You may think you have distractions in your workplace, but take a look at what’s been outside my office window all week.

That’s some exotic hardware being collected for the Farnborough Air Show, which starts next week. So far, we’ve identified:

• Apache (Longbow maybe? It had the pod)
  
• WWII-vintage Spitfire
• F-15
  
• F-16
• F-18
• F-22
• Avro Vulcan
• Eurofighter Typhoon
• Airbus A380
• Whatever trainers the RAF Red Arrows are flying these days
• many more that we haven’t been able to ID yet

All of these beautiful flying murder machines are out in our back yard, kicking ass and tearing shit up. The Avro Vulcan is probably the most striking aircraft I’ve ever seen, and it snuck up on us a couple of days ago. I just looked out the window and it looked like a huge manta was about to attack the building. But it just started doing some lazy loops and turns, and eventually disappeared. It didn’t land at the airport, sadly.

We are having a fine time in the office, but I felt bad for the customer I had on the phone when the Red Arrows started their 30-minute rehearsal today. They actually took off with the smokers going, in formation. Show-offs. I went out onto the roof of our 5-story parking deck to watch them go, and man, what a glorious chaos of noise, smoke, and low-flying metal.

My desk is right across the street from the runway where all this is happening. Being right on the airport, we’re pretty used to hearing planes taking off and landing. The windows are thick, sound-proof slabs that are supposed to block any noise that comes at them. But when an F-22 buzzes your office building (as one did Thursday during a meeting), there isn’t much any glass can do about the roar of those wonderful, CO2-pumping engines. In fact, any time a military aircraft is getting started the noise level is so intense that the entire office stops working, walks over to the windows, and waits for the show to start.

When the F-18 started doing loops and vertical climbs, a buddy and I went out to have a cigarette and enjoy the show. Right when we opened the door, it blasted past us at about 200 feet off the ground. Every car alarm in the parking lot went off. It was fucking awesome.