen. frozen fruits and vegetables are just as healthy as the fresh counterparts and you can freeze them for months and months and months. so there is no waste. a few must have pantry items, large containers of oatmeal versus the single packets. low sodium canned supers, whole grain pastas, whole wheat bread. when it comes to dairy there are so many terrific brands that are competing to get that sale so you can really find things that have great promotions and then compare that brand to the generic store brand and whichever clocks in at the lowest price wins and gets a spot in your cart. so people just need to be strategic and you really can eat well afford bli. >> all right. kelly, thank you. that is a great question. you have to remember to rotate out the frozen food. my mom had this like permafrost. >> yes. if it has frost bite on it, it is not going to taste good. >> we've got norma joining us on the phone from columbus, ohio. hi, norma. what is your question? >> good morning. i've heard joy say steel cut oats are really healthy and i'd like to try them but they take so long to make. do you have any short cuts to save time? >> yes. the reason that i particularly like steel cut oats is because they have less of an impact on your blood sugar so they're really terrific for diabetics. but they take about 30 minutes to bake which is almost impossible during a hectic morning. so here is what i do. if you have a slow cooker, before you go to bed you'll add one cup of steel cut oats and four cups of water together with fresh fruit or dried fruit. and set it on a low setting, low heat, for about eight hours. you wake up in the morning and breakfast is ready. another idea is you can make the steel cut oats in advance and you can break it up into single serving portions, freeze it, and then in the morning pop it into the microwave and in a matter of minutes your oatmeal is ready. >> there you go. >> big time saver. >> let's go to a viewer e-mail. this is danielle in los angeles writing, my friends are doing a crazy diet that involves eating only fruit before noon. they're losing weight on the diet but i know there's lots of research showing you should include protein at breakfast. what do you think? >> fruit is great. there is nothing against fruit but there is nothing magical about exclusively only eating fruit that enables you to lose weight faster. the reason her friends are losing weight is because at the end of the day they are reducing their overall calories. no matter what you eat. >> they could eat the fruit later in the day. wouldn't matter. >> right. even though this is working for them we have such great research on protein in the morning helping you to feel energized and focused and enabling you to lose weight, long lasting weight in the long term. if you're going to eat fruit with breakfast i definitely recommend adding something protein rich like eggs, nonfat dairy. even nuts and seeds. >> all right. thanks so much. >> thanks, al. still ahead, the number one movie in theaters "puss and boots." we have two of the stars like you've never seen them before. first these messages. they're itchy, dry and uncomfortable. i can't wait to take 'em out, throw 'em away and never see them again. 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