And yet we remained terrified.

Nonetheless, Citi Bike, New York’s long awaited bike-share system, opened for registration Monday morning with a boom. The program had received almost 4,500 subscriptions by noon today.

According to StreetsBlog, the sign-up rate in NYC is generally “off the charts” compared to bike share programs in other cities.

For example, Denver’s B-Cycle, which launched three years ago, has less total members than Citi Bike attained in a single day. (Take that Denver!)

There are currently about 60 Citi Bike stations set up throughout the city, with more in the works.

In a press conference yesterday, Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan was optimistic about New Yorkers' response to the program. "We will significantly outstrip any other city in the country in terms of usage,” he said.

The annual membership rate for CitiBike is about $103 per year, and entitles users to unlimited rides of up to 45 minutes long. The first 5,000 people to sign up will also receive a number of perks, such as a access to a members only preview period and a "special Founding Member key," which sounds mysterious and cool, although probably not worth having our lives flash before our eyes every time we have to go to work.

A man is loaded into an ambulance in Boston. (Getty Images)

As more details of the deadly explosions in Boston are released, the running community is slowly reacting to the shocking events.

Mary Wittenberg, the President and Chief Executive Officer of New York Road Runners, issued a statement lamenting the devastation and its impact on the running community in particular.

“All of our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families of the bombings at the Boston Marathon today, as well as with the runners, spectators, volunteers and staff of the Boston Athletic Association," she said.

"Marathons bring out the best of the human spirit and unite our cities and towns. This is a tragic day for all of us in the running community. We are here in full support of our close friends at the BAA."

An unnamed law enforcement source told the New York Post that the original target may have been the New York  City Marathon, with Boston being the hypothetical back-up plan.

“This changes everything [in New York],’’ the source speculated. “Everyone’s on high alert. Our marathon was canceled in November. Who knows if that changed someone’s plans?’

For her part, Ms. Wittenberg reiterated her own event's commitment to security.

"The safety and security of all New York Road Runners’ races is and will always be our top priority," she said. "We will continue to work hand in hand with the City of New York and the NYPD as we plan for upcoming events.”

(Photo: Anna Silman)

Earlier today, multiple bombs went off at the finish line of the Boston Marathon, killing at least two and injuring dozens more.

New York City has already stepped up its own security efforts in case there is a plot to attack additional cities, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced.

“[T]he NYPD has stepped up security at strategic locations and critical infrastructure, including our subways," the mayor said in a statement.

"Some of the security steps we are taking may be noticeable, including deployment of Critical Response Vehicles and additional police personnel, and others will not be. We have 1,000 members of the NYPD assigned to counter-terrorism duties, and they – along with the entire NYPD and the investments we have made in counter-terrorism infrastructure – are being fully mobilized to protect our city.”

Governor Andrew Cuomo issued his own statement announcing that all state agencies are on "a heightened state of alert as we learn more about this incident," the facts of which are still emerging.

"I have directed state agencies, including the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, State Police, the MTA and the Port Authority, to be on a heightened state of alert as we learn more about this incident," Mr. Cuomo said.

(Photo: Anna Silman)

"New York National Guard on Sunday sent three vehicles and 6 soldiers to support the Marathon, and they are on hand to assist with emergency response and work together with local authorities following this incident."

Several other cities, including Washington D.C., have begun taking similar steps to secure landmarks and high-trafficked areas.

In Times Square, bystanders were frightened by the news and the heightened police presence.

Kirsten Andrews and Lauren Adamo, visitors from Maine, had been following the news for the past hour in their hotel room and came out to observe the scene in the square.

“I wanted to come down and talk to a cop and see if they have a plan in motion if anything happened right now, because it would be chaotic," said Ms. Andrews. "I’m wondering why subways and buses are still running."

Ms. Adamo was concerned about the possibility of more explosions. “My stepdad’s in the military and he says all big cities are under threat right now,” said Ms. Adamo. “It’s a little unsettling.”

The sputtering sound you’ve been hearing has been Speaker Christine Quinn’s spit takes. For she, more than any other candidate for the Democratic nomination, has the most to lose with Mr. Weiner in the race.

