Sometimes You Can't Make it on Your Own

I love U2. Always have and probably always will. This past Monday I got to see them live for only the 2nd time in my life (the first was in Seattle in April with my FREE tickets that I won on the radio on my birthday). The whole experience was fantastic, even the 6 hours in the cold and rainy weather since I had GA floor tickets. Just glad Mother Nature didn't continue with the freezing rain.

Just some details of the day:
- Finally being healthy enough to be able to stand outside for hours on end in the cold.
- Heat warmers for the hands. (also can be useful for the toes that numb up)
- Meeting Matt and Tara in line. They were the 332nd and 333rd people in line to my 338 spot. They are from Bainbridge Island and are cool people. It was fun to do our own thing and then chat about cool books, our love of mindless hollywood gossip (well, not so much Matt), observations about other people in line.
- Making a pact with them that if Shannon and I both got chosen to go into the Ellipse that we would take them and vice versa (alas, none of us got in).
- Discovering I was the sole Portlander of the 20 or so people around me in line.
- Pascal. Deserves props for many things including: letting me park in his extra parking space at his condo, bringing me a Starbuck's venti hot chocolate with soy to keep me warm, coming by again at 5:15pm to pick up my chair, blanket and let me change my clothes in the back of his car as he drives around the block.
- Getting a spot on the floor 3 people back from the catwalk behind other shorter individuals with a clear, unobstructed view of the stage.
- Being able to celebrate Bono being named the day before as one of Time's People of the Year award.
- Experiencing the joy and gratitude the crew had for the band and vice versa as it was the last show of the North American tour.
- Blending of several John Lennon songs into the playlist, along with Johnny Comes Marching Home, Rock the Casbah, and many other songs.
- Running to Kells after the show to hang with some other friends since the MAX was really slow and all the taxi's were taken.

Needless to say, if I needed new friends like Matt and Tara along with an old friend Pascal to help me get through the day without being bored.