Published February 9, 2011

Good morning! It’s cold today. Here’s what’s news on a Wednesday in Boston.

Gov. Deval Patrick, in his forthcoming memoir, reveals he considered resigning after taking office in 2007. His wife was hospitalized with depression, and they almost couldn’t face four years in the spotlight. Patrick also says he failed the bar exam twice and got “blackballed” by an exclusive Brookline country club.

Boston Mayor Tom Menino is setting the tone for a battle with Walmart, which is in talks with the city to open one or more stores here. “I’m very concerned about how they treat their employees … I want to make sure they are good jobs, that their employees get health insurance, retirement plans — all the benefits everyone else gets,” Menino told the Herald.

Two Boston city councilors are proposing to ban smoking in public parks and beaches. Hundreds of cities and towns have similar bans, from Braintree to New York to San Diego. Menino has not weighed in on the idea.

Boston is preparing to unleash “Pot-zilla,” a $150,000, self-contained pothole-filling machine. The city expects 500 pothole complaints this month as as ice thaws, re-freezes and thaws again. (Head over to Hubbub’s pothole map to learn how to report potholes in your city or town.)

The Track Gals report on the success of the Boston Police Department’s social media efforts. BPD reached 20,000 Twitter followers yesterday, the largest of any PD worldwide.