Brew and Stew III
Saturday, November 19th was the third annual Brew & Stew in Framingham. This yearly event began as an "Inaugural Bawl" in 2002 as a chance for disappointed democrats to get together and scream into the wind after the disappointing election. There is always good company, and candidates present, so it's always a great time. I got to the Tin Alley Grill a bit later than I would have liked because, as usual, I was out all afternoon doing that hockey mom thing (which I love too!) So I ran home, scrubbed up, and got to the event about 1 hour into the festivities. The place was packed! I managed to elbow my way up to the bar and got my drink (O'Douls - hey, I'm drivin'!) , and commenced mingling.
Jarrett Barrios, candidate for Middlesex DA and his supporters had set up a campaign headquarters in the corner. His supporters were handing out stickers. Jarrett was the only candidate that night that actually dressed for the event. There were plenty of ties and shirtsleeves, but Jarrett was very nicely turned out in business casual, with leather jacket. I like Jarrett. He's a very effective speaker and he has some good campaign ideas.
I ran into some folks I know from the Rt.495/MetroWest Meetup so I chatted with them for a bit before the bar went into Karaoke mode. It was so L-O-U-D!!! I felt like I was screaming at people.
Next up was Tim Murray, Mayor of Worcester. (and candidate for Lt. Gov?) I had a chance to speak to him about the BlogLeft Conference that will be held in Worcester December 10th. He was proud that we selected the Tatnuck Booksellers in Worcester to hold the conference at and is pleased to hear that the blogsphere in Massachusetts is so organized.
I had a chance to speak to Lt. Governor candidate Sam Kelley. By now the karaoke was very loud, so basically I just screamed at him and congratulated him on his new website and blog. I also talked to him about the BlogLeft Conference and he asked some very good questions about what type of program we were planning.
Getting up at the crack-of-too-damn-early for hockey was starting to catch up with me, and I had a 45 minute drive home ahead, so I made my final lap around the room and bumped into Mike Festa, candidate for Middlesex DA and his wife Sandy. I've never talked to Rep. Festa before, so we talked a bit about his background as a prosecutor. I planned to see him speak in Harvard the following night, so I didn't ask too many questions. He and his wife are very nice folks and they are supporting Deval Patrick, so that makes them even nicer.
Before I left, I spoke with someone (I know, I hate blind quotes too) who is working on Bill Galvin's unannounced campaign. I'm not exactly an expert on political matters, so I always try to get an insider's view on what is happening. What I'd like to know is, what is the advantage in waiting so long to toss your hat in? Is Galvin waiting to see if Romney will run or not, and really what difference does that make if the state GOP runs Romney or Healey? I got no answers, other than if Galvin decides to run, he has such a good organization and plenty of money that it doesn't matter how late he announces. That may be so, but does he expect folks that are already committed to certain candidates to shift their support to him if he decides to run? This makes no sense to me at all.
Overall, it was a very nice evening, but very L-O-U-D!
The scene in Harvard the next night was much more subdued. But you'll have to go to the next post to read that.
Jarrett Barrios, candidate for Middlesex DA and his supporters had set up a campaign headquarters in the corner. His supporters were handing out stickers. Jarrett was the only candidate that night that actually dressed for the event. There were plenty of ties and shirtsleeves, but Jarrett was very nicely turned out in business casual, with leather jacket. I like Jarrett. He's a very effective speaker and he has some good campaign ideas.
I ran into some folks I know from the Rt.495/MetroWest Meetup so I chatted with them for a bit before the bar went into Karaoke mode. It was so L-O-U-D!!! I felt like I was screaming at people.
Next up was Tim Murray, Mayor of Worcester. (and candidate for Lt. Gov?) I had a chance to speak to him about the BlogLeft Conference that will be held in Worcester December 10th. He was proud that we selected the Tatnuck Booksellers in Worcester to hold the conference at and is pleased to hear that the blogsphere in Massachusetts is so organized.
I had a chance to speak to Lt. Governor candidate Sam Kelley. By now the karaoke was very loud, so basically I just screamed at him and congratulated him on his new website and blog. I also talked to him about the BlogLeft Conference and he asked some very good questions about what type of program we were planning.
Getting up at the crack-of-too-damn-early for hockey was starting to catch up with me, and I had a 45 minute drive home ahead, so I made my final lap around the room and bumped into Mike Festa, candidate for Middlesex DA and his wife Sandy. I've never talked to Rep. Festa before, so we talked a bit about his background as a prosecutor. I planned to see him speak in Harvard the following night, so I didn't ask too many questions. He and his wife are very nice folks and they are supporting Deval Patrick, so that makes them even nicer.
Before I left, I spoke with someone (I know, I hate blind quotes too) who is working on Bill Galvin's unannounced campaign. I'm not exactly an expert on political matters, so I always try to get an insider's view on what is happening. What I'd like to know is, what is the advantage in waiting so long to toss your hat in? Is Galvin waiting to see if Romney will run or not, and really what difference does that make if the state GOP runs Romney or Healey? I got no answers, other than if Galvin decides to run, he has such a good organization and plenty of money that it doesn't matter how late he announces. That may be so, but does he expect folks that are already committed to certain candidates to shift their support to him if he decides to run? This makes no sense to me at all.
Overall, it was a very nice evening, but very L-O-U-D!
The scene in Harvard the next night was much more subdued. But you'll have to go to the next post to read that.
posted by susan at 1:46 AM
<< Home