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New York Today

New York Today: Commutes Both Bad and Good

Could this be the site of the week’s worst commute?Credit...John Taggart for The New York Times

Good morning on this damp Friday.

With our subways in crisis, advocates are trying to ratchet up political pressure to fix the system by highlighting the most nightmarish journeys.

The Riders Alliance’s new “Worst Commute of the Week” award drew these submissions from passengers:

A broken elevator at Herald Square and another at Penn Station meant that Maggie Clarke, 64, a busker from Inwood, had to lug 50 pounds of music equipment up and down an extra four flights of stairs. “Considering the damage the system is doing to my person,” she said, “I need to just suck it up and take a cab.”

John Rakis, 65, a criminal justice consultant, waited 45 minutes for a southbound R train at City Hall, gave up, caught a northbound R to Canal Street to switch trains, and waited another 35 minutes. At one point he thought to himself, “I left work an hour and a half ago and I’m further away than when I started.”

After a 25-minute wait, Alisa Roost, 46, a professor at CUNY, squeezed onto an uptown A train, whereupon “a laundry cart ran over my feet and someone hit my 13-month old son in the head with his bag.”

But the winner of this week’s worst commute award was:

Jennifer Tang 49, a librarian at CUNY from Forest Hills, Queens. She made the mistake of skipping the bathroom on the way home from brunch and found herself stuck in a stalled R only a few feet from her stop at 63rd Drive.

“People around me were getting antsy, cursing, and stomping their feet,” she said. “My bladder was bursting and I started panicking.” An hour and 20 minutes later, the train rolled into the station.

But enough about bad commutes. We want to hear something positive for a change.

Have you had something unexpectedly pleasant happen to you during a recent commute? Witnessed a touching act of humanity, met someone special, saw something that made you smile? Rode a train that got from point A to point B without pausing once?

Tell us at nytoday@nytimes.com. Please include your full name, age and the neighborhood or city in which you live. We may include your response in an upcoming New York Today column.

Here’s what else is happening:

Another cool, drizzly day, with a high around 44. (Wind chill will make it feel between 30 and 35.)

The weekend will be warmer — 58 tomorrow, 48 on Sunday — but rain and gray skies will persist.

The sun returns on Monday to welcome you back to work.

The jury selection process in the case of a nanny who allegedly murdered two children she was watching has become a microcosm of a split New York, those who can afford a nanny and those who cannot. [New York Times]

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A woman leaves flowers in 2012 in front of the building where Yoselyn Ortega is accused of killing two children in her charge.Credit...Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Subway stations will receive $250 million in cosmetic upgrades, spending that Mayor Bill de Blasio calls unnecessary. [New York Times]

Emails from Joseph Percoco, the former aide to Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, show his influence on state employment decisions, even after he left office. [New York Times]

Four states in the Northeast with relatively strong gun laws have banded together to share information about people who have been deemed mentally unfit to own a gun. [New York Times]

Spurred by the #MeToo movement, a group initiative is looking to elect 21 women to New York City Council in 2021. [New York Times]

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The group aims to elect 21 women to the New York City Council in 2021.Credit...Holly Pickett for The New York Times

A former senior city official filed a complaint with the Conflicts of Interest Board after saying that he was fired for resisting efforts by Mayor Bill de Blasio to secure special treatment for political donors. [New York Times]

Federal charges were brought against Richard Walker, Nassau County’s former chief deputy executive, widening corruption investigations on Long Island. [New York Times]

A woman who spent the night at a lavish residential high-rise in Manhattan described her experience as luxurious, but also grounding. [New York Times]

New York City schools saw an increase in classroom lockdown situations last year’s academic year. [New York Post]

Mayor Bill de Blasio announced plans to add safety measures in New York City schools. [New York Daily News]

Today’s Metropolitan Diary: “Reprieve on a Stopped Train

For a global look at what’s happening, see Your Morning Briefing.

