I have many stories about the mayor, as my years in state government were during his long tenure as Bostons leader. Ed Davis, BPD head, and I often conspired with him, and when I went to work in DC he would call to complain (about the LNG tanker) or thank (about the decision to steer more urban funding to the city). Never a dull moment. I sat with him before I decided to jump into the governors race; his staff had briefed him on the reason, but he spent most of the time teasing me as if he didnt know and constantly steering the conversation away from the race. He thought it was hilarious. His ultimate advice: nothing to lose; just think how you will feel if you dont. But my first encounter is the best. It was my first week of working for the Governor as his homeland security advisor and the infamous lite brite incident had started. This was when these electrical boxes appeared throughout the city, triggering a response to what ultimately was a Comedy Central joke. (We got almost a million dollars out of them, so funny indeed). The Governor and mayor were going to show a united front of response at BPD headquarters. I had barely met any of the key players, not even then LG Timothy Murray. It was, for me, a stressful but admittedly heady experience as the entire political apparatus was in the room. Menino sat at the table, munching on some snacks, as I was introduced to him. Do me a favor, go get Timmy. I paused, no idea what to say. Timmy, Timmy. Go get him. I just stood there. Who was he talking about? Who the hell is timmy. It was Tim Murray, of course, and to Menino he was just another mayor from the days. Murrays new position, as number 2 in the state, didnt change a thing. No formalities, no allegiances to titles, just a friend to a friend, this is what I remember every time I think of Menino. No bs. Just him calling out for Timmy as he hunkered down, oversaw the response, and cared for the city that was his.
Posted on: Thu, 30 Oct 2014 17:00:39 +0000
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