Photo by pablo.raw.

It wouldn’t surprise us one bit if Frank Costanza’s stress-relief phrase is muttered more than a few times by Red Line riders this weekend — WMATA will shut down all Red Line stations and train service between Rockville and Bethesda this weekend in order to conduct major maintenance.

Beginning at 10 p.m. tonight and through closing on Sunday, buses will replace trains servicing the Twinbrook, White Flint, Grosvenor, Medical Center stations. Metro is recommending use of the J and Q Metrobus routes and Ride-On buses to get around the affected area. Of course, the closure will have some effect on the rest of the line — namely, anyone out at Shady Grove is pretty much isolated from the rest of the system.

In other weekend delays: the Franconia-Springfield and Van Dorn Street stations will be closed all day on Sunday (Metro shuttle buses will be running between them too), while Blue and Orange Line trains will single-track between Eastern Market and Stadium-Armory all weekend.

Normally, in the face of such news, we’d recommend looking forward to happier times — like August 28, when Metro won’t be performing any maintenance and will offer “enhanced service” to accomodate the opening ceremony for the new Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial. Although with the President scheduled to make an appearance, we’re expecting it to be a madhouse anyway.

Just remember, people: serenity now, insanity later.