Happy Friday the 13th, Washington. We do hope none of you are suffering too much from paraskavedekatriaphobia or had bad dreams last night about a psychopathic killer in a hockey mask. We’re sure there’s nothing to worry about, but just in case we’re wrong, why don’t we all leave early for the weekend today? Surely having some extra time to make our way to the beach will ward off any potential bad luck heading…

Somewhere Joe Camel and the Marlboro Man are rolling in their graves. Yesterday afternoon the Committee on Health of the D.C. City Council endorsed legislation that would make all District bars and restaurants smoke-free by January 2007, according to WJLA. The bill, written by Council-member David Catania (I-At Large) offers exemptions for outdoor areas, cigar bars, hotel rooms, retail tobacco outlets, research projects on the effects of smoking, and businesses that can demonstrate economic…

For some reason, today is particularly heavy on Metro-related news. And yes, we know, Metro Friday isn’t nearly as catchy as Transit on Thursday, originally authored by former editor Mike Grass, but we’ll be resurrecting that feature soon enough. Until then, we were lucky enough to find that picture at left, snapped by Olivia Leigh and posted on Flickr. Forget the naysayers — Metrorail stations are beautiful in their own cathedral-like way. Metro Security to…

Today will be mostly cloudy with some isolated thunderstorms in the afternoon, with highs in the 70s. A DCist reader uploaded an image of this pig, and even did a little sleuthing to uncover its purpose. Have you seen a pig? Injured Traffic Officer Dies: Popular traffic office Joseph Pozell, who was recognized at a vigil Sunday, has died at George Washington Hospital, the Post reports. D.C. Government Wants to Know: D.C. Mayor Anthony A….

This week, the big story for political minded DCers is Inauguration. Now that the big event is days away, the complaints of those who think the massive party is in poor taste with regard to the recent tsunami tragedy and the gripes of local commentators that Washington’s getting stuck with a massively unfair chunk of the bill have started to fade from the newspapers, soon to replaced by those who ask more immediate questions: Can…