, as he talked about asthma rates and the Bush administration 's environmental record . I chatted with Obama 's press attachÃ © and with a Chicago Tribune reporter , David Mendell , as the speech wound down , and was offered a ride in a nondescript minivan back to the Fleet Center . Even then Obama was attracting attention ; several members of the audience gave him enthusiastic greetings as he left the scene to get in the van . In the front passenger seat of the van , the rail-thin Obama , obviously hungry -LRB- he later told me he 'd lost eight pounds since the beginning of the campaign -RRB- , chewed on a sandwich and joked with the other passengers as I peppered him with questions during the 20-minute ride . He answered with deliberate thoughtfulness , though he 'd probably heard at least a few of them dozens of times already . Was he worried about the speech , the kind of spotlight that had made political leaders including William Jennings Bryan , Mario Cuomo and Ann Richards national figures ? `` There 's going to be some adrenaline , '' he said , after
-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The cool of Barack Obama was very much on display on a warm day in Boston 's Christopher Columbus Park during the summer of 2004 . John Kerry , right , and Obama confer at the 2004 DNC , where Obama wowed the crowd with his keynote address . It was going to be a big day for the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate from Illinois . In a few hours , on that night , July 27 , 2004 , he was to give the keynote address to the Democratic National Convention at the Fleet Center about a mile away . But as he gave a lunchtime speech on environmental policy to a leisurely crowd of about 100 people at the green space on Boston Harbor , he was relaxed and loose , seemingly unconcerned about what was ahead . Taking notes amid the crowd , I hoped to get a few minutes with the candidate . I 'd been told about his vaunted charisma -- my two brothers , both of whom live in Chicago , had mentioned his oratorical gifts -- but in person Obama seemed familiar , even a touch wonky