Actually, I'm already there (no, not Kuwait).

It took forever - four days, 27 total hours flying time. But we are officially "here." For a loooooooooooong time. Can't tell you where. Sorry - I'm no traitor Karl Rove.

Reading: Sunstorm by Clarke and Blake. Not as good as its predecessor, Time's Eye, but awesome nonetheless.

Listening: Donnie Darko Sountrack. "Under the Milky Way," by The Church slays me every time. Yes, it's a direct descendent of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps," but if you're going to be unoriginal and copy someone, I say The Beatles is a wise choice.

Eating: MRE Menu 18, Cajun Rice & Beans. If only this one came with the peanut butter instead of that "cheese spread" crap...

As a military professional I've flown on a lot of aircraft. I've hung out the back of H-53s while firing the GAU-18 (that's a .50 cal for you old-timers). I've suffered those horrid, fold-down plastic C-17 seats for hours at a time. I've watched giant equipment bounce back and forth just inches from my face as the C-141 carrying me jerked to and fro. I've spent many hours sneaking naps just above the internal tanks of Combat Shadows. I've watched, through outrageously overpriced NVGs, men ride up and down rescue hoists as if casually catching elevator rides. I've even pulled 9.1 g's in an F-16 (and thus, technically, weighed over a ton). And I've gone around the world a couple times in the C-5 Galaxy.

The C-5 has a reputation for "breaking." I.e., when a C-5's aircrew wants to find something wrong with their plane, they can easily find something to keep the jet - and therefore them - on the ground for an extended period of time. So, if you're catching a ride on a C-5 to Shitfield, Korea, but on the way are obliged to stop in Hawaii so the aircraft can refuel, you can bet your ass the aircrew will "break" their jet long enough to get in some crew rest and lets-go-play-on-the-beaches-and-check-out-the-babes down time.

It's true - the same jet that "breaks" in Rota, Spain for two days manages to get off the ground a couple hours after stopping for petrol at Baghdad International. Just an example of course.

Most troops, myself included, like the C-5 because, despite its suspiciously fastidious track record it's usually the most comfortable ride. Set up like a regular airliner, only facing backwards (and with about 95% fewer windows), it beats the hell out of the cargo strap and plastic seats typically found elsewhere.

But twenty-seven hours of flying on anything will drive a man to drink.
Which I must do now...