Photo by faithruckus More than a few of us at DCist have been chatting over the past week about how this month’s double-whammy snow storms provided at least one hidden benefit: to our wallets. Not being able to really go out and spend money for almost a full week has left us with slightly heftier bank balances than normal. Great for us, not so great for local businesses, but hopefully that’ll all balance out…

DCist heard from frustrated D2 Metrobus riders over the weekend, via both Twitter and email, who complained they hadn’t been made aware that the route was still not really running normally since last week’s double-blizzard. The last WMATA had announced, the D1 was one of the remaining bus routes still not up and running, but they didn’t say anything about the D2. So what gives? WMATA’s bus service press releases haven’t been as thorough…

Photo by DCW3 Along with an epically frustrating commute home, it looks like Friday is being remembered by D.C. Public Schools teachers as a huge waste of time. Classes for students on Friday had been canceled long in advance of the Snowmageddon, thanks to a planned professional development day for teachers — the exact sort of training session that has been at the center of Chancellor Michelle Rhee’s plan for reforming the school district….

Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) First it was Chris Matthews. Then Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY) and Rep. Mike McMahon (D-NY). And now we find Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) joining the ranks of those who just can’t wait to tell us what a bunch of pussies we are for not having trekked ten miles uphill both ways in the snow to get to and from work this week, just like he used to way back when….

Rep. Eliot Engel and his all-knowing mustache. Hey look! A New York newspaper got a bunch of New York politicians to say that New York is better than D.C. You don’t say! If you hadn’t guessed already, the story, penned by the Daily News’ Michael Mcauliff, concerns how we deal with snow versus New Yorkers, who are SUPER HARDCORE AND S**T, DID YOU KNOW? Here’s a taste: “Wimp is the word, let me tell…

Flickr user valkyrieh116 added this striking comparison to the DCist pool. Nicely done. From the Flickr caption: “this is my back patio. it faces a narrow alley and gets significantly less snow than out on the street, but it was the only place that wasn’t shoveled regularly.”…

Photo by marciadc Not exactly a shock, but WMATA has released its Metrorail ridership figures for the recent winter storm period, and yesterday saw the lowest number of rides in the system in recent years. Only 36,097 trips were taken on Wednesday, Feb. 10, smashing the previous record low of only 56,326, recorded on Christmas Day, 2006. The low number of rides came about thanks to the combination of white-out blizzard conditions and the…

Photo by Mr. T in DC Pair of updates on bus service for you. First, a limited number of Metrobus routes started running again as of 1 p.m. Those routes are listed below the jump. Metro is urging riders to exercise cautioun when boarding and alighting buses, as there’s still tons of snow piled up on streets and around bus stops. They’re also asking residents to help out by shoveling out bus stops along…

Photo by Scott Ableman Not even three feet of snow can stop the Racing Presidents. The Washington Nationals will host tryouts for the popular large-headed mascots at the ballpark on Saturday, despite current conditions on the ground. If you’re thinking you’d like to tryout, it’s too late to get a slot, however. About 60 candidates have already been chosen to participate out a pool of 150 applicants. We should also note that Saturday’s even…

Photo by andertho The airfield at National Airport reopened for flight operations as of 11 a.m. this morning, according to a message on its web site. Passengers are urged to contact their airlines to confirm their flights before heading to the airport. And that assumes most people can actually get to the airport in the first place. The Metrorail system remained underground-only Thursday, and many streets have yet to be cleared. Dulles and BWI…