Visit an exhibition of photographs of David Bowie at the Morrison Hotel Gallery in SoHo. 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. [Free]

Music, drinks, performances and a look at library’s collections, part of the Library After Hours, at the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building of the New York Public Library in Midtown. 7 p.m. [Free]

A discussion with the author of “Surveillance Valley: The Secret Military History of the Internet” at the PowerHouse Arena in Dumbo, Brooklyn. 7 p.m. [Free]

A lecture about the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, followed by stargazing (weather permitting), at Columbia University in Morningside Heights. 7 p.m. [Free]

Rangers host Wild, 7 p.m. (MSG).

Watch “The New York Times Close Up,” featuring the former New York Times editor James Greenfield and other guests. Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 1:30 p.m. and Sunday at 12:30 p.m. on CUNY-TV.

Alternate-side parking remains in effect until next Thursday.

Weekend travel hassles: Check subway disruptions and a list of street closings.

Saturday

Take a behind-the-scenes tour of the Merchant’s House Museum in Greenwich Village. 10:30 a.m. [$30]

Learn how to make a zine at a workshop at New Women Space in East Williamsburg, Brooklyn. 4 p.m. [Pay what you wish]

Sample prosciutto, speck and ham at the Charcuterie Masters food festival at Flushing Town Hall in Queens. 6 to 9 p.m. [$65]

A night of “Friends” trivia at Barrel & Fare in Park Slope, Brooklyn. 8 p.m. [Free]

Devils host Islanders, 7 p.m. (MS+2, MSG+). Knicks host Celtics, 7:30 p.m. (MSG).

Sunday

An exhibition of work on red envelopes by more than 150 artists at the Red Envelope Show at Grumpy Bert in Downtown Brooklyn. Noon to 6 p.m. [Free]

Learn how ballerinas dance on point and see excerpts from “The Sleeping Beauty,” “The Nutcracker,” and “Swan Lake,” presented by the School of American Ballet, at the Queens Theater in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. 1 and 3 p.m. [Free, reservations required]

Celebrate the Year of the Dog at the New York City Lunar New Year Parade and Festival at the Sara D. Roosevelt Park in Lower Manhattan. 1 to 4 p.m. [Free]

Sample mac and cheese from city cooks, and vote for your favorite, at the Mac and Cheese Takedown at the Brooklyn Bazaar in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. 2 p.m. [$25]

Rangers host Red Wings, 7 p.m. (MSG).

For more events, see The New York Times’s Arts & Entertainment guide.

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James D’Arcy, left, and Kenneth Branagh in a scene from “Dunkirk,” which was nominated for an Oscar for best picture.Credit...Melinda Sue Gordon/Warner Bros. Pictures, via Associated Press

Here’s one more way to enjoy the wet weekend: Spend it indoors, catching up on 2017’s best movies.

During the Best Picture Film Festival, Regal Cinemas in Battery Park is screening this year’s nine “Best Picture” Oscar nominees through March 3 for $35.

If you’ve already seen them, there are plenty of other film festivals across the city.

Science fiction features and shorts, including “Methane Momma” and “The Super Recognizer,” at the Philip K. Dick Science Fiction Festival at Village Cinema East in the East Village and the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria, Queens. Through Sunday. [Prices vary]

Lu Over the Wall,” directed by Masaaki Yuasa, and other animated, live-action and virtual reality films for kids — and their adults — at the New York International Children’s Film Festival, at various locations. Through March 18. [Prices vary]

Feature, documentary and short films by and about women at the Athena Film Festival at Barnard College in Morningside Heights. Through Sunday. [Prices range from free to $20]

Discussion panels and 93 films from emerging filmmakers at the Winter Film Awards at Cinema Village in Greenwich Village and Anthology Film Archives in the East Village. Through March 3. [Prices range from free to $15]

And Film Comment magazine will screen some of its favorite movies, like “Life and Nothing More” and “Gutland,” at its annual festival at the Film Society of Lincoln Center. Through Feb. 27. [$15]

New York Today is a morning roundup that is published weekdays at 6 a.m. If you don’t get it in your inbox already, you can sign up to receive it by email here.

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What would you like to see here to start your day? Post a comment, email us at nytoday@nytimes.com, or reach us via Twitter using #NYToday.

Follow the New York Today columnists, Alexandra Levine and Jonathan Wolfe, on Twitter.

You can find the latest New York Today at nytoday.com.

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