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4U
Vol. 1 Issue 5
STUCK IN AN ADAM MOMENT
 – 
VIA TIA
 
There is something about the date December 9
th
that will hold meforever. Not only was this the date of that last stand in Hawaii, but itwas December 9, 2005 when Morgan and I went to Buffalo, NY to
see U2 on the anniversary of John Lennon’s death. It was our 
second show together, but the first without husbands. Having seenElevation in Buffalo, I already had some idea of how electrifying theywould be there.Buffalo is brutal cold in December. We were prepared to wait hoursoutside in that bitter winter air for them, arriving at the GA line in longunderwear, boots, hats, scarves, gloves and even foot warmers. Ofcourse, being a Laverne and Shirley type adventure as it often is for us, the arena let us all inside to wait for the day. There we were allbundled up and VERY HOT, waiting for a moment to leave the lineand stash our heavy gear--a far cry from our t-shirts and yellow raftsunder the night sky I Hawaii. As always, the hours waiting drifted byquickly while we chatted with fellow fans, sharing our anticipation. Itwas through those conversations that we would get our chance tohave a MOMENT.
BONO UNTIED
 – 
 ANN ABRAHAM
Only once have I seenBono uncomfortable, andthe blame (or credit?)for that remarkablemoment rests with a boldbut innocuous-lookingyellow tie.I've seen Bono onstageand off, at concerts, atautograph signings, atfan appearances, in TVinterviews, in candidphotos. I've seen himdoused with sweat fromstage sprints and houselights, and I've seenhim as master-of-the-moment with one armslung about a giddy fan'sshoulders.
 
 
 Stuck (cont.)
Crushingly, neither one of us scanned into the ellipse.I can not explain the wave of disappointment in that moment,partially because the last show we went to together I was in theellipse and Morgan was NOT. I wanted this to be her time. But, aswe began making our way to the floor, the nice Canadian boys wehad spent the day with scanned in! To our pleasant surprise, theycalled us back offering to bring both Morgan and me along. After Morgan practically knocked one boy over thanking him for the gift,we were in, front and center with only two big haired red-head girlsin our way. Unlike the Boston show, we were BOTH in!Standing there that close, during a show when the band really lettheir hair down was amazing. We could hear them joking with eachother, read the Bono Vox on the amplifiers and see the color of
Edge’s gym shoe as he kept time.
Bono spent many momentshovering above us, moaning as he did for most of that show. Wewere in ecstasy! But the moment that I always get stuck in occurredduring
Love and Peace
. As the bass echoed at the start, shivers
went up my spine. We all sang “ooohh, ooohh, ooohh” as Bono
made his way to the catwalk. Adam moved front and center,knees bent, swaying in large rhythmic strokes shooting his bassthrough the audience.
As Bono sang, “LAY DOWN” you could feel
the bass of
Love and Peace
in your bones. Most eyes followed
Bono’s trying
-to-be-sexy hips down the catwalk toward Larrypounding away at the drums. My eyes were fixed dead ahead onyou-know-who.Slowly Adam made his way closer to the Edge eyeing those in thefront, smiling and flirting as always. This time we were dead center 
and with no “jealous lover” when he made eye contact. Bonosang, “LAY DOWN YOUR GUNS” and Adam stood right above us with
that smile! It was clear that this was my moment to hold his
attention. My Canadian friend elbowed me, squealing, “He’slooking at you!” (as if I didn’t notice). Singing with Bono, “I don’tknow if I can make it, I’m not easy on my knees, Here’s my heart...
Why don
’t you break it?” while having Adam’s eyes fixed on me was
a quite a moment to be stuck in. As Larry joined Bono for theRELEASE RELEASE RELEASE... Adam backed up, smiling one more timebefore returning to his spot for 
Sunday Bloody Sunday
.Bono called
out, “WHERE IS THE LOVE?” just before he began hisdrum solo. He needn’t have asked. No one was wondering where
the love was that night. We all felt the love!A 
Untied(cont.)
 
Whether hisaudience is 17,500overjoyed fans, 32skeptical Washingtonpolicymakers, or HisHoliness Pope John Paul II(although some wouldargue Bono was theaudience in that case, itwould be a hard-woncase), he seemsunflappable.Not until his May speechfor the World AffairsCouncil in my hometownof Dallas, Texas did I ever see Bono look uncomfortable. Heshowed no signs ofdiscomfort as he spokewith eloquence andpassion about our responsibility as a countryto fight poverty and itsconsequences inAfrica.
 
 
TIVOLI MOMENT
May 2006 Tia and I went to Dallas, Texas to hear Bono speak at theWorld Affairs Council. It was a last minute, thrown together trip we
 just couldn’t resist taking. We were only there for one night and
packed a lot into our visit. I had some family history there, wewanted to see where Kennedy was assassinated (feel it actually)and of course we wanted to see how Bono would be solo. If it
weren’t for Ann, whom we met shortly after my “moment”, our visitwouldn’t have been nearly as fun: tapas in the rain, Cuban cocktails
til 3am, a ride in a white pick-up instead of yet another cab crossingwide, wide Texas. Tia and I agreed there was a slight undercurrentof fear in Dallas that Ann counterbalanced.
After Bono’s charming
-as-always speech, Tia and I stepped outsideinto the early summer air. To our right was an archway lit with Tivolilights. It called to us and since we had no sense of direction in Dallas
and weren’t there long enough to care, we walked through. Turned
out it was where Bono would be exiting Music Hall at Fair Park. Fanswere milling around. Tia and I stood under a tree enjoying the
perfect night, asking each other silly questions we’d ask the band if
we had the chance. Like, Do you think Adam wears a silk smoking
 jacket? Or, I wonder what Bono’s house slippers look 
like? Silly, GAline, used to waiting around questions.After about half an hour, Bono came out to sign autographs for fansclustered about ten deep against a barricade. We caught snatchesof him through the crowd. He looked a little drunk and rumpled inhis suit. Probably relieved his speech was over. People were pushy,
and annoyingly entitled. One yelled, “Bono! Over here! Sign mine.It’s my birthday!” There was greed in the air that I wanted no part of
(there is always some but this time seemed worse) which is one ofthe reasons I never push forward to demand an autograph. Just
doesn’t feel right. Some fanatic I am! I always regret my lack of
assertiveness later when I return home empty-handed.
Untied(cont.)
 
And thoughhe joked that he loatheswearing a tie, and said hefelt uncomfortable in it,and claimed he only woreit to impress us Texans,somehow his complaintsseemed good-naturedand altogether Irish
 — 
satire, self-mockery,dark humor. A way for Bono to be both Everyman("See, I have to conform toThe Man's uniform, too")and elite ("I don't usuallywear a tie because I don'thave to. I'm a rock star.") Ididn't believe he meant it.But by the end of hisspeech he'd had enoughof the bright yellow swathof fabric knotted neatly athis neck. He'd steppedaside and turned thepodium over to afloundering, star-struck woman trying togift him a hypotheticalmosquito net.
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