Kim Leedahl (and Bono) in Edmonton.

It's not every day one of the world's biggest -- if not THE biggest -- rock band plays in your neighbourhood, but we recently had U2 in Edmonton, playing at the Stadium a few blocks from home.

Kinda cool, but far cooler was the fact that it brought my beloved sister-in-law, Kim, to Edmonton with her fellow U2 super fan, Roxanne, and they stayed with us when they weren't camping out in the queue.

Kim and Roxanne saw U2 in Vancouver a few years back, and, as fortune would have it, ended up in a U2 video (in the crowd).

I've never been a passionate fan of a celeb of any stripe, but K and R's enthusiasm was infectious, and it was great fun to see how lit they were by all things U2.


Kim Leedahl (left) and Roxanne



Kim and Shelley (that would be me)

Roxanne in the queue.

So, was it worth it? The camping out ... the sleeplessness. Kim and Roxanne would undoubtedly scream "Yes!" They were in the front row, right between Bono and The Edge. So close, they got pictures like the one below.

Greg and I didn't go to the concert, but we heard it loud and clear from our house. We also walked over (U2 was playing "Mysterious Ways" when we arrived)and hung around outside the stadium for a bit with the drunks and drug addicts and scalpers, who were still trying to get $60 a ticket.

It would have been fun to be inside, but alas, U2 didn't even play my favourite, "New Years Day," which was on my Walkman, my MP3 player, and is now on my iPod. 'Tis a great tune to run to.