The Joshua Tree

In honor of U2 re-releasing one of the greatest albums of all time (although when they re-release Achtung Baby, I will seriously have a melt-down and an all-out party!!!!!!!), I am going to write about some of my favorite memories of the album and how it affected my life.

1) During Christmas break of my senior year of high school, I was forced to have all of my impacted molars removed surgically. I was miserable because the pain meds only made me sick. I literally slept for 24 hours straight, while listening to The Joshua Tree on repeat that entire time. From then on, I think of the album as my sleepy music.

2) My sister INSISTS that she learned to love U2 through osmosis. My bedroom was directly below her bedroom, and I was constantly listening to either The Joshua Tree or Achtung Baby throughout high school. Every night, she would fall asleep listening to the soft beats and drum lines of U2. Now, she shares my love. Osmosis ROCKS! Also, I had to drive her to school every day in my cool little car, and since it was MY car, and I was driving, she had to listen to what I wanted. Inevitably, The Joshua Tree. Sometimes I threw Violator by Depeche Mode in there just to mix it up a bit.

3) In college, my girlfriends and I drove from Pocatello, ID all the way to San Diego, CA. It was a long trip, but in those days it was all about the trip and not the destination. (I like to think that life is like that now, too. I try to, anyway.) When we arrived in San Diego, I insisted we drive a few hours back out of our way to The Joshua Tree National Monument. I knew that Bono and the gang did not have their photo shoot with Anton Corbijin in the actual park, and it was actually somewhere in Death Valley, but I really wanted to go out there. We drove in, took some pictures, I bought a patch for my world-travelling backpack, and we left. It was a very short trip. I also insisted we listen to The Joshua Tree the entire time. My friends were quite annoyed with me, but put up with my obsession because they love me.

4) For the very longest time, my most prized possession was The Joshua Tree on vinyl. (Now it is Bono's water bottle, but it still runs a close second.) Unfortunately, when I moved and put my things in storage for three months, a rat got to one of the corners. But I still love it and now I put it in a special frame because the thought of another rodent or animal getting to my most prized possession absolutely freaks me out. One of the reasons it was most prized possession is because my friend, Chris, and I used to talk about The Joshua Tree all the time: her parents owned the album on vinyl and she used to listen to it all the time with them. My parents were not exactly that hip, so I never had that cool experience, but we still talk about it with nostalgia in our hearts.

5) And I totally forgot, until Chris reminded me, that we used to have our own personal U2 air-band. I was Bono, of course. What good times we had.

So, in honor of my favorite band re-releasing my second most favorite U2 album of all time, I dedicate this blog to them: the band that stuck with me through thick and thin. The band that never ticked me off. The band that never disappointed me, even when they disappointed the critics. The band that always puts out the hits.

Thank you.