It's a bird! It's a plane! No really, it's just a plane.

Spent most of Saturday morning and into the afternoon alternating between straining my neck by looking straight up in the sky and ducking for cover from jet engine noise.

That's right, I finally made it down to Chicago's Air & Water Show. Normally, the idea of being squeezed onto a beach with 2 million people is enough to keep me away, but not this year!

We stayed away from the beach crowds and found a nice, green, shady spot in the park just far enough away from masses of humanity to still have a great view.

The show started with a bunch of parachuters who weren't quite as loud as the jets we'd been hearing practice all week, so it took us quite some time to realize we should look up.

It was nice that they all set themselves on fire so we could keep track of their downward progress, right?

Being farther away, we couldn't hear the audio commentary, so I have no idea what type of planes these are, but they were my favorite. My friend Nikki, thought she overheard "Ranger" so that's what we called them.

Ranger Danger! from Kristin Sutter on Vimeo.
I like how this video sort of leads you to believe there was a fiery crash behind that tree.

These guys were amazing. They flew so close together that I actually gasped at what seemed like incredibly close calls. They were really good at drawing as well.

Aww! And that's not all they were good for! Hows about some graceful loops?

Chicago Air & Water Show '08 from Kristin Sutter on Vimeo.
That video is kind of hypnotic. Maybe United had them pipe subliminal messages over the speakers at this point to try and get some customers back from Southwest.

Of course, the men liked the jets.

J-E-T-S, Jets, Jets Jets! from Kristin Sutter on Vimeo.
I know this looks like one of those bad UFO videos, but there are no strings here, folks. Just billions of taxpayer dollars for your enjoyment!

The big jets annoyed more than amused. Mostly because the noise rattled my teeth in my skull, but also because I knew they were the reason Milo was huddled, terrified under our bed all weekend.

Don't worry, I covered his ears when I could, but he still had that wild "When are the bombs gonna drop?!?! OHMYGOD SOMEONE MAKE IT STOP!" look in his eyes.


The jets are gone now, and he's back to normal. That is, until the next thunderstorm/tornado/firecracker/car alarm/butterfly fluttering past the window.

Do they make doggie Xanax?