Official Seeks to Make Inauguration Day a Holiday (Washington Post) A Montgomery County school board member is offering a resolution to declare Inauguration Day a holiday in Maryland's largest school system, against the recommendation of Superintendent Jerry D. Weast.

Verizon Wireless bets on Storm for holiday season (Reuters via Yahoo! News) Verizon Wireless is betting on the new BlackBerry Storm for the all-important holiday season, hoping the highly anticipated smartphone can compete against the iPhone offered by rival wireless provider AT&T Inc.

Holiday traffic could fall 9.9 percent: ShopperTrak (Reuters via Yahoo! News) Retail stores may be much less crowded this holiday season, as one research firm sees foot traffic sliding a record 9.9 percent as shoppers suffer from the weak economy and low consumer confidence.

Holiday goodie guide: Set with gifts (Chicago Sun-Times) What do you get for the girly-girl who loves all things makeup, skin and hair? How about a special holiday gift set that only comes around once a year and is filled with the best little products each brand has to offer?

Wal-Mart Holds Key to Holiday Success for Dell, Hewlett-Packard (Bloomberg) Nov. 20 (Bloomberg) -- Move over Best Buy. Wal-Mart will determine the fortunes of Dell Inc. and Hewlett-Packard Co. this holiday season. The number of consumers planning to shop for electronics at Wal-Mart Stores Inc. rose 50 percent from a year ago, according to a survey this month by ChangeWave , a market researcher in Rockville, Maryland.

Holiday Happenings (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) There's lots of ways for South Hills residents to get in the spirit of the rapidly approaching holiday season.

Bronx Zoo flipping off lights for holiday fest (New York Daily News) The Bronx Zoo is pulling the plug on its annual Holiday Lights Show to save electricity - not just money. oo officials said it's part of an ongoing effort to reduce its "carbon footprint" and make the festival cleaner and greener.

Holiday Express brings cheer to ones without (Asbury Park Press) Holiday Express, the band with a mission to spread cheer, does most of its work in private, on bittersweet afternoons, in places where people are desolate.

Century III hopes for 'healthy' holiday sales (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) The economy is down and bus routes have been reduced, but officials at Century III Mall are keeping their fingers crossed for a healthy holiday shopping season.

A new holiday glow: Budget-conscious cities switch to energy-wise lights (Detroit News) More Metro Detroit communities are turning to cost-saving measures this holiday season by switching from traditional incandescent to LED lights to save on electricity bills and the labor to string them up. The savings will allow local governments to use the money to continue other services like leaf collection and public safety without making cuts.