My So Called (U2) Life


U2 - Rattle and Hum - December 20, 1987 - ASU Stadium - Tempe, Arizona
My cousin didn't believe me last night when I told her I was at Rattle and Hum in 1987.  She told me to quit lying.  I think she was kidding, but just in case, I do actually have the ticket stub in my scrapbook.  I was 15 and it was December 20th - five days before Christmas.  It was my first concert and my mom almost didn't let me go.

It was an absolutely incredible concert.  I went with Alison Wiltrout, Sara Kahn, and Dawn Onusko.  After the concert we picked up on flirted with some boys in the parking lot that went to San Diego State.  I had gone to a Cheerleading Camp there the previous summer so I totally pretended that I was a college student.  Turned out that I lived in the same dorm as this guy.  Who knew?  Sara blew it, however, when she said she was born in 1970 and was 18.  Since this was impossible our cover was blown.  That and the fact that we really did ACT like 15 year olds.

Fun Facts:
I paid $6 for my ticket and we were on the ASU Stadium Floor.  
I saw live the moment that the picture above was taken.
At the time I had a crush on Jay (didn't really know him, later he became my best-guy-friend and we went to my Senior prom together).  I don't know why I remember that, other than I remember that he went to the concert the night before since it was a two night deal.
My first U2 purchase was a 45 single of Sunday Bloody Sunday.  My second was a 45 single of With or Without You on one side and I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For on the other.  I owned cassette tapes of War and Boy.* 
I thought I was pretty edgy (pun intended) for liking U2 when my friends were into crazy groups like Madonna and Duran Duran.

*If you don't know what I mean by a 45 single, you should not be reading my blog.  

U2 - Elevation - October 19, 2001 - Baltimore Arena - Baltimore, Maryland
On October 19, 2001, about five weeks after the events of 9/11, I got an email from my friend saying she had an extra U2 ticket for that night in Baltimore.  I hadn't seen them since 1987, I was still reeling from 9/11.  I paid $90 and went.  It was their Arena Tour and their latest album was Elevation. I don't remember the names of anyone I went with to that concert.  I was there for one reason and that was to get back to my U2 "roots", having wandered in a musical wasteland.  I was 29 years old and in the process of "finding myself". 

Fun Facts:
On the way home we drove by the Pentagon - the side that was hit by Flight 77.  I hadn't actually seen the damage, yet, having avoided it.  
The next day my roommate and I drove up to New York City.  Mayor Giuliani said that if people wanted to help New York, they should see a show, eat dinner, and stay in a hotel.  Tourism was down.  So that is exactly what we did.  We saw Stomp, at at an Italian restaurant, and stayed in a hotel somewhere in Mid-town.  We also went down to where the World Trade Center had been and was still burning five weeks later.  
There were still Missing Person posters all over NYC.  
We bought NYPD and Fire Department t-shirts to help with a fundraiser.

U2 - 360* Tour - May 24, 2011 - Rice-Eccles Stadium - Salt Lake City, Utah

About 18 months ago I bought two tickets to last night's concert.  My husband is astonishingly NOT a U2 fan.  Had I really understood this when we dated I might have called the whole thing off.  Just kidding, but it has been his one major flaw all of these years.  I almost took my cousin last year instead of my husband, because it was her birthday.  Then Bono ended up having back surgery and the show was canceled.  I thought long and hard about whether or not to take my husband.  Seriously.  In the end I decided that if going to a U2 concert didn't convert him, nothing would.  So I braved going with him. 

Fun Facts:
At last count, I have figured that I knew probably 30-35 people who went to the concert last night.  I didn't run into any of them, including five family members, a soon to be sister-in-law*, and my current Best-guy-friend-besides-my-husband, who moved here last week.  
My husband saw a guy from his previous employment.
When Bono asked The Edge what they should play and The Edge said, "All I want is You" I started to cry.  I sang every single word of it.
Six of the 26 songs they sang last night were sung at Rattle and Hum.  
One of the reasons I named my son Joshua is in honor of my favorite album of all time.

*When I attend Rattle and Hum as a 15 year old in 1987, my soon-to-be sister-in-law was two years away from being born.

3 comments:

  1. Rory would have shared all this with Lorelai before she was 39 years old. I'm just sayin'.

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  2. Funny and informative post. Who knew you were such a superfan of U2? Evie, I always thought you and Heidi shared everything, large and small. I don't think my girls would have told me, however, 'cept possibly Sheila. Glad you enjoyed it -- I'm not a superfan, but I appreciate them, and Uncle Terry and Tim/Dusty do also.

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  3. Love it! Sounds like it was a great experience and a great trip down memory lane.

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