Steve / August 20, 2004 4:18 PM

Worthwhile only in passing -- actually sitting there all day to watch it is a total drag.

btw, have they moved the practice area this year? I haven't heard a single plane all day here at Franklin and Adams. Expect to see some tomorrow afternoon at the Cell, though.

Andrew / August 20, 2004 4:20 PM

Personally, I'm ambivalent. The cats freak out every time a jet roars overhead, though. Which would be funny, if it didn't look like they were having mini heart attacks.

Veronica / August 20, 2004 4:24 PM

Argh! Stop flying over my apartment! I'm trying to read and would appreciate my ears not bleeding!

anne / August 20, 2004 4:42 PM

Every time a plane flies over all I can do is cry, "Here I am! Rock me like a hurricane!" If that's not entertainment, I don't know what is.

suzanne / August 20, 2004 4:47 PM

i'd skip it- i've had enough panic and anxiety attacks the past 2 days watching and hearing the planes swoop thru the loop.

vit / August 20, 2004 4:56 PM

I'm sick of the noise and while the stunts are fun, but I do have some deeper issues with militaristic displays as such. I'll be taking a pass.

robin.. / August 20, 2004 4:57 PM

if anything represents more aptly the new age of selectively imposed fear in which we are told we're now living, it's the air and water show. i dislike it immensely (the show and the age...).

miss ellen / August 20, 2004 5:00 PM

friends are having a viewing party at their apartment on the 33rd floor of basically north ave & lake shore drive.

gonna take the north avenue bus & enjoy it from way up. building also has a roof-deck on 44, but i bet it'll be pretty tight up there.

i've never actually attended the event in the past, but have caught views from various spots over the years. should be kinda fun this time around, though.

teetee / August 20, 2004 5:45 PM

waste. waste. waste. just the thought of the A&W show make me wanna puke. I would rather lick a window on a brown line train that go to that godforsaken show.

Alex / August 20, 2004 5:58 PM

We have schools in the city falling apart dut to lack of funds, but hey, there is an expensive-as-all-hell jet for us to look at. Gee!

Michael / August 20, 2004 6:07 PM

As I have a cousin who is a newly-annointed F-16 fighter pilot, I appreciate and support the men and women of the armed forces, but not necessarily the politics behind them. That being said, I could really care less about the a & w show, except for the all of the great parties.

BTW - there is speculation that these supersonic jets flying over the city every year may be causing damage to some of our most architectually prized and oldest skyscrapers.

christian / August 20, 2004 6:26 PM

I forgot that it was going on and saw a large jetliner bank over Montrose today, it kind of freaked me out, you know, big jets making sharp turns in a city and all.

amyc / August 20, 2004 7:39 PM

War toys suck.

Krissy / August 20, 2004 8:48 PM

Don't take the North Avenue bus during Air and Water show! DON'T!! It's stuck in traffic *and* packed to the gills. I did it last year to go to Piper's Alley, and we were late for the movie *after* the one we originally intended to see.

Qwert / August 20, 2004 10:56 PM

Oh, the enchanted afternoon
cannot suppress this long awaiting, my dear and sweet Lurleen

Your hair the color of dishwater gold
and fragrant with the scent
of this mighty Ford F150's
thunderous exhalations

Oh, the jubilation to hear the sweet surrender
of your tender lips
marked with exclamation lines carved from cigarettes and pressed into my hungry ear..

You gonna git the pampers hon? cuz my Throbbin Rodney and this Coleman cooler is burstin out with beer.

Lyle from Lisle / August 21, 2004 12:52 AM

How to get a half-day Friday: when the warplanes start strafing the Loop, cower under your desk and quaveringly explain that you're experiencing a post-traumatic flashback to when "they" bombed your village "back in Asia." No one will dare investigate any further. Reunite with fellow refugees at the bar. In years hence, they'll encourage you just to stay home all day on Air & Water Show Warmup Friday.

Oh, don't tsk-tsk me. My dad really did run from bombs. I'm just collecting reparations and shit . . .

Pete / August 21, 2004 9:27 AM

Interesting the first time you see it, repetitive/monotonous after that. Plus, sitting in a skyscraper during their practice runs gives me the post-9/11 willies.

tony / August 21, 2004 11:12 AM

I grew up with the sounds of the jets thundering past the apartment every summer, so the sounds are actually welcome to me in a way. Fun to catch once or twice; I usually end up going back for the benefit of friends/visitors who haven't seen it.

gordon / August 21, 2004 6:45 PM

Actually, when the planes storm over my apartment, I'm suddenly stricken with the temptation to put my new Van Halen's Greatest Hits record on.

Gordon / August 21, 2004 7:07 PM

Vaguely interesting, but a huge waste of fuel/money.

Oh, and … hey! Someone else named Gordon!

Marcus / August 21, 2004 8:51 PM

what a waste and so bad for the environment, but certainly a great way to recruit for our ever so important war.

paul / August 22, 2004 2:09 AM

It's worth it to hang around the city on Thursday and Friday to watch them practice. I just happened to be hanging around Millennium Park, where the lawn of the pavilion gave a good view.

But the more important question is - Does anyone bother to watch the Water part of the Air and Water show?

jm / August 22, 2004 6:49 PM

yuck. especially since pollution controls aren't enforced for jets and such. between the noise and the pollution and the crowds and the philosophy of it all, I vote to get out of town.

jennifer / August 23, 2004 8:39 AM

the blue angels flew directly over my head above me yesterday when i was walking around. It made me ears pop, and I instantly had a blinding headache. Jerks.

Emily / August 23, 2004 8:55 AM

I'm sorry, folks, but I love love love the A&W. Ok, more the Air part--but I've always loved planes and flying, so to see big heavy hunks of metal hang in the air as they lazily bank over Diversey Harbor makes my inner 6 year old oooo with awe. Besides, I live next to the el, so the Blue Angels' flyovers aren't that big of a deal. It's just part of the background noise.

KT / August 23, 2004 9:08 AM

The first time is cool. If you like crowds, then go. On the other hand, smaller shows done through regional airports tend to be more accessible. Those tend to have older (often vintage) planes, but you sometimes get to walk up to them on the ground, or even walk through them.

I prefer up close and personal to seeing something in the distance.

steven / August 24, 2004 11:13 AM

i think it's amazing when they fly overhead because they're so damn loud, but it is a waste of time to go down to the beach and actually watch the show...much more fun to be scared shitless in your own apartment when they fly by.