The Speaker’s primary campaign has been designed with one goal in mind: Win 40 percent of the primary vote and avoid a runoff with the second-place finisher. Ms. Quinn has held her own against a multi-candidate field. But in a one-on-one runoff against a presumably formidable foe, she won’t be able to rely on personal narrative and old-fashioned retail politics. She’ll have hard questions to answer about her years on the Council, and that could get complicated.

The chatter about Mr. Weiner’s possible candidacy speaks to his party’s anxiety about its available choices. Nobody, including the front-runner, Speaker Quinn, has captured the party’s imagination. Democrats haven’t won a mayoral race since 1989 – some may well be wondering if the party has forgotten what it takes to run City Hall.

Anthony Weiner is not going to be the next Mayor of New York. But he may have a large say in determining who that will be. Anthony Weiner's possible entrance complicates all candidate paths, but as the second white Manhattanite to join the field, he hurts Ms. Quinn the most. And he doesn’t need a lot of support to create chaos in the Democratic Party. All he needs is a few percentage points here and there.

Let’s say, for example, that without Mr. Weiner in the race, Ms. Quinn is hovering around the magic threshold of 40 percent, while her top rival – at the moment, probably Public Advocate Bill De Blasio – has a little more than 30 percent, with others – former Comptroller William Thompson, current Comptroller John Liu, and former Councilmember Sal Albanese splitting the rest.

In that scenario, Ms. Quinn emerges with the nomination outright. But if Mr. Weiner enters and peels off just a few votes from Ms. Quinn – even if he finishes dead last – the campaign’s dynamics change dramatically. It sets up the potential for a Quinn-De Blasio or Quinn-Thompson runoff (the two most-likely scenarios). And that will allow the second-place finisher to mount a stop-Quinn campaign among Democrats who already have demonstrated their uneasiness with her – an uneasiness that will surely harden as her foes pile on for her perceived deviations from party orthodoxy on matters like development and minimum wage laws.

With Mr. Weiner in the race, Ms. Quinn would have to run a defensive campaign designed to offend as few voters as possible – if she goes on the attack against second-tier candidates, their supporters could deliver payback in a runoff.

Right now, it would seem, Anthony Weiner is one of the most-powerful people in New York politics.

And you can be sure he knows that.

A real bunny boiler for Easter.

Tired of the same old Easter Egg hunt? Kind of hate the Easter Bunny? This holiday, depraved diners can finally find out if rabbits have anything in common with Jesus by visiting their favorite restaurants and watching for any signs of resurrection during digestion.

As DNA Info points out, three restaurants in the city will be offering Easter specials involving little fluffy cottontails, including Lincoln, Red Gravy and Gentleman Farmer. And that doesn't include all the gourmet chefs who already have rabbit on the menu. I Sodi, Zero Otto Nove, Maialino at Gramercy Park, SHO Shaun Hergatt, Marlow and Son's, Lucien, The Breslin Bar & Dining Room, Wallse ... all guaranteed to make sure your children are so scarred by images of a braised bunny that for the rest of their lives, the mere mention of "chocolate eggs" will have them reaching for their therapist's number.

Speaker Quinn.

The New York City Council passed a bill today that prohibits employers from considering an applicant's current employment status when making hiring decisions.

The bill would also put an end to job ads that say applicants must be currently employed. Under this measure, New York would be the first city in the country providing people with the opportunity to sue on the basis of unemployment discrimination.

“Imagine spending every day and night for months upon months upon months looking for a job–only to be told ‘don’t even bother … unemployed need not apply,’” said Council Speaker Christine Quinn, who supported the bill. “We cannot–and will not–allow New Yorkers who are qualified and ready to work have the door of opportunity slammed in their faces.”

The Council cited that 51 percent of unemployed New Yorkers have been job-hunting for over six months, but many job listings require candidates to already be employed.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg, whose signature is required to codify any City Council-approved bill into law, has vowed to veto this one, according to Metro.

Hizzoner called it "one of the most misguided pieces of legislation" and claimed it would "damage lots of small businesses" to Capital New York.

