U2 week concludes with a whimper around the ol’ blog.

I was supposed to be in Atlanta right now, caught up in the rapturous sound of one of my favorite bands. Right about now, Bono should be well into the encore set of One, Walk On, and Moment of Surrender.

Instead, I’m sitting in a hospital room next to my wife who has been terribly ill for the past 15 hours.

To sum up: the little lady had a procedure done yesterday and we’re not sure if she’s had a reaction to the anesthesia, the pain meds, or if something else (dehydration?) might be the culprit. The bottom line is she’s spent most of the day with a killer headache, a burning sensation in her throat, dizziness that knocked her to her knees, and constant nausea. Not exactly a fun day for her. So obviously, when the doc decided to admit her, my plans changed. Without giving it a second thought, I knew I needed to be here with her. But now, in the calm of the night, with her head peacefully resting on her pillow and — hopefully! — no more nausea and dizziness to bother her, I can sit and reflect on the day and the concert that wasn’t. To wit, here’s my “Ode to October 6th”, to close out U2 week:

Well, October 6th hasn’t exactly been a Beautiful Day; but, you know, Some Days Are Better Than Others. My Wild Honey has had Vertigo all day. Or you might just call her The Lady With The Spinning Head. Watching her when she feels Bad is just So Cruel. It’s like being Stuck In A Moment You Can’t Get Out Of.  Right now, I’d do anything for a Miracle Drug to help Numb her pain. I had tickets to the U2 show tonight and my buddy asked, “Do you want me to go With or Without You?” Of course, I told him I had to Stay because, hey, wherever she goes I Will Follow. That’s what you do when you’re A Man and A Woman who are One. Besides, Sometimes You Can’t Make It On Your Own.

In A Little While, I’ll put on my headphones and listen to all the U2 songs I’m not hearing live tonight and I’ll keep telling myself that the audio recordings are Even Better Than The Real Thing. On second thought, I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight. Just Breathe, Jason. Just breathe.

So Bono, maybe I’ll catch you and the boys Another Time Another Place. Until then, I’ll Rejoice that we’re One Step Closer to being able to Exit this hospital in the morning. And you know what? A night by my wife’s side has turned out to be pretty Magnificent, The Sweetest Thing anyway. I guess there was lemonade to be made from this Lemon of a day after all!