A Fighting Chance (46 page)

I was so knocked out by how many people showed up in Framingham to volunteer a year before the Senate election that I jumped up on stage and took this picture with my cell phone.

On the campaign trail in the summer at the Northampton Pride Festival and shortly before the election near a bridge in Concord.

Organizing volunteers for one of the biggest get-out-the-vote drives Massachusetts had ever seen.

I loved the enthusiasm of the supporters I met during the Dorchester Day parade.

The firefighters union told me that once they were in, they would be in all the way—but I hadn’t realized that “all the way” meant driving a big yellow bus around the state.

Art Ramalho offered up the West End Gym in Lowell for a campaign rally. He said he liked seeing me in a boxing ring—he figured it was good practice for Washington.

Otis helped me with my debate prep.

Octavia and Lavinia introduced me at the State Democratic Convention in Springfield. Lavinia was very disappointed that she was not allowed to do cartwheels during Octavia’s speech.

Amelia and I had been buddies in lots of adventures, including writing books together, and now she was with me during the Senate campaign.

At the Democratic National Convention in September 2012, I said the game was rigged, and a lot of people in the audience seemed to agree.

Pickup trucks rumbled through West Roxbury on the night before the election.

Down to the wire, I was still out stumping, this time with lots of help.

When we made history, Bruce gave me one of the biggest and best hugs of my life.

Notes

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1 | Doing What Needs to Be Done

a chance to start over without a pile of debts pulling them down:
US bankruptcy law offers debtors a chance to get some relief from overwhelming debts, both by restructuring some debts (reworking a car loan, for example) and discharging a debt (writing off credit card debt, for example). Nearly all personal bankruptcies are filed either in Chapter 7 (liquidation) or Chapter 13 (restructuring). When a person files for bankruptcy, a trustee is appointed to oversee the process; the trustee’s duties range from examining the debtors to make sure they have listed all their assets to selling certain assets and distributing funds to creditors. A family may retain certain forms of property through bankruptcy (“exempt property”), such as home equity and the tools necessary for that debtor to make a living, depending on the applicable state and federal law. In Chapter 7 bankruptcy, the debtor turns over her nonexempt property to the trustee, who then liquidates the property and disburses the proceeds to unsecured creditors. In return, certain debts can be discharged. (Some debts, such as student loans and child support, cannot be discharged in bankruptcy.) In Chapter 13 bankruptcy, the debtor keeps all her property, exempt and nonexempt, but surrenders a portion of her future income to repay creditors over a three-to-five-year period, with the trustee overseeing the repayment plan. When the debtor has successfully completed the repayment plan, a portion of the remaining debt will be discharged. Filing for bankruptcy also stops debt collectors and provides temporary protection from foreclosures.