Whatever side of the argument you're on, the city has an unemployment rate of 8.8 percent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and that's a lot of people who need all the help they can get.

Click to enlarge or click here for the full .PDF

At a press conference at the 69th Regiment Armory in Manhattan this morning, Governor Andrew Cuomo and MTA Chairman Joe Lhota announced most subway service in New York City will be returned by the end of the day. Notably for some commuters from Queens and Brooklyn, trains will now be traveling into Manhattan for the first time since before Hurricane Sandy struck last week.

"In literally under one week, 80% of the subway service has been restored from what was horrendous damage, and the worst damage the subway system had ever seen," Mr. Cuomo said. "So that is just a great, great job. The service between Brooklyn and Queens and Manhattan is being restored immediately. The 4, 5, 6 and 7 trains will immediately begin to run. The F, J, D [and] M will run later this afternoon. The Staten Island Railway will have limited service beginning later today."

According to the MTA website:

 service will operate between Woodlawn and New Lots Ave operating as an express in Manhattan only.

 service will operate between Eastchester/Dyre Ave and Flatbush as an express in Manhattan only.

 service will operate between Pelham Bay and Brooklyn Bridge as a local

 Flushing Line service will operate full local service between Main St – Flushing and 42^nd St – Times Square.

Staten Island Railway (SIR) will operate limited hourly service between St. George and Tottenville.

(Photo: Wikimedia)

When Hurricane Sandy overwhelmed New York City, the airport infrastructure naturally shut down along with everything else. As with the subway and bridge systems, however, it seems airplane travel is returning to normalcy.

Earlier today, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey announced the reopening of two airports in the metropolitan area, John F. Kennedy and Newark Liberty, to limited traffic, with the fate of LaGuardia Airport remaining uncertain as officials sought to repair and inspect the facility in the wake of flood damage. But that ambiguity did not last long; Governor Andrew Cuomo just declared LaGuardia will open too.

"Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced this afternoon the reopening of LaGuardia Airport tomorrow morning, November 1, at 7:00 AM," a press release proclaimed. "Both runways will be open."

Additionally, on the Port Authority's website, the agency said there will be "limited flight schedules" and advised, "Please contact your airline before traveling to the airport to determine the status of your flight."

(Photo: Getty)

At a press conference earlier today, Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced public schools will continue be closed on Thursday and Friday, but will "hopefully" be open again on Monday of next week.

"Schools will remain closed for students tomorrow and Friday," Mr. Bloomberg said. “However, on Friday we ask all teachers, administrators and school staff to report to work. Friday, Chancellor Walcott and the Department of Education will have lots of things to do to get ready for next week."

As for parents who will struggle with the simultaneous tasks of taking care of their children and needing to go to work, Mr. Bloomberg sympathized with their plight but said the damage from Hurricane Sandy was too great.

"I know this is a great inconvenience for parents who are missing work because they don't have anyone to take care of their kids," he said. "But the bottom line is that there are an awful lot of schools that have received damage or don't have power. It's just so many that, in the end, we need the next four or five days to clean up and hopefully, by Monday, everything will be back perfect."

Update 11/1 8:22:As of Friday morning, there will be service on the M and No. 7 trains has been restored in Queens and Brooklyn, though there is still no subway service into Lower Manhattan. You can read more about the changes to the service here.

Original post: At a press conference earlier this afternoon, Gov. Andrew Cuomo and MTA Chairman Joe Lhota announced that New York City's subway system will restore service on a number of lines, leaving out a swath of territory south of 34th Street in Manhattan. Lower Manhattan was left out, they explained, because of the mass power outage in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.

"It's been an extraordinary amount of time and a lot of work and a lot of lack of sleep, but we're going to continue to do it," Mr. Lhota said. "Our goal is to, every day, get this service back to normal, back to the situation we were used to last week, and if not, even better."

View the working transportation lines below, including other parts of the MTA, courtesy of Mr. Cuomo's office:

Effective before rush hour tomorrow morning, the following is an up-to-date service status list of the MTA operating agencies including New York City Transit, Long Island Rail Road, Metro-North and Bridges and Tunnels.

NYCT SUBWAY SERVICE:
1 trains will operate local between 242nd Street (Bronx) and Times Square-42nd Street.

2 trains will operate between 241st Street (Bronx) and Times Square-42nd Street, with express service between 96th Street and Times Square.

3 trains are suspended.

4 trains will operate in two sections making all local stops:
· Between Woodlawn (Bronx) and Grand Central-42nd Street
· Between Borough Hall and New Lots Avenue
5 trains will operate express in Brooklyn between Atlantic Avenue-Barclays Center and Flatbush Avenue.

6 trains will operate local between Pelham Bay Park and Grand Central-42nd Street.

7 trains are suspended.

42nd Street Shuttle S trains will operate between Times Square and Grand Central.

A trains will operate in two sections making all local stops:
· Between 168th Street (Manhattan) and 34th Street-Penn Station
· Between Jay Street/MetroTech and Lefferts Blvd.

B and C service is suspended.

D trains operate in two sections:
· Between 205th Street (Bronx) and 34th Street-Herald Square making all local stops
· In Brooklyn, between Atlantic Avenue-Barclays Center and Bay Parkway making express stops between Pacific Street and 36th Street

E trains are suspended.

F trains operate in two sections making all local stops:
· Between 179th Street (Queens) and 34th Street-Herald Square
· In Brooklyn, between Jay Street-MetroTech and Avenue X

G trains are suspended.

J trains operate between Jamaica Center and Hewes Street making all local stops.

L trains operate between Broadway Junction and rockaway Parkway making all local stops.

M trains operate between Myrtle Avenue-Broadway and Metropolitan Avenue.

N trains operate between Ditmars Blvd. (Queens) and 34th Street-Herald Square making all local stops.

Q trains are suspended.

R trains operate in Brooklyn between Jay Street-MetroTech and 95th Street making all local stops.

Both the Franklin Avenue and Rockaway Park S shuttles are suspended.

SHUTTLE BUSES:
All shuttle buses will operate north on 3rd Avenue and south on Lexington Avenue.
1. Between Atlantic Avenue-Barclays Center and 57th Street-Lexington Avenue via the Manhattan Bridge
2. Between Jay Street-MetroTech and 57th Street-Lexington Avenue via the Manhattan Bridge
3. Between Hewes Street and 57th Street-Lexington Avenue via the Williamsburg Bridge

LONG ISLAND RAIL ROAD:
City Terminal – (Jamaica - Penn Station): Suspended (anticipate shuttle between these stations later tonight)

Ronkonkoma Branch: Suspended (goal to restore hourly service from Ronkonkoma to Penn Station for AM rush hour Thursday, Nov. 1)

Port Washington Branch: Suspended (goal to restore hourly service from Great Neck to Penn Station for AM rush hour Thursday, Nov. 1)

Babylon Branch: Suspended

Port Jefferson Branch: Suspended

Montauk Branch: Suspended

Hempstead Branch: Suspended

Long Beach: Suspended

Far Rockaway: Suspended

Oyster Bay Branch: Suspended

West Hempstead: Suspended

METRO-NORTH:
Hudson Line: Suspended

Upper Harlem Line: Suspended

Lower Harlem Line: Restored with hourly service

New Haven Line: Suspended

New Canaan Branch: Suspended

Danbury Branch: Suspended

Waterbury Branch: Suspended

West-of-Hudson:
Pascack Valley: Suspended
Port Jervis: Suspended
Bridges and Tunnels

Robert F. Kennedy Bridge: Open

Henry Hudson Bridge: Open

Throgs Neck Bridge: Open

Bronx-Whitestone Bridge: Open

Verrazano-Narrows Bridge: Open

Marine Parkway-Gil Hodges Memorial Bridge: Open

Cross Bay Veterans Memorial: Open northbound to Broad Chanel; Open southbound to Rockaways but subject to period closures for emergency equipment

Hugh L. Carey Tunnel: Closed

Queens Midtown Tunnel: Closed